Can These Rookie WRs Deliver in Fantasy Football 2026?

In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Xfinity:

If you are like me, you are slowly starting to familiarize yourself with this 2026 NFL Draft class.

Of course, the thing I’m most interested in is where we should be valuing these rookies in fantasy.

Fortunately, Dwain just dropped his early 2026 WR tiers for fantasy football and it’s the perfect way to benchmark these rookies against their veteran counterparts. More on this article below.

The three top rookies in this class all earn Tier 6 honors. Here’s the full rundown, along with their current ADP in drafts and where they landed in Freedman’s most recent mock draft:

WR Carnell Tate / Tier 6 / Underdog ADP: 53.8 / Freedman Mock: Pick 5
WR Jordyn Tyson / Tier 6 / Underdog ADP: 59.4/ Freedman Mock: Pick 16
WR Makai Lemon / Tier 6 / Underdog ADP: 57 / Freedman Mock: Pick 21

Tier 6 veteran WRs & Underdog ADP:

Terry McLaurin (46.3), Rome Odunze (57.6), Michael Wilson (75.1), DK Metcalf (67.9), Christian Watson (56.4), Courtland Sutton (62.6), Brian Thomas Jr. (60.3), Mike Evans (66.1)

Takeaways:

As is tradition on Underdog, you have to pay a premium for the rookie WRs. The majority of the Tier 6 veterans are cheaper than the rookies. Of course, Underdog tournament structures massively reward late-season production, so this premium makes sense.
With all three of Tate, Tyson, and Lemon going within a span of six picks on Underdog, Tate jumps out as a slight value as the consensus first WR off the board—see Coach Gene Clemons’ mock draft below for where Tate is picked.
As for the veterans, Wilson, Metcalf and Evans all look like nice values. There is QB uncertainty for all of them, but no questions on the talent.

Now let’s see if the NFL Scouting Combine shakes this up at all …

26 BOLD PREDICTIONS FOR 2026

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Editors’ Picks

Stopwatches ready for your 40? Save yourself the pulled hammy and check out this great content …

Garrett Nussmeier Profile

The Nuss Bus is coming to the NFL! Ian Hartitz gets behind the wheel for the LSU QB’s drive for the next step, with a comp list you can’t miss.

Can free agency in Green Bay make Savion Williams a Dynasty bargain? Jake Trowbridge and Sam Wallace team up to remind us that one Dynasty manager’s trash could be another’s treasure.

Snap Up This 49er

Could Ricky Pearsall be the 49ers’ WR1? Sam Wallace takes aim at four trade targets who could be bull’s eyes in 2026.

NFL Mock Draft: New Landing Spots for Jeremiyah Love and Arvell Reese

This being NFL Scouting Combine week, it’s a great time for another mock draft. Matthew Freedman dropped his mock earlier this week, and since those are always a hit we’re dropping a second one. Coach Gene Clemons joins the mock fun, and while the 1.01 is pretty much a lock, we’ve got one pick that people will Love for fantasy:

9. KC | Jeremiyah Love | RB | Notre Dame

This is the "holy smokes" steal of the first round, allowing Eric Bieniemy to get a hold of the most talented running back in the draft. It just seems unfair. Kansas City might be back before you know it.

We also find out where Ohio State stud LB Arvell Reese could be taking his talents. Coach Gene offers us a pick-by-pick breakdown on most of the picks. Let's see if there’s any movement after the combine. ⤵️

SQUEEZING A LEMON INTO THE BIG APPLE

WR Tiers: Who’s The Next JSN?

It’s funny to think of Chris Olave as the heir apparent to Jaxon Smith-Njigba when it comes to breaking out, because while they were teammates at Ohio State, Olave was drafted a year before JSN. But last year’s season by Olave followed his Buckeye teammate’s 2024 season, before this year’s OPOY superstar campaign. Dwain McFarland broke out the wide receivers into tiers, and Olave fits the mold of a player who could vault himself into the upper reaches in 2026:

Chris Olave finished as the WR6 in fantasy with 16.8 points per game. Under Kellen Moore, Olave shifted more of his playing time to the slot (42%), where he created matchup nightmares for interior defenders. Tyler Shough emerged as a viable passer, averaging 251 yards, after taking over in Week 9. Olave boasted a 29% target share and 126 air yards per game in eight contests with Shough. He was the No. 4 WR over that span with 18.8 PPG.

Dwain runs through seven tiers and even includes incoming rookies in the breakdowns. All told it’s 50 receivers with quick analysis looking forward to the 2026 season. ⤵️

COULD THESE ROOKIES MOVE UP DEPENDING ON LANDING SPOTS?

Around the Watercooler

The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds.

🏈 We’ve only been asking for Patrick Mahomes to get a high-end RB for what feels like forever. Is this the year?

🔮 Chase Brown just might be a Top-4 RB. Please no competition.

🤝 The latest on the Trent Williams contract. Will it get done?

3️⃣ Will the Chargers re-sign Keenan? A three-word answer to that question.

✈️ Top 15 trade candidates. Let’s get BTJ a change of scenery.

🤣 Nice try, Todd. I’m not buying what you’re selling.

🥩 Combine done, time for a feast. Washing down biscuits with what?

⚡️ There’s no question to Mike McDaniel who has it better. He’s fitting in nicely.