2026 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Breakout Rookies & Second-Year Players (UPDATED)

This sleeper article on rookies and second-year players ran earlier this summer. Training camp, injuries and the draft market changed fantasy outlooks the last few weeks. So, we're back with an updated list of rookie and second-year sleepers to guide users in late-summer drafts. 

The players below have the talent to post big numbers out of nowhere in the 2026 NFL season if the pieces fall the right way.

The breakout candidates are listed from most expensive to least expensive ADP.

For up-to-the-minute updates on injuries, news and everything going on around the NFL, head to RotoWire's NFL Fantasy Football News Today or follow @RotoWireNFL on X.

Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jaguars

The Jaguars eased Bhayshul Tuten onto the field as a rookie fourth-round pick, giving him short-yardage and kick-returning duties while Travis Etienne handled the starting role and fellow rookie LeQuint Allen handled blitz pickup. With Etienne off to New Orleans, there's a much bigger opportunity for Tuten in his second season.

As much as free-agent pickup Chris Rodriguez offers the Jaguars a unique power element, Rodriguez is not a candidate to claim any of Etienne's targets. Even if Rodriguez picks up a good chunk of the rushing workload that previously went to Etienne, Tuten should pick up the majority of the passing-down reps vacated by Etienne's departure.

If Rodriguez were to miss any time then at that point Tuten would probably be a 1:1 replacement for Etienne. Tuten's main challenge is to prove ball security after fumbling too often in college. He has the speed and the power otherwise.

Stay informed with fantasy football news and track usage roles with the NFL depth charts.

UPDATE: Ja'Kobi Lane, WR, Ravens

The star of the Ravens offseason, Ja'Kobi Lane looks like he's being fast-tracked into a starting role right away after being selected in the third round of this year's NFL Draft.

That's a strong statement from Hensley. Lane went on to have a strong remainder of the preseason, and drafters have taken note. 

That's one of the more meteoric rises of any player in best ball drafts this entire summer. An 65-pick rise in August is astounding. That's obviously an aggressive jump, but there are reasons to chase that rise up ADP. 

The Ravens have a surefire No.1 in Zay Flowers, but the rest is very much up for negotiation. Rashod Bateman enters his sixth year with exactly one fantasy-relevant season to his name. Devontez Walker is fun to dream on but is not a complete receiver. Elijah Sarratt seems to have earned a spot near the bottom of the depth chart, at least to begin the year. 

That's a long way of saying that there isn't much standing in the way of Ja'Kobi Lane being the WR2 for Lamar Jackson in a promising new offense designed by Declan Doyle. 

UPDATE: Terrance Ferguson, TE, Los Angeles Rams

Terrance Ferguson has been a trendy pick in best ball this summer for good reason. Drafters took note of the Rams' aggressive use of 13-personnel and impressive efficiency in those looks, which helps keep Ferguson's snap projection afloat. Then, drafters looked closer at the tight end group itself and dubbed Ferguson as the one to target in fantasy over Colby Parkinson and Tyler Higbee.

Ferguson has steadily risen to a point where he's going ahead of some more established, albeit boring, veterans. The upside case is there, though. The Rams are expected to be among the highest scoring teams in the league this year. Ferguson is a top-percentile athlete who showed splash-play potential on limited volume last year. As long as the Rams use TE-heavy personnel as much as we're expecting, Ferguson is going to have some big weeks for fantasy this season.

Matthew Golden, WR, Packers

Matthew Golden's rookie year was a bummer and he heads into his second season with a lot to prove. The good news is he'll get every opportunity to prove himself in 2026.

With Romeo Doubs, Dontayvion Wicks and Malik Heath subtracted from the Green Bay wideout rotation there's much more slack for Golden to exploit as he heads into his second season. Those three receivers combined for 138 targets and 1,394 snaps in 2025.

Golden and his 4.29 speed should settle in fine at the flanker rep for Green Bay this year, in a season where the Packers might need to throw more due to defensive regression.

Jonah Coleman, RB, Broncos

Jonah Coleman (5-foot-8, 220) is a human fire hydrant whose easy anchor and developed all-around skill set make him easy to plug into a lineup. For the Broncos that will likely be as the RB3 behind J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey, but neither player has shown the ability to withstand volume at the NFL level.

Before Denver spent a fourth-round pick on Coleman they had no semblance of raw power in their backfield after Dobbins, who isn't even a pure power guy himself. Given Dobbins' uniquely bad injury history, Coleman is closer to the field than most RB3s, and if Dobbins were to miss time Coleman would likely become Denver's primary goal-line runner.

Harvey is Denver's best receiver at running back, but Coleman is capable as a receiver in his own right and probably offers better blitz pickup ability than Harvey, who's about 15 pounds lighter than Coleman at the same height.

Tre' Harris, WR, Chargers

Tre' Harris will begin the year as the Chargers' WR3 behind Ladd McConkey and Quentin Johnston, which might in function be more like the WR4 when you account for TE/WR tweener Oronde Gadsden. There's still reason to consider Harris as a depth pick or at least keep him on your FAAB speed dial going into 2026.

Johnston's hands sometimes fail him, while McConkey to this point has often been failed by his durability. Of the three Harris is by far the most rugged – better hands than Johnston, and a better blocker than both.

You'll sometimes see talk about how new offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel will unleash YAC potential for Johnston, but that premise could just as easily apply to Harris. If anything, Harris has questions to answer about his downfield route-running ability. Harris' hands and ability after the catch are a clear cumulative strength that exceeds Johnston and matches McConkey.

UPDATE: Emmett Johnson, RB, Chiefs

Emari Demercado was waived as the Chiefs finalized their roster. Emmett Johnson's impressive camp and preseason certainly factored into that move. Demercado's release also signals that the Chiefs are comfortable with the rookie Johnson taking on the backup role behind Kenneth Walker. 

Johnson has massive contingent upside and might have some standalone value if Walker can't take on the 20-plus carry workload that his drafters are expecting. 

Zachariah Branch, WR, Falcons

Zachariah Branch was an electric YAC threat at Georgia, but at 5-foot-9, 177 pounds his lack of size and lack of downfield collegiate production raised the fear that he might be more like a gadget receiver than a potential starter at the NFL level.

As much as those concerns might persist, the fact is the Falcons might be thin enough at receiver that they have little choice but to make Branch their WR2 behind Drake London. Branch's main competition otherwise appears to be former first-round bust Jahan Dotson.

With 4.35 speed Branch can certainly reach downfield depths, even if he was more so a screen-pass merchant at the college level. The Falcons could really use that speed to clear out more room for London, Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts. That speed might be Branch's ticket to something like 750 snaps as a rookie, in which case he might get just enough playing time to make a dent in PPR scoring.

Nicholas Singleton, RB, Titans

Robert Saleh was perfectly clear that Tennessee's RB1 is Tony Pollard and their RB2 is Tyjae Spears. That makes sense – Pollard and Spears are both good players.

Solid as their skill sets might be, durability is not the strong suit of either Pollard or especially Spears. Spears might be the greatest injury concern at running back league-wide, in fact, due to his recent history of concussions and his long-term history of knee concerns.

Nicholas Singleton will need to catch up to the nuances of the pro game as a rookie fifth-round pick, but like Coleman in Denver you can reason that Singleton is closer to the field than most other RB3s, because both of the guys ahead of him have volume limitations. Pollard is a former receiver who weighs no more than 210 pounds, and Spears projects for much less volume yet.

Singleton is bigger and much faster than either of Pollard or Spears. Similarly crucial is the fact that Singleton is a plus pass catcher, to the point that he might be the best receiver between himself, Pollard and Spears.

If Pollard or Spears misses any time Singleton immediately becomes important. Neither Pollard nor Spears can withstand a full workload, so just one of them missing time is a sufficient condition for Singleton and his loud athleticism to kick the door in despite beginning the year as RB3.

UPDATE: Kaelon Black, RB, 49ers

Christian McCaffrey withstood 413 touches from scrimmage in 2025 and now heads into his age-30 season. The 49ers want to get as much as possible out of McCaffrey, but to do that they somewhat paradoxically need to decrease his workload.

Whatever McCaffrey leaves on the bone won't be much by the time any of his backups get on the field, but he needs more relief all the same. Kaelon Black and/or Jordan James needs to make that happen because Isaac Guerendo was placed on the reserve/PUP list.

James heads into his second season as a former fifth-round pick out of Oregon, while Black is a rookie third-round pick out of Indiana. Though Black has clearly better draft capital, he was not invited to the Combine and was thus a shocking selection in the third round of the 2026 draft. James was almost universally regarded as a better prospect the prior year, even if he went in the fifth round. James more or less matched the production of former teammate Bucky Irving at Oregon, whereas Black was backup to the undrafted Roman Hemby. James is also more than two years younger than Black.

James, however, was injured for much of training camp and Black took the lead in the race to back up McCaffrey. 

He's up into the 16th round after often going undrafted much of the summer. As with any speculative 49ers running back during the McCaffrey era, it's unlikely Black will get much work if CMC is healthy. The question all draft season was who the next guy up would be. Black had a stronger camp and preseason. 

Ted Hurst, WR, Buccaneers

Ted Hurst was too big and too fast for the defenders to have a chance at the collegiate level, where he played for Valdosta State and then Georgia State later. Hurst is probably raw as a result of how easily he dominated in college, but as far as raw materials go you can't do much better than Hurst.

Hurst is big (6-4, 206) yet logged a 4.42-second 40-yard dash at the Combine, registering a height/weight/speed combination reminiscent of Nico Collins out of Michigan. It's a trait set the Buccaneers could really use with Mike Evans off to San Francisco.

Raw as he might be, it's no issue for the Buccaneers since they have Emeka Egbuka, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan lined up as a strong three-wide loadout. If any of them were to miss time, however, Hurst and his loud big-play ability would become interesting.

.

Dominate your fantasy football league this season by exploring our draft kit. Packed with expert insights, rankings and strategy tips, the draft kit features our interactive mock draft simulator to prepare you for every scenario. Streamline your draft-day decisions using our printable cheat sheet and stay ahead of the competition with our up-to-date rankings for all formats. Subscribe to RotoWire now.