Fantasy football buzz: Can managers rely on Rashee Rice for the whole season?Rashee Rice has played in 12 of a possible 34 regular-season games over the past two seasons. AP Photo/Matt Patterson, FileESPN FantasyJun 16, 2026, 04:00 PM ETClose
Everything that happens in the NFL has additional context when viewed from a fantasy football perspective. From position battles to injuries and so much more, the news cycle will constantly affect player values in fantasy football.
Our Fantasy Football Buzz file, with contributions from our ESPN fantasy writers and our NFL Nation reporters, aims to provide fantasy managers with the intel they need as news breaks around the league.
June 16: What do fantasy managers need to look out for with Rashee Rice?
Mike Clay: Rashee Rice was released from jail on Tuesday after serving 30 days for a probation violation. As it pertains to his 2026 fantasy football value, there are two things we need to monitor in the coming months:
1. Possible discipline. It appears unlikely that Rice will be suspended again and even if he is, it would certainly be substantially shorter than the six games he missed to open last season.
2. Health. Rice had a clean-up surgery on his right knee in May, though Andy Reid expects him to be ready for training camp.
Again, we’ll need to keep an eye on Rice’s status leading up to the heart of fantasy draft season, but there is little need for concern about his Week 1 availability as things stand.
The 2023 second-round pick is still eyeing his first full NFL season as a starter. He missed most of 2024 due to injury and appeared in only eight games last season (suspension Weeks 1-6, injured Weeks 16-18). He was productive when active, though, handling 9.8 targets per game and delivering five top-12 fantasy outings. With Patrick Mahomes also expected to be ready to roll for Week 1, Rice remains in the back-end WR1 mix in fantasy. With minimal concerns related to injury and suspension, he makes for a solid value in the middle of the third round of early drafts.
June 15: Bears backfield committee limits upside, but Swift still the top option
D’Andre Swift posted career highs of 1,386 yards from scrimmage and 10 total TDs last season on 16 touches per game. Is it reasonable to expect the same in 2026? Melissa Tamez/Icon SportswireMatt Bowen: Are we overlooking the Chicago Bears backfield heading into the 2026 season? Maybe. But with two solid running backs, it does limit the fantasy ceiling of both D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.
Swift quietly produced 14.3 fantasy PPG last season, while posting five weeks of 19 or more points. He added 39 receptions, too. And Swift is going to see around 15 touches per game, which includes red zone carries (he had 10 inside the 5-yard line last season). Swift gives you some juice on the perimeter and he has the ball carrier vision to produce on screens and underneath throws.
Editor’s Picks
Which Bears pass catcher is the best value, riskiest, and safest in drafts?
Fantasy football rankings for 2026 season
Fantasy football flex and superflex rankings for 2026
Monangai, the Bears’ No. 2 option, is an ideal complement to Swift. He’s the downhill hammer, with the short-area burst and contact balance to work through the wash on inside carries. Monangai scored 8.6 FPPG last season and his usage increased in scoring position. He had 16 goal-to-go carries, including 10 inside the 5-yard line. While Monangai doesn’t have the same level of receiving traits as Swift, he can contribute on screens and checkdowns (18 receptions last season), and he’s going to see close to 10 touches a week.
The run game under head coach Ben Johnson is a foundational piece of the system, as the Bears ranked third in rushing last season at 144.5 yards per game. Johnson’s scheme is designed to create blocking advantages to the play side. We will see more two- and three-tight end sets this season as well, which can create backfield production.
Based on our recent Mock Draft Project at ESPN, Swift checked in at RB25, with Monangai at RB37. Sounds fair, right? This looks more like a backfield committee given the projected deployment and week-to-week touches.
Now, if I had to draft one? It’s Swift. He can be a quality starter as a lower-end RB2/flex, while Monangai is a strong insurance back with the potential to make your starting lineup as a deeper-league flex this season.
June 12: Jakobi Meyers the best of Jaguars’ WR options?
Jakobi Meyers showed immediate chemistry with Trevor Lawrence upon joining the Jaguars last season. Matt Pendleton/Imagn ImagesEric Moody: Jakobi Meyers continues to be one of the most underrated wide receivers in fantasy football. Acquired by the Jacksonville Jaguars midway through the 2025 season, Meyers quickly became one of Trevor Lawrence’s most trusted targets. After arriving in Week 10, Meyers led the Jaguars in target share the rest of the season while catching 42 of 61 throws his way for 482 yards and three touchdowns.
That immediate production matters. Meyers did not need a full offseason or perfect chemistry to make an impact. He stepped into a new offense, stabilized a young receiving corps and gave Lawrence a reliable short-to-intermediate option. In nine regular-season games with the Jaguars, Meyers averaged 11.9 fantasy points per game, a reminder of the high floor he brings to fantasy lineups.
Your League, Your Rules
Create a league and customize league size, scoring and rules to play in the league you want to play in.
Create a league today!
Now that Meyers has a full offseason to master Jacksonville’s offense, he should be even more comfortable and productive in 2026. The growing rapport with Lawrence matters. Meyers has already pointed to better communication between the two, with Lawrence explaining where he wants the ball and the receivers sharing with the QB what they see on the field.
From a dynasty perspective, Meyers is exactly the type of player I want to trade for on a contending roster. He is 29 years old, has finished as a top-32 fantasy wide receiver in each of the last five seasons and is being valued well outside that range in dynasty markets. Over the last five seasons, Meyers has averaged 55.6 receiving yards per game with a 67.5% catch rate.
The Jaguars’ receiver room is difficult to project, with Meyers, Brian Thomas Jr. and Parker Washington all expected to see a similar target share and Travis Hunter also playing a role. But Meyers is my preferred Jaguars receiver to target in Rounds 9 or 10, where he is being drafted in a similar range as Thomas and Washington. He often ends up as the WR3 or WR4 on my rosters. Meyers has just 23 touchdowns in 78 games since 2021, but if he sees positive regression in that area in 2026, his fantasy floor could rise considerably.
June 11: Alec Pierce’s fantasy stock takes a hit
Alec Pierce was poised to take another step forward in his fifth season, but continued ankle troubles might keep him from starting the season at full strength. David Rosenblum/Icon SportswireLiz Loza: Pierce has been playing through a nagging left ankle issue that initially materialized at the end of his 2024 campaign. The Indianapolis Colts WR successfully played through the persistent soreness last season, hauling in 47 passes for a career-high 1,003 receiving yards and six scores. In an effort to avoid surgery, Pierce elected to receive a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection and follow a subsequent rehab program shortly after the close of last season. The treatment course apparently didn’t yield the desired results, forcing Pierce to undergo a cleanup procedure in late March.
The Colts signed the 26-year-old to a four-year, $114 million contract extension earlier that same month, assumedly aware of the upcoming surgery. The timing is curious, as the surgery is accompanied by a 4-6 month rehab process, which puts the wideout’s Week 1 availability in question.
With more than 100 targets vacated due to Michael Pittman Jr.’s departure, Pierce was in line for a sizable promotion. After spending the first three years of his pro career flashing as a deep ball specialist, Pierce demonstrated increased versatility in 2025. While he led the NFL in air yards per target (18.8), Pierce also drew a sizable number of midrange targets, finishing fourth on the team with 84 total looks over 15 games.
Given this newest development, however, a second consecutive 1,000-yard season seems unlikely for the field-stretching talent. Tyler Warren and Josh Downs were already expected to benefit from Pittman’s exit. While the tight end and slot man could draw an extra look here and there, it’s more likely that Nick Westbrook-Ikhine’s usage would spike, if Pierce were to be limited. Pierce’s current ninth-round ADP, therefore, figures to dip. From a fantasy standpoint, he’s shaping up to be more of a WR4 than a flex option.
June 10: Waiting to draft a TE? Jake Ferguson is a late-round, high-upside pick
If you’re waiting on drafting a tight end in your fantasy drafts, Jake Ferguson is a smart option for the upside he offers in Dallas. Stacy Revere/Getty ImagesMatt Bowen: During our fantasy mock draft project at ESPN last month, Dallas Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson carried an ADP of 109.4 (TE11) — which was lower than I anticipated given the explosive ability of the Dallas offense.
But it also fits with my draft philosophy at the tight end position, as I’ll wait until the later rounds to target them. I can grab Ferguson in the 11th to 12th round range — give me the scoring upside, the tight end route tree in Dallas and the red zone usage/deployment.
Ferguson averaged 11.1 PPG in 2025, a number that was much higher in Weeks 1-8 (15.0 PPG) as WR CeeDee Lamb was sidelined with an injury. But even as Ferguson’s target share slid in Weeks 9-18 with Lamb back on the field, he still had three games of double-digit production, catching 31 of 41 targets during that stretch. Plus, Ferguson is going to see the ball in the red zone at a quality rate.
A key part of the Cowboys’ offense in scoring position, Ferguson had 23 red zone targets last season, including 10 end zone targets. Ferguson finished with eight touchdowns, catching six on throws inside of the 10-yard line.
Ferguson is utilized in multiple ways as a target for Dak Prescott: sit routes over the ball (find open grass), play action concepts and isolation routes with Ferguson flexed from the formation. And it’s been a pattern, as Ferguson has 51 red zone targets (and 22 end zone targets) over his last three seasons.
You can find tight ends with a higher ceiling if you target the position early. We know that. But if you decide to fill other spots in your lineup, holding off on landing a tight end till much later in the draft, Ferguson should be on your radar this summer.
June 9: Will Cam Skattebo make a push toward fantasy RB1 status?
Cam Skattebo is currently being drafted in the fourth round of ESPN Fantasy drafts. AP Photo/Seth WenigTristan H. Cockcroft: Seven months and 13 days after fracturing his right ankle in a Week 8 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants running back Cam Skattebo was back participating in running and agility drills during the first day of the team’s mandatory minicamp on Monday. It was an encouraging sign that aligned with the 24-year-old running back’s statements a few weeks back that he expects to be ready to play in time for Week 1.
While there are still hurdles for Skattebo to clear in his rehabilitation, his progress has been positive enough to earn him fantasy RB18 (and No. 38 overall) ADP status in early ESPN drafts, and there’s reason to be confident he’ll be a locked-in, weekly RB2 for your fantasy team. He was showing glimpses of that potential before getting hurt early in his 2025 rookie season, averaging 16.0 fantasy points per game through the first eight weeks, 10th best among running backs. Keep in mind that included Skattebo’s NFL debut, which saw him play only seven offensive snaps, as well as the Week 8 game, in which he played only 10 snaps before the season-ending injury.
At that performance level, and with the Giants’ backfield expected to be Skattebo’s to lead, a top-10 fantasy running back campaign is within reason. The team’s coaching change to John Harbaugh can only help the running game, considering his Baltimore Ravens ranked in the top three in rushing offense in each of the past eight seasons. Even extracting only running backs’ stats — after all, quarterback Lamar Jackson contributed greatly to those lofty team rankings — Harbaugh’s Ravens had top-eight rankings in seven of the past 13 seasons. Harbaugh’s history of rotating running backs to give defenses different looks and keep his players well rested should also work to Skattebo’s benefit, as he recovers from serious injury.
Considering Harbaugh’s rotational approach to his backfields, the presence of Tyrone Tracy Jr. and Devin Singletary on the roster, and Skattebo’s potential need to be eased back in somewhat more slowly than a typical running back due to his injury, a top-five positional outcome seems unlikely. A total Giants offensive breakthrough — difficult to fathom accounting for star receiver Malik Nabers’ own lengthy injury rehabilitation process and quarterback Jaxson Dart’s often-too-aggressive style, which puts him at greater injury risk — would be needed for that highest-end Skattebo outcome.
Skattebo’s continued progress heightens the odds of his approaching, or even entering, the top-10 positional scoring class. One of the biggest risk/reward running backs entering 2026, he’s a player on track to return value on his lofty current ADP.
June 8: Don’t be surprised if a Dolphin other than Achane becomes fantasy-relevant
De’Von Achane is the only Miami Dolphins player sure to be drafted in all fantasy leagues this year, but that doesn’t mean others won’t emerge. AP Photo/Lynne SladkyEric Karabell: Superstar RB De’Von Achane might be the only Miami Dolphins player selected in your fantasy drafts (both mocks and real ones) this summer because, according to pretty much everyone with an opinion, this offense will stink. It will never score many points and even the awesome Achane, last season’s No. 12 fantasy scorer, will be statistically compromised and turn into perhaps a bust of a first-round fantasy pick. This is all going to be so ugly, right?
Perhaps all of this is so, and words from new Dolphins head coach Jeff Hafley and offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik from the team’s recent minicamp hardly inspire confidence — typical, general early-summer terms like “work in progress” and “developing chemistry” — but c’mon, this is an NFL team. Bemoan the so-called underwhelming options that new QB Malik Willis has at his disposal without previous organizational fixtures Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, but surely others will step up.
That’s the point here. We’re not saying other Dolphins — including Willis, who is getting paid a whole lot of money to be better than Tua Tagovailoa — must go in your drafts. Just don’t be so surprised when Willis and someone from the WR crew among veterans Malik Washington, Tutu Atwell and Jalen Tolbert, and rookies Chris Bell, Caleb Douglas and Kevin Coleman Jr. become fantasy-relevant in September. Perhaps more than one does. And let’s not be so quick to presume Achane is a disappointment, too.
Last season’s seven-win Dolphins, led at QB by Tagovailoa and backup Quinn Ewers (three starts), were 25th in passing yards. It’s not great, but it wasn’t “New York Jets” embarrassing. Achane and Waddle hauled in 42% of the receiving yards. Most believe Achane will see a reduction in passing usage, because that’s what happens to running backs when their quarterback is a talented and willing runner. Waddle is a Denver Bronco now. Let’s say Willis throws for 3,000 yards. I’m not sure why it is simply assumed he cannot do this. Geno Smith has achieved this for the past four seasons. Jacoby Brissett just did it in 12 games!
Sure, it feels premature to wager a guess at who those emerging receivers will be, but Washington finished third on the team with 46 receptions last season. They know him. Tolbert caught 49 passes and seven TDs for the 2024 Dallas Cowboys. These first-year receivers delivered notable college numbers. They possess size, speed and significant upside. TE Darren Waller caught six TDs in half a season in 2025. Returning TE Greg Dulcich can do this over a full season. Why can’t a Miami offense, even lacking supposed offensive genius Mike McDaniel, and with a generally unproven passer in Willis, play competent offense? The Dolphins do face the Jets twice, after all.
This can be a productive offense, of course, and while this Monday morning rant is hardly about loading up on Dolphins for this season in standard-sized fantasy leagues (though I think Douglas and Tolbert warrant attention in deeper formats), it is a reminder that any NFL offense can deliver fantasy value. Even the 2026 Dolphins.
