Los Angeles Chargers Fantasy Football Preview for the 26-27 Season

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  • By JasonBaum85

    Last Updated on June 15, 2026 11:35 am by Jon Mosales | Published: June 15, 2026

     

     

    Head Coach: Jim Harbaugh

    Key Offensive Statistics:

    PPG: 21.6 (20th in NFL)

    Plays Per Game: 64.4 (3rd in NFL)

    Run/Pass %: 43-57

    Pass TD’s: 26 (T-11th in NFL)

    Rush TDs: 10 (T-26th in NFL)

    Projected Offensive Depth Chart:

    QB1: Justin Herbert QB2: Trey Lance QB3: DJ Uiagalelei

    RB1: Omarion Hampton RB2: Keaton Mitchell RB3: Kimani Vidal

    WR1: Ladd McConkey WR2: Quentin Johnston WR3: Tre Harris WR4: Brennen Thompson (R)

    TE1: Oronde Gadsden II TE2: David Njoku TE3: Charlie Kolar

    The Chargers come into 2026 looking to add more explosion to their offense and the fantasy hope and potential is arguably the highest it has ever been for a Jim Harbaugh coached team. For all the offensive talent this team has, they only scored 36 total touchdowns in 2025 which was seventh fewest in the entire league, causing Jim Harbaugh to finally move on from his long time offensive coordinator Greg Roman. In comes Mike McDaniel to help optimize the passing game and maximize Justin Herbert’s abilities. This change should bump Herbert’s fantasy value back up into the QB2 range but with QB1 upside again. On the ground, Omarion Hampton comes in as the clear cut RB1 and should have mid second round to third round value. Ladd McConkey returns as the WR1 and with a new offense coming in, could be in for a breakout season. The tight end position is where things get tricky. Oronde Gadsden II had a solid rookie campaign in 2025 but the Chargers added a pair of free agents in Charlie Kolar and David Njoku, which could hinder his target share.  The o-line should rebound from being one of the worst units in the NFL, but injuries derailed Joe Alt and Rashawn Slater and forced Herbert to run for his life.  McDaniel should revolutionize an offense that had been predictable the last couple of seasons, but the one number that should go up is RB targets which was 29th (14%) last season.  Herbert led the league in targeting WRs and with an elite RB and two elite TEs, expect the 68% WR target percentage to take a hit.

    Player most likely to beat ADP: Ladd McConkey (ADP 40, WR19)

    McConkey was the WR12 as a rookie and got off to a terrible start last season, going the first four games without scoring or posting a top-25 week.  The new passing offense should feature McConkey in a way he hasn’t been and a top-20 season seems like the floor.

    Player most likely to fade based on ADP: Omarion Hampton (ADP 21, RB7)

    Omarion Hampton finished his rookie season as RB16 in PPG in 9 games played and while he has superstar upside, we haven’t seen it yet and were not sure he can stay healthy or the o-line will be able to keep him from being hit behind the line of scrimmage.  There are a lot of ifs for someone you need to take in the second round.

    Late-round Flier that could blow up: Quentin Johnson (ADP 111, WR47)

    Johnston has finished as the WR37 and WR31 in the last two seasons, so why is he going to late on an offense everyone expects to be a top-10 unit.  McDaniel is great at optimizing WRs, and Johnston has eight TDs in b2b seasons.

     

    Writer’s Season Win Prediction: 11-6

    The tight end room. This is nothing new for a Jim Harbaugh led team as historically, in both college and the pros, this has been the best skill position room he has. This one is no different as he has three solid and capable pass catchers available. Gadsden II is coming off a 664 yard, 3 touchdown rookie season and looked poised to make another leap this year, but with the additions of Kolar and Njoku, his status is back to low end TE2 for fantasy and should not be drafted within the first 10 rounds.  Gadsden was the TE15 and Njoku had been a top-12 TE in the last three seasons before this past one.  This might be the best TE duo in the league, but the Chargers will have to drastically increase their TE targeting (30th at 18%) for either or both to be fantasy viable.  Gadsden is a monster in waiting, but Njoku is no slouch, so the smart money says the TE position is a top-10 unit on aggregate, but it’s hard to trust either one to really separate themselves. This offense has plenty of weapons and the right QB to distribute to them, but it’s going McConkey first and everyone else fighting for scraps.

    Depth at wide receiver. Behind Ladd McConkey, is a cast of mostly unknowns. Despite having a monster early season, Quentin Johnston mostly faded down the stretch while Tre’ Harris never really got going and now rookie speedster Brennen Thompson joins the fold. McConkey is the clear WR1 and should still hold high early round value. Yes, McConkey’s statistical production dropped significantly last year, but there were two areas which didn’t, touchdowns and target share. He still amassed 106 targets in 2025, which was just six less than what he got in 2024 so fantasy managers should still have confidence taking him somewhere in the second or third round. Johnston at this point will be somewhere between the sixth to eighth round. Harris and Thompson should sometime between round 11 and the end of your draft.  Herbert had 26 passing TDs last season and it remains to be seen if he will ever get back to the guy who threw 30 TDs and 4000 yards in his first two seasons.  If he’s every going to reach that point again, it will be under McDaniel, but I don’t like betting against a streak.  McConkey was the WR30, but don’t expect his TDs to jump dramatically with two elite TEs.  Johnston is pretty reliable and while McConkey is the clear alpha, the value on Johnston continues to be great season after season.  He might not always catch the ball and might dissapear from week to week, but he’s right there as one of the best boom-or-bust WRs in fantasy.

    Herbert was the QB10 last season, but his final rank was pushed up by finishing second in rushing yards at his position.  He only ran for two TDs, so it’s not exactly Josh Allen and a lot of those yards can be attributed to him running for his life.  The Chargers want Herbert healthy and the new offense should be more fast-developing plays and quick-strike passes.  Herbert has a cannon and this offense will use it.  It’s hard to understate how much a difference the new OC combined with a healthy o-line will fuel the Chargers ability to score points.  They were 20th last season and a top-10 season doesn’t just seem likely, it seems like the floor.  The only problem is where to dive in because there are plenty of options and nothing will look similar to last season.

     

     

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    June 15, 2026, 11:35 am