Fantasy Football League Winners & Sleeper Stacks You NEED to Draft in 2026 (Ep. 2164)
September 1, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readZay Flowers Is the Consensus League Winner, but the Touchdown Debate Is Real
When the FantasyPros team independently picked the same player as their top league winner, it signaled something unusual. Both Andrew Erickson and Tara chose Zay Flowers—not because they agree on his ceiling, but because the combination of safety and upside at his current ADP creates a rare opportunity.
Flowers finished as WR7 last season despite scoring only four touchdowns. Every other receiver with 1,200 yards scored at least eight. He also did it on fewer than 120 targets, the only wideout to hit that yardage mark with that little volume. His 28% target share ranked fifth in the league, and his 35% air yard share ranked eleventh. The efficiency is real.
The disagreement centers on whether the touchdowns will come. Erickson argued that Flowers' skill set isn't naturally conducive to red zone usage, and that his WR7 finish was "heavily carried" by a massive Week 18 performance against Pittsburgh. Without that game, he would have been well under 1,200 yards with even fewer scores. Erickson predicted Mark Andrews would out-touchdown Flowers again, calling Andrews "cooked" but noting that when plays break down near the goal line, Lamar Jackson still looks for his tight end.
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What you'll learn
- 1 (00:38) **Introducing League Winners: Zay Flowers** - Both hosts pick Zay Flowers as their top league winner, sparking a detailed debate on his 2026 outlook.
- 2 (10:20) **League Winner #2: Jonathan Brooks (Panthers RB)** - Erickson identifies Jonathan Brooks as a mid-round RB with league-winning upside in a proven system.
- 3 (16:24) **League Winner #3: Jacori Croskey-Merritt (Commanders RB)** - Tara offers a deeper value pick in Croskey-Merritt, who has top-12 RB upside at a mid-RB3 price.
- 4 (20:46) **Sleeper Stack #1: Trevor Lawrence & Parker Washington (Jaguars)** - Erickson presents a high-upside stack from the Jaguars available in the middle rounds.
- 5 (22:39) **Sleeper Stack #2: Tyler Shuck & Juwan Johnson (Saints)** - Tara goes deeper, recommending a budget-friendly stack from the Saints in the 12th and 13th rounds.
- 6 (26:24) **Audience Q&A: Late-Round Tight Ends & Draft Strategy** - The panel answers rapid-fire questions on specific player values and draft strategy.
- 7 (30:05) **Wrap-Up & Next Segment Tease** - The hosts wrap up the segment, encouraging listeners to join the upcoming mock draft against them.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
This segment was taken from the 2026 FantasyPros Fantasy Fest, our 4-hour marathon livestream to help you be fully prepared for all of your upcoming fantasy football drafts! Click here to watch the whole thing on the FantasyPros YouTube channel at youtube.com/fantasypros
Ryan Wormeli is joined by Andrew Erickson and Tera Roberts to break down their favorite league-winning picks and sleeper stacks for 2026 fantasy football drafts.
Plus, the crew answers your fantasy football questions on Marvin Harrison Jr. vs. Tony Pollard, late-round tight ends, superflex quarterback sleepers, Travis Etienne, and the best running backs to target after starting a PPR draft WR-WR-TE.
Get the league winners, sleepers, breakout candidates, and late-round values you need to know before your 2026 fantasy football draft.
Timestamps: (May be off due to ads)
Intro - 0:00:00
Zay Flowers - 0:00:24
FantasyPros Premium Giveaway - 0:09:18
Jonathon Brooks - 0:09:47
Jacory Croskey-Merritt - 0:14:16
FantasyPros Draft Intel - 0:18:07
Parker Washington & Trevor Lawrence - 0:18:42
Tyler Shough & Juwan Johnson - 0:20:37
Listener Q&A - 0:24:00
Helpful Links:
2026 FantasyPros Fantasy Fest - We were joined by some of the industry's BEST experts for our 4-hour-long FantasyPros Fantasy Fest 2026 livestream, the biggest fantasy football event of the year! Missed the stream or didn't have the time? No problem! Click Here to watch the whole thing on the FantasyPros YouTube channel at youtube.com/fantasypros. Don't forget to subscribe and drop a like if you love what we do and want more content just like this!
LeagueBase is a private clubhouse for your fantasy league. Connect your Sleeper, Yahoo, or ESPN league, and everything that makes your league yours—the trades, records, rivalries, running jokes, and league history—finally has one home. You can also get $50 in credit toward your league’s first season at LeagueBase.com with code FP50—that’s F-P-five-zero. And right now, LeagueBase is sponsoring a draft trip for one league. Sign up free at LeagueBase.com/fest and you’re automatically entered to win a trip for your entire league next offseason. Wherever your league wants to go, LeagueBase picks up the trip. Official rules at LeagueBase.com/fest.
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