Bears QB Caleb Williams led all scorers behind two passing and two rushing touchdowns. AP Photo/Erik VerduzcoMatt BowenCloseMatt BowenESPN WriterMatt Bowen is a fantasy football and NFL writer for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2015, writes regularly for ESPN+ and spent multiple years on “NFL Matchup.” After graduating from the University of Iowa, Matt played safety in the NFL for St. Louis, Green Bay, Washington and Buffalo over seven seasons. and Tristan H. CockcroftCloseTristan H.
CockcroftESPN Senior WriterTristan H. Cockcroft is senior writer for fantasy baseball and football at ESPN. Tristan is a member of the FSWA Hall of Fame. He is also two-time LABR and four-time Tout Wars champion.Multiple AuthorsSep 13, 2026, 11:47 PM ETOpen Extended ReactionsWeek 1 of the 2026 fantasy football season was one for the ages, with huge scoring performances by Caleb Williams, Josh Allen and Derrick Henry.
On the flip side, fantasy stars Ja’Marr Chase, Drake London and James Cook III were among the biggest disappointments.Who were the big winners and losers around the league during the opening week of the fantasy football season?Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analysis.Jump to a topic: Ranking winners | Ranking losers Biggest injuries and what’s nextRanking fantasy winners of Week 11. Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago BearsWilliams led all quarterbacks in the early window with 37.26 points as the Bears offense dropped 59 on Carolina. Yes, we saw Williams’ rare playmaking ability — as a runner and thrower — but don’t forget about the efficiency from the pocket, as he completed 72.4% of his passes.
He’ll be a top-five QB in my ranks for the Week 2 home opener against the Vikings. — Bowen2. Josh Allen, QB, and DJ Moore, WR, Buffalo BillsAllen’s 35.66 fantasy points are 15.06 more than any quarterback scored in a game last season against the Texans, this year’s No. 1 defense drafted on average. It extended his record to nine career games with at least two passing and two rushing touchdowns (Steve Young is next closest with four), and it saw him display good rapport with new No. 1 receiver Moore, who scored 21.0 fantasy points. And let’s also send a little love Dalton Kincaid’s way, as the tight end scored 18.0 points.
This offense is humming, and it should keep up the big scores in Week 2 against the Lions. — Cockcroft3. Derrick Henry, RB, Baltimore Ravensplay0:45Derrick Henry proved to be ‘excellent’ fantasy pick with Week 1 performanceHenry led all running backs in the early window with 35.3 points, rushing for 144 yards and three scores on 24 carries. He also caught one pass for 19 yards. He had some runways to get rolling on in this one, too.
There was open daylight in offensive coordinator Declan Doyle’s new run scheme to get north/south with the ball. Henry will be a mid-tier RB1 in my ranks for the Week 2 game against the Saints’ defense. — Bowen4. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas RaidersThe ankle injury that once seemed severe now feels as if it happened in the distant past, after Jeanty scored 32.7 fantasy points in a dominating Week 1 effort. He scored a pair of 13-yard receiving touchdowns and had 29 of the Raiders’ 58 total touches, playing 73% of the offensive snaps.
Jeanty could be set up for a major breakthrough in his second season, and this performance reaffirmed his fantasy RB1 status. — Cockcroft5. D’Andre Swift, RB, Chicago BearsSwift led a Bears run game that was downhill and explosive in the Week 1 win over the Panthers. Swift, who finished with 32.4 points, rushed for 124 yards — and three touchdowns — on 18 carries, plus he added a reception for 10 yards. The play speed jumped here in Ben Johnson’s scheme, too.
Keep Swift as a solid RB2 for the Week 2 game against the Vikings. — Bowen6. David Montgomery, RB, Houston Texansplay0:56Why David Montgomery’s fantasy Week 1 went ‘as well as you could’ve hoped’Montgomery (28.9 points) didn’t have a very efficient day running the ball against the Bills front (3.0 YPC), but the red zone usage boosted his fantasy profile. Montgomery scored twice on red zone carries (one on the goal line), and he was targeted on a schemed throw from quarterback C.J. Stroud to find the end zone.
Montgomery will remain a touchdown dependent RB2 in the Week 2 matchup against the Bengals. — Bowen7. Lamar Jackson, QB, and Zay Flowers, WR, Baltimore RavensOC Doyle schemed targets for his playmakers in the pass game, while Jackson threw for 324 yards and rushed for 41 with two total touchdowns (24.96 points). You can lock in Jackson as a top-two play for the Week 2 home matchup against the Saints. Flowers — before exiting because of a hamstring injury — caught five passes for 150 yards and a score (26 points).
We’ll monitor Flowers’ injury, but when healthy, he should be viewed as a WR2 who can produce game-breaking weeks in this scheme. — Bowen8. Bryce Young, QB, and Jalen Coker, WR, Carolina PanthersIn a shootout loss to the Bears, Young had 31.4 points, throwing for 361 yards and three touchdowns, plus he rushed for a score. He remains a starter in 2QB Superflex formats. Coker — one of my favorite late-round targets — had a career-best 33.8 points, catching eight passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns.
Rostered in 50.8% of ESPN leagues, Coker is a must-add ahead of the Week 2 game against Atlanta. — Bowen9. Trevor Lawrence, QB, Jacksonville JaguarsSecond-half-of-2025 Lawrence remains in the building, though his 26.1 fantasy-point performance did come against a bad Browns team. It’s the sixth time in his past seven regular-season games that he has exceeded 20 points, as he has certainly warmed to his focal-point role in Liam Coen’s offense. Lawrence has a tougher Week 2 road assignment against the Broncos, but most weeks he should make the “worth-your-start” cut. — Cockcroft10.
Christian Watson, WR, Green Bay PackersWatson’s 32.7 points against the Vikings were the second most among wide receivers in Week 1 through the late window, as he caught six of eight targets for 147 yards and two touchdowns. With an expanding route tree, and big-play speed, Watson can be safely played as a WR2 for next Sunday’s matchup against the Jets. — Bowen11. Isaiah Likely, TE, New York GiantsBrought in from Baltimore as a free agent, Likely led the Giants with eight catches, the most by any Giants tight end in nearly three years, with two going for touchdowns. He paced the position for the week with his 27.8 fantasy points, and made a statement that he’ll be enough of a factor in this offense to be a weekly top-10 tight end.
Available in nearly 20% of ESPN leagues, Likely faces a tougher matchup in the Rams in Week 2, though his usage here in the red zone is promising enough to make him worth the start. — Cockcroft12. Tyler Shough, QB, and Chris Olave, WR, New Orleans SaintsThough his performance was sluggish in the game’s early going, Shough had the goods as a passer in the latter stages, to the point that he might not be as far off being of use in one-starter, 10-team formats as you might think. Coming back from two touchdowns behind, he scored the near-entirety of his 23.2 fantasy points on the Saints’ final five drives, nearly rallying them to an overtime victory. Shough made good use of his receivers, especially Olave (28.2 fantasy points) but also Devaughn Vele (19.9), and Olave might well be a fantasy WR1 with this level of usage.
They face a tougher test in the Ravens next week, but that merely means wait and see with Shough. — CockcroftRanking fantasy losers of Week 11. Ja’Marr Chase, WR, Cincinnati BengalsDon’t panic if you’ve got him, as he’s no stranger to slow starts. Chase’s 3.2 fantasy points was the second-worst score of his career, and he has now delivered two of his three worst outputs in the past two Week 1s. He has averaged 5.5 fewer points in September than in all other months.
But, hey, his Bengals did manage a win to draw to an even 10-10 in the opening month in his career (they are 42
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