2026 Season Preview:
Part IV

George - Team Powderhoundmals

2025 Record: 6-8

George's straight up record didn't tell the tale of how his season truly went in 2025. His season is kind of the perfect argument for the extra game against the median. George had 9 weeks where he was above the median, which was enough to sneak into the playoffs and from there he made some damage, finishing 3rd. We'll see if the high point pattern continues into 2026

For the first time in years, George doesn't carry 3 QBs into the season. He took Trevor Lawrence in the 8th round coming off of a career year and with high expectations for 2026. Along with T-Law George took a dart throw on 1st overall pick Fernando Mendoza. Signs point to the Raiders being bad and Fernando doing a lot of learning from the sidelines. He's got a great veteran to learn from in Kirk Cousins. I don't expect much out of Mendoza this season, but injuries are always a concern and door opener. 

Jonathan Taylor was kept by the 'Hounds and expectations are sky high for the former Badger great. JTTD posted his 2nd best rushing total last season and there's no reason to think he won't be well over 300 carries again this season. JK Dobbins rounds out the probable RB Week 1 starters for George, he seems to have cemented himself as the RB1 in Denver, at least to start. Denver does have a pretty full backfield and I don't personally expect to see Dobbins as a true lead back there. Signs are pointing towards a split in touches at RB in Minnesota between Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason. Unfortunate for fantasy managers, but it should help the aging Jones stay healthier in his 9th season. 

WR is a strength, at least at face value, for George. George Pickens has made a leap to an elite option at the position, assuming last year wasn't a fluke. Defenses have to find a way to deal with both Pickens and CeeDee Lamb and oftentimes that will mean they can't deal with either. Another big season seems like a forgone conclusion for Pickens. Davante Adams is aging like a fine wine. Gone are the days of 100+ catches and being a true #1 option for a team. The days of efficiency and being a red zone demon are here. Adams still creates so much separation in short spaces off the line, and he's doing that against #2 CB options with Puka Nacua playing opposite of him. I'd expect to see a similar season as last year, 750 yards, 10-12 TDs, a very solid WR2 season. Rome Odunze hasn't lived up to draft expectations. He was a top 10 pick and hasn't proven he's worth that capital just yet. He did improve his YPC and TD numbers last year, but missed time. If he can stay healthy, there's a chance he thrives in the WR2 role, as it seems Luther Burden is the main man in town now. George also has solid, safe, options on the bench in Rashid Shaheed and Jordan Addison. Neither are big blow up guys, but they're safe 8-10 point plays.

TE is an easy breakdown. Provided he stays on the field, Brock Bowers won't leave from the lineup page until week 13 and he'll put up gobs of points between now and then. He's an elite TE with an undrafted hairline, he's going to be great again this season and should be looking at a massive contract extension in the relatively near future. 

George has a lot of weapons and his team is looking strong. Injuries will tell the story, but that can be copy and pasted anywhere.

Randy - Pack Attack

2025 Record: 5-9

Randy is seeking his first playoff appearance since 2023 and his team seems to have the top end firepower to make a push.

Lamar Jackson had a disappointing 2025 season riddled by injury. The year prior he was runner up for NFL MVP and QB1 in fantasy. The big thing that jumps out at you when you look at his season stats is how much his running numbers were down, even if you take into account the games missed. 349 yards last year in 13 games, compared to 915 the season before. We'll see if that was by circumstance or by design this year. I expect to see his passing numbers take a leap back towards his 2023-2024 numbers, somewhere in the 3700 yard range and closer to 25 TDs. Oh and by the way, there's also this fella called Patrick Mahomes lurking on the Pack Attack bench. I expect Mahomes to bounce right back to MVP levels, guys of that caliber just tend to do that kind of thing. 

Omarion Hampton is the lead back in town for both Pack Attack and the Chargers. And you can see the potential in his big games last year. He seemingly provides a safe floor with his receiving production and gets some big fellas back on the line that were missing last year. A low end RB1 season isn't out of the question at all for Hampton. Rico Dowdle and Jaylen Warren will be splitting time in the Pittsburgh backfield, but there doesn't seem to be much push beyond that for time. So the ceiling might be limited, but Dowdle has been in the league long enough to know how to capitalize on his chances. I do also like Kenny Gainwell on the bench. Tampa obviously believes in him enough to bring him in on a 2 year deal, despite having options in Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker in town. Gainwell should get plenty of chances to catch the ball in Tampa. 

Amon-Ra St. Brown is an elite option on what should be an elite NFL offense. There's no reason to think that Sun God won't be a top 3 WR again this year. He's remained injury free in his career and should see 150+ targets again this season. That will translate to huge fantasy numbers. Mike Evans has a whole lot of football miles on him. We saw those miles catch up to him last year, and he's already a bit banged up this year. If he's on the field, he's consistent and knows how to put up numbers in the league. Even at his NFL old age he should be productive. There's a whole lot of offensive weapons in Denver that need touches, that limits the ceiling for Courtland Sutton. I personally think the best case scenario is a season like he's had the last couple years: 1000ish yards and 8 TDs. 

TE is an elite group for Pack Attack. I expect to see two TEs starting a lot of the time. Trey McBride was TE1 last year and the offense should move through him this year. That said I expect a drop off in targets and TDs for McBride. That doesn't mean he won't be TE1, I just think the gap might be closer than last year. Sam LaPorta only played 9 games last year, so to get an idea of what he's capable of you gotta look back to 2024 and 2023. He won't get 120 targets again, but 80 targets for 850 yards and 8 TDs isn't out of the question at all.