Week 2 winners and losers: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, CeeDee Lamb shine; Bijan Robinson struggles

Week 2 of the 2026 fantasy football season wasn’t the high-scoring bonanza of Week 1, but Jaxon Smith-Njigba, CeeDee Lamb and DeVonta Smith all came up big. On the flip side, fantasy stars Bijan Robinson, Justin Jefferson and Drake London all had disappointing games.

Who were the big winners and losers around the league during the second week of the fantasy football season?

Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analysis.

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Ranking winners | Ranking losers
Biggest injuries and what’s next

Ranking fantasy winners of Week 2

After a stellar, breakthrough 2025 that saw him score the second-most fantasy points among wide receivers, it might be shocking to learn that this week’s 42.5 points set Smith-Njigba’s new personal best. He flashed good chemistry with fill-in quarterback Drew Lock and was productive at all levels of the field. This was vintage JSN, and we should see something similar in a great Week 3 matchup against the Washington Commanders. — Cockcroft

In a positive matchup versus the Commanders, the Cowboys had multiple Week 2 winners. Prescott had 29.76 points, attacking every level of the field in the pass game, finishing with 279 yards and four touchdowns, while adding 26 yards on the ground. Lamb’s 35.3 points were the second most among wide receivers through the late window. Lamb caught 8 of 9 targets for 153 yards and added two scores. And don’t forget about Ferguson in scoring position. The tight end caught all four of his targets for 43 yards, with two touchdown grabs on red zone throws (20.3 points). Because of his red zone usage, Ferguson will stay in the lower-tier TE1 mix for the Week 3 matchup versus Baltimore. — Bowen

If he’s destined for a breakout, fantasy WR1-caliber year, this might well be the starting-point game his managers refer to. Smith scored 27.7 fantasy points, his sixth most in 82 career games, and he had a 38% target share. He’s in prime position to shine, with A.J. Brown now in New England, and he’ll get a fantastic Week 3 matchup in which to potentially repeat the effort versus the Chicago Bears. — Cockcroft

The Shough-Olave combination produced high-end numbers again in the Week 2 win over the Ravens. Shough (22.38 points) threw for 252 yards and a touchdown, while he rushed for 23 yards and another score on nine carries. That’s two straight games for Shough with at least 22 points. Olave caught 8 of a team-high 10 targets for 86 yards and a touchdown, which was good for 22.6 points — after dropping 28.2 points on the Lions in Week 1. Olave will remain a midtier WR1 for me in the ranks for the Week 3 matchup versus the Raiders, while Shough should be viewed as a fringe QB1. — Bowen

Chase, who had a slow Week 1 start (3.2 points), bounced back in Sunday’s win over the Texans, dropping 26.5 points on one of the league’s best defenses. Chase caught 7 of 9 targets for 75 yards and added two touchdowns, one on a ridiculous snag that highlighted his hands, body control and focus. This is another reminder to trust your top picks after a tough ballgame. Talent wins. — Bowen

With Texans No. 1 wide receiver Nico Collins out with a hamstring injury, Schultz was the priority target for quarterback C.J. Stroud in Sunday’s loss to the Bengals. Schultz totaled career highs in receptions (12), targets (14) and receiving yards (140). Schultz, who finished with 26.0 points (second most in his career), will be in the TE1 mix for the Week 3 game at Indianapolis if Collins is down again. Can’t ignore that receiving usage. — Bowen

This is the first time in Young’s four-year NFL career that he has scored at least 20 fantasy points in back-to-back games, and his 31.44 points in Week 1 and 24.08 on Sunday are his third- and fifth-best outputs. Young is making great use of his deeper set of receivers, including Waller, who caught both of his end zone targets for scores and finished with 18.3 fantasy points. We’re used to Young showing signs late in the year, but his hot start now elevates him into the solid-streamer tier for fantasy. — Cockcroft

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Bateman saw a bump in volume Sunday in the loss to the Saints with Zay Flowers (hamstring) down for the game. Bateman caught 7 of a team-high 9 targets, finishing with 88 yards and a touchdown (21.8 points). And the touchdown grab went as designed by new offensive coordinator Declan Doyle. Reduced split. One-on-one route — with the void in the middle of the field. If Flowers is out again for next week’s matchup at Dallas, Bateman can be started as a WR2/Flex option. — Bowen

Boston is an emerging target — with big play juice — who should be a priority waiver pickup this week. Rostered in only 26.4% of ESPN leagues, Boston scored 20.5 points in Sunday’s win over the Bucs, catching five of seven targets for 95 yards and a touchdown. Boston has now posted a touchdown reception, and at least 13 points, in back-to-back games to start his pro career. — Bowen

He has scored 20-plus fantasy points in back-to-back games, and he’s doing an excellent job spreading the ball around. Last week, Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel Sr. starred, while this week, it was George Kittle (18.0 points). Purdy is a sneaky back-end fantasy QB1, and he’s a great matchups partner if you went cheap at the position. You’ll want him in the lineup for Week 3 against the Arizona Cardinals, who just surrendered 21.4 fantasy points to Drew Lock. — Cockcroft

Tucker scored 22.9 points in the Raiders’ win over the Chargers, catching 5 of 7 targets for 119 yards and a touchdown. Now, we know Tucker has the vertical stretch ability to get loose over the top of the defense (40-yard touchdown grab on Sunday), but will the volume stay consistent on a weekly basis? Raiders quarterback Kirk Cousins targeted 10 different players here, so the ball will be spread around in this offense. For me, Tucker remains a high-ceiling WR3 for next week’s game at New Orleans. — Bowen

Ranking fantasy losers of Week 2

The Falcons’ offensive struggles with both Tua Tagovailoa (oblique) and Michael Penix Jr. (knee) on the sideline continued, but what changed this week was Robinson’s inability to replicate Week 1’s solid receiving production (23 of his 31.13 fantasy points). The star running back managed only 11.1 points this time, despite facing a Panthers defense that surrendered 52.8 points combined to D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai in Week 1. In fairness, Robinson was lifted early in what was a 34-3 blowout, so the only thing to sweat for fantasy is whether Penix (more likely to play) or Tagovailoa is ready to play on “Thursday Night Football” for Week 3. Even then, Robinson remains a must-start, and in a closer game, probably would’ve given you a better score. — Cockcroft

The Bears lacked answers — in both the run and pass game — versus the Vikings and coordinator Brian Flores’ pressure-heavy system. Williams, who left the game late with a hamstring injury (more on that below), had only 7.72 points (after posting 37.26 points in Week 1), both D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai failed to top the 50-yard rushing mark, and Colston Loveland was absent for the second straight game (one reception, 3 yards). It was an ugly game for Ben Johnson’s unit, featuring empty red zone trips, turnovers and penalties. And this offense will have limitations if Williams is out for an extended period of time. — Bowen

I really liked the matchup for Jefferson versus the Bears’ secondary, especially after he scored 31.2 points in Week 1 versus the Packers. However, Jefferson caught just 3 of 6 targets for 55 yards (8.5 points). Concern here? I don’t see it. Bad weather game in Chicago. Jefferson also had an opportunity on an end zone throw from Carson Wentz that could have changed the narrative here. Jefferson will look to rebound in Week 3 at Tampa, and we could see Kyler Murray back under center. — Bowen

After another interception Sunday, he’s already halfway (4) to his entire 2025 interception total (8). Repeating last year’s stellar accuracy metrics — he was the youngest player since the merger to lead the league in completion percentage (72%) — was an unrealistic ask, but this much regression raises red flags. The Patriots face one of the league’s toughest schedules, especially after their Week 11 bye. This isn’t to say Maye is a cut in fantasy, but you need a start-worthy partner quarterback if you have him. — Cockcroft

5. Drake London, WR, Atlanta Falcons

He now has 10 targets, two rushing attempts and only 14.4 fantasy points across two weeks working with fill-in quarterbacks Cooper Rush and Jack Strand. The Falcons’ passing game has struggled mightily with the aforementioned Tagovailoa and Penix absent, but there’s realistic hope that one or both will be ready to play Thursday. London’s fantasy managers are certainly hoping so, as it’s the difference between his approaching a top-10 positional ranking and being a ho-hum WR2/3. — Cockcroft

He might struggle to approach last year’s 296 touches or 253.9 fantasy points, at least based on his usage these first two weeks. After losing goal-line carries to Kendre Miller in Week 1, Etienne was out-carried and out-touched by Alvin Kamara, though he did play a larger percentage of offensive snaps (53%-30%). Tyler Shough also handled the winning touchdown sneak, further signaling that Kellen Moore’s offense is more role reliant than centered on a single running back. Etienne might be locked into low-end RB2 status. — Cockcroft

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Montgomery saw just eight touches in the Week 2 loss to the Bengals, rushing for 10 yards on six carries, while he caught two passes for 14 yards (4.4 points). As we saw in Week 1, when Montgomery had 28.9 points versus the Bills, he is a touchdown-dependent back who needs positive game flow and red zone touches. Didn’t happen in this one. With the Colts up next, Montgomery fits as a Flex option. — Bowen

Aaron Rodgers continued to heavily target Metcalf — he led the team for the second straight week — but the eighth-year wide receiver again posted a sub-10-point fantasy score (6.7 this time). The matchup contributed, as star New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez covered Metcalf on 85% of his routes. Metcalf badly needs a big game in Week 3, against a much softer matchup in the Cincinnati Bengals, if he’s to remain a weekly consideration in the WR2/flex class. — Cockcroft

Herbert disappointed yet again, committing multiple interceptions for only the fifth time since the beginning of 2022 and scoring only 7.88 fantasy points. He seems out of sync with Mike McDaniel’s offense thus far, especially on deep throws, where he has been picked twice on five attempts in two games. It’s having an adverse impact on McConkey’s production, as the wide receiver had 21 catches on deep (20-plus air yards) throws last year but has only one so far this year. And with the Chargers’ upcoming schedule (@BUF, @SEA, DEN), these two are tough to trust in a fantasy lineup. — Cockcroft

He found the end zone twice in Week 1 but averaged 3.4 yards per rushing attempt. That rate dropped to 2.5 this week, and he did not find the end zone. Williams has been stuffed on seven of his 24 carries to date, and he’s not showing as much burst as he did during his breakthrough 2025. Fortunately, he lacks much competition for carries, but a Week 3 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens makes him look like a middling fantasy RB2 at best. — Cockcroft

Injury impact

Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago Bears

What we know: Williams went down with a hamstring injury late in the fourth quarter on a scramble attempt. Williams was quickly ruled out, and he left on a cart.

What’s next: With Williams expected to miss time, backup Tyson Bagent will take over as the No. 1 in Ben Johnson’s offense. Bagent is a capable No. 2 who will have some value in deeper, 2QB Superflex formats. However, I would expect a run-heavy game plan for the Week 3 matchup versus the Eagles, which will reduce the value of Luther Burden II, Rome Odunze and Colston Loveland in this Bears passing attack. — Bowen

Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles

What we know: He suffered a stinger on his first carry of the day, and while he did return for a portion of the second half, he managed only four rushing attempts and two targets in that time before ultimately being shut down for the day. Barkley is scheduled for an MRI, and his status for Week 3 is unclear.

What’s next: Tank Bigsby and Will Shipley shared carries after Barkley’s departure, though Bigsby got the bulk of the work initially as well as the important red zone opportunities, a signal that he’s the Barkley insurance policy to have. Prioritize Bigsby among your Week 3 pickups. — Cockcroft

Jayden Daniels, QB, Washington Commanders

What we know: Daniels was hurt on the last play of the first half versus Dallas, going down with a dislocated left elbow, the same injury he experienced last season. He was immediately declared out for the game. Daniels threw for 96 yards and a touchdown, while rushing for 69 yards (14.74 points).

What’s next: Marcus Mariota stepped in for Daniels in the second half, throwing for 111 yards and a score, and adding 3 yards on the ground. Daniels missed three weeks with the elbow injury last season, so Mariota should be expected to start for multiple games. With a tough Week 3 matchup versus the Seahawks, Mariota will have limited value as a QB2 in Superflex formats. — Bowen

Jadarian Price, RB, Seattle Seahawks

What we know: Price left the game in the fourth quarter versus the Cardinals with a chest injury. He was declared questionable and did not return. Price finished with 52 yards rushing (on 13 carries), and he added one reception for 8 yards.

What’s next: If Price is down for the Week 3 game versus the Commanders, managers can pivot to Emanuel Wilson as a streaming option. Wilson saw a lot of late action in the fourth quarter, finishing with 92 yards on 21 carries. And he’s available in over 98% of ESPN leagues. — Bowen

Dallas Goedert, TE, Philadelphia Eagles

What we know: He suffered a right knee injury on a run-blocking play during the second quarter and was unable to return. Goedert’s day finished with him seeing two targets and scoring 1.4 fantasy points.

What’s next: Goedert’s injury history raises questions about his ability to recover in time for Week 3. If he can’t play, Johnny Mundt, who ran 19 routes and had two catches for 8 yards, would be next up on the depth chart. — Cockcroft

Jayden Reed, WR, Green Bay Packers

What we know: Reed exited in the first quarter after taking a hit from linebacker DeMario Davis. Reed was taken off the field on a backboard and ruled out of the game with a neck injury.

What’s next: If Reed is down for an extended period of time, Bo Melton or Skyy Moore could potentially move up as No. 3 in the Packers’ wide receivers room. However, Christian Watson and Matthew Golden remain the only receivers with weekly fantasy value in Green Bay. — Bowen