Issue #276: NFC West
By Derrick Ernst
May 17, 2026
Schedule Release
I’m not going to spend a lot of real estate on this, but I had a thought earlier in the week around the NFL’s schedule release. There are becoming so many scripted “leaks” that it’s hardly worth having a day marketed for it. Thursday (May 14) was the day the NFL announced it would release every team’s schedule. While the lion’s share was announced on that day, there were something like 15-20 games announced before then (from May 11-13) that made the actual day less of a spectacle, at least too me. I’d characterize them as being a bit desensitizing. At this point, with all the other things the NFL does, I’m puzzled why they haven’t made the schedule release into a bigger production. No leaks — every game announced at the same time to a live audience. It would have millions of viewers. Heck, release schedules that day in an order than mirrors the NFL Draft. Work backwards for all I care.
“To kick off our show, the 2026 schedule for our defending Super Bowl champions, Seattle Seahawks is…” (Goes to a graphic of all 17 games). Commentators can highlight a few games and we’ll move on. I’m not saying it will draw as much hype and attention as the NFL Draft does, but it would be can’t miss TV. Not to mention all the speculation leading up to it. Food for thought.
ARI
Link to ESPN’s Depth Charts homepage: NFL depth charts for all 32 teams
Last year offensive stat rankings:
Points/gm: 20.9 (22nd in NFL)
Pass yds/gm: 233.9 (7th in NFL)
Rush yds/gm: 93.1 (31st in NFL)
“Core Four” fantasy assets:
RB: Jeremiyah Love
WR: Marvin Harrison Jr.
WR: Michael Wilson
TE: Trey McBride (TBOTB)
Honorable mentions:
QB: Jacoby Brissett
RB: Tyler Allgeier
RB: James Conner
I’ve seen more videos of J. Love and C. Beck running/throwing on a practice field than any other rookies. These videos come off as folks being infatuated with them. A classic fade indicator. More so with Love, but I think fans will want to see Beck sooner than later if things go south with Brissett. Reminder, ARI also has G. Minshew on roster. I think I said this before, but in case I haven’t, I do believe J. Conner will be traded at some point this season. Back to Love.
Remember, what I’ve always said about rookies: they’re shiny and new and managers will want to be known for drafting them and “seeing” their potential more than anyone else. This will drive up his ADP. This isn’t me saying he won’t be successful. It is me saying that relative to draft capital, his returns won’t be as significant. A perfect example was what happened with teammate, MHJ when he entered the league two years ago.
Fun fact, ARI led the league in pass att/gm last season. That’s in part why Brissett was a top-12 fantasy QB every week from weeks 6-15, McBride was TE1 on the year, and Wilson finished as WR12. That last piece was helped by MHJ missing time. Here’s my take on ARI’s passing game: McBride is the team’s best option. He’ll be that no matter who is at QB. Wilson will be cheaper than MHJ and given the way he and Brissett hit it off, I’ll take the value there and play for upside.
LAR
Last year offensive stat rankings:
Points/gm: 30.0 (1st in NFL)
Pass yds/gm: 272.3 (1st in NFL)
Rush yds/gm: 124.7 (9th in NFL)
“Core Four” fantasy assets:
QB: Matthew Stafford
RB: Kyren Williams
WR: Puka Nacua (TBOTB)
WR: Davante Adams
Honorable mentions:
RB: Blake Corum
Puka is and remains my No. 1 fantasy asset for 2026. If you land the first pick, he would be my guy. This will probably surprise some folks given a lot of fantasy rankings have him slotted somewhere between 4-8 overall, but since he entered the league, you could argue that there hasn’t been anyone better. As much as I want to say that you should consider Adams too, last season was padded by a high TD total. With only 60 catches and 14 TDs, he found the end zone every 4.3 catches. That’s insane just as much as it is unsustainable. I’ve said this about others, don’t fall for the name trap. At 33 years old, age isn’t on his side either.
As for LAR’s RB room, here we go again. Williams was the supreme option, but there was a weird stretch at the backend of the season where Corum was getting more touches. Corum also had a stretch from weeks 13-16 that he was RB22 or better each week. I’m going to need more time to assess this situation like in past seasons, but right now I find myself oddly optimistic that McVay will lean Corum more than usual in ’26.
SEA
Last year offensive stat rankings:
Points/gm: 29.2 (2nd in NFL)
Pass yds/gm: 224.9 (10th in NFL)
Rush yds/gm: 124.4 (10th in NFL)
“Core Four” fantasy assets:
QB: Sam Darnold
RB: Jadarian Price
WR: JSN (TBOTB)
WR: Rashid Shaheed
Honorable mentions:
RB: Zach Charbonnet
WR: Cooper Kupp
Get a load of this (2025 ranks):
Source: Fantasy Footballers
Literally a perfect 50/50 split. I guess a balanced offense wins championships? By the way, 30 rushes/game ranked 3rd in the league, while 30 passes/game ranked 30th. Remember when I said J. Price was my preferred rookie RB to go after? This is a reason why. I’ve spoken of the insane workload both Charbonnet and Walker had last season. Well, Price will assume Walker’s reps while others on the depth chart will play the role of Charbonnet until his return. If you aren’t able to get Price in drafts, it may not be a bad idea to stash Charbonnet late.
Six players had 150+ targets last season with JSN being one of them. That led him to have a whopping 36% target share! No one else on SEA exceeded 15%. JSN may very well be the first WR taken in your league. That’s fine, just don’t go reaching for any other SEA WR. You’d think for the season JSN had, Darnold’s would’ve been just as good. He actually finished as QB13, five spots lower than he did the previous year with MIN. Overall, that feels about right for his capabilities and the talent surrounding him.
SF
Last year offensive stat rankings:
Points/gm: 24.5 (11th in NFL)
Pass yds/gm: 240.6 (4th in NFL)
Rush yds/gm: 105.3 (25th in NFL)
“Core Four” fantasy assets:
QB: Brock Purdy
RB: CMC (TBOTB)
WR: Mike Evans
TE: George Kittle
Honorable mentions:
WR: Ricky Pearsall
WR: Christian Kirk
CMC is the best player in fantasy when he’s on the field. Draft him with this understanding. Kittle is the same way, but for TE’s. Before his injury last year, he went four seasons straight ranked TE5 or better. Two years have passed without SF having a 1,000+ yard WR. Big Mike did that 11 seasons in a row with TB. I don’t care what the metrics say, I think he can be a significant asset for SF and Purdy, who I continually think is under-appreciated. I’ve been high on him for years and ’26 will be no different.
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