Week 2 gave us our first real look at how NFL backfields, target shares, snap counts, and offensive roles are taking shape in 2026. While one game shouldn’t completely change how we value a player, some performances and usage trends are too important to ignore. Here are the biggest risers and fallers in my updated fantasy football rest-of-season rankings following Week 2.
Full Rest-of-Season Fantasy Football Rankings
Looking for the complete rankings? Jump to the full rest-of-season rankings below to see where every QB, RB, WR, and TE currently stands in PPR, Half-PPR, and Standard formats.
[Jump to Full Rest-of-Season Rankings]
Rankings Risers
Kenneth Walker III, RB, Kansas City Chiefs
Kenneth Walker was already one of my biggest risers after Week 1, and I’m moving him even higher after what we’ve seen through two games. His 173 rushing yards in his Chiefs debut proved the explosive ability immediately translated to Kansas City’s offense, and he followed it with another 117 rushing yards and 178 scrimmage yards against Indianapolis. Walker now leads the NFL with 290 rushing yards and 369 scrimmage yards through two games, but the workload might be even more important than the production. He drew 10 targets in Week 2, giving him considerably more receiving upside than I expected when Kansas City acquired him. Patrick Mahomes throwing for 382 yards and three touchdowns Sunday only reinforces how valuable this environment can be when the offense is functioning at its ceiling. Walker entered the season with questions about his workload and receiving role; two weeks later, I’m not particularly concerned about either. He’s attached to Mahomes, has retained the explosiveness that made him so dangerous in Seattle and is getting legitimate workhorse usage. Walker belongs firmly in my RB1 tier for the rest of the season.
Chuba Hubbard, RB, Carolina Panthers
I was ready to move Chuba Hubbard down aggressively entering the season, but his situation looks considerably different two weeks later. The biggest concern was Jonathon Brooks returning and potentially turning this into a committee, but Carolina officially placed Brooks on injured reserve Wednesday after he re-aggravated a groin injury against Atlanta. That guarantees Brooks will miss at least the next four games and leaves Hubbard as the clear lead back in Carolina’s offense. Hubbard still needs to be more efficient than he was last season, so I’m not pretending all of my preseason concerns have disappeared, but opportunity wins in fantasy football. Carolina’s offense has also looked considerably better than expected through two games, which gives Hubbard a better environment for carries and scoring opportunities. With Brooks now unavailable for the foreseeable future, Hubbard’s path toward 15-plus touches every week becomes much clearer, and that’s enough for me to move him comfortably back up my rest-of-season running back rankings.
Denzel Boston, WR, Cleveland Browns
Denzel Boston is quickly becoming one of my favorite early-season breakout receivers. After going for 59 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, Boston caught five of seven targets for 95 yards and another score against Tampa Bay, giving him seven receptions for 154 yards and two touchdowns through his first two NFL games. What makes me considerably more interested is that Cleveland isn’t using him like a situational rookie. Boston continues playing a major role in the Browns’ receiver rotation, and Week 2 showed he doesn’t have to survive entirely on deep shots to produce. He’s 6-foot-4, 215 pounds and already looks capable of winning downfield while also earning easier opportunities underneath. The quarterback situation will create some volatility, and I’m obviously not projecting his current touchdown pace forward, but the talent, playing time and target opportunity are already showing up much earlier than expected. Boston has moved from a waiver-wire stash into someone I’m comfortable treating as a legitimate WR3/flex with considerably more upside if his target share continues growing.
Matthew Golden, WR, Green Bay Packers
Matthew Golden’s breakout isn’t coming from one massive fantasy performance; it’s coming from Green Bay repeatedly showing us that he has become one of the central pieces of this passing game. Golden drew 12 targets in Week 1 before catching four of six targets for a team-high 58 yards against the Jets. According to charting data, he also ran 32 routes on Green Bay’s 34 dropbacks in Week 2, which is exactly the type of role I want to chase before the fantasy points completely catch up. Christian Watson is also commanding significant volume, so I’m not expecting Golden to suddenly own a 30% target share every week, but Jayden Reed’s neck injury creates another path toward targets and Golden has already established himself as one of Jordan Love’s primary receivers. The Packers have historically frustrated fantasy managers by rotating too many receivers, but Golden’s route participation suggests this season could be different. I’m moving him up because the weekly floor looks significantly stronger than it did entering the year, while his downfield ability still gives him the ceiling to become a high-end fantasy starter.
Dalton Kincaid, TE, Buffalo Bills
Dalton Kincaid keeps moving up my rankings because the role change we saw in Week 1 carried directly into Week 2. After catching five passes for 130 yards in the opener, Kincaid remained heavily involved against Detroit and finished with a 71.1% route participation rate, according to PFF. Buffalo has also used double-digit snaps of 13 personnel in both games after never reaching that mark in a game last season, allowing Kincaid to stay on the field in formations where he previously lost snaps to Dawson Knox and other blocking tight ends. That’s the entire reason I’m buying this breakout. According to Fantasy Points Data, Kincaid was already one of the league’s most efficient tight ends on a per-route basis last season; the problem was that Buffalo wasn’t giving him enough routes. Now the Bills appear to have actually changed the way they’re using him. The 130-yard games obviously won’t continue, but the playing time might, and that’s enough for me to move Kincaid firmly into the upper tier of my rest-of-season tight end rankings.
Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay Packers
Christian Watson’s Week 2 box score wasn’t anything special outside of the touchdown, but the 11 targets are much more important to me than the 41 receiving yards. Watson caught four passes for 41 yards and a touchdown against the Jets after drawing eight targets in Week 1, meaning he’s now averaging 9.5 targets through the first two games. He also led Green Bay in targets Sunday while running one fewer route than Matthew Golden. We’ve never needed Watson to become a 10-catch possession receiver to have massive fantasy value because his downfield ability and touchdown upside have always been the appeal. What we’ve never consistently gotten is this type of volume. If Watson is going to command eight-plus targets while remaining one of the league’s most dangerous vertical receivers, his fantasy ceiling changes completely. Golden’s emergence will prevent me from treating Watson like an unquestioned target hog, but a healthy Watson receiving this much opportunity from Jordan Love belongs considerably higher in my rest-of-season rankings than he did two weeks ago.
Patrick Mahomes, QB, Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes might be the player whose fantasy outlook has changed the most for me through two weeks. The passing ceiling returned in a major way against Indianapolis, with Mahomes completing 32 of 47 passes for 382 yards and three touchdowns in Kansas City’s 33-30 overtime win. It was his 19th career game with at least 350 passing yards and three touchdowns, and it came one week after Mahomes showed that the ACL and LCL injuries haven’t completely eliminated his ability to create fantasy points with his legs. That’s the combination I wanted to see before moving him aggressively back toward the elite fantasy quarterbacks. Mahomes doesn’t need to rush for 600 yards to make a difference; another 20-30 yards in certain weeks with the occasional rushing touchdown can significantly raise a fantasy floor that became too dependent on passing touchdowns in recent seasons. Kenneth Walker has also completely changed the Chiefs’ backfield and given this offense another explosive weapon. I’m not declaring vintage Mahomes completely back after two games, but his path toward another elite fantasy season looks considerably stronger than it did entering Week 1.
Rankings Fallers
Rashee Rice, WR, Kansas City Chiefs
Patrick Mahomes is moving up my rankings, but Rashee Rice is moving in the opposite direction because Kansas City’s passing game hasn’t been nearly as concentrated around him as I expected. Rice caught four of six targets for 83 yards against Indianapolis, which is a perfectly fine box score, but Kenneth Walker drew 10 targets of his own and continues taking touches in the short areas of the field where Rice has historically done so much of his damage. This comes after Rice opened the season with only 19 receiving yards, giving us two games where he hasn’t commanded the type of dominant volume I expected entering the year. I’m not panicking because Rice remains a very good receiver attached to Mahomes, and 83 yards on six targets demonstrates that he can still produce without massive volume. But I entered the year expecting something much closer to the target dominance we saw last season, when he averaged 71.4 receiving yards per game and consistently functioned as Mahomes’ first read. Through two weeks, Walker’s expanded receiving role makes that projection harder to defend. Rice remains a weekly starter, but I’m moving him down from the elite WR1 ceiling I gave him entering the season.
Malik Nabers, WR, New York Giants
Malik Nabers falling has very little to do with how I feel about him as a receiver and almost everything to do with what happened Monday night. Nabers caught only one of four targets for one yard against the Rams and briefly left with a right shoulder injury before returning to the game. Nabers said afterward that the shoulder popped out and that he put it back into place himself, with additional testing needed to determine the extent of the injury. Jaxson Dart is also believed to have suffered a sprained MCL after leaving on New York’s opening series, with Jameis Winston taking over for the remainder of the game. That’s suddenly two major sources of uncertainty surrounding a player I entered the season viewing as one of fantasy’s safest elite receivers. Nabers’ talent and target-earning ability aren’t going anywhere, so I’m not making some massive reaction to one terrible game, but the shoulder issue combined with uncertainty at quarterback lowers both his immediate floor and rest-of-season outlook until we know more. If Dart returns quickly and Nabers’ testing comes back clean, this could be a temporary adjustment. Right now, there are enough new variables that I can’t keep him exactly where he was entering Week 2.
Travis Etienne Jr., RB, New Orleans Saints
Travis Etienne’s Week 2 usage gave us reasons for both optimism and concern, but the overall direction of this backfield still has him moving down my rankings. Etienne managed only eight carries for 25 yards and two receptions for six yards against Baltimore, giving him just 109 scrimmage yards on 26 touches through two games. More concerning was the first half, when Alvin Kamara handled 10 touches while Etienne received only two carries. The rotation changed considerably after halftime, however, with Etienne out-snapping Kamara 21-7 and winning the touch battle 8-4 over the final two quarters, according to PFF charting. That’s important because I’m not willing to see Kamara dominate early and immediately declare Etienne finished. The problem is that I entered the season hoping Etienne could establish a predictable lead role, and instead we’ve now seen multiple different backfield distributions in two weeks. Kendre Miller was heavily involved in Week 1, Kamara returned in Week 2, and Etienne still hasn’t scored. The second-half usage keeps me from dropping him dramatically, but until New Orleans settles on a more predictable hierarchy, Etienne is moving toward the RB3 range rather than someone I want to automatically treat as an RB2.
Colston Loveland, TE, Chicago Bears
I’m running out of reasons to keep Colston Loveland as high as I had him entering the season. After failing to catch a pass in Week 1, Loveland caught only one of three targets for three yards against Minnesota, leaving him with essentially no fantasy production through two games. The frustrating part is that this isn’t simply a talent issue. Loveland has the athletic profile and receiving ability to become a productive NFL tight end, but Chicago’s offense has been a mess, and the Bears continue spreading opportunities across multiple tight ends and receivers. Caleb Williams’ injury only adds another layer of uncertainty to an offense that already struggled to consistently create opportunities for its pass catchers. I’m not dropping Loveland in deeper leagues because the talent and eventual upside remain too good, but tight end is too dependent on routes and targets to keep ranking him based on what I think the role should become. Until Chicago actually starts featuring him, Loveland has to move down my rest-of-season rankings.
Carnell Tate, WR, Tennessee Titans
Carnell Tate’s long-term outlook still excites me, but I’m lowering him because Tennessee’s offense isn’t giving him enough opportunities to justify where I had him ranked entering the year. Tate caught four passes for 38 yards on six targets in Week 1 before managing only three receptions for 27 yards on five targets against Philadelphia, leaving him with seven catches for 65 scoreless yards through two games. Eleven targets through two games isn’t terrible for a rookie, and he actually tied for Tennessee’s team lead with a 21.4% target share in his debut, so I’m not changing my evaluation of the player. The issue is that this passing offense hasn’t generated enough production for those opportunities to matter. Wan’Dale Robinson is also commanding targets, and Tate hasn’t yet established the type of dominant role that would allow him to overcome inconsistent quarterback play. I still believe the breakout comes eventually, but right now Tate is much more of a bench stash than the weekly flex option I hoped he could quickly become.
Justin Herbert, QB, Los Angeles Chargers
Justin Herbert is probably my most concerning quarterback faller because we’ve now seen the Chargers offense struggle in consecutive games. After throwing for only 209 yards and one touchdown in Week 1, Herbert completed 15 of 27 passes for 192 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions in Sunday’s loss to Las Vegas. That’s fewer than 210 passing yards and exactly one passing touchdown in each of his first two games despite entering the season with Mike McDaniel expected to unlock considerably more from this offense. I’m not suddenly questioning Herbert’s talent, and the offensive line and supporting cast have both contributed to the problems, but fantasy football doesn’t give us points for quarterback talent alone. His ability to create some production with his legs can help stabilize the floor, but we drafted Herbert expecting McDaniel’s offense to create more efficient passing production and significantly more scoring opportunities. Through two weeks, we haven’t seen it. I’m moving Herbert down within the QB1/QB2 range until the Chargers prove this offense can consistently generate explosive plays and touchdowns.
ult to project. I’m lowering Etienne slightly despite the excellent receiving usage because his path to consistent RB2 volume suddenly looks less secure.
| RK | Player | Pos | Bye | Best | Worst | AVG | Trend | Value | Rating |
|---|
