All that is left to do from the 2026 NFL Draft is pick up the pieces of the ever-changing fantasy landscape and hope that players on your roster didn’t take too big a hit thanks to the incoming rookies their team drafted. Or maybe it’s all good news for players, and they managed to not have any added competition for their valuable role?
After walking through each team in the AFC, The Ballers are looking through each team in the NFC to see who was impacted the most – be it positively or negatively to find the winners and losers of the 2026 NFL Draft!
To hear the Ballers full breakdown of each team’s draft class, tune into the April 30 episode of the podcast!
NFC West
Fantasy Loser
Tyler Allgeier (RB)
There probably isn’t a tougher break in a career than Tyler Allgeier is getting this season. After being supplanted by Bijan Robinson following his rookie season, where he set the Falcons’ rookie record for rushing yards, Allgeier thought he was finally getting a chance to lead a backfield when he left for Arizona as a free agent. Enter Jeremiyah Love. When the Cardinals took Love with the fourth-overall pick in the draft, any chance that Allgeier had to take on a significant role for fantasy vanished like a mirage in the desert. There is still a good chance that Allgeier is annoyingly good for Arizona’s offense – just enough to limit Love during his rookie season, but at this point, he is nothing more than a FLEX play at best for fantasy rosters.
Fantasy Loser
Ricky Pearsall (WR)
After being one of the more popular breakout candidates from 2025 that didn’t quite live up to the hype, Ricky Pearsall’s chance to be a real factor on fantasy rosters may be quickly fading heading into the 2026 season. The 49ers signed Mike Evans in free agency and then added a second-round WR in De’Zhaun Stribling. Stribling brings elite speed – 4.36 40-time – and has a reputation as a solid blocking WR, which we know is valued in San Francisco. If Pearsall can’t seem to stay healthy again this season, there is real competition in Stribling to potentially overtake his role in one of the league’s more fantasy-friendly offenses.
Fantasy Winner
Incumbent Rams WRs
It’s been quite the offseason for Rams WRs, but after plenty of talk about Los Angeles spending some high-end draft capital on another receiving option, the current WRs on the team seem to be pretty safe. The Rams chose to spend their first-round pick on QB Ty Simpson, investing in their future under center as opposed to drafting another offensive weapon who could be on the field this season and further push their chips in on getting back to the Super Bowl. While Puka Nacua and Davante Adams’ position in the WR rotation was already secure, Jordan Whittington and Konata Mumpfield should feel better about their chances of being on the field given an injury in front of them at some point this season.
Fantasy Loser
Jordon Kelly/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Crowded Rams TE Room
If the WRs in LA feel good about this draft, the TEs should maybe begin to feel a bit smothered by how many there will be on this roster. The Rams spent a second-round pick on a TE for the second consecutive season, drafting Max Klare to add to the five other TEs on their roster already. With Tyler Higbee resigning during free agency and Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, and Davis Allen already working into this LA offense, it will be even more difficult to know exactly which TE can be relied on from this offense this season.
Fantasy Winner
Jadarian Price (RB)
While it might be a product of a shallow RB class, Jadarian Price’s selection with the 32nd overall pick is the exact right situation that could allow him to leap into fantasy success as a rookie. Seattle’s offense took a big blow this offseason when they let Kenneth Walker leave in free agency, so adding another explosive weapon at RB was a must during the draft. Price is polarizing as a prospect after playing behind Jeremiyah Love left his production profile lacking what we would usually see out of a first-round RB. Over the last decade, only one other RB had fewer than 700 rushing yards in his final collegiate season and was drafted in Round 1-3, and that was Josh Jacobs. The difference in Jacobs’ profile was the receiving chops he showed that we haven’t really ever seen from Price. Overall, though, Price has a shot to be a very strong fantasy contributor as a rookie on an offense that we know wants to run the ball.
Fantasy Loser
Zach Charbonnet & Emanuel Wilson
With Price heading to Seattle thanks to great draft capital, the remaining RBs for the Seahawks take a pretty big hit in value. Zach Charbonnet wasn’t expected to start the season in the Seattle backfield since he is still recovering from a late-season ACL tear, but now even a mid-season return has a cloudy future with Price involved in the rotation. To further complicate things, Emanuel Wilson’s signing with the Seahawks in free agency throws another wrench in the rotation. Based on the price spent to get Price in a draft where Seattle was already short on picks, it is likely both Charbonnet and Wilson will be non-factors for fantasy this season.
NFC East
Fantasy Winner
NY Giants Backfield Bros
With all the pre-draft smoke being fanned around the league, there were real concerns that the Giants could be spending valuable draft capital to add another RB, but after missing out on Jeremiyah Love before they could even pick, the fantasy lives of Cam Skattebo, Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Devin Singletary can come off life support heading into 2026. Skattebo is easily the biggest name to dodge the Love bullet over the weekend, though he is still going to have to come back from injury to retake his starting role in New York’s new offense.
Fantasy Loser
Darius Slayton (WR)
After Wan’Dale Robinson left in free agency, the pathway for Darius Slayton to be the Giants’ WR2 was pretty clear, but New York spent a third-round draft pick on WR Malachi Fields to possibly push Slayton back down the depth chart. Fields brings a big body to the Giants’ WR room and could complement the game of star WR Malik Nabers very well. Slayton could still see the field in three WR sets, but there’s a good chance that’s the only way he is on the field for New York once Fields gets integrated into this offense in 2026.
Fantasy Winner
Antonio Williams (WR)
Antonio Williams has a real chance to fill the gaping need in the Commanders’ offense of a capable WR behind Terry McLaurin. With Deebo Samuel’s one season in Washington likely not getting a reprieve, the WR with the most targets not named McLaurin on the roster was Jaylin Lane, with his 32 total targets in 2025. Williams is a strong route runner who has a decent production profile from Clemson and could be an instant-impact type of player for the Commanders.
Fantasy Loser
Treylon Burks (WR)
The revival of Treylon Burks’ career was probably short-lived in Washington. To be fair, Burks only caught 10 passes for the Commanders last season – though he did have that one amazing TD catch. Any hope that Washington thought Burks could be a productive WR this season had ice water thrown on it when the team drafted a WR with their second pick this weekend.
Fantasy Loser
Dak Prescott (QB)
A lot was made of the Cowboys’ draft, but Dallas did very little to add real pieces to the offense for Dak Prescott. The Cowboys spent five of their first six picks on defensive players and took an offensive tackle in the fourth round when they decided to add to the offense. It wasn’t until the seventh round that Dallas took a WR with the 218th pick in the draft. While Dak already has plenty of weapons around him, it can never hurt to keep building on an elite offense while trying to rebuild a struggling defense.
Fantasy Winner
Jalen Hurts (QB)
There aren’t many QBs who got as many shiny new toys in the draft as Jalen Hurts. The Eagles spent their first-round pick on Makai Lemon and their second-round pick on freaky athletic TE Eli Stowers. While the departure of AJ Brown from Philadelphia seems all but a done deal, getting Hurts more weapons to potentially try to replace Brown in the aggregate makes a ton of sense. Lemon and Stowers give Hurts two legitimate targets across the middle of the field to develop into new Offensive Coordinator Sean Mannion’s offense in Philadelphia.
Fantasy Loser
Dontayvion Wicks (WR)
The two weeks of Dontayvion Wicks potentially having a role in the Eagles’ offense came and went with the draft. Wicks finally got out of the muddied Packers WR room and looked to have a real path to being the WR2 in Philadelphia after being traded prior to the NFL Draft. While there is still a role for Wicks on the Eagles as the rookies get oriented into this offense, any chance of a season-long role is likely dust in the wind.
NFC North
Fantasy Winner
Isiah Pacheco (RB)
The one-two punch in Detroit should have a new look this year with Isiah Pacheco joining the Lions to try to replace some of what was left when David Montgomery was traded to the Texans. The good news for Pacheco is that the Lions didn’t spend any draft capital on a new RB to add any competition for Pacheco behind Jahmyr Gibbs. While it hashas been a minute since fantasy managers have seen Pacheco really be a productive piece for their fantasy lineups, the change of scenery for the RB, paired with the opportunity to be the second part of a good running game, should keep some fantasy relevance alive.
Fantasy Winner
Vikings RB Room
One of the sneakier teams that could have added an RB with real value in the draft was in Minnesota, but both Aaron Jones Sr. and Jordan Mason managed to exit the draft without any significant new competition in the backfield. Jones returned to the Vikings as a free agent, and Mason will be playing on essentially the last year of the free agent deal he signed after being traded to Minnesota last offseason. The late-round addition of rookie RB Demond Claiborne is the only thing that stands in the way of the Jones-Mason combo being able to run things back in what many are hoping is an improved offense for the Vikings this season.
Fantasy Winner
Packers RB Room
Another RB room unbothered by the draft is in Green Bay. While Josh Jacobs figures to be the leader yet again for the Packers at RB, the departure of Emanuel Wilson left plenty of questions about the depth pieces behind him, and mainly whether the team would rely on the oft-injured MarShawn Lloyd to be their primary backup. Lloyd has logged a whopping six carries in his two seasons in the league, so we aren’t even really sure what he’s capable of. One thing’s for sure, whenever Jacobs misses his one or two games in 2026 like he usually does, who will get the nod to lead this backfield is still a real mystery.
Fantasy Loser
Brandon McManus (K)
We love kicker talk at The Fantasy Footballers, but you have to take a moment to acknowledge when an NFL team drafts a kicker with the last name of Smack! Incumbent kicker Brandon McManus missed two field goals and an extra point in the Packers’ playoff loss to the Bears, so the drafting of Trey Smack in the sixth round could mean McManus’ time in Green Bay is coming to an end.
Fantasy Winner
D’Andre Swift & Kyle Monangai (RBs)
Another set of RBs who did not see any carry competition added through the draft are in Chicago with D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai. The Bears duo each finished inside the top-30 RBs last season, with Swift posting his sixth straight top-24 RB finish in a row – the only other player to do that during that stretch was Derrick Henry. It has been well documented how much Chicago Head Coach Ben Johnson wants to lean into the running game, so both Swift and Monangai should present real fantasy relevance as the locked-in duo in this backfield.
Fantasy Loser
Cole Kmet (TE)
Just a year after the Bears took TE Colston Loveland with the 10th-overall pick in the 2025 draft, Chicago went back to the TE well this season, bringing Cole Kmet’s future into question with this offense. With their third-round pick, the Bears grabbed Sam Roush, who posted a 96th percentile explosiveness score at the Combine. While Kmet still has two years left on his contract in Chicago, the addition of another athletic TE should cause some concern for the waning fantasy relevance in one of the more desirable offenses in the league.
NFC South
Fantasy Winner
Tyler Shough (QB)
It feels like Tyler Shough is being very well-equipped for success following an impressive rookie season in New Orleans. The Saints used half of their picks in the draft on receiving options for this offense, drafting three WRs and an athletic TE. Easily the biggest name added to New Orleans was WR Jordyn Tyson with the eighth-overall pick. Tyson should fit like a glove in Head Coach Kellen Moore’s offense and give Shough another high-level weapon in the passing game. The addition of a field stretcher like Bryce Lance and an athletic TE in Oscar Delp is the icing on the beignet in the Big Easy.
Fantasy Loser
Juwan Johnson & Devaughn Vele
All the new additions to the Saints’ offense, though, could leave Juwan Johnson and Devaughn Vele out in the cold in the receiving game by the end of the season. Juwan Johnson was super productive working out of the slot in Kellen Moore’s offense last season, but with Jordyn Tyson coming to town, his work there should take a hit. Devaughn Vele’s trade to New Orleans gave him a real opportunity to work in as a WR2, but never really materialized. Now with plenty of new faces in town, both Johnson and Vele could be left on the outside looking in once these rookies get integrated into the offense.
Fantasy Loser
Falcons Depth WRs
There was a prime opportunity in Atlanta for a WR to find fantasy relevance behind Drake London after the departure of Darnell Mooney in free agency. That opportunity for Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus got more complicated with the Falcons’ using a third-round pick on WR Zachariah Branch. Branch brings elite speed to the table, and though there should be some concerns with his lack of down-field pass-catching at the collegiate level, having short, quick routes in the receiving game could suit Tua Tagovailoa if he were to win the starting QB job in Atlanta.
Fantasy Loser
Jalen McMillan (WR)
It’s been a rough road for Jalen McMillan in Tampa Bay, but the path to really establishing himself in this offense got more complicated after the draft. The Buccaneers spent a 3rd-Round pick on WR Ted Hurst, who profiles similarly to what McMillan’s strengths are as an athletic outside threat in the passing game. Hurst brings the prototypical X-receiver frame and high-end speed that is needed to succeed in the NFL, though it may take some time for him to really develop into a consistent weapon in this offense. McMillan has defied the odds thus far in his career, but the path to consistent fantasy success got a little more difficult with this draft.
Fantasy Winner
Chuba Hubbard (RB)
Going into the draft, the Panthers felt like an obvious place for an RB to land to come in and compete with Chuba Hubbard for touches, but Carolina only drafted one offensive skill player in their seven picks. Hubbard struggled down the stretch of the season, losing a majority of the RB work to Rico Dowdle, who left for Pittsburgh in free agency. The opportunity to reclaim the RB1 role in Carolina feels like Hubbard’s to lose, really only needing to fight off Jonathon Brooks, who is coming off his second ACL tear.
Fantasy Loser
Yannick Peterhans / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Xavier Legette (WR)
Pour one out for former first-round pick Xavier Legette. Carolina spent their third-round pick in this draft on the uber-athletic Chris Brazzell II, which could spell doom for any chance Legette had at maintaining a role in this passing attack. Through two seasons, Legette has just three top-24 WR finishes for fantasy and hasn’t surpassed 500 receiving yards in either season. The addition of Brazzell doesn’t completely rule Legette out of this offense with the recent concerns over WRs coming out of Tennessee, but it is more likely that the rookie will get real chances to grow in this offense over Legette going forward.