The 2026 NFL Draft's first round featured key skill players, including standout Jeremiyah Love. Notable quarterbacks and wide receivers landed in intriguing positions, impacting fantasy football strategies.
Key points
2026 NFL Draft first round concluded
Jeremiyah Love is a standout player
Notable quarterbacks and wide receivers selected
Analysis focuses on landing spots
Fernando Mendoza drafted by Las Vegas Raiders
Las Vegas Raiders
The first round of the 2026 NFL Draft has come to a close, and we saw quite a few skill players come off the board. Jeremiyah Love is the headliner, but there are plenty of top wide receiver prospects finding themselves in fascinating landing spots and, of course, there are the quarterbacks and tight end who came off the board.
Let’s dive into our fantasy football analysis for where each of the skill players taken in Round 1 landed. Of note, we are doing this in order of where they were picked.
How do you feel about Jared Goff? That’s pretty much what you’re going to get in peak years from Fernando Mendoza. The good news is that he already has an All-Pro offensive weapon in Brock Bowers, and we have all the confidence in the world that Klint Kubiak can get the most out of Mendoza. For 2026, we don’t see any realistic outcome where Mendoza is a top-16 fantasy quarterback. Looking ahead to the next decade, his ceiling might be a fringe top-12 fantasy option at his position.
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Fantasy Football, 2026 NFL Draft
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Was this the ideal landing spot for Jeremiyah Love from a fantasy football perspective? No, not even close. The Arizona Cardinals offensive line leaves a lot to be desired and, as helpful as Jacoby Brissett was for inflating the numbers of his pass-catchers, Love will face stacked boxes because of who is under center in Arizona. With that said, talent is what matters. Ashton Jeanty scored the 11th-most fantasy points among running backs on ESPN as a rookie, and Love’s pass-catching ability is superior. We view Love as a top-10 fantasy running back this season and, if the situation in Arizona ever improves, he can be a top-three RB in dynasty alongside Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs.
The Tennessee Titans made it perfectly clear tonight that they are all-in on Cam Ward and willing to invest premium draft capital into supporting him. Carnell Tate, the most polished wide receiver prospect in the 2026 NFL Draft, steps in as the clear-cut No. 1 receiver in Brian Daboll’s offense. When people compare him to Calvin Ridley, remember that’s the version of the player who put up 3,061 receiving yards and 26 touchdowns in his first three seasons with the Atlanta Falcons. We would feel confident drafting Tate as a mid-tier WR2 in fantasy football this year, and he could be a high-end No. 2 long-term.
Jordyn Tyson, WR, Arizona State
Fantasy Football, 2026 NFL Draft
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Medicals are the primary concern with Jordyn Tyson. Standing at 6-foot-2 with very good speed and outstanding ball skills, he’s capable of making big plays both downfield and in the red zone. He’s already a very good route runner who knows how to create separation downfield, a perfect pairing with Tyler Shough. Some will point to the negative that he’ll be sharing looks with Chris Olave, but Kellen Moore is a very good play-caller, and there are a growing number of examples of passing games that can support two high-end receivers from a fantasy perspective. We think Tyson could wind up being a low-end WR2 this season, but there will be some volatility, and you must remember that he has a lengthy track record of lower-body injuries.
Well, that happened. Ty Simpson obviously doesn’t have any fantasy football value in 2026. So, this is really just trying to look at him through the lens of the dynasty perspective. There truly might not be a better landing spot for a young quarterback, as this Los Angeles Rams offense will have Sean McVay and Puka Nacua for years to come. That would seem to suggest we are optimistic long-term about Simpson. Except, Simpson is just a pedestrian athlete at the quarterback position with arm strength and playmaking ability that could be best described as adequate. There’s no top-five fantasy QB upside here, not by a long shot. We don’t view this as a quarterback prospect worth stashing.
The fantasy football landscape at tight end isn’t remotely as thin as it used to be. With that said, Kenyon Sadiq has the ability to become a top-five player at the position. He’s “only” 6-foot-3, but the athleticism is off the charts. He’s just as capable of leaping over a defender (43.5″ vertical jump) or making an acrobatic catch in the end zone as he is taking a short pass and turning on the jets with his speed (4.39 40-yard dash time). Plus, landing with the New York Jets means he is in an offense with a No. 1 wide receiver who immediately draws the focus of the defense, and New York’s other first-round pick (Omar Cooper Jr.) creates even more open space. There have been NFL comparisons to Vernon Davis and Trey McBride; Sadiq is that elite as an athlete, and he can be one of the best fantasy tight ends for years to come.
So it’s evident A.J. Brown is being traded to the New England Patriots in the first week of June. Makai Lemon, who nearly landed with the Pittsburgh Steelers, immediately slides into the No. 2 role in the Philadelphia Eagles offense. This assumes he takes over that DeVonta Smith role (113 targets in 17 games last season). There’s Amon-Ra St. Brown-lite qualities here with Lemon, and his skill set absolutely translates to making an impact in his rookie season. However, his upside is capped as he’ll be in a run-heavy offense and will be catching passes from a quarterback whose accuracy issues have already frustrated two of his star wide receivers. Lemon could be a high-end WR2 in fantasy at some point in his career, but he’ll be a WR3 in 2026.
While the quarterback situation with the Cleveland Browns is still a bit shaky, we like this landing spot for KC Concepcion. He has an opportunity to immediately become the best receiver on the Browns offense, and play-caller Todd Monken has a proven track record of finding ways to get the football into the hands of his playmakers. As a rookie, we could even see Cleveland take advantage of his explosiveness as a returner. We anticipate that Concepcion becomes a risk-reward WR3 this upcoming season and, long-term, if he cleans up the drops and gets a great quarterback, could be a high-end WR2.
Omar Cooper Jr, WR, New York Jets
Fantasy Footbal, 2026 NFL Draft
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Reporting in the weeks leading up to the 2026 NFL Draft made it very clear that the New York Jets were very high on Omar Cooper Jr. Sure enough, they moved up late in Round 1 to snag him. The NFL comparisons to Deebo Samuel are legitimate; Cooper offers enticing YAC ability at 6-foot, and he is a pain for defensive backs to bring down. He’s also walking into a situation where Garrett Wilson and Kenyon Sadiq will already be pulling away defenders, creating more open space for Cooper to operate. He profiles for the 2026 season as a low-end WR3 in fantasy, but there’s very real long-term upside for him to be a strong WR2.
Jadarian Price certainly landed in a relatively favorable spot from a fantasy football perspective. Zach Charbonnet is facing a long recovery from the ACL surgery he underwent in January, and Emanuel Wilson is nothing more than depth. Price enters the NFL with minimal tread on the tires, handling just 295 career touches in three seasons at Notre Dame. He averaged 6-plus yards per carry in each of his last seasons and totaled 20 scrimmage touchdowns on 243 attempts. The vision he brings to the table bodes well for immediate success, and there’s a clear path to an early-down role as the lead back in the Seahawks’ offense. However, in PPR scoring, his value takes a hit because of his present limitations on third down. For now, he projects as a low-end RB2 and a much stronger FLEX play in 2026.
