When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and which to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average.
Andrew Erickson and Derek Brown share a few of their must-have fantasy football draft targets for 2026.
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2026 Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Must-Have Players
Here are a few must-have players our experts love to draft in 2026.
Zay Flowers (WR – BAL)
There’s a world where Zay Flowers has the talent to be a top-5 fantasy WR if he can ever score TDs. Over 1,200 yards. 86 catches and 5 TDs (WR7) in 2025. WR3 over the last five games. 4+ catches in 13 of his 17 games: a testament to his reliable floor and consistent involvement. 5th in target share (28%). 11th in air yards share (35%). 4th in yards per route run behind Puka Nacua, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Luther Burden.
– Andrew Erickson
Chase Brown (RB – CIN)
Last year, Chase Brown started slowly as the RB34 in fantasy points per game in Weeks 1-5. After that point, he was exactly who fantasy gamers thought they were drafting as the RB6 in fantasy points per game. In Weeks 6-18, among 48 qualifying backs, he ranked 17th in explosive run rate, fifth in yards after contact per attempt, and 16th in missed tackles forced per attempt (per Fantasy Points Data). During that span, he averaged 18.2 touches and 100.1 total yards. Brown had to deal with Samaje Perine eating into his workload during Weeks 13-18, but it didn’t capsize his production. During that stretch, while he did play 60.5% of the snaps and 71.6% of the snaps in the red zone, he did have 17 red zone carries versus Perine’s 13. If Brown can capture more of the red zone work in 2026, his ceiling and floor will be raised considerably from a week-to-week and season-long perspective. Brown is a solid RB1 with top-five upside this season.
– Derek Brown
Ladd McConkey (WR – LAC)
Don’t hold the OL injuries against the Chargers’ skill players. Ladd McConkey specifically. The Chargers’ WR failed to live up to his expectations from his rookie season, as Keenan Allen‘s presence capped his target/production ceiling. The 33-year-old WR LED the Chargers in targets under OC Greg Roman (hyper-targeted on third downs). But with Roman replaced by Mike McDaniel, we should expect McConkey to finish closer to his rookie season, when he averaged 2.6 YPRR. McDaniel knows how to deploy his WRs to achieve peak efficiency both for real-life and fantasy purposes.
– Andrew Erickson
Jordyn Tyson (WR – NO)
The Saints drafted Jordyn Tyson 8th overall, adding a high-upside weapon for their second-year QB in Kellen Moore’s fast-paced offense. The former Arizona State standout broke out at 18 and commanded a 35% target share in 2025, showcasing elite target-earning ability when healthy. Durability concerns linger after multiple injuries, but his prospect profile checks nearly every box of a future WR1. With New Orleans capable of supporting multiple fantasy-relevant wideouts, Tyson has a clear path to operate as a No. 2 if not 1B alongside Chris Olave.
– Andrew Erickson
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Fantasy Football Draft Rankings
Check out the consensus 2026 fantasy football draft rankings from our experts.
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