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If the season started today, one Bengals player would be their biggest fantasy bargain, another a likely bust, and a third a likely wild card.
Top-heavy teams generally have straightforward fantasy values. Cincinnati has been one of the most top-heavy teams (in terms of offensive playmakers) for several years. When they’re all healthy, Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins have been the passing-game constants. Joe Mixon, followed by Chase Brown, have been the running-game constants.
In these situations, bargains and busts are tougher to identify because it generally comes down to durability. Burrow and Higgins have exhibited subpar durability. Chase and Brown (and Mixon before Brown) have been relatively healthy. The market factors this into ADP. In 2024, Higgins was the WR6 in fantasy points per game, bettering “elite” talents like CeeDee Lamb and Malik Nabers. But his WR12 ADP last summer stemmed from legitimate questions about whether he could stay on the field.
I expect Higgins’ WR ADP to be around 16 to 20. Based purely on per-game upside, I would target him as a slight bargain with the potential to become a much bigger bargain.
Brown didn’t top 47 rushing yards last year until his seventh game. After that, he turned in near-elite numbers, justifying last summer’s RB10 ADP. This summer he’ll be in the top 10 again, and maybe as high as seven. That will be a risky spot for the 26-year-old, who benefited from being the fourth-most-targeted RB. He actually averaged one less target with Burrow under center, as Joe Flacco leaned on him more.
Burrow is the wild card. When healthy and clicking, he can be nearly elite. Managers also must contend with the fact that he’s started 10 contests or fewer in half of his NFL seasons. A 17-game Burrow would almost certainly exceed expectations. That’s the risk managers need to weigh.
This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: 2026 Bengals fantasy preview: Biggest bargain, bust, and wild card
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Top-heavy teams generally have straightforward fantasy values. Cincinnati has been one of the most top-heavy teams (in terms of offensive playmakers) for several years. When they’re all healthy, Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, and Tee Higgins have been the passing-game constants. Joe Mixon, followed by Chase Brown, have been the running-game constants.
In these situations, bargains and busts are tougher to identify because it generally comes down to durability. Burrow and Higgins have exhibited subpar durability. Chase and Brown (and Mixon before Brown) have been relatively healthy. The market factors this into ADP. In 2024, Higgins was the WR6 in fantasy points per game, bettering “elite” talents like CeeDee Lamb and Malik Nabers. But his WR12 ADP last summer stemmed from legitimate questions about whether he could stay on the field.
I expect Higgins’ WR ADP to be around 16 to 20. Based purely on per-game upside, I would target him as a slight bargain with the potential to become a much bigger bargain.
Brown didn’t top 47 rushing yards last year until his seventh game. After that, he turned in near-elite numbers, justifying last summer’s RB10 ADP. This summer he’ll be in the top 10 again, and maybe as high as seven. That will be a risky spot for the 26-year-old, who benefited from being the fourth-most-targeted RB. He actually averaged one less target with Burrow under center, as Joe Flacco leaned on him more.
Burrow is the wild card. When healthy and clicking, he can be nearly elite. Managers also must contend with the fact that he’s started 10 contests or fewer in half of his NFL seasons. A 17-game Burrow would almost certainly exceed expectations. That’s the risk managers need to weigh.
This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: 2026 Bengals fantasy preview: Biggest bargain, bust, and wild card
Continue reading...
