2026 Fantasy Football First-Round Mock Draft: Jahmyr Gibbs Climbs While Christian McCaffrey Falls

There are a lot of changes heading into the 2026 fantasy football season. This is our way-too-early first-round mock draft.

Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs (0) warms up before the game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

The 2026 NFL league season has officially begun. While we haven't even reached the 2026 NFL Draft yet, it's never too early to look ahead to next fantasy season.

A lot can change between now and September, but we are going to look ahead at how the first round of fantasy football redrafts is shaping up. This is our first-round mock draft for the 2026 fantasy football season.

1.1 RB Bijan Robinson, Atlanta Falcons

Robinson was already the top player in fantasy football, and now his backup, Tyler Allgeier, has left in free agency for the Arizona Cardinals. While Robinson still saw the vast majority of the work, Allgeier still totaled eight touchdowns and over 600 yards from scrimmage last season.

Allgeier is a very good player who can't just be replaced by any backup. We expect Robinson to have an even better fantasy season in 2026.

1.2 RB Jahmyr Gibbs, Detroit Lions

With David Montgomery finally out of his way in Detroit, Gibbs climbs back up into our No. 2 spot despite coming off a bit of a disappointing season both for him and the Lions' offense. Despite his slight lack of consistency, Gibbs still finished as the fantasy RB3 overall. He will finish higher in 2026.

1.3 WR Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals

When it comes down to the first wide receiver off the board, it comes down to preference. Both Chase and Nacua are great options. Chase has more game-breaking ability, while Nacua sees crazy volume. If we had to decide between the two wideouts, we'd go with Chase. There are plenty of others who would go with Nacua.

1.4 WR Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams

As we just mentioned, Nacua could easily be the top wide receiver or even the top player in fantasy drafts. It depends on who you are drafting with.

1.5 WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Seattle Seahawks

JSN had a breakout season, finishing as the fantasy WR2. He caught 119 passes for 1,793 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The only reason he isn't higher is that we've only seen him do it one time. If he has another year like last year, this year, he will become a perennial top fantasy option at wide receiver. Nevertheless, he won't be the top wide receiver off the board this year.

1.6 RB De'Von Achane, Miami Dolphins

Miami Dolphins running back De'Von Achane (28) escapes a tackle by Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Brandin Echols (26) in the fourth quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

A lot can change with Achane, and he's going to be a bit of a polarizing option this offseason. As of now, he's on the Miami Dolphins, and they are projected to be one of the worst teams in the league.

However, Achane looks to be locked in as the top option, perhaps in both the rushing and passing attack. The volume will be there, and he's a special player who can create on his own without a ton of help on the offense.

1.7 RB Jonathan Taylor, Indianapolis Colts

Fantasy owners may have been left with a bit of a sour taste in their mouths from Taylor at the end of last season. Still, they also won't forget how he dominated the league for the majority of the fantasy regular season.

With Daniel Jones back, we expect the Colts offense and JT to return to form next season. When Jones went down with injury, Taylor was an NFL MVP candidate.

1.8 WR CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys

Lamb missed time last season, but finished as the fantasy WR10 overall when it comes to fantasy points per game. The issue is that his teammate, George Pickens, finished as the fantasy WR6 in fantasy points per game. There are a lot of fantasy owners who will pass on Lamb and just try to get the better option on his own team later.

1.9 WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions

Lamb is as consistent and dependable as there is. Year after year, he finished near the top of the fantasy wide receiver rankings, and last year, he once again finished as the WR3 overall. For some reason, he's not viewed as a sexy pick, but he ends up being a steal every season.

1.10 RB Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers

If you thought McCaffrey was polarizing last season, we expect him to be even more polarizing this year. He finished as the fantasy RB1 last year, but is now a year older and coming off a massive workload.

There is also a narrative that he is healthy every other year, and we saw his efficiency dip in 2025. We wouldn't draft him in the first round, but someone in your draft will.

1.11 WR Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) looks on after the game against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

Jefferson could shoot up draft boards by the time we get to draft season. Despite coming off a miserable season tanked by the woefully bad JJ McCarthy, most intelligent people accept that Jefferson is still an elite player who was bogged down by awful quarterback play.

Kyler Murray may have his naysayers, but he's a massive upgrade from McCarthy or anyone else they had at quarterback last season. Don't be shocked if he begins to creep up draft boards this summer. It will take one highlight of Murray throwing to Jefferson in training camp.

1.12 WR Malik Nabers, New York Giants

There are a number of wide receivers we could have put here. No one would complain if we had Nico Collins or Drake London in this spot, but as long as Nabers is healthy, we expect him to shoot up draft boards and sneak his way into the first round of drafts this summer.

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