Sports

2026 NFL Draft: Day 2 Fantasy Football Recap

By Cory Bonini Athlon Sports

Updated April 24, 2026 11:30 PM

With the 2026 NFL Draft's first round in the books after an exciting Thursday evening full of trades, our attention turns to Day 2's second and third rounds of action. Now, we dive into the fantasy football ramifications of Friday's ongoings.

2026 NFL Draft Round 2 Fantasy Football Reactions

WR De'Zhaun Stribling, San Francisco 49ers

At 6-foot-2, 207 pounds, Stribling has adequate size and is plenty fast enough (4.36) to challenge down the field. He has good hands and makes acrobatic catches. San Francisco has a well-aged Mike Evans coming in for his first year with the franchise, a former first-rounder in Ricky Pearsall who cannot stay on the field, and TE George Kittle coming off a late-season Achilles injury. Veteran receiver Christian Kirk also came over in the offseason, so there's a lot in flux here, and Stribling has a chance for an early role if he shows well in camp. We'll revisit this one as the offseason moves along, but he's at least worthy of a fantasy watchlist spot for now. Stribling has a high ceiling for long-term fantasy results, however.

WR Denzel Boston, Cleveland Browns

A few selections after taking the smaller, more explosive KC Concepcion in Round 1, Cleveland returned to the position to give Shedeur Sanders/Deshaun Watson more weaponry. Boston is a much different target than Concepcion, standing just shy of 6-foot-4 and being more of a strider than jitterbug. The Washington product gives his quarterback a wide catch radius, plus-quality body control, and strong hands to reel in slightly errant throws. Regardless of the quarterback situation, opportunities will be there early on. Boston can work on the outside opposite Jerry Jeudy, and the Browns also have a dangerous tight end in Harold Fannin Jr. for defenders to worry about stopping. For now, consider Boston a low-floor, modest-upside WR5 in deeper formats.

WR Germie Bernard, Pittsburgh Steelers

The Alabama standout led the offense in catches the past two seasons, and he's more of a gritty technician than explosive athlete. Quicker than straight-line fast, Bernard is a trustworthy target and has the knack for finding soft spots in coverage. In Pittsburgh, his Year 1 value comes down to whether Aaron Rodgers returns, but even in that situation the upside is modest with the likes of DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. to hog targets. Reminiscent of Hines Ward, Bernard's long-term outlook is excellent for PPR fantasy, even if he's little more than a 2026 waiver addition should greater opportunity arise.

TE Eli Stowers, Philadelphia Eagles

Extraordinarily explosive, Stowers enters a fantastic situation to further develop his skill set after moving from quarterback to tight end. The Eagles can let this athletic Vanderbilt product hone his craft behind Dallas Goedert and flex him into the slot for creative utility as desired. Philadelphia added a first-round receiver in Makai Lemon, a move that effectively spells the end of the A.J. Brown tenure, and now the offense will look a little different under OC Sean Mannion. Expect plenty of selective chances for Stowers to make chunk plays, but it will be difficult to know when to trust him without a Goedert injury.

TE Nate Boerkircher, Jacksonville Jaguars

At 6-foot-5, 245 pounds, Boerkircher is primarily a blocking tight end and has room to grow on that front, too. Hardly utilized as a collegiate receiving outlet at Texas A&M, he'll enter Duval County as a depth option looking to carve out a role between special teams and clear blocking plays.

TE Marlin Klein, Houston Texans

Still raw and developing as a receiver, Klein will have time to further his maturation behind entrenched veteran Dalton Schultz. The former Michigan Wolverine rookie suffers from a lack of athleticism and doesn't profile as a long-term TE1 in fantasy because of it. At best, Klein has career spot-duty value for fake football purposes.

TE Max Klare, Los Angeles Rams

A much more talented pass-catching option at tight end than the last two positional picks in this analysis, Klare enters one of the most crowded rooms in football. The route-running traits are impressive, his hands are rock-solid, and Klare brings enough speed to challenge down the seam. More of an effort blocker, the Ohio Stater has time to groom that area of his game. Look for limited to no fantasy utility in 2026 from him, but the good news is the Rams have two of their four current tight ends set to hit free agency in 2027. Klare has the tools for a fantasy TE1 role in Year 3.

2026 NFL Draft Round 3 Fantasy Football Reactions

Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK

QB Carson Beck, Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals have no need to rush Beck onto the field in 2026, allowing him to learn the ropes behind Jacoby Brissett and Gardner Minshew. This gives the organization a chance to watch his growth throughout the year and possibly start him late to get a glimpse of how Beck performs before heading into the 2027 draft season. There's zero fantasy appeal in 2026 drafts. However, given his history working in pro-style offenses, Beck could ascend quicker than most sophomores if he gets that chance.

TE Sam Roush, Chicago Bears

A massive young man at 6-foot-7, 267 pounds, Roush will get a chance to learn behind Cole Kmet and Colston Loveland, but he's of no consequence in 2026 fantasy football. In fact, it will be surprising if he ever matters in the virtual game.

WR Antonio Williams, Washington Commanders

Quick-footed, twitchy, and dangerous from the slot, Williams will have a chance in Washington to compete for immediate targets. Terry McLaurin returns as the WR1 after an injury-shortened year, and Deebo Samuel is gone, so there's not much in Williams' way for a shot at the No. 2 gig. He's 5-foot-11, 187 pounds, but Williams led Clemson in receptions each of the last two years. Jayden Daniels will love knowing he can trust Williams will be where he is supposed to be in the route. In 2026 fantasy drafts, expect Williams to be one of the earlier rooks to come off the board at wide receiver.

TE Oscar Delp, New Orleans Saints

Unless something takes both Juwan Johnson and Noah Fant off the field, Delp has no fantasy utility in 2026. His long-term upside is decent, but there isn't really anything from a fantasy perspective that he excels at, so the ceiling isn't particularly high.

WR Malachi Fields, New York Giants

In 2026, expect a limited but intentional route tree for Fields to maximize his size (6-foot-4, 218 pounds) and range. There won't be much for Fields down ... the field ... but he'll get his number called in the red zone a time or two as a rookie. For fantasy, there's some long-range intrigue, but he'll need a few significant breaks to matter this upcoming season.

WR Caleb Douglas, Miami Dolphins

The good: Douglas will have an immediate chance to contribute in what is a largely barren receiving room. The bad: There's a lot to work on here. Douglas has body control and a larger frame at 6-foot-3, but he's wildly inconsistent and doesn't always play up to his traits. Given all of the expected growing pains in South Beach this year, Douglas' fantasy prospects are shaky, at best, out of the gate. Stash his name in the ole memory bank for the time being.

Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

QB Drew Allar, Pittsburgh Steelers

Unless Aaron Rodgers actually retires, or returns and suffers a serious injury, no one should bank on seeing Allar for meaningful snaps in 2026. Despite having all of the tools you'd like to see from a quarterback, the Penn State product never really lived up to his full potential. Perhaps that will change in time with NFL coaching and better receiving options. If he gets a chance to start over Will Howard at some point, there could be a sniff of fantasy worth in two-QB settings.

WR Zachariah Branch, Atlanta Falcons

Here's an interesting one for fantasy purposes ... Branch has extreme lateral explosiveness and can make defenders miss inside a closet. The route-running skills need substantial refinement, but put him in space with a limited assignment and watch the fireworks go off like it's July 4. Branch could see manufactured targets in the underneath game with Tua Tagovailoa really having only Drake London and Kyle Pitts as his proven downfield outlets. I know, that doesn't address Bijan Robinson, and it's fair to expect these two will occasionally compete with each other for those designed plays around the line of scrimmage. Branch has late-round fantasy intrigue as a rookie and belongs on the radar in deeper formats. His keeper/dynasty upside is through the roof.

WR Ja'Kobi Lane, Baltimore Ravens

The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder from USC brings length to the Ravens' passing game. There's a potential opening in this corps to find playing time as a rookie, but you're also looking at a new offensive coordinator and several other capable weapons to interfere with Lane's chances of making any sizeable fantasy impact. The best approach for now is to keep tabs on him in camp for redraft leagues, because Rashod Bateman is no stranger to injury, and Devontez Walker has yet to materialize.

WR Chris Brazzell II, Carolina Panthers

Sneaky is a good way of describing Brazzell's game. He has deceptive acceleration for being 6-foot-4 and pretty good bend. While Brazzell's routes could use some fine-tuning, the catch radius and unique skill set give Bryce Young a deep threat who can serve as a 50/50 guy in the red zone. There's an opportunity here as a rookie, and Brazzell is one to watch for 2026 fantasy purposes.

WR Ted Hurst, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

There's plenty to like about what Hurst brings to the offense, but finding a role for him in 2026 might be an issue. The loss of Mike Evans in free agency creates a need for that big-bodied weapon down the field and around the perimeter, but Hurst will need a break to get enough action to matter in fantasy. He translated well from Valdosta State to Georgia State, but a leap to the NFL is a different beast, so time will tell if he materializes to become a useful fantasy option.

TE Will Kacmarek, Miami Dolphins

Purely an inline blocker, Kacmarek isn't a viable fantasy consideration now and probably never will develop into one.

WR Zavion Thomas, Chicago Bears

There's possibly something here in 2026 fantasy worth watching over the summer. Thomas has a chance to compete for a top-three role at receiver purely because of his elite speed (4.28-second 40 at the Scouting Combine). Thomas uncovers quickly out of breaks and will give Caleb Williams a deep threat who demands defensive attention. Thomas may not see more action than on special teams as a rookie, though, so the early plan should be to monitor how he's developing over the summer before assigning draft value.

RB Kaelon Black, San Francisco 49ers

We've seen this movie before ... San Fran invested another midround pick in the running back position, and he fits the profile of Kyle Shanahan's system. However, we've also seen how this movie ends, and it hasn't been an Oscar winner. Maybe this iteration of the sequel has an alternate ending and Black surprises. All of that doesn't address that Christian McCaffrey still is doing Christian McCaffrey things, so expect to see little of Black until CMC isn't CMC. This rookie has almost no experience as a receiver and doesn't project as a quality blocker in pass pro, which really hamstrings his fantasy upside to stay on the field for PPR bonus points if given a chance to play substantial reps.

WR Chris Bell, Miami Dolphins

Another draft choice by a talent-starved Miami team that doesn't immediately help anyone, Bell is coming off a late-season ACL tear and shouldn't be looked at for 2026 fantasy contributions. At 6-foot-1, 222 pounds, he's a load to tackle and could assert himself over time, but there's no reason to have him on your single-year radar.

TE Eli Raridon, New England Patriots

Year 1 tight ends rarely make a dent in fantasy football, and Raridon shouldn't be any different without an injury to Hunter Henry. Looking ahead, however, we have ourselves an underappreciated target whose game reminds a little of Dalton Schultz. Raridon's 6-foot-6 height makes him a dangerous red-zone weapon, with a basketball background and the ability to high-point jump balls where it matters most. Henry is 31 and enters the final year of his deal, so Raridon's time could come as soon as next season.

This story was originally published April 24, 2026 at 7:35 PM.