- Jeremiah Love is the top prospect: The Notre Dame running back will ideally be an every-down back in his rookie season.
- Wide receivers dominate the rest of the first round: This class is relatively strong at wide receiver and weak at running back, making wide receiver a popular option in the first half of the first round of rookie drafts.
- 2026 NFL Draft season is here: Try the best-in-class PFF Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2026’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.
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The window for NCAA players to declare for the NFL draft has passed, making this the perfect time to dig into the 2026 rookie class. Here are my initial top-60 dynasty rookie rankings, focused on single-quarterback, PPR leagues. Naturally, how players perform at the combine in addition to where and when they get drafted will have a major impact on the rankings between now and the end of April.
Analysis for the top 10 players can be found at the bottom of the article. You can also click on the analysis column for one of those 10 players to jump to the analysis on that player.
Last updated: 5 a.m. Monday, January 26
RankNamePositionAnalysis1Jeremiyah LoveRBDetails2Carnell TateWRDetails3Jordyn TysonWRDetails4Makai LemonWRDetails5Denzel BostonWRDetails6KC ConcepcionWRDetails7Jonah ColemanRBDetails8Kenyon SadiqTEDetails9Jadarian PriceRBDetails10Chris BellWRDetails11Emmett JohnsonRB12Fernando MendozaQB13Elijah SarrattWR14Germie BernardWR15Nicholas SingletonRB16Chris Brazzell IIWR17Kaytron AllenRB18Demond ClaiborneRB19Zachariah BranchWR20Ja’Kobi LaneWR21Omar Cooper Jr.WR22Mike Washington Jr.RB23Ty SimpsonQB24Skyler BellWR25Antonio WilliamsWR26Eli StowersTE27Seth McGowanRB28Malachi FieldsWR29Max KlareTE30C.J. DanielsWR31Michael TriggTE32Jack EndriesTE33Justin JolyTE34Joe RoyerTE35J’Mari TaylorRB36Deion BurksWR37Brenen ThompsonWR38Ted HurstWR39Bryce LanceWR40Eric McAlisterWR41De’Zhaun StriblingWR42Trinidad ChamblissQB43Eric RiversWR44Adam RandallRB45Kevin Coleman Jr.WR46Eli RaridonTE47Oscar DelpTE48Garrett NussmeierQB49Jam MillerRB50Aaron AndersonWR51Marlin KleinTE52Josh CameronWR53Le’Veon MossRB54C.J. DonaldsonRB55Noah WhittingtonRB56Noah ThomasWR57Roman HembyRB58Carson BeckQB59Dane KeyWR60Tanner KoziolTE
1. RB Jeremiyah Love
Love is a top-five player on our big board and is generally expected to be drafted in the early-to-mid first round. Generally, running backs in that range have found immediate fantasy success. If a team is willing to spend that high of a pick on a back, they will often receive significant volume in their rookie season, regardless of efficiency.
Ashton Jeanty, Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs are the only running backs who have been selected among the first 20 picks in the last five seasons, and all three finished in the top-12 in their rookie season. The other first-round picks include Najee Harris, who was RB3 his rookie season, in addition to Omarion Hampton and Travis Etienne, who dealt with injuries during their rookie seasons.
Most recent mock drafts have Love as the ninth pick to the Kansas City Chiefs, while the New Orleans Saints at eight are another potential option. Those are two of the teams with the biggest need at running back, with the possibility of Love being an immediate starter. If he joins the Saints, he could have similar offensive line problems that Jeanty had with the Las Vegas Raiders last season, but landing with Kansas City could make him a potential second-round pick in redrafts.
As long as he doesn’t land with a team with an established running back where the two would form a committee, Love should be the clear top option in dynasty rookie drafts.
2. WR Carnell Tate
Tate is expected to be a top-10 pick in the NFL draft. The best-case scenario is that he ends up like Ja’Marr Chase or Malik Nabers, who were both top-six options at their position in their rookie season. Jaylen Waddle, Garrett Wilson and Tetairoa McMillan were other recent top-10 wide receivers who immediately worked out to be fantasy starters.
While Jordyn Tyson is the top wide receiver on our big board, Tate is just one spot behind, is higher on consensus big boards and is expected to be the first wide receiver off the board during the NFL draft. Tyson graded better, in part because he had a higher target rate at Arizona State, as he had less competition for targets. While Tyson had more positively graded receptions over the last three seasons, Tate had more big plays.
Tate projects to be an X receiver, which fits nicely with several of the teams picking in the top 10. The Tennessee Titans, New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and New Orleans Saints could all use a true X receiver. All four of those teams had rookie quarterbacks starting last season, and it’s possible Tate becomes the favorite target for one of those quarterbacks.
3. WR Jordyn Tyson
The gap between Tate and Tyson is incredibly small at this point. Tyson is another wide receiver expected to get selected in the top 10. While Tate spent most of his collegiate career as an X receiver, Tyson has more experience lined up at various spots in the offense. Tyson fits more nicely as a Z receiver, which is still a need for the teams with a rookie quarterback, outside of the New York Giants.
The wide receiver who will get ranked higher will ultimately depend on the landing spot. Three of the four teams are currently without offensive play-callers, making it harder to judge which spot is currently the most attractive. While the Saints have Chris Olave and the Giants have Malik Nabers, there will be an opportunity for both wide receivers to be immediate contributors and instant fantasy starters.
4. WR Makai Lemon
Lemon is another wide receiver expected to get selected in the first round, but his landing spots have varied much more than the first two receivers. Our mock draft simulator leaderboard has both Tyson and Tate typically in the top-10, while Lemon is typically just outside of that range.
Lemon is a unique receiver in that he spent most of his college career in the slot. There have been a few other wide receivers in recent drafts who were selected in the top 20 and also played significantly in the slot, including Drake London, Treylon Burks, Malik Nabers and Emeka Egbuka. All four were able to transition to playing more on the outside in the NFL, but they were also taller and larger than Lemon.
The fact that he could get drafted later means he will likely land in a better offense than Tate or Tyson, but it could also mean significant competition for targets. The New Orleans Saints have been a common spot for him at the eighth spot, which would be ideal. Saints head coach Kellen Moore has a history of successful fantasy wide receivers in the slot, and Lemon could continue that tradition. However, other occasional landing spots, such as the Baltimore Ravens or Minnesota Vikings, would lead to a lower target rate early in his career.
There is a clear gap between the top four players and everyone else. These first four are, by far, the most likely to be fantasy starters in their rookie season, while every other running back could be in a part-time role. If you have the fifth or sixth rookie picks, I would be comfortable trying to trade back now.
5. WR Denzel Boston
The run of wide receivers continues for another two picks. Both Boston and KC Concepcion are expected to be selected in the back half of the first round, while the next running back isn’t expected to be selected until the end of the second round or the start of the third.
In general, the hit rate for wide receivers in the second half of the first round is higher than the hit rate for running backs in that range. Jordan Addison, Brian Thomas Jr. and Emeka Egbuka were top-24 wide receivers in their rookie seasons, while Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Zay Flowers and Quentin Johnston improved after their rookie seasons. De’Von Achane is the only running back selected from Picks 61-90 to be a top-24 running back in his rookie season, as Tyjae Spears was the only one to rank in the top 40. James Cook III eventually emerged from that group, but there is also a much higher bust rate of players who ended up with no fantasy value, including Trey Sermon, Velus Jones Jr., MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson, although there is still time for some of these backs.
Boston improved each year during his time at Washington. He has the body of an X receiver but has also found significant success in his limited snaps at other receiver positions. That is an ideal combination for a fantasy receiver.
6. WR KC Concepcion
Concepcion started his career as a slot receiver for NC State, but was more well-rounded in his alignment at Texas A&M. He’s another wide receiver expected to be selected near the end of the first round. Luckily, there are a few landing spots that would be great for a rookie wide receiver.
The Buffalo Bills need a top wide receiver, and partnering with Josh Allen would be ideal. The San Francisco 49ers are another high-scoring offense that could use more receiving options, as Ricky Pearsall is the top option under contract with not many options after him. The Philadelphia Eagles also fit that description if they choose to trade away A.J. Brown. There are a few spots that would hurt their value in the short term but could be helpful in the long run, such as the Pittsburgh Steelers or the Los Angeles Rams.
7. RB Jonah Coleman
There are four running backs ranked among the top 90 backs on our big board, and they are the same four backs in the top 90 on consensus big boards, making them the four backs expected to be selected on Day 1 or 2 of the draft.
Jeremiah Love is the clear top back of the group, leaving Coleman competing with Jadarian Price and Emmett Johnson for the second spot. A lot will depend on the landing spot and the potential opportunity. Sixteen running backs were selected from Picks 50-98 in the last five drafts, and Brian Robinson was the only one to surpass 150 carries, while De’Von Achane was the only one with over 800 yards. Those were the only two players with at least 550 rushing yards, making opportunity key.
Coleman has a slight edge over the other running backs at the moment. He was the highest graded running back of the three options in both rushing and receiving grades. He has 249 pass-blocking snaps, which is more than Price and Johnson combined.
He is also a unique size for a running back, listed at 5-foot-9 and 220 pounds on Washington’s website. No NFL running back weighs that much while being that short. Doug Martin is the best comparison to Coleman’s unique size who find success in the NFL in the last 20 years. While Coleman’s naturally not as strong as changing direction as some of the other backs, his max speeds are nearly the same.
In a league full of speedy running backs, Coleman’s size could help him stand out, particularly at the goal line. His ability to score touchdowns helps give him an early lead over the other running backs with an expected similar ADP.
8. TE Kenyon Sadiq
There is no equivalent to Brock Bowers, Tyler Warren or Colston Loveland in this tight end class, but Sadiq is the one tight end expected to be drafted in the first round, while no tight end is expected to go in the second round.
Sadiq is one of seven tight ends who were expected to go in the first round of the last six drafts. Sadiq is more like Bowers, Loveland, Kyle Pitts and Dalton Kincaid in that they are lighter tight ends known mostly for their receiving ability, rather than Michael Mayer and Warren, who are more well-rounded tight ends.
Sadiq is on the shorter side for tight ends, like Kincaid, but his speed is elite, like the other receiving tight ends. While Sadiq is similar to these tight ends in terms of athleticism, he doesn’t have the same production as the other receivers. He has a 73.7 PFF receiving grade in his career, while the other four comparable receivers were at 88.0 or better. He played behind Terrance Ferguson in 2023 and 2024, which didn’t help him. While he led Oregon in receiving production last season, the leading wide receivers, and even his backup, Jamari Johnson, had higher target rates.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles are common landing spots in mock drafts, in large part because Cade Otton and Dallas Goedert are free agents. We should have a better understanding of his potential new teams after free agency.
9. RB Jadarian Price
Price joins Coleman as a likely third-round pick at running back. He has recently shared the Notre Dame backfield with Jeremiah Love, so he’s not as accomplished as other running backs in the range. Most notably, he isn’t as experienced as a receiver, finishing with six or fewer receptions in each of the last three seasons for less than 100 receiving yards each year. He is also the lowest graded of the running backs in this range.
What Price lacks in experience and production, he makes up for it in athleticism. Based on PFF tracking data, Price stands out from the group due to his combination of speed, acceleration and ability to change directions. This makes him a high-risk, high-upside option compared to other running backs.
10. WR Chris Bell
There are roughly 11 wide receivers expected to be drafted in the first or second rounds of the NFL draft, giving fantasy managers several options. Second-round wide receivers have a surprisingly high bust rate in the NFL. Five wide receivers were selected in the second round of 2021, and none of them became consistent fantasy starters, while 2022 and 2023 had close to 50% hit rates. Half of the 2024 class was already traded from their original team, and Keon Coleman looks likely to follow suit. None of the 2025 second-round wide receivers finished among the top 45 wide receivers, although Jayden Higgins and Luther Burden III showed significant promise.
Bell stands out as a wide receiver. Our big board is notably higher on him than consensus rankings, putting him at the 36th overall player. He stood out this past season in his ability to make plays after the catch, finishing with a high YAC and explosive play rate.
It’s worth noting that Bell tore his ACL in November, which will likely impact his ability to become a fantasy asset during his rookie season.
