2026 Team Outlook: Kansas City Chiefs

9. TE Travis Kelce, KC - Solid/Safe Pick

His 2023 season opened with a knee injury that sidelined him in Week 1 and appeared to sap his explosiveness over the next three games. He rediscovered his form in Weeks 6 and 7 before going relatively quiet over his final eight starts (39/401/1 on just 43 targets), with Kansas City eventually resting him in the regular-season finale. He saved his best for the playoffs, posting strong lines across four postseason games (7/71, 5/75/2, 11/116/1, and 9/93). Year TRC SPT TYD YD% YC TGT TD 2025 98 0.270 1034 0.26 10.55 147 5 2024 143 0.354 1323 0.33 9.25 190 7 2023 126 0.299 1315 0.30 10.44 171 8 Kansas City Chiefs

At age 34, Kelce still commanded 133 targets across 16 regular-season games, maintaining a solid catch rate of 72.9 percent. His yards per catch (8.5) fell well short of both his career average (12.5) and his prior season mark (10.6). He failed to eclipse 40 receiving yards in a single catch in any game, a threshold he had cleared twice a year in each of the previous four seasons. That decline also snapped his remarkable streak of seven consecutive 1,000-yard campaigns. Kansas City funneled double-digit targets his way in six matchups, and he topped 20.00 PPR fantasy points four times. But the cracks showed in the postseason, where he managed just 2/19 and 4/39 in the final two games. He finished fifth among tight ends in PPR scoring with 196.40 points. Last year, Kelce made bigger plays (11.2 YPC) but finished with his lowest catch total (76) since 2015. Despite his regression, he was the third-best tight end in PPR scoring (193.20), with two winning games (9/91/1 and 6/99/1). Kelce scored fewer than 10.00 fantasy points in eight matchups. In his career, he ranks 23rd all-time in receiving yards (13,002) and 8th in catches (1,080). Kelce needs 23 catches to be the fifth-best player in the history of the NFL. Fantasy Outlook: Kelce reupped for $12 million for 2026, giving him one final dance at putting his stamp on his great NFL resume and one last ride to a potential Super Bowl title. In mid-June, in the National Fantasy Football Championship, he ranks 13th at tight end with an ADP of 127. Last year, the twelfth tight end scored 165.30 PPR fantasy points, requiring a season in the range of 65 catches for 700 yards and five touchdowns.

12. WR Rashee Rice, KC - Gamble (high risk)

PROCEED WITH CAUTION: Drafting Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice comes with significant risk due to his severe lack of availability, major off-field legal issues, and a fragile, injury-plagued profile. While his immense talent and chemistry with Patrick Mahomes offer high-end WR1 upside, his background makes him one of the most volatile picks in 2026 fantasy football drafts.

Rice wasted no time establishing himself as Kansas City's top receiving option as a rookie, leading the Chiefs' wide receivers in catches (79), receiving yards (938), touchdowns (7), and targets (102), good for 27th in PPR wide receiver scoring (213.80 points). His season had a slow build. Over his first 10 starts, Kansas City fed him just 4.6 targets per game (36/420/4), keeping his fantasy value modest. The second half of Year WRC SPT WYD YD% YC TGT TD 2025 198 0.545 2499 0.63 12.62 312 15 2024 187 0.463 2112 0.52 11.29 283 16 2023 205 0.487 2411 0.55 11.76 319 13 Kansas City Chiefs

the season was a different story: 8.9 targets per game the rest of the way, producing 69 catches for 780 yards and four touchdowns at 17.15 FPPG. Rice was especially locked in from Week 12 through the postseason (8/107/1, 8/64, 7/72/1, 9/91/1, 6/57, 5/127, and 8/130/1), with a rest week in Week 18. His 77.8% catch rate for the season was among the best in the league. Rice carried that success into 2024, posting three strong performances to open the year (7/103, 5/75/1, and 12/111/1) on 29 targets while converting 82.8% of his chances, reinforcing that his rookie catch rate was no fluke. With Travis Kelce's explosiveness continuing to fade, Rice was clearly positioned to become the engine of Kansas City's passing game. Then came Week 4. Just four snaps in, Rice tore his ACL in his right knee, ending his season before it had barely started. Surgery followed in October, putting him on track to play in Week 1. Unfortunately, his off- the-field issue led to a six-game season to open 2025. Over his eight starts last season, Rice caught 53 of his 78 targets (67.9%) for 591 yards and six touchdowns. He averaged 18.51 PPR fantasy points over this span. Rice was at his best in five matchups (7/42/2, 0/105/1, 4/86/1, 8/141, and 8/94/2). A concussion in December ended his year. He had minor right knee surgery in early May. The Chiefs expect him to be back on the field in July. Fantasy Outlook: Rice is in a contract year, which could turn into a holdout this summer. The Chiefs are somewhat in a tight spot as they have unproven wide receiver depth, and his off-the-field issues suggest that Rice may be a bad investment for a huge NFL payday. The high- stakes fantasy market placed a top-15 wide receiver price tag on him in mid-June (ADP – 26 as a WR13 in the NFFC). He brings a 100/1,200/10 profile, which supports his expected fantasy value.

12. PK Harrison Butker, KC - Solid/Safe Pick

The Chiefs gave Butker 38 field goal chances last year, with 33 going through the uprights (86.8%). Extra points (31-for-35) were an issue. In his career, he's made 35 of his 53 tries from 50 yards or more. Butker finished 10th last season in kicker scoring (160.00). His career success rate (88.4%) in field goals ranks fourth all-time. Fantasy Outlook: The Chiefs scored 38 touchdowns in 2025 while creating 38 field goal chances. Butker comes off the board as the 16th kicker in late May. Kansas City should be better offensively this year, suggesting a top 10 kicking options at a minimum.

13. RB Kenneth Walker III, KC - Stud (low risk)

Walker's rookie season followed a familiar boom-bust pattern. After a quiet four-game introduction (15 carries, 58 yards, six catches, and 14 receiving yards), he exploded over the next five weeks (96 carries for 512 yards and seven touchdowns with six catches for 34 yards). A mid- season lull from Weeks 10 through 14 (39/126/2 at just 3.2 YPC, with an ankle issue costing him one game) gave way to a strong finish: three consecutive productive outings (26/107, 23/133, and 29/113) to close the year. Walker finished 18th in PPR running back scoring (203.20 points), but was only a reliable fantasy option in roughly half his games. 89 0.211 658 0.15 7.39 108 7 Kansas City Chiefs

Seattle kept his workload nearly identical in 2023 (248 touches over 15 games), and the results were similarly consistent (1,164 combined yards, nine touchdowns, and 29 catches). Walker cracked 100 rushing yards once (26/105) and topped 100 combined yards three more times, in Weeks 3, 10, and 15. A shoulder injury cost him two games. The most notable trend was a significant home/road split (16.97 fantasy points per game at home versus just 10.08 on the road), a gap that made him difficult to trust in away matchups. 2024 was a fantasy manager's nightmare. Walker opened with a promising performance (20/103/1) before an oblique injury wiped out two weeks. He returned to tease again in Week 4 (116 combined yards, three TDs, and four catches), then slogged through the next eight games on 145 touches but managed only 3.2 yards per carry (113/359/3), kept afloat in fantasy largely by a heavier passing game role (32/229/1). Calf and ankle issues then ended his season early, with Walker missing four of his final five games. During the 2025 regular season, Walker worked in a rotational role with Zach Charbonnet in Seattle, leading to more frustrating days (fewer than 10.00 fantasy points in nine games) than RB1 results (18.80, 18.00, 20.10, 25.40, and 17.30). His best stats came in Week 18 and over the final three games (81/410/4 – 5.1 yards per rush with 13 catches for 140 yards). He averaged 23.00 fantasy points per game in PPR formats over this span. Fantasy Outlook: The Chiefs signed Walker to a three-year deal in March for about $43 million ($28.7 million guaranteed). He slides into an excellent situation, suggesting a volume opportunity and more creative ways to get him the ball in the passing game. Walker has never had more than 255 touches in a season, giving him an untapped ceiling with a healthy year. Last year, he gained 20 or more yards on 15 plays.

In the early draft season of the National Fantasy Football Championship, Walker is the 11th running back off the board, with a second-round ADP (19). I see great value in him in 2026, leading to 300+ touches with 1,500 combined yards and a dozen or more scores.

17. QB Patrick Mahomes, KC - Quality Backup

Mahomes' 2022 season was his best yet on paper. With nearly identical volume to prior years (435 completions on 648 attempts), he set career highs in passing yards (5,250) and touchdowns (41) while adding a rushing dimension (61 carries, 358 yards, and four TDs). He generated 20-plus yard completions on 73 plays, with 13 of those reaching 40 yards or more. Mahomes posted a career-low 7.0 yards per attempt, and his touchdown total dropped to 27 in 2023, well below his three-year average of 41. His completion rate climbed to a personal best (67.2%), Teams RATT YDS Run% ATT YDS Pass% Plays Yards Kansas City Chiefs 430 1812 0.424 584 3947 0.576 1014 5759

and he ran more than ever (75/389), but Kansas City's receiving corps was visibly diminished. He threw for 300-plus yards in three of his first seven starts, then managed it just twice more over his final 13 games. A 12-game stretch beginning in Week 8 led to only 19.47 fantasy points per game in four-point touchdown formats, a telling sign of diminishing weapons around him. Further regression came in 2024, when Mahomes set another career low in yards per attempt (6.8) while reaching a new high in completion rate (67.5%), and his big-play production nearly vanished, with just four completions of 40-plus yards compared to 66 over his previous 95 starts. He topped 300 passing yards only three times all season. His year opened with negative outings (six touchdowns and eight interceptions over the first six weeks), numbers that would have buried most quarterbacks in the standings. But Mahomes steadied the ship over the final 10 regular-season games, averaging 23.16 fantasy points per game in four-point formats, averaging 272 combined yards with 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He topped 30.00 fantasy points twice (Week 12 and the conference championship) and finished with a 15-1 regular season record (the best of his career), despite what was statistically his most uneven stretch as a pro. Last year, the direction of the Chiefs’ offense was finally exposed in the win/loss column. Mahomes comes off a career-low completion rate (62.7%), with a slight rebound in his yards per pass attempt (7.1). His Superman cape was still visible based on a path to gain combined yards (4,868) and touchdowns (33). Unfortunately, Mahomes suffered a torn ACL in his left knee in mid-December. His recovery time should be nine months, suggesting that he will be borderline ready for the start of the 2026 season.

On his winning days in 2025, Mahomes posted five impact games in fantasy points (28.60, 30.00, 30.90, 34.05, and 32.05). He also delivered five subpar outings (15.40, 14.00, 17.10, 11.90, and 15.95). Fantasy Outlook: In the offseason, the Chiefs upgraded their running back position while relying on an aging Travis Kelce and the drama tied to Rashee Rice to right their offensive ship. When adding in the fantasy search party to find the missing value for Xavier Worthy, Mahomes will be forced to carry the Chiefs’ offense, with a potential hindrance in his mobility and rushing value. In the early draft season, Mahomes draws a QB2 price tag in the National Fantasy Football Championship as game managers wait for new updates on his timetable to return to game action. I don’t like the offensive receiving structure of the Chiefs heading into 2026, but Mahomes makes players better and wins games, and Kansas City has a great coaching staff. Take the early plunge with Mahomes, as his slow start to the year can be covered by another quarterback—any later investment hinges on his future rise in ADP, paired with his outlook for Week 1.

41. QB Justin Fields, KC - Deep-league Only

Fields rides into Kansas City with a 16-37 record, while being miles away from his first-round price point (11th overall) in the 2021 NFL Draft. His ability to run adds another dimension to the Chiefs’ offense if they decide to use him in goal-line packages. He provides experience at the quarterback position, with a chance to start one or two games to open 2026. Kansas City’s coaching staff should get the most out of his talent.