Drake London And 3 Other Overvalued Players To Avoid In Fantasy In 2026
Teams throughout the NFL have kicked off mandatory minicamp and fantasy football owners are setting sights on the start of the 2026 season. Fantasy managers approach lineup construction in many different ways. It's common to target players who offer favorable value, flying under the radar for a plethora of reasons including injuries, crowded position groups, etc.
Last season, players like Drake Maye, Jameson Williams and Michael Wilson broke out in fantasy after coming into the season with low-risk ADP. Each of the three players mentioned sustained valuable production and finished the year ranked among the top contributors in their respective positions.
On the other hand, players picked ahead of Maye, Williams and Wilson may have struggled to surpass such output and live up to projections. Overvaluing players happens frequently, but can be avoided with careful lineup construction. Let's look at four overvalued fantasy stars to avoid for the 2026 season:
Christian McCaffrey - San Francisco 49ers (RB)
Christian McCaffrey anchored an injury-riddled San Francisco 49ers offense in 2025. He led the NFL with 413 touches, racking up 2,126 yards from scrimmage and 17 touchdowns. Monitoring previous trends, McCaffrey has never failed to replicate success from previous seasons after leading the league in touches in prior years. Pair that with the addition of Mike Evans, another high-end target in the passing game who could slightly hamper his receiving production, and you have a compelling argument to pass on the four-time All-Pro. McCaffrey is entering the season with an ADP inside the top seven picks, and could struggle to live up to the ceiling of his 2025 campaign.
Chase Brown - Cincinnati Bengals (RB)
Chase Brown's production through the first seven games of the season raised concerns among fantasy owners. The Cincinnati Bengals' lead back averaged just over 10.0 PPR points a game, failing to live up to his elevated ADP coming into the season. Brown closed the season with a stellar run and finished the season ranked as RB7 in PPR. Entering the 2026 season, he's ranked as RB11 among ADP rankings, ahead of other feature backs such as Derrick Henry, Jeremiyah Love and others. I feel such expectations are a little rich for Brown behind a Bengals offensive line that features its share of question marks after a stagnant offseason at the position. Love and Henry are safer picks at running back in this range.
Drake London - Atlanta Falcons (WR)
The Atlanta Falcons have bought into Drake London over the long term, inking the franchise wideout to a four-year deal last week. London always presents a safe floor with his target share, eclipsing 110 targets in each of his first four seasons, but questions at the quarterback position could hamper the Falcons' offense in 2026. Tua Tagovailoa and Michael Penix Jr. each have their own share of concerns coming into the season, with little depth behind the two lefty signal-callers. London is coming into the season ranked as WR7 among ADP rankings, which will be difficult to live up in fantasy. Managers may prefer A.J. Brown or George Pickens, both ranked below the Falcons wideout at this draft range.
Jayden Daniels - Washington Commanders (QB)
The Washington Commanders endured a turbulent 2025 campaign, as injuries plagued the lineup, including the quarterback position. Jayden Daniels was limited to seven games in his second season while dealing with several nagging injuries that sidelined him for more than half the season. The former No. 2 overall pick emerged as a premier fantasy asset during a historic rookie campaign, flashing maturity from the pocket with high-end rushing upside. I'm bullish on Daniels' ability to bounce back in Year 3, but I don't buy into his QB4 ranking coming into the season. Washington was unable to surround Daniels with another notable target following the departure of Deebo Samuel and failed to bolster its offensive line, discouraging signs for Daniels after an injury-riddled sophomore outing last year.
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This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 12:23 PM.