2026 NFL Draft: Fantasy Impacts from Round 1

If I had a dollar for every time I said "WOW" to a draft pick during the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft last night, I'd have quite a few dollars. There were plenty of unexpected surprises, numerous trades - including multiple in-division trades - and, as always, a major botch job by the networks lagging behind the actual picks being made for the sake of ad revenue.

But we're not here to talk about that last one.

From season-long redraft leagues to dynasty to best ball, here are my takeaways for how the 2026 NFL Draft's first round impacts the fantasy football landscape.

Raiders select QB Fernando Mendoza 1st overall

The only known pick heading into this draft becomes official. It's expected that Fernando Mendoza will take charge of this offense heading into week one, and that's been priced into his market for quite some time. No changes here.

Cardinals select RB Jeremiyah Love 3rd overall

What are the Cardinals doing? I love the player - no pun intended - but you brought in Tyler Allgeier on a two-year deal this offseason knowing full well he can churn out 1,000 yard seasons as a young back. And then, you restructure James Conner's contract to give him more guaranteed money, making it so you take a bigger cap hit by cutting him now. None of it makes sense from a roster-building standpoint.

But the pick was the pick, and the impacts are likely pretty obvious.

• Jeremiyah Love should start as the 1A in this offense, if not the clear bellcow. He's the consensus #1 overall dynasty pick.

• Tyler Allgeier - who likely was the 1A in this offense before this pick - likely reverts back to a similar role that he had for the Falcons, cratering his top-100 ADP position in pre-draft best ball leagues and all but killing his dynasty value. Maybe he ends up being the David Montgomery to Jeremiyah Love's Jahmyr Gibbs, but that's an unlikely ceiling in this offense.

• James Conner and Trey Benson have no business being on any roster anywhere.

Cardinals gonna Cardinals, I suppose. Maybe they'll fix that defense and offensive line through the rest of the draft.

Titans select WR Carnell Tate 4th overall

It's a natural fit for this offense. Running out the corpse of Calvin Ridley as your primary X receiver just isn't going to cut it for a young QB's development; adding a young blue-chip receiver in that spot, plus the addition of safety blanket Wan'Dale Robinson in the offseason, is going to do wonders for Cam Ward. This offense might be really underrated through the whole draft process.

Impacts:

• Cam Ward should still be ascending up draft boards. I'd be buying in Dynasty if an owner feels disgruntled after last season, and his ADP in best ball should be on the rise, too. He's definitely a second QB for this season, not someone you want as your QB1 in any 12-team league, but he's got a chance to develop into that now.

• Carnell Tate should be viewed as the co-alpha in targets with Wan'Dale Robinson. Both are great picks in PPR leagues, but it gets dicier when you get to half-point or standard leagues. I'm not sure this offense is going to score a ton of points yet, but they're going to move the ball better than they did last season.

• Chimere Dike becomes the deep-threat in the offense. It's a hit to his value in every league, but it makes him an interesting late-round flier in best ball leagues.

Saints select WR Jordyn Tyson 8th overall

To me, it was obvious that the Saints were going to take a wide receiver in this spot - they brought in Tate, Tyson and Makai Lemon for top 30 visits. The larger question was whether the Saints were good with Jordyn Tyson's medicals or not. Clearly they were. He's a natural fit for this offense that desperately needed a true compliment to Chris Olave on the outside. And just like with Cam Ward above, Tyler Shough can take the next developmental leap after showing promise as a rookie.

Impacts:

• Tyler Shough's price was already somewhat elevated on the premise of taking the next leap in a better offense, and now I expect that to accelerate even further. I'm probably not going out and buying in dynasty at cost; if I have him, I'm holding. In redraft, he'll be drafted as a fringe QB1/QB2, which seems right. For best ball, I bet his price goes nuclear because all us best ball bros are a bunch of sickos.

• I'd probably temper the Jordyn Tyson expectations out the gate, as I don't see a scenario where he's out-targeting Chris Olave this season barring injury. That doesn't mean he won't be productive, but he was being drafted as a top 70 guy in best ball, and that price will rise. He's a great dynasty pick if, again, you're comfortable with the injury risks; I'd have him in the top four.

• While this impacts Devaughn Vele's targets, it's a more natural fit for his skill set to operate as the big slot #3 on this offense. Another decent late-round pick in best ball.

• Juwan Johnson takes a target hit but still will be a meaningful portion of this offense. I hope the price falls more than the target hit, as I'd be buying low here.

Rams select QB Ty Simpson 13th overall

Why?

I mean, not literally why, because Matthew Stafford is on retirement watch after this season, but why here? You originally had pick 29, then traded that away. Ty Simpson would've been there most likely unless the Steelers took him, in which case I'd be asking them why insteaad of the Rams. Just trade down and make the same pick!

Rant aside, he's the heir apparent for Stafford, which makes him extremely valuable in dynasty relative to where he was being drafted in rookie drafts just a week ago. QB-needy teams should consider him as a mid-first-round option, and in Superflex dynasty leagues, you could maybe even bump him up higher and take the lottery ticket.

You're not drafting Ty Simpson in best ball or redraft.

Jets select TE Kenyon Sadiq 16th overall

Another pick that makes no sense to me.

The coaching staff has been gushing all offseason about the leaps that last year's rookie TE, Mason Taylor, is going to take this season. They took him 42nd overall as a pass-catching specialist that could act as a security blanket player for whomever was the QB.

The Jets literally don't have a WR that matters on this roster outside of Garrett Wilson, and Makai Lemon was on the board.

We saw this play out recently with the Raiders, when they took Brock Bowers a year after drafting Michael Mayer pretty high. I expect something similar here, with Taylor taking a massive hit to his value.

There is a scenario where they just play a bunch of 12 or 13 personnel, in which case Mason Taylor can still operate as the #4 target option (behind Wilson, Breece Hall & Sadiq), but the gap between the expected #3 and expected #4 could be massive.

But - spoiler alert! - this all is about to change.

Eagles select WR Makai Lemon 20th overall

AJ Brown to the Patriots basically confirmed.

I don't think this actually changes too much on the offense, assuming AJ Brown is actually traded. Devonta Smith moves from the WR1B to WR1A in the offense, with Makai Lemon moving directly into the WR1B role. Dallas Goedert's role remains unchanged, and Jalen Hurts' value remains unchanged too. Maybe the offense as a whole takes a slight dip in value due to the uncertainty of how Makai Lemon translates in his first year, but I don't view it that way.

Now, if AJ Brown somehow isn't traded, things get really murky real quick. The Eagles have basically never used a WR3 in their offense, and Makai Lemon would be the clear WR3 in this scenario, which should crater his redraft & best ball value. There's a ton of risk here despite the massive smoke plume of trade rumors, and I don't think that risk will be priced in to his ADP in early best ball drafts. I'm likely staying away at cost for now; talk to me again in June or July.

Browns select WR KC Concepcion 24th overall

The Browns needed WR talent and they get it 24th overall. It's too bad they don't have a quarterback.

I expect targets to split pretty evenly between Harold Fannin Jr., Jerry Jeudy and Concepcion, with Cedric Tillman probably still factoring in some too. I just don't know how many targets there'll really be. Is he a top-50 WR this year even if he out-targets Jeudy? I'm not really sure.

Everything will really depend on price here. I wouldn't be spending more than a late first on him in dynasty with all of the QB uncertainty, and his price has been somewhat elevated in early best ball drafts and likely rising as some will view him as the clear WR1. I'm not sure I'll be riding that wave.

It is a boost for Shedeur Sanders' short-term value that could at least put him back in the low-end QB2 territory; with the addition of a pass-catching weapon plus the earlier pick of Spencer Fano, it's clear they're trying their best to give him a chance to develop before they consider replacing him in 2027.

Jets trade up to take WR Omar Cooper Jr. 30th overall

And now the Jets have a WR2!

Mason Taylor is officially undraftable and devalued across the board. Your clear four target order is Garrett Wilson followed by an even spread of Omar Cooper Jr., Breece Hall & Kenyon Sadiq.

Geno Smith's value as a buy-low QB2 is more solidifed here; I'd be buying in best ball before the price rises, and QB-desperate teams in Superflex should acquire with confidence.

I like this offense a lot more than I should. It's the Jets, so it'll probably come back to bite me.

Seahawks select RB Jadarian Price 32nd overall

Closing out the first round, the Seahawks take their Kenneth Walker III replacement.

If Zach Charbonnet were healthy to start the season, I think you could make an argument that he'd be the 1A to Jadarian Price's 1B, with them basically splitting work all season. Instead, it should be bellcow Price to start the season, giving him some instant appeal that he could simply run away with this job (pun intended this time). I don't view that scenario as the likeliest scenario - I think they fall into the split backfield once Charbs is healthy - but it's one that exists and should elevate his price.

Regardless, he's a massive dynasty buy on the speculation that he's good enough to take the job outright. Zach Charbonnet is on the final year of his rookie deal and coming off a major injury; it's possible he's out of the picture in 2027 and beyond. He should be considered in the first half of the first round, possibly as high as #4 overall if you're in need of RB help.

For redraft and best ball, it's murky. I think the ADP will outrun his late-season value, so I'll probably be out on cost.

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