Who Should I Start? Josh Downs or Malik Nabers
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10.3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 4.3 | 44.6 | 0.2 |
Josh Downs News
Wednesday, July 15, 10:02 AM
The Athletic's James Boyd lists Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Josh Downs as a breakout candidate in 2026 after the departures of Adonai Mitchell and Michael Pittman Jr., who were traded to the New York Jets and Pittsburgh Steelers, respectively. Alec Pierce (ankle) is also recovering from offseason surgery that could slow him down early on. Downs is an established receiver in the NFL, having recorded 2,140 yards and 11 touchdowns on 198 receptions in his three years in the league. However, the 24-year-old former third-rounder from the University of North Carolina in 2023 is coming off a career-low 566 receiving yards in 2025. Downs should have more opportunities in his fourth year in the NFL, though, and he'll be motivated as he enters a contract year if he plans on cashing in next offseason on the free-agent market. There's more risk in the Colts' offense as a whole with quarterback Daniel Jones coming off a torn Achilles tendon, the increase in route share and per-route target rate should be enough to put Downs on fantasy managers' radars as a great value pick in the later rounds of drafts. RotoBaller currently has Downs ranked as the No. 42 fantasy WR for 2026.
Week 1 Projections
| Fant. Pts. |
Rush. Yds. |
Rush TD |
Rec. | Rec. Yds. |
Rec TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12.1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 4.3 | 56.7 | 0.3 |
Malik Nabers News
Monday, July 13, 7:44 PM
New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers (knee) is expected to work his "way into practice as (training) camp gets started in one way or another," head coach John Harbaugh told ESPN. Nabers is on schedule and is doing better each day, with Nabers not far behind running back Cam Skattebo, who is rehabbing from a season-ending dislocated ankle that he suffered in Week 8 of last year. Harbaugh added that Nabers "is not far behind" Skattebo and that he's "in a good place right now." There has been speculation that Nabers could open the regular season on the Physically Unable to Perform list, which would require him to miss the first four weeks of the 2026 season. Harbaugh has made it sound like Nabers is doing much better, but there is still some mystery as to when exactly he'll be back on the field as a full-go after having surgery on Oct. 28 to fix ACL and meniscus tears in his right knee. The 22-year-old former first-rounder also had a cleanup procedure on his knee this spring to remove scar tissue. Nabers showed his high-end WR1 upside in fantasy as a rookie by producing a 109-1,204-7 line in 15 games, but fantasy managers are better off fading him as a WR1 target in 2026 drafts because of his injury and the fact that he's missing valuable time in a new offense. RotoBaller has Nabers ranked as the WR24 as he heads into Year 3.
Josh Downs vs. Malik Nabers
Still trying to decide between Downs and Nabers? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Josh Downs is projected to score 10.3 points this week while Malik Nabers is projected to score 12.1 points.
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