Week 1 winners and losers: Caleb Williams and Josh Allen dominate; Ja’Marr Chase disappoints

Week 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 next

Ranking fantasy winners of Week 1

Williams 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. — Bowen

Allen’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. — Cockcroft

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Derrick Henry proved to be ‘excellent’ fantasy pick with Week 1 performance

Henry 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. — Bowen

The 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. — Cockcroft

Swift 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. — Bowen

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Why 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. — Bowen

OC 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. — Bowen

In 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. — Bowen

Second-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. — Cockcroft

Watson’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. — Bowen

Brought 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. — Cockcroft

Though 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. — Cockcroft

Ranking fantasy losers of Week 1

Don’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 42-30 the rest of the season, including the playoffs). Chase now face a Texans defense, typically a tough matchup, but one that was battered by the Bills. Be patient with the star wideout. — Cockcroft

The late QB switch to Cooper Rush, after Tua Tagovailoa sustained an oblique injury during Thursday’s practice, was disastrous for the Falcons’ offense, which totaled 238 yards, had two turnovers and was sacked four times. London had only four targets, scored 5.5 fantasy points and even had a 6-yard run — his second career rushing attempt — as the Falcons desperately tried to get him involved. Tagovailoa’s health will have a bearing on London’s Week 2 utility against the Panthers, as he’d only be a near-WR1 with his quarterback back under center. — Cockcroft

Few things are more painful to fantasy managers than to hear that your player was involved in the highest-scoring Week 1 game in NFL history — the Bears and Panthers totaled a record 96 points!!! — only to open the box score and see him with a big, fat doughnut. That’s despite his pacing the team’s receivers in snaps (60) and routes run (25). Loveland will surely be needed more in the passing game in Week 2 against the Vikings. — Cockcroft

In a tough Week 1 matchup against the Houston run defense, Cook had only 9.9 points, but this isn’t the time to sound the alarm. Cook did average 4.4 YPC and he finished the day with 16 total touches. The volume (and production) will be there in an explosive Bills offense. Keep Cook in the RB1 mix for the Week 2 home game against the Lions on Thursday night. — Bowen

Concerns about the Dolphins’ weak supporting case will grow only louder during the coming week, after Achane, the No. 12 pick on average in ESPN leagues, scored only 10.6 fantasy points against the Raiders. He had only 11 rushing attempts and five targets from the ineffective Malik Willis. It’s not yet time to panic with Achane, whose receiving ability alleviates some of the concerns about his team, but he might be more matchup-susceptible this season than last. He gets the 49ers next week, and is a borderline fantasy RB1. — Cockcroft

It was a rough start for a player I tagged a breakout candidate this summer. Hampton did score a touchdown, but he rushed for 43 yards on 12 carries (3.6 YPC), and he failed to factor into the pass game. Hampton will look to rebound in Week 2 at home against the Raiders. — Bowen

His poor history against the Eagles, and specifically cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, continued, as McLaurin scored only 3.4 fantasy points on four targets. Mitchell shut the star wide receiver out in their nine head-to-head matchups, per Next Gen Stats, and new acquisition CB Riq Woolen shut McLaurin out on his only target in 13 head-to-head matchups. It’s not something to expect every week, and especially not in a Week 2 much more favorable assignment against the Cowboys. — Cockcroft

The Browns’ offensive woes, many of which can be pinned on starting quarterback Deshaun Watson, held back Judkins in their Week 1 drubbing at the hands of the Jaguars. Judkins has 12 of the backfield’s 13 carries and team’s 21 rushing attempts total, but could muster only 7.0 fantasy points. The Browns are shaping up as a top-shelf offense against which to stream D/STs (hint: get the Buccaneers for Week 2!), but Judkins should regularly get enough work to be a serviceable RB2/flex option. — Cockcroft

Injury impact

What we know: McConkey took a big hit in the second half on a middle-of-the-field throw, exiting the game with what the team called a chest injury. He did not return. Before the injury, McConkey scored 19.2 points.

What’s next: If McConkey is down for the Week 2 game against the Raiders, Quentin Johnston would move into a key role for the Chargers’ pass game, while Tre’ Harris (3.9% rostered) fits as a deeper league add. — Bowen

What we know: Flowers’ big Week 1 ended early because of a hamstring injury, as did Lane’s because of a wrist injury, both of which were sustained during the second quarter. With the Ravens winning in blowout fashion 41-23, neither was pressed to return during the game’s second half.

What’s next: We’ll see whether the injuries to Flowers or Lane are significant enough to extend into Week 2, or whether the Ravens merely had the luxury to rest both. Jackson targeted tight end Mark Andrews four times during the second half, and he might lean more upon Andrews if either or both wide receiver sits out additional time. Chris Moore also saw two second-half targets. — Cockcroft

What we know: Murray left the game in the first quarter after taking a late hit on an attempted slide attempt. He was later ruled out of the game because of a concussion.

What’s next: If Murray doesn’t clear concussion protocol for Week 2, backup Carson Wentz would be in line to get the start at Chicago. — Bowen