There are disappointments every season in fantasy football. Sometimes, a player disappoints because it’s just a blip year, and he returns to his previous levels the next year like nothing ever happened. Other times it’s the beginning of the end, and his best years are very clearly in the past. This is about those players. Think Todd Gurley in 2019. He was an RB1 finish in 2017 and RB3 in 2018 with 40 combined touchdowns. He was positively LaDainian Tomlinson-esque out there. Then he struggled in 2019, with his yards per carry dropping by more than a yard (4.9 to 3.8). He still scored 14 touchdowns because the Rams were a good offense, but it was a big falloff. That offseason, he signed with the Falcons and was a popular draft pick, only to drop down to under 700 yards, 3.5 YPA and zero career seasons after 2020. It’s that sort of player. They’ve been good, they were just bad (or at least worse), and that might be it.
Fantasy Football Non-Bounceback Candidates for 2026
Jalen Hurts, QB, Philadelphia Eagles
I felt better about this selection before news came out that the NFL isn’t revisiting the notion of banning the Tush Push this offseason. Had that gone by the wayside I’d have felt sure. But even with the Tush Push remaining, Hurts slipped last year, and there’s ample reason to think that will continue into 2026. It’s the offensive line. It’s taken a step back the last couple years — per our StatsHub, Hurts averaged 4.4 yards before contact per attempt his first three years, but only 3.4 the last three — and that could continue in 2026. Lane Johnson is set to return, but he’ll be 36 when the season starts and missed half of last year. Landon Dickerson’s injury concerns had him contemplating leaving, but news is that he’ll be back as well. Still, those are two guys who don’t have much “prime” left in them. Potentially more concerning is the departure of Jeff Stoutland this offseason. The offensive line guru led things in Philly since 2013, and him leaving could cost the unit. Hurts still a top-10 quarterback? Probably. Returning to his top-three ways? Unlikely.
Alvin Kamara, RB, New Orleans Saints
The reasons for optimism around Kamara heading into next year are slim. If pressed, the argument would go something like this: Kamara is an institution in New Orleans, where there’s an improved offensive line and a quarterback who looks legitimate. Meanwhile, the best you can say about Kendre Miller and Devin Neal is that they have (unrealized) potential. But that’s not a lot in Kamara’s favor, and the fact is that he’ll be 31 in Week 1 and has been in fairly steady decline the last few years. It’s time to turn the page.
Aaron Jones Sr., RB, Minnesota Vikings
Jones has yo-yo’d the last six years. 1,104 yards, then 799, then 1,121, then 656, then 1,138, then 548. So what’s stopping him from rebounding once again? Well, first of all, a yo-yo isn’t a predictive trend (You probably guessed that). Second, of course, is age. It’s one thing to rebound from a down rushing year when you’re 27. But Jones is 31 now and will turn 32 before the end of the season. He just averaged a career-low 4.2 yards per carry. There’s probably room for him to be a contributor in 2026 (even if the Vikings cut bait, as rumored), but him being anything like the Jones we’ve been used to feels impossible.
David Montgomery, RB, Detroit Lions
After four straight years of between 1,100 and 1,200 scrimmage yards, Montgomery fell to a career-low 908 last year. That led to the first time in his career he’s come in under 10 PPR points per game (9.8). He’s unlikely to be back in Detroit next year (maybe a reunion with former Lions OC John Morton is in the offing?), and that’s a mixed bag — he won’t have someone at the level of Jahmyr Gibbs to contend with for touches, but he also won’t have a good offense and a good offensive line supporting his efforts. Whatever happens, Montgomery is likely to be some team’s RB2 in 2026, and not a team as good as the Lions have been.
DJ Moore, WR, Chicago Bears
Moore had four top-10 PPR weeks last year, the same number he had the previous season. The difference is what happened the rest of the time. He had a career-low 682 yards for the season last year, almost 300 below 2024 and nearly 700 below 2023. Outside of his four spike weeks, he only had one top-30 weekly finish and had four weeks outside the top 80 receivers. Per StatsHub, his yards per route run have dropped from 2.5 in 2023 to 1.6 in 2024 to 1.3 last year. And with Rome Odunze, Luther Burden III and Colston Loveland around in Chicago, Moore’s nowhere like a priority target.
But what if he leaves? After all, one of the tenets of my bounceback piece from Thursday is that teams that specifically go out and get a guy usually do so with designs on using that guy. And to that I say: There’s a big difference between getting someone like Kenneth Walker III or Isaiah Likely whose (relative) down years were based on lack of usage and getting someone like Moore who, as noted above, had a rather significant efficiency dropoff. Moore turns 29 in April, and that isn’t inherently over the hill for a wide receiver, but given the warning signs, I’d be much happier letting someone else find out for sure.
Jerry Jeudy, WR, Cleveland Browns
There were few more predictable bad seasons in 2025 from players who were good in 2024 than Jeudy’s, who went from 1,229 yards, 4 touchdowns and a WR12 finish in 2024 to 602 yards, 2 touchdowns and a WR52 finish in 2025. And it was predictable because Jeudy’s 2024 was almost entirely a product of Jameis Winston. Per the FTN Splits Tool, Jeudy averaged 112.8 yards and 20.8 PPR points in Winston’s seven starts that year, compared to 41.1 and 8.8, respectively, without Winston. The Browns’ quarterback situation was bad in 2025, but unless Jeudy can get back to someone who will just chuck it and hope like Winston (and they only make one of those), that 2024 production will always be just a memory.
Calvin Ridley, WR, Tennessee Titans
2025 was a disaster season for Ridley, who had career lows in basically every rate stat. He’s 31 now, and while the Titans certainly have the cap space and flexibility to bring him back, early offseason indications are that he’s likely on his way out. Who is out that that is willing to spend on a 31-year-old who has seen decreased production and worsening health and making him a priority in the offense? The fit just isn’t there.
Mark Andrews, TE, Baltimore Ravens
Pretty much everything about Andrews has gotten steadily worse the last five years. Receptions per game (from 6.3 in 2021 to 2.8 last year), yards per game (80.1 to 24.8), yards per route run (2.4 to 1.3). If not for a dead-cat bounce of an unsustainable 11 touchdowns on 69 targets in 2024, the falloff would have been reflected in his fantasy points as well. As it was, Andrews still only turned his 11 touchdowns in 2024 into 11.1 PPR points per game. Last year that number was down to 7.7. Even with the (ahem) likelihood that Isaiah Likely is elsewhere in 2026, betting on a bounceback from Andrews is a bad bet.
