Fantasy Football: 20 NFL Preseason Week 1 Takeaways (2026)

Practice makes perfect, they say. After the first week of the preseason, let’s run through the most fantasy football-relevant items from the exhibition games.

Hat tip to Nathan Jahnke of PFF (@FFNateJahnke) for the snap and usage data.

Fantasy Football Takeaways From Week 1 of the Preseason

A Mixed Bag for Love

Jeremiyah Love was the headliner of the NFL’s Preseason Week 1 – for reasons both good and bad.

Love was electric for the Cardinals, rushing 11 times for 58 yards and catching three passes for 14 yards. The No. 3 overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft looked worthy of a second-round pick in fantasy football drafts … until he got hurt.

It’s fair to question the logic of giving a fifth-round pick so much work in an exhibition game, and that choice seemed particularly ill-advised after Love sustained a high-ankle sprain. Love had continued to play on Thursday night after starting QB Jacoby Brissett had left the game for the Cardinals.

High-ankle sprains are no joke for a running back. The Cardinals hope to have Love ready for Week 1. The typical recovery timetable for a high-ankle sprain is 3-5 weeks, but there’s typically a performance dip lasting around six weeks, according to Dr. Deepak Chona, an injury analyst and FantasyPros contributor.

Love’s talent is undeniable, and while his workhorse usage in a preseason game was inexcusably silly, it bodes well for his regular-season usage upon full recovery.

I’ve dropped Love a single spot in my rankings, from RB13 to RB14, behind Kyren Williams. I would have spent a late second-round pick on Love had he not been injured. Now, he’s 28th in my overall rankings.

Stribling’s Big Game

Rookie De’Zhaun Stribling flashed in a big way in the 49ers’ preseason matchup against the Titans, with seven catches for 63 yards on eight targets.

We probably shouldn’t read too much into Stribling’s ample target volume in a game where the 49ers didn’t play their offensive starters. And the high target volume may have been intentional in a “Let’s see what the kid can do” kind of way. But Stribling’s performance was impressive nonetheless.

I was among those who questioned San Francisco’s selection of Stribling with the first pick of the second round in this year’s draft. There are still valid questions about what sort of role Stribling can carve out as a rookie when he didn’t even lead Ole Miss in receptions or receiving yardage last season.

But Stribling, who’s 6-2, 207 pounds, and ran a 4.36 at the NFL Scouting Combine, could add dynamism to a 49ers offense festooned with veterans in their 30s.

I’m trying to keep an open mind on Stribling and have moved him up to WR59. I consider him a worthy flyer in the later rounds of drafts.

The Golden Age?

Packers QB Jordan Love played nine snaps in Green Bay’s preseason opener vs. Pittsburgh. The Packers used two-receiver sets on two of those nine snaps, and it was Matthew Golden, not Jayden Reed, on the field with Christian Watson for those two plays.

The offseason departures of Romeo Doubs and Dontavion Wicks should mean more snaps for both Golden and Reed, but those extra snaps when the Packers are in 12 personnel figure to give Golden a season-long snap edge over Reed. Before the weekend, I had Reed slightly ahead of Golden in my rankings, but I now have Golden (WR50) ranked just ahead of Reed (WR51).

Likely’s Usage Concerns

In a concerning development for Isaiah Likely enthusiasts, Likely played only 6-of-14 snaps with the Giants’ starters Saturday against the Vikings, one fewer than Theo Johnson played with the starters and only one more than Chris Manhertz.

Likely remains at TE11 in my rankings, but I’m considering moving him down and will be shying away from him in the one draft I have this week.

Tennessee’s Complicated Backfield

Tony Pollard started at running back for the Titans’ preseason game against the 49ers, but Tyjae Spears played 12 snaps with the Tennessee starters, while Pollard played nine.

The Titans’ RB situation could be messy, with Spears perhaps cutting into Pollard’s usage more than we had anticipated, and with rookie Nicholas Singleton also in the mix. I’ve dropped Pollard into low-end RB3 territory at RB34, while Spears moves up to RB47. Singleton, the only one of Tennessee’s top three RBs under contract beyond 2026, checks in at RB59.

Gadsden’s Stock Falling

Oronde Gadsden had 24 catches for 377 yards and two touchdowns from Week 6 to Week 9 last season and was TE1 in fantasy football scoring over that four-game stretch. But it bodes ill for Gadsden’s 2026 fantasy value that he played in the Chargers’ preseason game against the Texans on Thursday night while fellow TEs Charlie Kolar and David Njoku rested along with the Chargers’ other offensive starters.

Gadsden’s FantasyPros Expert Consensus ranking sits at TE20 after being as high as TE11 early in the offseason. I’m ranking Gadsden TE25 and consider him undraftable in all but the deepest of leagues.

Browns Rookies Heavily Involved

Browns beat writers have raved about the training-camp showings of rookie WRs KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston. They both played with the starters in three-receiver sets, along with veteran Jerry Jeudy, in Cleveland’s preseason opener.

The two rookies continue to play after the Browns’ first team headed to the bench, while Jeudy took a seat along with the other starters. But if Jeudy is the team’s No. 1 receiver, his grasp on that honorary title seems tenuous at best.

Concepcion had three catches for 27 yards and added a 14-yard TD run. Boston had one catch for 15 yards. Jeudy had two catches for 18 yards.

I have Concepcion ranked WR48, Boston WR53, and Jeudy WR62.

Lloyd Asserts Himself

With starting RB Josh Jacobs sitting out for the Packers, MarShawn Lloyd played all nine snaps with the starters and had four carries for 13 yards. Lloyd has dealt with myriad injuries since entering the league in 2024, but the former third-round draft pick is clearly the No. 2 behind Josh Jacobs, who dealt with injuries of his own last season.

Chargers’ Backfield Takes Shape

In another Chargers usage tidbit of note, RB Kimani Vidal played in the first week of the preseason while Keaton Mitchell rested.

Chargers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel has warned that he might annoy fantasy managers by deploying his running backs in unpredictable fashion. But the first week of the preseason suggests that Mitchell is No. 2 in the pecking order behind starter Omarion Hampton, and Vidal is No. 3.

Mitchell is a reasonable later-round option in fantasy football drafts, while Vidal should probably be left for the waiver wire.

Interesting Usage Nuggets

Rookie WR Caleb Douglas and veteran Malik Washington were the top two receivers in snaps in the Dolphins’ preseason opener. They’re the only two Miami receivers worth considering in fantasy drafts, and both are still only marginal late-round candidates. The Dolphins’ WR corps could be messy and volatile all season.
Second-year WR Pat Bryant has reportedly been having an excellent training camp for the Broncos, and his usage in the team’s preseason opener suggests that he’s the No. 3 receiver behind Jaylen Waddle and Courtland Sutton. While Waddle sat out, Bryant played with Sutton when Denver’s first team used two-receiver sets. And when the Denver starters left, Bryant left with them, while Troy Franklin continued to play with the second team. I’ve moved Bryant up to WR70.
It’s too early to panic on Cam Ward, but the Titans’ starting quarterback had a rough preseason opener against the 49ers, completing 5-of-12 passes for 57 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. Ward also had a 2-yard run. Ward probably shouldn’t be drafted in normal-sized 1QB fantasy leagues but remains a reasonable QB3 option in superflex leagues.
Among the Raiders’ wide receivers, Tre Tucker played 9-of-10 snaps with starting QB Kirk Cousins, Jalen Nailor played eight, and Jack Bech played five. Tucker and Nailor are reasonable late-round dart throws in fantasy football drafts. Bech is more of a Hail Mary.
Germie Bernard looked sharp in the Steelers’ 28-9 win over the Packers, with four catches for 51 yards on five targets. Just realize that Bernard has yet to clearly pass Roman Wilson for Pittsburgh’s No. 3 receiver role. Wilson played 18 of 19 snaps with the Steelers’ first team on Thursday night; Bernard played 16 snaps.
First-round rookie Omar Cooper Jr. entered the game on the Jets’ first preseason game on the second drive, after the starters had left. Cooper has reportedly failed to impress in training camp, and as the current WR4 on the Jets’ depth chart, he’s not a good late-round option in redraft leagues.
Deshaun Watson played reasonably well in Cleveland’s preseason game vs. the Bears, completing 11-of-15 throws for 126 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. He also ran three times for 4 yards. Watson is competing for the starting job with Shedeur Sanders, who was 6-of-11 for 79 yards with no TDs and one INT.
Falcons rookie WR Zachariah Branch played only one snap with the offensive starters on Friday night, while four other Atlanta receivers played more. It appears that Jahan Dotson will be on the field along with star Drake London when Atlanta uses 12 personnel. Neither Dotson nor Branch is draftable.
It seemed as if Isaac TeSlaa, for whom the Lions sacrificed considerable draft capital to take in the third round of the 2025 draft, would be Detroit’s third receiver. That assumption isn’t safe considering that TeSlaa played into the second quarter of Detroit’s preseason opener while the Lions’ starters rested.
Fourth-round rookie Mike Washington operated as the clear backup to Ashton Jeanty for the Raiders, carrying six times for 63 yards vs. the Cardinals and looking good over that small sample size. Washington isn’t draftable in most conventional-sized fantasy leagues, but he would become a coveted waiver-wire pickup if Jeanty were to miss any significant time.
Brashard Smith was the only running back to take snaps with Kansas City’s starters other than clear No. 1 Kenneth Walker III. It’s still too early to get a read on who’ll be No. 2 in the Chiefs’ backfield.