Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers: Bhayshul Tuten, Christian Watson & More

The majority of the offseason moves are behind us and rosters are starting to take shape. There will be plenty of movement once training camp starts and we get more information about how depth charts and injuries are shaking out. But for the next few weeks, there will be minimal movement, which makes it a great time to take stock of what has happened so far and who some of the biggest movers are in the dynasty streets.

Dynasty Fantasy Football Risers Ahead Of 2026

Bhayshul Tuten | RB | JAX

This offseason has worked out about as well as it could have for Bhayshul Tuten. Travis Etienne departed in free agency to sign with the New Orleans Saints and Jacksonville only brought in Chris Rodriguez as competition for touches. Rodriguez is a serviceable NFL RB, but he fills a specific role and should leave a lot of the high-value touches for Tuten.

As a rookie, Tuten ranked among the top-15 qualifying RBs (min. 50 carries) in both yards after contact per attempt and elusive rating, while posting a respectable 0.86 YPRR in the receiving game, which ranked right between Saquon Barkley and Kyren Williams. He didn't see a huge workload with just 100 opportunities (carries + targets) in the regular season and playoffs, but he did flash playmaking ability. I saw enough to believe that Tuten could be a major fantasy asset with a bigger role, which looks to be the case heading into 2026.

The biggest question is whether Tuten can retain a meaningful amount of goal-line work in what should be a very good Jacksonville offense. Rodriguez has gotten a lot of those carries in his career, but it is worth pointing out that Tuten got six carries inside the five-yard line as a rookie and converted four of them for TDs. That success gives me hope that the coaching staff won't pull him off the field every time they get down near the goal line. As long as there is a reasonable split of I5 carries, Tuten should be in store for a big fantasy season.

A 23-year-old RB with the chance to take over as the clear lead back in a very good offense is a very valuable commodity in dynasty leagues, and that profile has made Bhayshul Tuten one of the biggest dynasty risers this offseason.

Christian Watson | WR | GB

The Green Bay Packers have frustrated fantasy managers for years by constantly rotating their WRs and making it difficult to predict playing time from game to game. That may change in 2026 now that Dontayvion Wicks and Romeo Doubs are no longer on the roster, and no replacements of a similar caliber have been added. For the first time in a long time, there seems to be a clear top three WRs who should run the large majority of the route for Green Bay. When you add in the possibility of a more pass-heavy offense, this suddenly becomes a WR room that I want to target.

Of the WRs in Green Bay, I believe Christian Watson has the most upside. He has the size and speed combination of a prototypical WR1, and has been highly efficient in his career so far. Watson has been above 2.20 YPRR in three of his four seasons so far; the only thing holding back his fantasy upside is playing time, as injuries have cost him a bunch of games.

Despite only returning in Week 8 after an ACL tear the prior season, Watson still set a career-high YPRR and came close to setting career-highs for receptions and receiving yards. Now with another offseason to recover and a thinned-out WR room, Watson is a good bet to set a career high in routes run. He has never reached 300 routes in the regular season before, while the league leaders are up around 600 routes. I don't expect his routes to more than double, but going above 450 routes should be no problem.

The Packers gave him a major vote of confidence with a big contract extension this offseason, which further supports the idea that his playing time should increase. With Watson's efficiency, any significant bump in playing time should translate to a lot more fantasy points. The contract also secures his future for the next few seasons which solidifies his value in dynasty leagues.

Josh Downs | WR | IND

Similar to Watson, Josh Downs is another player who is clearly talented but has never quite had the role that fantasy managers want for him. Downs also now finds himself in a situation with arguably the least competition for targets he has had in his career. Both Michael Pittman and Adonai Mitchell are gone, and the team seems prepared to focus the passing game on Tyler Warren, Alec Pierce and Josh Downs.

Pierce had a breakout season in 2025, but he plays a very different role from Downs and is recovering from what seems to be a significant ankle surgery that may delay his return to offseason activities. Downs has averaged 93 targets and 66 receptions through his first three seasons and looks to be well-positioned to exceed those numbers in 2026.

From a dynasty perspective, Josh Downs is heading into his age-25 season and is in the final year of his contract. A solid season this year will lead to a big contract this offseason, whether that is with Indianapolis or a different team. Either way, Downs should be in a good situation for the next few seasons with a role that translates to consistent volume. He has ascended from a priority bench player to a FLEX-level starter in dynasty, and has room to continue to rise if he delivers in a bigger role this season.

Jonathon Brooks | RB | CAR

Hand up, I will admit that I was ready to write off Jonathon Brooks after his second major knee injury in as many years. However, after sitting out all of the 2025 season, all signs point to Brooks being a major part of Carolina's plans for their backfield. Rico Dowdle is now a Steeler and the Panthers brought in no one else to compete for touches with Brooks and Chuba Hubbard. Last year's draft pick, Trevor Etienne, is still on the roster, but he didn't do much as a rookie, and Brooks has much higher draft capital invested in him, so he is in line to get the first opportunity alongside Hubbard.

The coachspeak on Brooks has been pretty positive this offseason, and the team's roster moves suggest he is going to play a big role. This has taken Brooks from a player that dynasty managers were desperate to get off their roster to a player who has some real buzz around him. There is still plenty of concern about his ability to stay healthy, but there is no questioning that his dynasty value has been rising and will continue to rise every day this offseason that he stays healthy.

Players Mentioned in this Article

BhayshulTuten
RBJAC
PPG
5.4
Proj
175.6
ChristianWatson
WRGB
PPG
11.3
Proj
170.2
JoshDowns
WRIND
PPG
6.7
Proj
149.9
JonathonBrooks
RBCAR
Proj
115.8

Published Jul 7, 2026, 10:52 AM ETUpdated Jul 7, 2026, 10:52 AM ET