2026 Fantasy Football Bounce-Back Candidates: DJ Moore Will Find New Life Paired With Josh Allen

These are some of the top bounce-back candidates for the 2026 fantasy football season.

Chicago Bears wide receiver DJ Moore (2) makes the eventual game winning touchdown catch against the Green Bay Packers during the second half of an NFC Wild Card Round game at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

There are plenty of great football players who struggle every year for fantasy football owners. 2025 was no exception. However, that doesn't mean they can't come back this year and return to form. These are the top bounce-back candidates for 2026.

QB Lamar Jackson, Baltimore Ravens

Last season was massively disappointing for Jackson. He finished as the QB20 overall, which could be chalked up to missing time due to injury, but significantly more concerning is the fact that he finished as the QB16 overall in points per game.

He started off the season hot as usual before suffering a hamstring injury in late September, which cost him about a month. Jackson never quite looked the same for the remainder of the season. It completely derailed the season for fantasy owners.

However, we believe he should bounce back in 2026. A leg injury to a quarterback whose fantasy value and success rely so heavily on his athleticism can destroy his season. He will return healthy this season and once again thrive as an elite fantasy QB1.

RB Chuba Hubbard, Carolina Panthers

Hubbard was coming off a breakout 2024 campaign last year, but things did not go as planned. Coincidentally, he got injured the same day as Jackson in Week 4, and things went sideways from there.

In the two games that Hubbard missed, Rico Dowdle rushed for 389 yards on 7.4 yards per carry, caught seven passes for 84 yards, and scored two touchdowns. Following his absence, he returned to a time-split which often leaned in the favor of Dowdle for the remainder of the season.

Dowdle has now left and joined the Pittsburgh Steelers. The only competition Hubbard has for touches this season is Jonathon Brooks. While Brooks was a great prospect and has talent, he's managed just nine carries in his two-year career due to tearing the same ACL twice. That's not to say that Brooks can't bounce back in his own right, but there is no guarantee he'll be anything close to what he was in college.

WR DJ Moore, Buffalo Bills

Moore got lost in the shuffle in Chicago last season, finishing as the WR35 overall. Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III, and Colston Loveland all emerged as targets, and it damaged the weapons from a fantasy perspective.

This season, Moore will head to Buffalo to be Josh Allen's top target. It is a huge opportunity for him to see a ton of targets for a quarterback who has proven he can sustain a high-end WR1 back when he had Stefon Diggs. 2026 could be one of the best seasons of his fantasy career.

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