Skip Navigation to Main Content

Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings: Quarterbacks (2026 Fantasy Football)

We’ll have you covered as you prepare for your 2026 dynasty rookie drafts. In order to dominate your dynasty rookie draft, check out our expert consensus quarterback dynasty rookie draft rankings. And sync your dynasty league to practice with fast and free dynasty rookie mock drafts. Below, we dive into quarterback dynasty rookie draft rankings from some of our fantasy football expert community.

    dynasty rookie tools

    2026 Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings: Quarterbacks

    Here are our latest quarterback Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings from our consensus of fantasy football experts. You can find the latest quarterback Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings and sync your fantasy football league for specific advice.

    RK PLAYER NAME TEAM AGE BEST WORST AVG. STD.DEV
    1 Fernando Mendoza LV 22 1 1 1 0
    2 Ty Simpson LAR 23 2 3 2 0.2
    3 Carson Beck ARI 23 2 5 3.4 0.7
    4 Drew Allar PIT 22 3 8 4.6 1.4
    5 Cole Payton PHI 3 8 5.8 1.5
    6 Cade Klubnik NYJ 22 4 8 6.2 1.3
    7 Garrett Nussmeier KC 24 5 9 6.5 1.2
    8 Taylen Green CLE 23 4 8 6.5 1.3

    Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings: Quarterbacks

    Ty Simpson has the arm strength to make every throw required of an NFL quarterback. His ball placement and accuracy are erratic. Simpson will be locked in for a few throws and then sail or dirt an easy checkdown or toss a pass behind a receiver on a crossing route. His accuracy also suffers when he’s on the move. With his accuracy issues on the move and his statue-esque mobility, Simpson isn’t an off-script artist. He’s at his best when he can hit his three or five-step drop and fire the ball to a receiver when the back foot hits the ground. Many of Simpson’s second-level throws are on a line. He’ll need to improve with layering his passes to the second-level. There are some examples of this on film, but it’s not done with nearly enough regularity. Simpson will get stuck in his progressions. He’ll hang on his first read too long, way too often. He’ll miss wide receivers running wide open that are later in the progression. Simpson feels a tick behind on many plays because of his propensity to linger on his first read, but also because he operates as an extreme “see it throw it” quarterback. Receivers will snap off the top of their stem and flash open, and Simpson will then fire the ball in their direction. This won’t do on any level in the NFL with both of these tendencies holding him back. This will become even more pronounced with the speed and spacing of the NFL game. Simpson’s play against pressure is variable. He’ll step up in the pocket with composure at times or hang in the pocket and deliver an accurate ball when absorbing a big hit, but he also has concerning plays. Simpson will get happy feet versus pressure and bail workable pockets or rush his mechanics. He’ll need to become more of a steadying presence versus pressure to make it in the NFL with his lack of off-script artistry. Butter fingers impacted Simpson’s counting stats from his receiver depth chart last season. He dealt with the third-most drops among FBS signal callers (8.9% drop rate, 35th per PFF). Dynasty Outlook: Yes, it’s true. I’m not a big believer in Ty Simpson, but it seems like the Rams are after selecting him with the 13th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. Simpson will be Matthew Stafford’s understudy for the remainder of Stafford’s career. Sean McVay was very clear in post-draft pressers that this remains Stafford’s team. The Rams have been rumored to be working on an extension with Stafford, so it remains to be seen when we’ll likely see Simpson taking regular-season snaps for the Rams. This is a Michael Penix situation that could take longer to develop with a better quarterback in front of the rookie. If Stafford stays healthy, I doubt we’ll see Simpson play in 2026 or maybe even 2027. If you’re selecting Simpson in rookie drafts, you’re going to have to be patient with him. Even though I’m not a Simpson believer with first-round draft capital attached to his name, he should be a late first-round/early second-round selection in Superflex rookie drafts simply based on draft capital attached to his name. This feels like another Kenny Pickett/Mac Jones/Michael Penix type of situation to figure out for dynasty.

    Cole Payton’s dual-threat ability jumps off the film immediately. Payton has 4.6 speed and the ability to make defenders miss. Payton is built like an athletic tight end, and he’s a load to bring down in the open field. He’s not the twitchiest rusher, but he can plant his foot and avoid tacklers when needed. His size/speed combo is EXTREMELY interesting. In his final collegiate season, he had 120 rushing attempts, 894 rushing yards, and 13 rushing scores. The North Dakota State passing offense was built around Payton’s mobility with plenty of RPO action and bootlegs. Payton will have a sizable learning curve with an NFL offense, but there are also moments in his collegiate offense that offer hope that the transition won’t be as hard as it seems. He wasn’t asked to regularly make full field reads, but there are moments where he did and quickly moved to his third and fourth option in a progression. Payton is a “see it, throw it” quarterback, but he also has some anticipatory passing moments. The passing offense was also shotgun-based, so under-center work will be a hurdle, but that’s also the case for many college quarterbacks these days. Payton has a cannon for an arm. He has easy flip of the wrist velocity and the strength to drive the ball downfield. He exhibits touch when layering second-level throws and precision when ripping deep outs. He can place the ball accurately to all three levels. Payton has an NFL arm in terms of strength and touch. Payton will have an adjustment with the speed of the NFL game and the throwing lanes. There are plenty of examples of him hanging on his first read and waiting for them to uncover and break wide open. He’ll have to pull the trigger earlier in the NFL or find comfort with more tight windows. Payton has a gunslinger mentality, which can work in his favor, but with the sizable jump in competition, the early days in the NFL for him could be rocky as he adjusts. There are some plays where he flees a clean pocket to make a play with his legs. His margin for error and the ability to pull a rabbit out of his hat in the NFL will be decreased. He’ll have to recalibrate some. Dynasty Outlook: Cole Payton unfortunately fell to the fifth round of the NFL Draft, but he landed in a really nice spot to sit and develop. I won’t dismiss that he could be the eventual successor to Jalen Hurts in Philly. Yes, Payton will be the QB4 on the depth chart to begin the year, but Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee are unrestricted free agents after the 2026 season. That could easily leave Payton as Philly’s QB2 entering the 2027 season. Philly is tied to Hurts for the next two seasons with an out after the 2027 season with a 24.3 million dollar dead cap hit. I loved Payton as a prospect, and with no quarterbacks getting drafted earlier than the third round in this year’s draft, Payton will be my QB3 when it’s all said and done. I’d rather bet on his talent and traits over other flawed quarterback prospects that received middling but better draft capital.

    More Articles

    UDFA Signing Tracker & Fantasy Football Outlook (2026)

    UDFA Signing Tracker & Fantasy Football Outlook (2026)

    fp-headshot by Derek Brown | 6 min read
    Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings: Superflex Top 100 (Fantasy Football)

    Dynasty Rookie Draft Rankings: Superflex Top 100 (Fantasy Football)

    fp-headshot by Derek Brown | 15+ min read
    2026 NFL Draft Grades for Every Team

    2026 NFL Draft Grades for Every Team

    fp-headshot by Derek Brown | 15+ min read
    WR3s with WR1 Potential (2026 Fantasy Football)

    WR3s with WR1 Potential (2026 Fantasy Football)

    fp-headshot by Frank Ammirante | 2 min read

    About Author