Jeremiyah Love

Jeremiyah Love looks like one of the most exciting fantasy football rookies for 2026, and the appeal starts with the draft capital and the talent. He was selected No. 3 overall by the Arizona Cardinals, which puts him in rare company for a running back and strongly suggests an immediate featured role. Coming off a dominant 2025 season at Notre Dame with 1,652 yards and 21 total touchdowns, he enters the NFL as a player many analysts already view as the top fantasy back in the rookie class.

The biggest fantasy question is not whether Love is good enough, but how large his workload will be in Arizona. FantasyPros notes that the Cardinals already have Tyler Allgeier and James Conner on the depth chart, which could siphon some touches early even though Love’s draft status points to him being the lead back. That kind of backfield clutter makes his ceiling a little less clean than a true bell-cow landing spot, but it also does not change the fact that he should be heavily involved right away.

In fantasy terms, Love profiles as a strong RB2 with legitimate RB1 upside if the usage breaks his way. FantasyPros projects a sizeable rookie workload that includes more than 1,000 rushing yards, about 53 catches, and over 1,400 total scrimmage yards, which is the type of stat line that can win leagues if he handles goal-line and passing-down work too. The concern is the Cardinals’ offense, which FantasyPros describes as having worrying quarterback play and a scoring environment that could limit touchdown upside.

For 2026 fantasy drafts, Love is the kind of player you can target aggressively in the middle rounds if the market does not push him too high, because the combination of elite talent, top-three draft capital, and potential three-down usage is exactly what managers want in a young running back. If Arizona commits to him as the clear lead option, he has the profile to become a weekly starter with breakout potential, but if the committee stays messy, he is more likely to settle in as a high-end RB2 than a locked-in top-five fantasy back.

Updated 06/22/2026