Top Fantasy Football Takeaways for 2026: AFC South

The FantasyPros Football Podcast continued its division-by-division offseason series with the AFC South, breaking down one key fantasy football takeaway for each team, with a focus on how 2025 trends should shape your fantasy football approach heading into 2026 drafts.

Fantasy Football Takeaways for 2026: AFC South

Below is a team-by-team AFC South fantasy outlook for the Jaguars, Texans, Colts, and Titans, including the biggest lessons from last season and what they mean for 2026 fantasy football drafts (redraft + dynasty-minded angles where relevant). And watch the full episode below.

Jacksonville Jaguars Fantasy Football Outlook

Key Takeaway: “Styles make fights” QB/WR fit matters as much as talent

One of the biggest lessons from Jacksonville in 2025 wasn’t just about player performance, it was about fit.

Trevor Lawrence played some of his best football, but the players who benefited most were:

slot/underneath targets (Jakobi Meyers, Parker Washington)
tight ends working short-to-intermediate (Brenton Strange)

Meanwhile, the player many expected to thrive, Brian Thomas Jr., never consistently clicked with Lawrence, despite being a premium talent. The key takeaway is that fantasy analysis can’t stop at “good QB + good WR = fantasy breakout.” It’s about how the quarterback plays and which archetypes he naturally elevates.

2026 Draft Outlook

Be cautious projecting “alpha downfield” production in Jacksonville unless the offense shifts stylistically.
Slot receivers and underneath TEs may remain the most stable weekly options with Trevor Lawrence.
Use this team as a reminder: when QB situations change league-wide, look for fit winners (the “right” type of receiver for that quarterback), not just the best athlete.

Houston Texans Fantasy Football Outlook

Key Takeaway: Offensive line changes don’t automatically mean improvement

Houston’s 2025 season reinforced a brutal truth for fantasy football: a struggling offensive line can cap an entire offense, even when the skill players are talented.

The Texans tried to “fix” the line with changes, but the offense still struggled to find consistency:

C.J. Stroud never fully returned to his rookie ceiling
The run game sputtered, even with big volume
Efficiency stayed ugly (including poor rushing success rates for the backs)

The result was an offense that could flash late, but rarely sustained the type of consistency fantasy managers need.

2026 Draft Outlook

Nico Collins remains the Texans’ clearest fantasy bet, but the rest of the receiving room is tricky.
This is a “don’t chase the WR2” spot if the offense continues to spread targets among multiple names (Higgins, Noel, Tank Dell returning, etc.).
Monitor Houston’s offseason line moves, because line quality may be the biggest swing factor for Stroud, the RBs, and secondary WRs.

Fantasy football lesson: don’t hand-wave offensive line concerns with “it can’t get worse.” Sometimes it does, and even when it doesn’t, “still bad” is enough to ruin fantasy value.

Indianapolis Colts Fantasy Football Outlook

Key Takeaway: Alec Pierce is getting paid, and could be a 2026 fantasy difference-maker

Alec Pierce went from “best ball field-stretcher” to legitimate fantasy conversation by the end of 2025:

career highs in catches
over 1,000 yards
elite yards per catch profile

The larger point is what his breakout represented: quarterback style can completely reshape a pecking order. When Indy’s QB play shifted, Pierce’s downfield role became a featured part of the offense, and it came at the expense of other assumed target leaders.

Pierce now feels like the type of free agent who gets paid to be a real team’s WR2, and when that happens, his fantasy relevance rises fast (even if the weekly ride is volatile).

2026 Draft Outlook

Pierce will likely be one of the biggest ADP risers among AFC South WRs.
His best fantasy role is on a team that:
- takes consistent downfield shots
- has a QB willing to throw outside the numbers
Expect boom/bust weeks, but don’t be surprised if he finishes as a top-25 fantasy wide receiver in the right landing spot.

Tennessee Titans Fantasy Football Outlook

Key Takeaway: Cam Ward is a prime second-year fantasy football upside bet

Cam Ward didn’t give fantasy managers an instant rookie-QB payoff in 2025, but the second half of the season offered the clearest signal that he can become a “tide that lifts all boats” in 2026.

Over his final stretch, Ward played better football, protected the ball, and faced a brutally difficult schedule. The Titans didn’t exactly put him in a position to succeed, and that context matters when evaluating his numbers.

The bigger takeaway: year two is often the leap year for mobile quarterbacks, especially if the team builds around them with better play-calling and one additional weapon.

2026 Draft Outlook

Ward is likely to be a cheap QB2 in superflex drafts with upside to outperform his ADP.
Tennessee’s young pass-catchers (and any veteran addition) become more interesting if the Titans:
- stabilize coaching/play-calling
- add a trustworthy outside receiver (the episode even floated names like Alec Pierce as a stylistic fit)
Don’t assume “new QB = instant fantasy boom,” but Ward profiles as the type of bet that can win leagues if the situation improves even slightly.

Fantasy football lesson: prioritize mobile quarterbacks with second-year growth potential, they don’t need 4,500 passing yards to return top-10 value.

Final AFC South Fantasy Football Takeaways

Jaguars: QB/WR fit matters. Lawrence appears to elevate slot + TE profiles more reliably than pure downfield alphas.
Texans: Offensive line struggles can cap everything, and “changes” don’t guarantee improvement.
Colts: Alec Pierce is ascending (and likely getting paid), his 2026 value hinges on landing spot and QB style.
Titans: Cam Ward is a classic year-two upside swing, especially in superflex formats.