Model calls Nabers, Cook 2026 fantasy football busts
Get the Sports newsletter
Daily sports — scores, transfers, the storylines from the leagues you actually follow. Free.
- SportsLine's model simulated the 2026 NFL season 10,000 times and released fantasy football rankings flagging busts, sleepers, and breakouts ahead of the Sept. 9 regular-season opener.
- Terry McLaurin went from nearly 1,100 receiving yards and a career-high 13 touchdown catches in 2024 to career lows of 582 receiving yards and 3 TDs in 2025 — a drop the model had predicted against his top-50 ADP.
- Malik Nabers is being drafted around pick No. 34, but SportsLine doesn't rank him a top-15 receiver, placing him behind DeVonta Smith and Nico Collins; he tore his ACL last season, had a follow-up spring procedure, and plays in a Giants offense expected to lean on the run under OC Matt Nagy.
- James Cook carries an ADP around No. 11 overall (5th RB off boards), but SportsLine ranks him RB10 behind Derrick Henry and Chase Brown, citing an elevated 2025 fumble rate, weak pass-game usage, and Josh Allen as a touchdown vulture.
- The model is also fading one of the first five receivers drafted — but the player's identity and the full rankings are gated behind SportsLine.
- Past model calls include A.J. Brown as a 2020 sleeper, Jonathan Taylor's 2021 breakout, C.J. Stroud's 2024 step back, Derrick Henry in 2019, Christian McCaffrey and Alvin Kamara in 2018, and Davante Adams in 2017.
Why it matters: For fantasy drafters in early 2026 drafts, the SportsLine model — which called last year's McLaurin collapse — is now telling them to pass on Nabers at pick 34 and drop Cook out of the first round at pick 11, potentially reshaping how owners value second-round WRs and early RBs.
Ask SkimNews
