Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs play host to Bo Nix and the Denver Broncos. Mahomes is coming off an ACL tear but adds Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker to the team. The Broncos look to build off of an encouraging year by bringing in WR Jaylen Waddle. Players you should start and sit at every position for Monday Night Football in Week 1.
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Monday Night Football Preview
Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs (-2.5) O/U: 43.5
Clear Starts: Bo Nix, Jaylen Waddle, Kenneth Walker III, Rashee Rice
Patrick Mahomes – QB, Kansas City Chiefs
Coming off an ACL tear late in the 2025 season, Patrick Mahomes is going to be a player to watch this year. It takes time to return to form even after months of recovery and being able to take the field. We don’t know how Mahomes will look in his return. It is probably safe to say that he will not immediately hit his ceiling, though. The good news for fantasy managers is that you did not have to use a premium pick on Mahomes, and you knew all of this coming into the year. That’s just a gamble you chose to make.
The silver lining for fantasy managers is that we may get plenty of opportunities to see Mahomes. The Chiefs defense was middle-of-the-pack last year, ranking 16th in DVOA and 12th in EPA/play. Kansas City traded star CB Trent McDuffie to the Rams, but they used their first four draft picks on defense in this year’s NFL draft. That included using the 6th overall pick on CB Mansoor Delane. Things can improve but they may take time.
There aren’t many situations where you can bench your starting QB on Monday. If you have both Mahomes and Nix, then Nix is the safer and overall better start. If you’re in a Superflex Dynasty league or you’re without another QB option, you ultimately have to start Mahomes and hope for the best. Overall, he should reach double-digit points. That’s not thrilling to hear but it’s the realistic reality of the situation.
J.K. Dobbins & RJ Harvey – RB, Denver Broncos
Last year, J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey led the Broncos in rushing with nearly even rushing attempts. While Harvey rushed for 232 fewer yards on only 7 fewer attempts, he made up for it in other ways. Harvey scored 7 rushing TDs to Dobbins’ 4, though both backs had similar opportunities in the red zone and near the goal line. On top of that, Harvey was targeted 58 times through the air. The 2nd-round rookie turned those targets into 47 receptions for 356 yards and 5 TDs.
Harvey’s rushing work didn’t truly take off until Dobbins went down in Week 10. Now, 4th-round rookie Jonah Coleman enters the mix and could take some work throughout the year. It may not be enough to bring Coleman into fantasy relevancy anytime soon, but it is something to consider.
Ultimately, this backfield looks like it will cannibalize itself. That doesn’t mean that Dobbins can’t lead in rushing while Harvey gets work through the air. The problem is that, barring an injury, it’s unlikely that one single back gets enough combined work to be consistently fantasy relevant. Of the backs, Dobbins should have the safer floor while Harvey offers more upside. Both players project to be RB3s or FLEX plays this week. Depending on what your team needs to win, pick your poison between these backs.
Courtland Sutton – WR, Denver Broncos
Last year, Courtland Sutton was 13th in the league with 124 targets. The 30-year-old has only failed to exceed 700 receiving yards once in his career, and that was when he only played a single game in 2020. Sutton is a model of consistency, like a lite version of Mike Evans. There’s no reason to doubt that Sutton continues to perform, but there are some questions.
Jaylen Waddle joins the team and projects to be Bo Nix’s WR1 on this offense. Waddle excelled with the Miami Dolphins, averaging over 1,000 yards per season but peaking in his rookie year. A change of scenery with a better QB situation should help Waddle return to form.
Sutton is a top target earner and seems to only improve with age. While Jaylen Waddle is competition, he can also help open up the offense for Bo Nix and help everyone in the end. Expect another good season from Sutton. He’s a start tonight even against a Chiefs team that allowed the 10th fewest points to WRs last year.
Travis Kelce – TE, Kansas City Chiefs
Travis Kelce’s success depends on Patrick Mahomes. Although he may be dropping out of the elite tier of TEs, Kelce did well last year. Through Week 15, Kelce averaged 12.77 PPR points per game. That was the 5th highest among TEs in that span. Kelce only failed to reach 6.6 PPR points once in that span, in a game against an elite Texans defense. When Mahomes went down, Kelce’s fantasy value completely collapsed.
While the offense may take some time to get going as Patrick Mahomes recovers from an injury, Kelce has done well with him at QB. Fantasy managers should temper expectations, but Mahomes should continue to rely on his favorite target. Kelce is a solid floor play on Monday Night Football in Week 1.
Evan Engram – TE, Denver Broncos
Following a stellar rookie year with the Giants in 2017, Engram has failed to enter the highest tier of TEs. While he has been consistently solid while adding a few boom years, he has never exceeded 1,000 receiving yards or 6 TDs. In his first year with the Broncos, Engram finished 3rd on the team in targets with 76.
While the Broncos have not added any serious competition for Engram at TE, they did bring in former Dolphins WR Jaylen Waddle while retaining Courtland Sutton, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims, and Pat Bryant. That leaves little room for a 31-year-old to truly separate himself. While the offense as a whole may improve, it’s unlikely that Engram emerges as a realistic fantasy option. There was only one game last season where Engram reached double-digit PPR points without scoring a TD. Both upside and floor are shaky for fantasy purposes. You’re better off streaming based on matchup or finding a high-upside guy at the position.
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