Way-Too-Early Fantasy Football 2026 Quarterback Rankings and Tiers

Ranking the quarterback position in regard to fantasy football for this upcoming season.

Jan 11, 2026; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen (17) reacts after scoring a touchdown during the second half against the Jacksonville Jaguars in an AFC Wild Card Round game at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images | Melina Myers-Imagn Images

NFL teams have set rosters, and now they gear up for their offseason programs. We are in store for another stellar NFL season, and as the storylines progress, so will the fantasy football outlooks. As of right now, the quarterback rankings are listed below in their way-too-early form.

Tier A Quarterbacks

• Josh Allen: He now has Joe Brady as his head coach, who runs more pass-heavy a offense. He did call plays in past years, but with better receivers added, most notably DJ Moore, Allen's upside remains QB1.
• Lamar Jackson: Last season was a down season. Yet, Jackson was hurt, and now he adds a new coaching staff led by Jesse Minter. Declan Doyle is a bright, young offensive mind who should get Jackson back to elite form.
• Joe Burrow: When healthy, Burrow is as good as they come. He enters 2026 healthy with Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins still ahead of him.

Tier B Quarterbacks

• Dak Prescott: He is on the pass-heaviest offense in the NFL, and that will not change in 2026. Prescott lacks the rushing upside.
• Jalen Hurts: AJ Brown is probably gone, but they do add Makai Lemon to keep Hurts relevant enough through the air.
• Drake Maye: He can be viewed as Tier A, but Maye's 2025 season had the NFL's easiest schedule. A natural regression, even if down to QB5, is likelier than an improvement.
• Jayden Daniels: Post-injury, the expectation is sky-high for Daniels, also while having added a nice WR2 in Antonio Williams to play next to a newly healthy Terry McLaurin.
• Justin Herbert: A Tier A season is very possible. Given a lacking ability to be a top-5 quarterback of recent, Herbert falls short. With Mike McDaniel calling plays, the ceiling is very high.
• Caleb Williams: He made a huge jump in year two. Williams also has tremendous upside with an elite supporting cast, coached by Ben Johnson, the league's greatest mind around.

Tier C Quarterbacks

• Jaxson Dart: Year No. 2 may be volatile with a new coaching staff. Matt Nagy is, overall, a good offensive coordinator, so Dart will depend on his own health and Malik Nabers to pave a top-10 path.
• Trevor Lawrence: Even though Travis Etienne Jr. is gone, the Jaguars shall remain run-first. Nonetheless, Lawrence is among the safest picks at the position.
• Pat Mahomes: He is not guaranteed to be ready for Week 1. Nonetheless, Mahomes is a future Hall of Famer. The risk just devalues his value to Tier C in a run-first offense.
• Matthew Stafford: Expect Sean McVay's offense to be more run-heavy in 2026 with Kyren Williams and Blake Corum. Davante Adams is not going to have his touchdown-dominant season two years in a row.
• Bo Nix: The expectation is that Jaylen Waddle puts Box into top-10 quarterback status. For now, he is borderline.
• Baker Mayfield: 2025 was an injury-derailed season and now, Mike Evans is gone. Emeka Egbuka and Chris Godwin still offer Mayfield great targets.

Top Bench Quarterbacks

• Jared Goff: The Lions can help Goff pass for 250+ yards per game. However, he may not rush for more than 10 yards over the entire season, while they run in the red zone.
• Jordan Love: The Packers go run-heavy, and without a core, dominant WR1, Love is volatile in output. Nonetheless, his ceiling is quite high when the matchups favor him.
• Kyler Murray: He could be set up for a big debut season in Minnesota with Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and Jauan Jennings. Injuries and stumbling performances make him a risk until success is seen.
• Tyler Shough: With Chris Olave and Jordyn Tyson, the ceiling for Shough is very high; perhaps the highest of any non-top-10 quarterback.
• CJ Stroud: He has not been quite as good as he was in his rookie season. Stroud still has the weapons to be a top-15 quarterback if he wills it.

High-Ceiling Stashes

• Cam Ward: Year No. 2 with Brian Daboll may offer big things with Calvin Ridley and Wan'Dale Robinson.
• Daniel Jones: With returned health, he could reach top-10 positional status, as was seen pre-injury in 2025.
• Sam Darnold: Super Bowl Champion, Sam Darnold, still operates middling in output on a run-heavy offense that loses its offensive genius, Klint Kubiak.