Fantasy Football: Players at each position who have the easiest early-season schedules for 2026
This might sound odd coming from someone who just released his Fantasy Strength of Schedule Matrix, but you need to be careful to not overweight those types of season-long metrics.
As I mentioned in that article, the full-season strength of schedule is good to use as a tiebreaker between players you’re targeting in drafts — just don’t get overconfident and let it dictate your outlooks for later in the year. That’s because injuries and changes in performance on both sides of the ball can have a significant impact in the latter stages of a campaign.
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The best way to gain an advantage using strength of schedule is by focusing on the first few weeks and drafting players set for hot starts or avoiding those likely to struggle through a tough streak of opponents. Players with difficult schedules in the early going are prime trade targets when managers begin to question their value in the opening month.
So let’s take a look at each position and identify who has the easiest early-season slates.
Easiest Early QB Schedules
Jalen Hurts, Eagles
Hurts has a lot to prove this season, coming off a down year and now dealing with the departure of his top target A.J. Brown, as well as the arrival of a new offensive coordinator in Sean Mannion. The initial returns are positive with Mannion’s scheme expected to breathe some life into an Eagles’ passing attack that struggled at times in 2025. The Super Bowl LIX MVP has also shown up to training camp looking leaner and quicker than previous years. It doesn’t hurt that Philadelphia has the friendliest schedule for fantasy quarterbacks this season, which begins with the Commanders, Titans and Bears, who all ranked inside the top-nine for most points allowed to QBs last season. The matchup with the Rams in Week 4 seems scary, but Hurts also lit them up with four total touchdowns (three passing, one rushing) in the opening month last year.
Jaxson Dart, Giants
The Giants will also have to overcome a matchup with the Rams in the first few weeks, but fortunately for them the other three opponents in the initial stretch should be much more generous. The Cowboys, Titans and Cardinals are all plus-matchups against subpar secondaries and Dart will be at home for those contests. September also looks much more appealing for the Giants’ passing attack now that Malik Nabers has a legitimate chance to play in Week 1. There is still a lot to be sorted out with the new coaching staff in New York and several new weapons, including Isaiah Likely and Darnell Mooney, but Nabers’ presence will help ease the growing pains of a new offense. Even without Nabers for most of his 2025 starts, Dart was the QB8 in fantasy points per game from Week 4 on, with seven top-12 finishes in his last 11 outings.
Honorable mentions: Lamar Jackson, Kyler Murray
Easiest Early RB Schedules
David Montgomery, Texans
The Texans’ rushing attack stumbled its way through the 2025 campaign after Joe Mixon was unable to return to the team. Woody Marks is a nice passing-catching option, but he failed to step up as a between-the-tackles runner, which prompted the front office to trade for David Montgomery.
Despite one recent report, the majority of the offseason chatter has revolved around Montgomery dominating this backfield and his early matchups should only reinforce his status as the lead back in Houston. Montgomery will encounter three of the top-eight easiest opponents for fantasy backs from last season in the Bills, Bengals and Cowboys. While each team has made changes to their defense, the Texans will have success moving the ball against them on the ground. Remember, this offense is just one season removed from helping Mixon finish as the RB5 overall in fantasy with 1,325 scrimmage yards and 12 touchdowns. Montgomery has something similar within his range of outcomes.
Omarion Hampton, Chargers
The Chargers will start the season against three soft run defenses in the Cardinals (second-most fantasy points allowed to RBs in 2025), Raiders (ninth most) and Bills (sixth most). Sure, the defending champion Seahawks are a problematic matchup for any ground game, but by the time we get to Week 4, Omarion Hampton will already be an established fantasy star. The combination of Mike McDaniel taking over the offensive coordinator job, as well as the improvements of the offensive line through injury recoveries and offseason acquisitions was enough to get us excited about Hampton’s RB1 fantasy potential. Now, we can add a smooth runway at the beginning of the season for Hampton. It’s not like we didn’t see upside from him last year. As a rookie, Hampton finished as the RB16 in per game scoring — averaging 13.3 points and delivering double-digit fantasy totals in six of his last seven outings.
Honorable mentions: Jahmyr Gibbs, Cam Skattebo
Easiest Early WR Schedules
DeVonta Smith/Makai Lemon, Eagles
We identified Hurts’ favorable early-season slate, so it should be no surprise that the Eagles receivers would be featured here as well. Brown being traded away creates a significant opportunity for DeVonta Smith to emerge as a true No, 1 wideout, with first-rounder Makai Lemon working his way into an important role. There will be some challenges for this offense as it gets comfortable with Mannion’s scheme, but the schedule should help clear the path. Just like Hurts, the Eagles’ wideouts have the easiest season-long fantasy schedule and a very uncomplicated start with three of the seven best matchups for fantasy WRs last year in the Commanders, Titans and Bears — before a tougher test versus the Rams in Week 4.
Zay Flowers, Ravens
Zay Flowers has somehow once again avoided the addition of serious target competition in the Ravens’ receiving corps, outside of a couple mid-round rookies in Elijah Sarratt and Ja’Kobi Lane. That positions Flowers for another quality fantasy campaign after posting 86 catches, 1,211 yards and five scores a year ago en route to a WR19 finish in fppg. Flowers got off to a hot start last season and could do the same this year with the Colts, Cowboys and Titans on the docket, a trio of defenses that were among the top seven in terms of fantasy points allowed to wideouts in 2025.
Honorable mentions: Chris Olave/Jordyn Tyson, Garrett Wilson
Easiest Early TE Schedules
Harold Fannin Jr., Browns
Coming off a groin injury, it was great to see Fannin as a full participant at the start of training camp. While he’s not getting as much hype as some of the other sophomore tight ends, it’s impossible to deny Fannin’s fantasy upside following a 72-catch, 731-yard, seven-touchdown campaign where he was the TE9 in fppg. The target competition has increased with the arrival of rookies KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston, but Fannin still projects to be a focal point of the passing attack. His season-long fantasy strength of schedule is third-best among tight ends and includes a very nice stretch in the opening month. The Jaguars, Buccaneers and Steelers were all top-nine in most fantasy points permitted to tight ends in 2025, with the Panthers just an average opponent. While it’s not in the table, the Browns will get the Jets defense in Week 5 that was 11th in that category.
George Kittle, 49ers
George Kittle’s early-season fantasy outlook comes with a massive asterisk since we still don’t know for sure when he’ll be back in the lineup. While the news about his recovery from the Achilles injury has been extremely positive, the 49ers could slow-play the return of their 32-year-old star who turns 33 in October. However, if Kittle’s prediction is true and he’s available in the opening weeks, he’ll get to capitalize on an enticing stretch that includes the Dolphins and Cardinals, who project to be two of the best tight end matchups once again. Even the Rams aren’t particularly concerning for a player of Kittle’s skillset, since he dropped a 9-84-1 stat line in his lone appearance against them in 2025.
Honorable mentions: Isaiah Likely, Dallas Goedert
