Who Should I Start? Troy Franklin or Jaylin Noel


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
5.4 0.7 0.0 1.9 23.2 0.2

Troy Franklin News

Troy Franklin Could Be Facing a Reduced Role in Crowded Broncos Wide Receiver Room

Thursday, September 3, 12:58 PM

Denver Broncos wide receiver Troy Franklin put together a pretty productive season in 2025, recording 65 catches for 709 yards and six touchdowns on 106 targets across 17 games (seven starts). However, the 23-year-old's production faded a bit down the stretch, as he averaged fewer than three catches and 30 receiving yards over his final seven games of the year (including the postseason). Franklin's place in the Broncos' wide receiver room is in question entering 2026. The team acquired star wideout Jaylen Waddle, who now looks like the clear WR1 in Denver. Veteran Courtland Sutton should be the team's WR2, and 2025 third-round pick Pat Bryant has drawn rave reviews for his work in Broncos camp this summer. As a result, Franklin may be facing a significantly reduced workload in Denver in 2026.


Week 1 Projections

Fant.
Pts.
Rush.
Yds.
Rush
TD
Rec. Rec.
Yds.
Rec
TD
4.3 1.5 0.0 1.6 19.0 0.1

Jaylin Noel News

Texans Plan to Ramp Jaylin Noel Back Up

Wednesday, August 19, 3:33 PM

The Houston Texans got wide receiver Jaylin Noel (hamstring, finger) back from his injuries this week in training camp, and they plan to ramp him up to get him back to where he was in the spring when he caught several touchdowns, according to Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Sports. Noel's fantasy football stock rose dramatically on Wednesday after it was announced that fellow wideout Jayden Higgins (knee) suffered a season-ending torn ACL. The 23-year-old recently returned to practice after missing several weeks with a hamstring and pinkie injury, and now that he's back, the former third-rounder from Iowa State has a clear path to WR2 duties in Houston in his second year in the NFL now that Higgins is done for the season. In 17 regular-season games as a rookie in 2025, Noel caught 26 of his 35 targets for 292 yards and two touchdowns for the Texans. At the very least, Noel should see a big rise in target share as the Texans continue to work Tank Dell back from a knee injury that kept him out for all of last year. RotoBaller now has Noel ranked as the No. 65 overall fantasy WR.


Troy Franklin vs. Jaylin Noel

Still trying to decide between Franklin and Noel? Check on the latest news to make sure both players are active and healthy. Our PPR projections show that Troy Franklin is projected to score 5.4 points this week while Jaylin Noel is projected to score 4.3 points.