It’s time to get BOLD before Week 1! Tera Roberts, Derek Brown, and Andrew Erickson reveal their biggest fantasy football predictions for the 2026 NFL season, including breakout candidates, potential busts, and several calls that could completely reshape your draft strategy.

Could Parker Washington and Christian Watson finish as top-12 fantasy wide receivers? Is Jayden Daniels being drafted far too early? The crew debates Jacory Croskey-Merritt’s RB1 upside with the Washington Commanders, David Montgomery’s downside with the Houston Texans, and why Quentin Johnston could emerge as the Los Angeles Chargers’ clear WR1.

Plus, Erickson plants his flag on Trevor Lawrence finishing as the overall fantasy QB1 and winning NFL MVP. The crew also breaks down Jalen Coker vs. Tetairoa McMillan, Makai Lemon’s rookie outlook, and the late-round players who could smash their ADP. Get the bold predictions you need before finalizing your 2026 fantasy football draft!

Timestamps: (May be off due to ads)

Intro - 0:00:00

Dbro's Breakout Prediction: Parker Washington is a WR1 - 0:01:39

Erickson's Breakout Prediction: Christian Watson finishes as fantasy WR1 - 0:04:43

Tera's Breakout Prediction: Jacory Croskey-Merritt is an RB1 - 0:09:23

Warby Parker - 0:14:35

Dbro's Bust/Fade Prediction: Makai Lemon will have a Luther Burden type rookie season. - 0:17:36

Erickson's Bust/Fade Prediction: Jayden Daniels will not be a top-12 fantasy QB. - 0:22:28

Tera's Bust/Fade Prediction: David Montgomery is a mid-tier RB3 at best - 0:31:32

Colston Loveland Signed Bears Jersey Winner - Tom Wallace | Next Giveaway: Kyren Williams signed mini helmet - 0:36:58

Dbro's Wild Card Prediction: Quentin Johnston is the clear WR1 for LAC and a top 15 WR - 0:37:59

Erickson’s Wildcard Prediction: Trevor Lawrence wins MVP and finishes as the QB1 overall. - 0:44:15

Tera’s Wildcard Prediction: Jalen Coker averages more PPG in PPR than Tetairoa McMillan - 0:48:02

Draft Assistant Free Trial Promo - 0:55:39

Outro - 0:56:07

Helpful Links:

Draft Wizard - Dominate your fantasy football draft with Draft Wizard. Run fast mock drafts, test different strategies, build custom cheat sheets, get pick-by-pick draft advice, and learn your leaguemates' tendencies before draft day. Just download the FantasyPros App or head to fantasypros.com/draftwizard

Start Your Free FantasyPros Premium Trial - https://www.fantasypros.com/free/ -
Get three days free to unlock premium draft tools, rankings, analysis, and personalized advice.

Watch and Subscribe to The Tailgate - https://www.youtube.com/@tailgatenfl -
Just friends talking football. Get NFL storylines, weekly analysis, giveaways, and more from the FantasyPros team.

Subscribe to FantasyPros on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@fantasypros -
Watch the latest fantasy football rankings, mock drafts, sleepers, breakouts, and draft advice.

Support the FantasyPros Fantasy Football Podcast - https://www.fantasypros.com/review/ - Leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to help support the show.

Real-Time ADP - Track up-to-the-minute draft trends across all major platforms: https://fantasypros.com/realadp

View the Latest Fantasy Football Rankings - https://www.fantasypros.com/nfl/rankings/ - Compare expert consensus rankings, tiers and player values before making your draft-day decisions.

Follow us on Twitch - The team here at FantasyPros is taking questions all week, every week on Twitch. Follow us on Twitch at twitch.tv/fantasypros and never miss a stream!

Discord – Join our FantasyPros Discord Community! Chat with other fans and get access to exclusive AMAs that wind up on our podcast feed. Come get your questions answered and BE ON THE SHOW at fantasypros.com/chat

BettingPros Podcast – For advice on the best picks and props across both the NFL and college football each and every week, check out the BettingPros Podcast at bettingpros.com/podcast, our BettingPros YouTube channel at youtube.com/bettingpros, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our BOLDEST Fantasy Football Predictions for 2026 | Breakouts, Busts & League-Winners (Ep. 2167)

FantasyPros - Fantasy Football Podcast

Our BOLDEST Fantasy Football Predictions for 2026 | Breakouts, Busts & League-Winners (Ep. 2167)