The 2026 preseason is over, most fantasy drafts have taken place, and it’s officially time to gear up for Week 1. Before doing that, I want to give one more shoutout to some of my favorite draft targets from this offseason and hype them up to get them ready for a big season ahead.
These are the players that I ended up drafting the most across all formats this offseason, targeting “my guys” in as many places as possible with high hopes for the 2026 season.
LB Jacob Rodriguez, Miami Dolphins
This one is no secret. I love “The Rodfather”. Ever since putting together his prospect profile, which pulled in all of his career college data and spit out an elite score, I’ve been excited. Heading into the NFL Draft, there were only a couple of questions about his profile. One of which surrounded his athleticism, which he answered at the combine by delivering an elite 9.61 Relative Athletic Score (RAS). The other was where teams would value him in terms of draft capital, and the early second-round investment from Miami cleared everything up nicely.
With Rodriguez landing in Miami, the post-draft question of how he’d fit in with both Jordyn Brooks and Tyrel Dodson on the roster created enough of a value in rookie drafts, and eventually in 2026 drafts, that I’ve been scooping him up in as many places as possible. Knowing that it would only be a matter of time before Dodson’s starting spot would be up for grabs, an early second-round pick in rookie drafts got the job done every time. In redraft formats, grabbing him as soon as all the every-down linebackers began to dry up worked several times. With Dodson now out of the picture, Rodriguez sits as my LB13 for 2026, and that’s me trying to temper expectations for a first-year player.
All signs point to Rodriguez wearing the green dot now that Dodson (the former green dot) is out, and after Rodriguez trained in that role this offseason. This will allow him to play an every-down role from Day 1 and put that elite college profile to work, as he should be in weekly IDP starting lineups right out of the gate. Rodriguez’s profile and historical prospect score suggest that he should be a sure-thing for IDP, though we know that’s not always how these things work, and even if he doesn’t return top-12 value in Year 1, as long as he’s healthy, I feel good about his high-end projection for his rookie season. An elite profile, an ideal role, a high-end projection, and a fantastic mustache have me wanting/needing to bet on him in all formats this season.
LB Devin Lloyd, Carolina Panthers
Lloyd has never been a player I’ve been overly high on, but things can change quickly in fantasy football, and a change of scenery this year is just what was needed for me to get on board. After Lloyd spent the majority of his career playing Robin to Foyesade Oluokun’s Batman, he’s branched off on his own, headed to Bludhaven (Carolina), and ready to start his career as Nightwing. Apologies for the overly nerdy analogy, but Nightwing is an underrated character, and it fits perfectly with Lloyd’s 2026 outlook as he looks to lead this new-look Carolina defense.
Lloyd has never been the most efficient tackler, though inconsistent playing time on a defense that used him in arguably too many different ways likely played a big part in that. Without a consistent role or full-time snap share, Lloyd’s often been dependent on big plays to buoy his fantasy value for those trusting him in lineups, but now, he’s set to wear the green dot in Carolina in a more orthodox off-ball linebacker role that should help not only steady his production, but greatly increase it as well.
Under defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero last season, the Panthers were the league’s most zone-heavy defense, which typically provides a nice boost to tackle efficiency for the linebacker position, specifically, as highlighted here. Along with an every-down workload, this is exactly what we need to help Lloyd’s tackle production stabilize, on top of the potential to continue adding big plays to his stat sheet since he won’t be leaving the field. Lloyd’s ADP has steadily risen this offseason, though he’s still settled in as a comfortable LB2 in the majority of drafts. As someone who is treating him as an LB1 candidate in 2026, he’s ended up on nearly all of my rosters this season as a clear “my guy” who I’ve been happy to add to my squads.
ED Josh Hines-Allen, Jacksonville Jaguars
Hines-Allen is arguably the most underappreciated ED1 candidate in IDP, as fantasy managers have been let down for multiple seasons, and as one of those fantasy managers, I get it. We’re a resentful and capricious lot, and if you burn us, odds are we’re not going to forgive and forget so easily. And while I’ve avoided many players for that same reason, Hines-Allen just isn’t one of them. His underlying metrics and potential draw me in like a moth to a flame, but after two consecutive seasons of underdelivering in the sack column, I’ve grown an immunity to being burned just in time for an overdue positive regression season.
Hines-Allen showcased his ceiling with a 17.5-sack season in 2023, and there’s more than enough reason to believe that production is still within his range of outcomes heading into 2026. Hines-Allen finished behind only Aidan Hutchinson in Expected Sacks last season thanks to high-end pass-rush metrics and ideal playing time, which is everything we should be targeting at the position in IDP. Being drafted as a fringe ED1 in most drafts, Hines-Allen becomes the perfect target to pair with one of the more highly-drafted EDGEs for those looking to capitalize on the league-winning upside at the position.
Hines-Allen has hovered around a 70-75% snap share outside of his rookie year, which has allowed for solid baseline production as he’s been one of the more consistent run defenders at the position. With a solid tackling floor and elite upside, Hines-Allen has untapped potential as one of the top performers at the position. Betting on him to deliver on that potential at a reasonable price has allowed me to scoop him up as an ED2 after targeting one of the Tier 1 EDGEs a few rounds earlier in drafts.
ED George Karlaftis, Kansas City Chiefs
If I were to miss out on Hines-Allen as my ED2, Karlaftis would quickly become my next ideal target for that role, especially given the significant discount he comes with compared to most legitimate ED2 candidates. The price has gone up since I first started targeting “Furious George” earlier in the offseason, but he’s still being drafted well within my comfort zone as the current ED27 in our best-ball ADP. As my ED18 in the ranks, Karlaftis lands on my roster more often than not in drafts.
Much like with Hines-Allen, we’re betting on positive regression in the sack column to pay back our discount and potentially overdeliver while he’s at it. Karlaftis was a 95th percentile performer in Expected Sacks last season, meaning that he was more than deserving of a higher sack total than the six he ended the season with. Karlaftis is one of the greatest positive regression candidates at the position, and after delivering career marks across the board in his underlying pass-rush metrics, there’s reason to believe that his age-25 season will be his best yet.
Karlaftis is the obvious candidate to lead the Chiefs’ EDGE room in snaps this season, having averaged 79% of the team’s defensive snaps over the last three seasons — about as ideal a snap share as we should expect from the position. This will help Karlaftis deliver the strong production floor we’re looking for, avoid any boom-bust production, and give us confidence leaving him in lineups to meet that high ceiling. That’s the rare level of safety we can’t often get outside of the top-20 at the position, which has me personally excited about adding him to my teams.
S Dillon Thieneman, Chicago Bears
Claiming two rookie “my guys” is undeniably a little risky, but I think it also speaks to the quality of this 2026 rookie IDP class. I’m a big believer that many from this group will hit for IDP sooner rather than later, and Thieneman is beginning to look like a lock to be an IDP hit in Year 1. I know, it doesn’t really sound like I’m going out on a limb with this one considering he’s a first-round pick being drafted to arguably the league’s most safety-needy team this offseason, but still, the rookie’s 2026 potential at such an unstable position has me happy to invest.
We’re banking on an ideal role and the skills that made him a 97th-percentile prospect in my model translating immediately to the NFL. Step 1 in his translating to the next level is already locked in: a full-time starting role for the season. Step 2 would be how he’s deployed in that role, and based on the preseason, we’re looking at a very lucrative deployment that should translate into IDP value. Thieneman played 43% of his snaps in the box, and just 45% deep this preseason, operating as the team’s clear option to line up closer to the line of scrimmage while Cam Lewis/Xavier Woods played deep.
For Thieneman to deliver on his IDP S1 prospect, he’ll not only need to remain in that optimal role, but capitalize on that potential to separate himself from the pack. Thieneman’s usage and production in college suggest he’ll be able to do so, having operated as a mostly deep safety (58%) yet still delivering an elite 13.2% career tackle rate (97th percentile). Getting more optimal usage should only boost Thieneman’s potential to hit as a rookie, and while Caleb Downs gets a lot of the spotlight, and even A.J. Haulcy absorbing last year’s IDP S1 role, Thieneman has been a bit more discounted in non-best-ball drafts so far.
S Kevin Winston Jr., Tennessee Titans
I’ve ended up with a lot of Kevin Winston Jr. shares this offseason, so I kind of need this one to hit in order to feel good about myself betting on a safety. However, the potential for an elite deployment in Gus Bradley’s defense is too enticing to pass up, which is why I’ve rarely turned down the opportunity to draft him when it arises.
For those in need of more context, Bradley is the defensive coordinator for the Titans this season, and he comes with a long history of delivering top-tier IDP safeties thanks to his tendency to run a heavy single-high/Cover-3 based defense that allows one of his safeties to spend a ton of time up near the line of scrimmage. In recent years, that’s been Nick Cross (2024), Julian Blackmon (2023), Rodney McLeod (2022), and Johnathan Abram (2021) — all of whom delivered top-20 IDP finishes at their position, with the latest example being Cross finishing as the overall S3 (2024).
Winston will have to contend with Amani Hooker for this role, and the preseason didn’t exactly provide any clarity on which one would be getting that optimal deployment, but Winston still feels like the better choice here. We only got a taste of what Winston could be as an IDP last year as a rookie, though he showcased above-average tackle efficiency — which was also the case during his college career — and flashed strong IDP potential in his limited snaps in 2025. I prefer to target roles more than anything when it comes to IDP safeties, and Winston has the potential for one of the best roles in the league, which has made him a consistent target in my 2026 drafts.
CB Upton Stout, San Francisco 49ers
If I’m playing in CB-required formats, which I am more often than not, then Stout becomes a Tier 1 target at the position for a variety of reasons. As the primary slot defender for this 49ers’ defense, Stout comes with the prime alignment we’re looking for first and foremost, allowing him to line up closer to the action and increase his tackle rate above the norm for the position. On top of that improved tackle rate, Stout proved to separate himself from the pack even further last year as a tackler, leading the position in Tackles versus Expected and racking up production at an elite rate on just a 58% snap share.
Heading into Year 2 as Raheem Morris’ “STAR” defender, Stout’s snap share should increase closer to even 70%, which for a player as effective as Stout is more than enough to be a top weekly start in CB-required formats. Considering the volatile cornerback production we typically see week to week, Stout’s potential to start with a higher baseline thanks to his tackling ability should have IDP managers more than interested in him as a top option in CB-required formats. If Stout sees the expected bump in playing time and maintains his high-end tackling, he’ll be an easy CB1 candidate worth investing in near the top of the position.
CB Travis Hunter, Jacksonville Jaguars
League-winning upside is never guaranteed, and it rarely comes without risk. Whether we’re betting on improved roles, positive regression, a return to form, or ideal circumstances lining up perfectly. Oftentimes, we require more than one of these things for our true league-winners to hit, and Hunter is no different, but still, there are those afraid to take that swing, which, quite frankly, is fine with me. A wise man once said, “scared money don’t make money, ” and when we should be looking for those true league winners in our drafts, Hunter makes all too much sense as a potential game-breaker at the position.
The cornerback/defensive back production curve is typically low and flat for the large majority of the position, and in leagues where you can add any kind of offensive production to that, we’re looking at a significant spike away from the norm. Hunter is the only player with a CB/DB designation with this production in his range of outcomes, making him a heavy favorite to lead an incredibly volatile position in scoring. Hunter won’t be a full-time wide receiver, but he doesn’t need to be. The main thing to focus on is that he will be used as a wide receiver as well as at cornerback, as his coaching staff has repeatedly stated, which is why they traded up to draft him second overall in 2025.
As the fantasy football version of Dune’s “Lisan Al-Gaib,” Hunter comes from the offensive side of the ball to assimilate to the defensive side, uniting both, liberating the Fremen (us believers) from the oppressors and delivering us to the promised land of a fantasy football championship. Is the prophecy real? Will it come to fruition in 2026? Who knows. But I don’t want to be the one to stubbornly miss out on that potential if/when it does hit when a fantasy championship is on the line.
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