We are still over 100 days away from the spectacular September 9 kickoff featuring the Super Bowl rematch between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots. However, now that the official NFL schedule has finally dropped, the draft season grind is officially underway. I know that all of you fellow fantasy football degenerates simply cannot get enough of breaking down these new schedules to find a draft-day edge. You all want to start drafting early. Consequently, here is your morning cup of coffee—otherwise known as your early-season dose of 2026 fantasy football QB rankings.
Obviously, these projections remain highly subject to change. As we head into training camp, we will finally see how these guys look on the field. Furthermore, potential summer injuries could always shake things up. Nevertheless, as of right now, these stand as my definitive rankings heading into the 2026–2027 season.
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Before we look forward, let’s take a quick look back. Here is exactly how the quarterbacks finished the 2025 fantasy football season:
2025 Final Quarterback Rankings
| Rank | Player | Rank | Player |
| 1 | Josh Allen | 17 | Daniel Jones |
| 2 | Drake Maye | 18 | Aaron Rodgers |
| 3 | Matthew Stafford | 19 | Bryce Young |
| 4 | Trevor Lawrence | 20 | Lamar Jackson |
| 5 | Dak Prescott | 21 | C.J. Stroud |
| 6 | Caleb Williams | 22 | Cam Ward |
| 7 | Bo Nix | 23 | Geno Smith |
| 8 | Jared Goff (Tie) | 24 | Brock Purdy |
| 8 | Jalen Hurts (Tie) | 25 | Tua Tagovailoa |
| 10 | Justin Herbert | 26 | Tyler Shough |
| 11 | Patrick Mahomes | 27 | Joe Flacco |
| 12 | Baker Mayfield | 28 | Justin Fields |
| 13 | Sam Darnold | 29 | Joe Burrow |
| 14 | Jaxson Dart | 30 | J.J. McCarthy |
| 15 | Jordan Love | 31 | Mac Jones |
| 16 | Jacoby Brissett | 32 | Marcus Mariota |
(Notable finishes outside the top 32: #33 Michael Penix, #34 Jayden Daniels, #35 Kirk Cousins, #36 Spencer Rattler, #37 Shedeur Sanders, #38 Kyler Murray)
The Injury Report: Why Last Year’s Rankings Are Deceiving
If you just look at the total points from last year, you will get an incredibly distorted picture of the quarterback landscape. Specifically, a brutal wave of injuries kept several elite arms from reaching their true fantasy ceilings, which artificially pushed them down the overall rankings. Therefore, you need to keep several key context clues in mind before writing these players off.
Patrick Mahomes (Finished: QB11)
Mahomes was putting together an absolute masterclass of a bounce-back season before tragedy struck and he tore his ACL. As a result, his statistical drop-off was purely a matter of missed games, rather than a decline in talent. Spoiler alert: Managers will see him ranked conservatively due to his injury and the uncertainty surrounding his early-season availability. However, once he returns, he should comfortably perform as a top-tier QB1 all season.
Jaxson Dart (Finished: QB14)
Dart showed flashes of absolute brilliance last year, heavily leaning on his lethal rushing ability. Moreover, even though he missed three games, he still comfortably managed a top-15 finish. This impressive feat proved his extraordinarily high-floor upside.
Lamar Jackson (Finished: QB20)
Lamar dealt with a nagging hamstring injury all year long. While he guttingly played through most of the season, the injury clearly hampered him and stripped away his signature explosive mobility. Ultimately, he finished as the QB20 despite playing in only 13 games.
Brock Purdy (Finished: QB24)
A severe foot injury forced Purdy to miss the vast majority of the year. However, once he returned, he finished the season absolutely on fire. Consequently, fantasy football managers should expect a massive bounce-back campaign from him. It feels like he is set to be an excellent value pick yet again.
Joe Burrow (Finished: QB29)
Burrow started the year excruciatingly slow before an injury wiped out most of his season. Fortunately, he came on incredibly strong at the end of the year once he finally looked healthy. We can safely assume the Bengals will figure out ways to keep their star quarterback upright this time because it feels like he gets hurt every single year. Thus, I wouldn’t spend a premium early pick on him. But if he falls to the mid-to-late rounds, he is a smash pick.
Jayden Daniels (Finished: QB34)
After a sensational rookie campaign, Daniels endured a rough sophomore slump. He was constantly in and out of the lineup, since he seemingly got banged up every single time he returned to action. Here’s hoping a full offseason allowed his body to recover. If he spends his time strengthening his frame to withstand the hits he takes, he should become a massive value pick wherever his current ADP lands.
Way Too Early 2026–2027 Quarterback Draft Rankings
With those contexts in mind, here is how I am valuing the position for your upcoming draft season.
| Rnk | Name | Team |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh Allen | BUF |
| 2 | Drake Maye | NE |
| 3 | Lamar Jackson | BAL |
| 4 | Jalen Hurts | PHI |
| 5 | Jayden Daniels | WAS |
| 6 | Joe Burrow | CIN |
| 7 | Justin Herbert | LAC |
| 8 | Brock Purdy | SF |
| 9 | Trevor Lawrence | JAC |
| 10 | Caleb Williams | CHI |
| 11 | Bo Nix | DEN |
| 12 | Dak Prescott | DAL |
| 13 | Jaxson Dart | NYG |
| 14 | Patrick Mahomes II | KC |
| 15 | Matthew Stafford | LAR |
| 16 | Kyler Murray | MIN |
| 17 | Malik Willis | MIA |
| 18 | Baker Mayfield | TB |
| 19 | Jared Goff | DET |
| 20 | Jordan Love | GB |
| 21 | Tyler Shough | NO |
| 22 | Jacoby Brissett | ARI |
| 23 | Bryce Young | CAR |
| 24 | Sam Darnold | SEA |
| 25 | C.J. Stroud | HOU |
| 26 | Cam Ward | TEN |
| 27 | Daniel Jones | IND |
| 28 | Shedeur Sanders | CLE |
| 29 | Geno Smith | NYJ |
| 30 | Fernando Mendoza | LV |
| 31 | Michael Penix Jr. | ATL |
| 32 | Aaron Rodgers | PIT |
| 33 | Kirk Cousins | LV |
| 34 | Deshaun Watson | CLE |
| 35 | Justin Fields | KC |
| 36 | Tua Tagovailoa | ATL |
| 37 | J.J. McCarthy | MIN |
| 38 | Carson Beck | ARI |
Conclusion
We might still be roughly 100 days away from the official start of the season and that highly anticipated Seahawks-Patriots kickoff, but the grind never truly stops. Hopefully, this early morning cup of coffee gives you the fantasy fix you need to start strategizing your draft boards.
In the meantime, keep a close eye on training camp news, depth chart battles, and injury recoveries as the summer progresses. These rankings will inevitably shift. But for now, use this blueprint to get a massive leg up on your league mates. Good luck, and let the real draft season begin!
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