# Mike Clay: Clay names the 2026 fantasy players positioned to break out in the mold of last season's breakouts: Jaxson Dart, Carnell Tate, Emeka Egbuka, Jeremiyah Love, Kenyon Sadiq, Justin Herbert, Kenneth Walker III, Jaylen Waddle, Terrance Ferguson and Jack Bech. He also projects roles for several of them (Egbuka as Tampa Bay's top target, Walker as the Chiefs' feature back, Waddle leading Denver in targets and catches).

**Claimed:** Aug 12, 2026
**Pundit:** Mike Clay — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/mike-clay
**How it reached us:** published in writing
**Original:** https://www.espn.com/fantasy/football/story/_/id/49309338/fantasy-football-2026-version-2025-breakouts-nfl-sleepers

10 checkable claims — 5 depth chart calls, 3 sleeper calls and 2 positional finishes — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet.

It names 11 players and teams, each linked to their own record.

None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in.

Of the 5 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 1 and below it on 4.

> Dart is one of my favorite targets in 2026 fantasy drafts

*(their words, quoted for attribution)*

## The claims

- **Terrance Ferguson to be 3rd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Terrance Ferguson, Los Angeles Rams
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Jaylen Waddle to finish top 24 at his position, by fantasy points**
  - Kind: Positional Finishes · About: Jaylen Waddle, Denver Broncos
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Terrance Ferguson to outplay his draft cost (late-round availability on draft day)**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Terrance Ferguson, Los Angeles Rams
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Kenyon Sadiq to be 3rd on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Kenyon Sadiq
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Kenneth Walker III to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Kenneth Walker III, Kansas City Chiefs
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Jeremiyah Love to finish top ? at his position, by fantasy points**
  - Kind: Positional Finishes · About: Jeremiyah Love
  - Verdict: too vague to check
- **Kenyon Sadiq to outplay his draft cost (the later rounds)**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Kenyon Sadiq
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Emeka Egbuka to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Emeka Egbuka, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Jack Bech to outplay his draft cost (the late rounds)**
  - Kind: Sleeper Calls · About: Jack Bech
  - Verdict: not settled yet
- **Jaylen Waddle to be 1st on the depth chart**
  - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Jaylen Waddle, Denver Broncos
  - Verdict: not settled yet

## Who this take is about

- Terrance Ferguson — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/terrance-ferguson
- Los Angeles Rams — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/rams
- Jaylen Waddle — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jaylen-waddle
- Denver Broncos — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/broncos
- Kenyon Sadiq — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/kenyon-sadiq
- Kenneth Walker III — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/kenneth-walker-iii
- Kansas City Chiefs — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/chiefs
- Jeremiyah Love — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jeremiyah-love
- Emeka Egbuka — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/emeka-egbuka
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/buccaneers
- Jack Bech — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/jack-bech

## What others said about the same people

- Chris Simms on Kansas City Chiefs: Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/662b7ba3-1bf6-4ad0-9f93-9f2ab83143fd (scored 100)
- Connor Rogers on Kansas City Chiefs: Rogers picked Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle and the Giants to win their Week 3 games, saying the Chiefs win by two touchdowns and the Giants by a field goal. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/83d1e88b-95a0-45ba-83d3-f86297170c6c (scored 100)
- Chris Long on Los Angeles Rams: Long liked the Rams over the Broncos on Sunday night even without Puka Nacua, and expected the Bills to beat the winless Chargers in Buffalo. He also backed the Bengals over the Steelers, expected an angry Detroit team to handle the Jets, and still thought both the Lions and Vikings could win the NFC North. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3df9ea25-e57f-4fd7-b20c-c910a1c3633a (scored 0)
- Steven Ruiz on Denver Broncos: Previewing Week 3, Ruiz picked the Ravens to beat the Cowboys in Brazil, Jacksonville over New England in a low-scoring game, an upset by the Broncos over the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears, the Lions over the Jets, and his Hail Mary that Houston beats Indianapolis by two touchdowns. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a30ff469-4972-4c48-855b-ba984e4de9d0 (scored 100)
- Nate Tice on Denver Broncos: Tice matched his guest on every Week 3 game, picking the Ravens over the Cowboys, the Jaguars over the Patriots in a close game, the Broncos to upset the Rams, the Raiders over the Saints, the Eagles over the Bears and the Lions over the Jets. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/b8378e16-ea5c-4107-a883-28aaf0e71134 (scored 100)
- Jake Arthur on Kansas City Chiefs: Arthur expects a close Chiefs win on Sunday Night Football at Arrowhead, predicting a final score of 27-23 for Kansas City. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/ca7ab74e-ab34-4ed6-a77f-2c7e9f8c8c4d (scored 97.62)

## More depth chart calls

The same kind of call, about other players and teams.

- Fox Sports on Michael Penix Jr.: Fox Sports states that a healthy Tua Tagovailoa will serve as Atlanta's backup quarterback in Week 3, with Michael Penix Jr. handling the starting duties against Green Bay. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a90e69a8-707f-43e9-a63e-cdb3e7bd0829 (scored 100)
- Pat Fitzmaurice on Aaron Jones: In previewing the 10 most intriguing fantasy performers of Week 2, Fitzmaurice expects Atlanta's quarterback problems to persist with Tua Tagovailoa unlikely to play and Michael Penix Jr. not ready to return, flags Falcons slot corner Billy Bowman Jr. as a possible Week 2 returnee, and describes Aaron Jones as Minnesota's lead back and Kaelon Black as the clear backup to Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/31adc8bb-8f15-453f-bbcf-cab44e29b8b3 (scored 100)
- Matt Severance on Deshaun Watson: The CBS Sports preview backs Tampa Bay to beat Cleveland in the Bucs' Week 2 home opener, and states that Deshaun Watson — not Shedeur Sanders — will be Cleveland's starting quarterback in Week 2. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/944568ce-7205-409f-8354-a392016fd8bf (scored 100)
- Rafael Zamorano on Deshaun Watson: Zamorano reports Watson will start Week 2 at Tampa Bay and suggests there's little reason to expect improvement, raising the possibility Watson's five-year contract never yields more than single-digit wins. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d7d7e0a2-61e0-4525-970b-b01a2356f11b (scored 100)
- Rich Hribar on Tua Tagovailoa: Hribar expects Tua Tagovailoa to be Atlanta's starting quarterback for Week 2 while Michael Penix stays out, with Penix's return closer to Week 4. He is unenthusiastic about the Falcons' offense either way and treats Bryce Young as a fringe fantasy starter. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/124ac755-a942-4382-8bad-177da7f8170d (scored 0)
- Bradley Locker on Carson Wentz: PFF's unsigned adjusted power rankings after Week 1 of the 2026 season place the Bills first, the Rams second and the Dolphins last, with notes on quarterback situations in Seattle, Minnesota and Cleveland. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a3716f21-0488-4fc8-a414-c25c2d781a6e (scored 100)

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Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages.

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