The NFL schedule is here—more on that below (Ian has you covered)—but we need to digest some interesting news before we can start feasting on our favorite Week 17 matchups.

Dan Duggan reported yesterday that Malik Nabers underwent a second surgery on his knee to remove scar tissue that was still causing stiffness. The second surgery reportedly took place ‘multiple weeks ago’ and it was described as a ‘clean up.’

Ruh-roh.

Considering we’ve been drafting Nabers in the middle of the second round, this is somewhat alarming.

Sure, the Giants “remain hopeful” that he will be ready for Week 1 and claim that it has not altered its recovery timeline, but—let’s be honest—they would say that even if he wasn’t true.

Dwain McFarland looked at historical data on similar injuries and is pretty concerned the recent scope could cause the Giants to take it slow with Nabers.

In response, he adjusted the Nabers projection to two missed games and reduced his route participation from 93% to 90%.

That might sound inconsequential—and the points per game projection (12.8) is still strong—but it dropped him from WR11 to WR23 in half-PPR.

So, how to play it? This is a classic format-specific move. In the best ball tournaments with top-heavy prizes where all of the money is won in Week 17, Nabers still offers incredible late-season upside. In redraft leagues, however, when getting off to a fast start can make or break your playoff chances, it would be wise to devalue him with this latest news.

We can always adjust with more information, but proceeding with caution is warranted until a more reliable narrator steps in.

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Around the Watercooler

Our merry band of football nerds is back and bringing you the latest news, content and memes from the NFL universe …

⚡️ The No. 1 team to build around in your 2026 drafts? A breakout on tap.

😬 This team just can’t catch a break. Biggest losers from the schedule release.

👀 2026 is the best year to join an IDP league … strategy and draft targets to consider.

🔥 The NFL worked overtime on the Thanksgiving slate. Absolute bangers.

🎄 The same can be said about the Christmas slate. Some league-winning matchups.

🐴 This second-year TE might be the best buy at the position. And it’s not Colston Loveland.

🤔 Great, another WR on the Jets. Remember him.

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Instant Reactions To The 2026 NFL Schedule Release

The 2026 NFL schedule has been released. Let's party, people!

What follows are Ian Hartitz’s six takeaways that cover actionable early-season fantasy strategy, best ball playoff intel, which NFL social account video rankings and much more!

As always: It's a great day to be great.

Best NFL Schedule Release Videos

My top five:

1. Shoutout to the Colts for winning the day with their Simpsons-themed release. Extra points for the "We will not include Tyreek Hill in these videos" reference in the beginning. People don't forget!
2. The Chargers, per usual, crushed—this time with a Halo-themed release video. Yes, they referenced the thing.
3. The Titans continue to crush these—this time matching up their schedule with random lookalikes on the street. They seriously found a Myles Garrett twin.
4. The Bears leaned on Bob Ross–err, Rome Odunze to paint their schedule. Officially drafting Odunze every chance I get this offseason.
5. The Raiders squared up Fernando Mendoza and Kirk Cousins in a Step Brothers face-off. That's just good, clean, family fun right there.

The worst video goes to the Carindals. AI slop from arguably the worst franchise in the league. Be better!

Onto …

Quinshon Judkins Headlines Fantasy Winners From Schedule Release

We’ll see how good Cleveland’s opponents are at stopping the run in 2026, but honestly, we don’t even care about that.

We care about how good they are at scoring points.

Let us explain. Game script often plays a factor in what a running back can ultimately do on a weekly basis. But it especially impacts running backs who don’t offer a ton in the passing game. Because the Browns were once again a bad team last year, they found themselves trailing a lot, limiting Judkins’ volume. Last year, Cleveland ran 298 offensive plays when trailing by 10-plus points, the seventh-most in football. That did not bode well for Judkins’ late-game usage, as the rookie averaged just 3.7 fourth-quarter touches per game, which ranked 20th among all running backs. Judkins was Cleveland’s clear early-down option, but he ceded plenty of third-down/passing work to Dylan Sampson and Jerome Ford. According to the Fantasy Life Utilization Report, Judkins logged just 9% of the long down and distance snaps, as well as 11% of the two-minute opportunities. You’d love to see an uptick in both departments in his second year, but even if the usage doesn’t climb too much, this schedule could make up for it.

We get it. The AFC North is absolutely brutal. But outside of that, there is a lot to like with Cleveland’s slate of opponents in 2026. They’ll face arguably the weakest division in football in the NFC South, with the Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers being at home. But they also face the Tennessee Titans, Las Vegas Raiders, New York Jets and New York Giants, all improving teams, but nothing that strikes any fear. Sure, we’re not even in June yet. But it appears there will be a handful of games this season where the Browns aren’t chasing points:

• Week 3 - Carolina Panthers, 1.80 points per drive (27th)
• Week 5 - New York Jets, 1.49 (29th)
• Week 7 - Tennessee Titans, 1.44 (30th)
• Week 12 - Las Vegas Raiders, 1.32 (31st)
• Week 14 - Atlanta Falcons, 1.89 (25th)

More fantasy football winners from the schedule release ⤵️

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