21Sep

2026

Brent Thompson / Sports / 0 comment

CeeDee Lamb Secured Fantasy Managers a Win

Week 2 · The Recap and the Fantasy Angle

CeeDee Lamb Called the Coin Toss Offensive. Then He Went for 153 Yards and Two Touchdowns.

Eight catches on nine targets in a 37-20 win over Washington, a settled WR1 question in Dallas, and a 35-point PPR week. Plus what to expect in Week 3 against Baltimore.

Washington won the coin toss on Sunday and deferred, choosing to kick off and let the Dallas offense go first. That is a completely ordinary coaching decision that happens in dozens of games a week. CeeDee Lamb decided to take it as an insult.

Dallas then marched down the field on the opening drive, Lamb caught three passes on it including gains of 15 and 23 yards, and he finished it himself on a three-yard touchdown from Dak Prescott. He never really stopped. By the final whistle he had eight catches on nine targets for 153 yards and two touchdowns in a 37-20 win, and he had a quote ready for the reporters about who controls the narrative now. If you started him in fantasy, you already know how this afternoon went.

The Week 2 File

Jump anywhere. Fantasy managers, the scorecard is chapter three.

The Game 8 catches, 153, 2 TD The WR1 Question Settled, for now The Fantasy Scorecard PPR and half PPR Week 3 vs Baltimore Start or sit The Gear Celebrate the win

The Game

Eight Catches, Nine Targets, One Very Bad Afternoon for Washington

The catch rate is the stat that should scare defensive coordinators.

The raw line is excellent. The efficiency underneath it is better. Lamb caught eight of the nine balls thrown his way, an 89 percent catch rate, and averaged just over 19 yards per reception. Dak Prescott completed 26 of 31 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions, a 143.8 passer rating, and his top target was also his most reliable one.

The two touchdowns bookended the game. The first was the three-yard score on the opening drive. The second came with a little over three minutes left, after Lamb had already hauled in a 35-yard catch to set up the drive, when Prescott went right back to him five plays later on a 24-yard touchdown that Lamb had to fight through contact to secure. That one put the game away at 36-20.

8/9

Catches on targets

153

Receiving yards

Touchdowns

19.1

Yards per catch

Washington is, apparently, his favorite opponent. Across his last four meetings with the Commanders at AT&T Stadium, Lamb has 28 catches for 413 yards and five touchdowns, and he has scored in every one of those games. Some matchups are just like that.

One honest note on context: Washington lost quarterback Jayden Daniels to an elbow injury during the game, and Marcus Mariota finished it for the Commanders. That changed the other half of the game more than it changed Lamb’s half, since his damage came against the Washington secondary regardless of who was taking snaps on the other side. But it is worth knowing when you evaluate the final score.

Chapter Two

The WR1 Question Has an Answer, For Now

Last season it was a real debate. Two weeks in, it is not.

This is the part Dallas fans have been waiting on. In 2025, George Pickens outproduced Lamb on the same roster, 1,429 yards to 1,077, and the conversation around the Cowboys receiver room turned into a genuine argument about who the number one option actually was. Plenty of people picked Pickens to lead the team in receiving this season.

Through two weeks, Lamb has 13 catches for 197 yards and three touchdowns and ranks among the top seven receivers in the league in all three categories. On Sunday he led the Cowboys in receptions, yards, and targets, finishing one target ahead of Pickens, who has started slowly. Jake Ferguson caught the other two touchdowns. The target tree through two weeks runs through Lamb and Ferguson first.

Why He Is the Key to This Offense

The whole thing runs better through 88

Dallas looked stuck in Week 1, managing 175 passing yards in a loss to the Giants. In Week 2, with Lamb getting early volume on the opening drive and staying involved all afternoon, the same quarterback produced 279 yards, four touchdowns and a 143.8 rating. That is not a coincidence. When the ball goes to Lamb early, the offense establishes a rhythm that makes everything else easier, including the looks Ferguson and Pickens get underneath and outside.

Locked In as WR1Yes, For Now · 82%

TimeshareClear WR1

What he said about the coin toss

Lamb told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram that he found Washington’s decision to defer offensive, framing it as a statement about how Dallas should approach every game: take the ball, go score, and set the tone rather than react to it. His closing line was that from now on, “we control the narrative.” It is the kind of chip-on-the-shoulder energy that tends to travel well in a locker room.

Fantasy

The Fantasy Football Scorecard

What Sunday was worth in the two formats most leagues use.

Two weeks is enough data to start talking fantasy seriously, and Lamb just delivered one of the best wide receiver weeks of the young season. Scoring below assumes the most common settings: 0.1 points per receiving yard, six points per receiving touchdown, and either a full point or half a point per reception. If your league adds yardage bonuses, add them on top.

Week 2 against Washington

35.3

Full PPR points

31.3

Half PPR points

27.3

Standard points

Season through two weeks

50.7

Full PPR total

44.2

Half PPR total

25.4

Full PPR per game

The math is simple enough to check yourself. Week 1 was five catches, 44 yards and a touchdown: 10.4 in standard, 12.9 in half PPR, 15.4 in full PPR. Week 2 was eight catches, 153 yards and two touchdowns: 27.3 standard, 31.3 half, 35.3 full. PPR formats reward him most because he catches almost everything thrown at him, and a player who converts nine targets into eight receptions is banking a point for nearly every look.

Hot Take Fantasy managers who spent the summer drafting George Pickens ahead of CeeDee Lamb on the theory that Pickens had become the better receiver are about to learn the difference between a great season and a great player. Pickens had a great season. Lamb is a great player who had a down, injury-affected year inside a split target share, and he just reminded everyone that when Dallas decides to feature him, he is a top-five wide receiver in any format. The discount is gone. If you have him, you are not trading him.

Week 3

Next Up: Baltimore at AT&T Stadium

Start him. The only question is how high the ceiling goes.

Dallas hosts the Ravens on Sunday, September 27 at 4:25 PM Eastern. The honest read on the matchup has two sides. Baltimore’s secondary is anchored by Kyle Hamilton, who was voted the best safety in football by an AP panel in July, and a defense with that kind of back-end talent is capable of taking away a single primary target on a given afternoon.

The other side is the more important one for fantasy. Baltimore’s offense just scored 41 points in its opener behind Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry. If the Ravens move the ball the way they did in Week 1, Dallas is going to have to keep pace through the air, and a shootout script is exactly where a high-catch-rate receiver piles up volume. Game environment usually matters more than cornerback matchups for a player Lamb’s caliber.

Week 3 Projection Scenarios

Editorial ranges, not a model

Floor (Baltimore takes him away, Dallas leans on the run): 5 catches, 60 yards, no touchdown. That is 11.0 in full PPR, 8.5 in half PPR.

Median (a normal Lamb game): 7 catches, 90 yards, one touchdown. That is 22.0 in full PPR, 18.5 in half PPR.

Ceiling (shootout with the Ravens): 9 catches, 130 yards, one touchdown. That is 28.0 in full PPR, 23.5 in half PPR, with more if a second score shows up.

Week 3 Start ConfidenceMust Start · 94%

FlexLocked WR1

The verdict is not complicated. He is a locked-in WR1 in every format, a stronger play in full PPR than in half because of the catch rate, and even his realistic floor is a usable flex performance. Nobody should be benching CeeDee Lamb against Baltimore.

The Gear

If He Just Won You Your Matchup

Some weeks deserve a souvenir.

There is a specific kind of fan who had Lamb in their starting lineup on Sunday, watched the 24-yard touchdown come in with three minutes left, and felt the fantasy matchup swing in real time. That person has earned something to wear on Monday. A CeeDee Lamb shirt is the obvious call, and Cowboys fans who want a CeeDee Lamb graphic tee with actual artwork rather than a jersey replica have been searching for exactly that.

Planet Euphoria’s Lamb designs are hand-drawn and hand-printed to order in Schenectady, New York, individually numbered in strictly limited 500-piece runs, and retired for good once a run sells out. For a season that is starting to look like a return to 2023 form, the hand-drawn CeeDee Lamb designs are about as good a victory lap as a fantasy win gets.

The Verdict

Two Weeks In, the Old Lamb Is Back

The coin toss did not start this. It just gave him a reason to finish it.

CeeDee Lamb has five straight 1,000-yard seasons, five Pro Bowls, and a 2023 campaign in which he broke two of Michael Irvin’s franchise records. He also spent 2025 watching a teammate outproduce him and hearing that the WR1 debate in Dallas was over. Two weeks into 2026 he has three touchdowns, nearly 200 yards, and the best single game by a Cowboys receiver so far this season.

Baltimore will be a harder test than Washington, and Pickens is too talented to stay quiet for long. But the case for Lamb as the key to this offense got a lot easier to make on Sunday afternoon. Dallas scores when he gets the ball early. His fantasy managers win when he gets it often. For the next few weeks at least, both of those things look likely to keep happening.

The Bottom Line

CeeDee Lamb caught eight of nine targets for 153 yards and two touchdowns against Washington, turning an ordinary coin toss into a motivational speech and a 37-20 Cowboys win. Through two weeks he has 13 catches, 197 yards and three touchdowns, he is leading Dallas in every receiving category that matters, and he has already posted 50.7 full PPR points. Baltimore brings a better secondary and a much better offense to AT&T Stadium in Week 3, which makes the matchup tougher and the game script friendlier at the same time. Start him everywhere. The WR1 debate in Dallas can wait until someone else actually wins it.

For Cowboys Fans: Celebrate the Week

Hand-drawn CeeDee Lamb V2 limited edition graphic tee, Dallas football

CeeDee Lamb V2 Tee

Shop the limited-edition hand-drawn CeeDee Lamb tee for Dallas Cowboys fans →

CeeDee Lamb Week 2 and Fantasy: Your Questions, Answered

What were CeeDee Lamb’s stats in Week 2?

Lamb caught eight of nine targets for 153 yards and two touchdowns in Dallas’s 37-20 win over Washington on September 20, 2026. His touchdowns came from three yards in the first quarter and 24 yards in the fourth, and he led the Cowboys in receptions, yards and targets.

How many fantasy points did CeeDee Lamb score in Week 2?

Using standard scoring of 0.1 points per yard and six points per touchdown, Lamb scored 35.3 points in full PPR, 31.3 in half PPR and 27.3 in standard leagues. Leagues with yardage bonuses would score him higher.

How many fantasy points does CeeDee Lamb have this season?

Through two weeks he has 13 catches, 197 yards and three touchdowns, which is 50.7 points in full PPR, 44.2 in half PPR and 37.7 in standard scoring, an average of roughly 25.4 full PPR points per game.

Should I start CeeDee Lamb in Week 3 against the Ravens?

Yes. He is a must-start WR1 in all formats. Baltimore has a strong secondary led by safety Kyle Hamilton, but the Ravens’ high-powered offense points toward a shootout game script that tends to favor high-volume receivers. He is an especially strong play in full PPR because of his catch rate.

Is CeeDee Lamb the Cowboys’ WR1 over George Pickens?

Through two weeks of 2026, yes. Lamb has 13 catches for 197 yards and three touchdowns and led Dallas in targets in Week 2, one more than Pickens, who has started slowly. In 2025 Pickens outproduced Lamb, so the question is settled for now rather than permanently.

Are CeeDee Lamb tees official Cowboys merchandise?

Planet Euphoria’s CeeDee Lamb designs are collector-edition apparel featuring original hand-drawn artwork, individually numbered in limited 500-piece runs, not team-licensed Dallas Cowboys merchandise. They are made for Cowboys fans who want something other than standard team gear.

Game statistics verified via official box score data for the September 20, 2026 game at AT&T Stadium and via ESPN, CBS Sports, NBC Sports and RotoWire reporting. Fantasy point totals calculated using standard scoring (0.1 per receiving yard, 6 per receiving touchdown, 1 or 0.5 per reception). Week 3 projections are editorial scenarios, not a statistical model, and are not betting advice.

14Sep

2026

Brent Thompson / Uncategorized / 0 comment

Will Lamar Jackson’s Price Keep Going Up?

The Profile · Baltimore’s Rising Price

Lamar Jackson Still Has Not Signed. Week 1 Just Made Him a Lot More Expensive.

A day after reports said he would not negotiate, the two-time MVP threw for 324 yards at nearly 13 a throw, beat the Colts by 18, and quietly raised his own asking price.

Twenty-four hours before kickoff, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that Lamar Jackson had been reluctant to negotiate a long-term extension with the Baltimore Ravens, that the team was willing to make him the highest-paid quarterback in the National Football League, and that no deal was expected anytime soon. It was the kind of report that usually hangs over a season opener like weather.

Then Jackson went to Indianapolis and completed 17 of 25 passes for 324 yards, threw a 54-yard touchdown to Zay Flowers, ran one in himself, posted a 124.2 passer rating, and beat the Colts 41-23. He averaged 12.96 yards per attempt. If the Ravens were hoping the market would cool while they waited, the first Sunday of the season did the opposite. Every throw made him more expensive.

The Lamar File

Jump to any chapter. The yards-per-attempt number is the one to stare at.

The Game 324 and 12.96 a throw
The Henry Problem Three more scores
The Standoff Still unsigned
The Missing Ring Two MVPs, no title
The Fat Head Why the gear moves

Chapter One

Seventeen Throws, Three Hundred Twenty-Four Yards

Nearly thirteen yards every time he dropped back.

The efficiency is the headline. Jackson attempted 25 passes and gained 324 yards, which works out to 12.96 yards per attempt. For context, anything above nine is considered an excellent day. He completed 68 percent, threw no interceptions, and finished with a 124.2 rating. Baltimore gained 506 total yards on 64 plays and held the ball for more than 35 minutes.

He did it without needing volume, which is the part that should worry the rest of the AFC. This was not a quarterback throwing 45 times to drag a team back into a game. It was 25 efficient attempts inside an offense that was ahead almost from the start, punctuated by a 54-yard strike to Zay Flowers in the second quarter that effectively ended the competitive portion of the afternoon. He also scored on a five-yard run in the first.

324

Passing yards on 25 attempts

12.96

Yards per attempt

124.2

Passer rating

41-23

Final score at Indianapolis

Chapter Two

And Derrick Henry Scored Three Times

The thing that makes this offense genuinely unfair.

Jackson was not even the most productive scorer on his own team. Derrick Henry ran for three touchdowns, from four yards, thirty-two yards, and three yards, as Baltimore rushed 37 times for 202 yards and four scores. At 32 years old, after 3,859 scrimmage yards and 34 touchdowns in his first two Ravens seasons, Henry opened the year by looking exactly like the player who arrived.

That is the structural problem Baltimore presents. A defense cannot commit to stopping a quarterback averaging almost 13 yards a throw while also accounting for one of the best pure runners of his generation. Indianapolis picked the run, mostly, and Jackson threw over the top of it. The Ravens scored on five of their first seven meaningful possessions and led 28-6 in the second quarter.

Why This Mattered More Than a Normal Week 1

Baltimore missed the playoffs last season

The Ravens went 8-9 in 2025 and missed the postseason entirely, a collapse that included a 1-5 start. Jackson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 4 and, by most accounts, rarely played at an MVP level afterward. A disappointing year immediately before a contract negotiation is the worst possible timing, and it gave Baltimore a reason to hesitate. Opening with 324 yards and a 124.2 rating is the fastest available way to erase that argument.

Bounce-Back SignalLoud · 90%

NoiseReal

He negotiates for himself

Jackson has never had an agent. He represented himself through the 2023 franchise tag standoff and the five-year, $260 million extension that followed, and he is representing himself now. That is unusual at this level of money, and it means every read on his thinking is guesswork. There is no agent leaking a position to a reporter, which is a large part of why nobody can explain the current reluctance.

Chapter Three

The Offer He Still Will Not Take

Highest-paid quarterback in football, declined.

Nothing about Sunday changes the contractual facts, except the price. Baltimore has signaled a willingness to reset the quarterback market and Jackson has not engaged. Schefter’s phrasing was notably blunt, describing the reluctance as existing “for whatever reason,” which is reporter language for nobody has a clean answer. General manager Eric DeCosta called himself optimistic in early September. Tom Pelissero reported the Ravens continue to push. Jackson deflects every question toward the season.

The math is the pressure. He is in the second-to-last year of the $260 million deal signed in 2023, with two years and roughly $104 million left. In March the Ravens converted nearly $50 million of salary into a signing bonus to clear immediate room, which solved 2026 by making 2027 considerably worse. His cap number next year sits around $84 million, a figure Baltimore simply cannot carry.

Hot Take
Lamar Jackson not signing is the smartest thing he could possibly be doing, and Week 1 just proved it. In 2027 Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Bo Nix all become extension-eligible for the first time. Four quarterbacks resetting the market in the same offseason. Any deal Jackson signs today becomes the floor those four negotiate against. Any deal he signs after them becomes the ceiling he negotiates from. He is a two-time MVP who represents himself, has already won one public staredown with this franchise, and just opened the season averaging 12.96 yards a throw. He is not confused. He is compounding.

The Gap

The Only One

Every other multiple-MVP quarterback has a ring.

Here is the fact that still defines his career, and it is brutal. Lamar Jackson is the only player in NFL history with multiple MVP awards who has never won a Super Bowl. Not never won one. Never played in one at all. Nine seasons in, at 29 years old, that is the entire remaining argument about him.

The resume around the gap is enormous. Two MVPs in 2019 and 2023. Three first-team All-Pro selections. Four Pro Bowls. He led the league in passing touchdowns in 2019 and in passer rating in 2024. He won the Heisman at Louisville in 2016 as a unanimous All-American. Speaking to ESPN’s Jamison Hensley before the season, Jackson said the team talks about how to get there rather than about winning it, that every year they have not gotten there, and that they cannot worry about February until they are actually there.

Week 1 is not February. But it is the first data point of a season where Baltimore returns Flowers, Mark Andrews, Roquan Smith and Kyle Hamilton around a healthy quarterback, and where the franchise has every incentive to win now. New Orleans visits next, with the Ravens heavily favored.

The Gear

Why Ravens Fans Keep Searching for the Fat Head

The design that became its own search term.

One quirk of Jackson’s fanbase says something real about how this player is consumed. A meaningful share of the search interest around his apparel is not for a jersey or a generic tee. It is specifically for the Fat Head design, an oversized caricature-style illustration that fans have adopted as shorthand for the whole aesthetic. People look for it by name.

That indicates a certain kind of star. Fans who want a jersey buy a jersey and do not need it to have a personality. Fans who search for a specific hand-drawn design are buying something closer to a piece of art about a player they have strong feelings about. Jackson has always inspired that, partly because his game is genuinely singular and partly because Baltimore takes its quarterback personally.

Why the Hand-Drawn Fat Head Tee Hits Different

Limited to 500, individually numbered

Planet Euphoria’s Lamar Jackson Fat Head is officially licensed NFLPA player merchandise, hand-drawn and then hand-printed to order in Schenectady, New York, with the run limited to 500 individually numbered pieces in off-white and black. Once it sells out it is retired permanently. For a season that could decide whether Jackson finishes his career in Baltimore, and that opened with 324 yards and a 41-point afternoon, the timing is unusually specific. Ravens fans can browse the Lamar Jackson graphic tee collection while the current design is still in print.

Collector TimingAct Now · 88%

WaitAct Now

The Verdict

One Week In, the Leverage Moved

Baltimore needed a bounce-back. It got one, and a bill.

The Ravens wanted two things from Sunday: evidence that the 2025 version of Lamar Jackson was an injury and not a decline, and some sense of how to approach a negotiation with a player who will not negotiate. They got the first emphatically. The second got harder.

Jackson is 29, holding two MVP trophies and zero Super Bowl appearances, playing on a contract he could replace with the largest in league history whenever he chooses to pick up a pen, and he just opened the season by averaging nearly 13 yards a throw in a road win. Baltimore needs a deal considerably more than he needs to sign one, and every week like this widens that gap. The only thing that would reverse it is the thing nobody in Baltimore wants to say out loud.

The Bottom Line

Twenty-four hours after ESPN reported that Lamar Jackson would not engage on an extension Baltimore is desperate to sign, he opened the season with 324 passing yards on 25 attempts, a 124.2 rating, a rushing touchdown, and an 18-point road win. Derrick Henry added three scores of his own. The Ravens wanted proof that 2025 was a hamstring and not a decline, and they got it in the loudest possible way. They also got a reminder that every week like this one costs them money. Jackson is the only multiple-MVP winner in NFL history without a Super Bowl, he is 29, and for the first time in a while the clock feels like it is working for him.

For Ravens Fans: Wear the Fat Head

Lamar Jackson V3 Limited Edition NFL Player Graphic T-Shirt

Shop the limited-edition hand-drawn Lamar Jackson for Baltimore Ravens football fans →

Lamar Jackson: Your Questions, Answered

What did Lamar Jackson do in Week 1 of 2026?

Jackson completed 17 of 25 passes for 324 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions, added a five-yard rushing touchdown, and posted a 124.2 passer rating in Baltimore’s 41-23 win at Indianapolis. His 12.96 yards per attempt was among the best marks of the week.

Has Lamar Jackson signed a contract extension with the Ravens?

No. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the day before the opener that Jackson has been reluctant to negotiate a long-term deal despite Baltimore being willing to make him the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, and that no deal is expected soon. He remains under contract through 2027.

How many MVPs has Lamar Jackson won?

Two, in 2019 and 2023. He is also a three-time first-team All-Pro, a four-time Pro Bowler, led the league in passing touchdowns in 2019 and in passer rating in 2024, and won the Heisman Trophy at Louisville in 2016.

Has Lamar Jackson been to a Super Bowl?

No. He is the only player in NFL history with multiple MVP awards who has never won a Super Bowl, and he has not appeared in one. Baltimore missed the playoffs entirely last season after finishing 8-9.

What is Lamar Jackson’s contract worth?

He signed a five-year, $260 million extension in 2023 with a $72.5 million signing bonus and $185 million guaranteed, averaging $52 million per year. He has two years and roughly $104 million remaining, with a 2027 cap hit near $84 million if no new deal is reached.

Are Lamar Jackson tees official Ravens merchandise?

Planet Euphoria’s Lamar Jackson Fat Head tee is officially licensed NFLPA player merchandise, not team-licensed Baltimore Ravens merchandise. It features original hand-drawn artwork made for Baltimore football fans who want something other than standard team gear.

Game statistics verified via official box score data. Contract reporting, awards and quotes verified via ESPN, Bleacher Report, NFL.com, CBS Sports and Spotrac as of September 2026. Leverage analysis and collector-timing assessments are editorial judgment, not a statistical model.

22Aug

2026

Brent Thompson / Sports / 0 comment

Lamine Yamal: The Teenager Who Completed Football

The Profile · Football’s Next Great Number 10

Lamine Yamal Is 19 and Has Already Won Everything. So Why Is the Hardest Question Still Ahead of Him?

He has the World Cup, the Euros, three league titles, and a Messi comparison that has stopped sounding like hype. We went through the whole story, the numbers, and the one debate that still divides the sport.

Here is a sentence that should not be possible. Before his 20th birthday, Lamine Yamal has won a World Cup, a European Championship, and three La Liga titles, and he is the bookmakers’ favorite to be named the best footballer on the planet. Most players spend a career chasing one of those things. He collected all of them while he was still, technically, a teenager taking online school exams between matches.

The temptation with a talent this loud is to reach for superlatives and move on. We are going to do the opposite. Because the most interesting thing about Yamal is not that he is great, which is obvious, but that his story already contains a genuine argument, a real fault line that splits smart people who watch him closely. We will get to that. First, the rise, because you cannot understand the debate without understanding just how fast this happened.

The Full Story

Jump to any chapter. Then stick around for the part people argue about.

The Rise 15 to global star
The World Cup Coronation in NY
The Numbers Superstar output
The Debate Ballon d’Or
The Ceiling What’s next

Chapter One

The Rise That Broke the Timeline

Every prodigy story has a slow build. This one did not.

Football has a comfortable script for wonderkids. A teenager debuts, shows flashes, gets loaned out, fills out physically, and arrives as a finished product around 22 or 23. Yamal tore that script up on day one. He made his Barcelona debut in April 2023 at 15 years and 291 days, the youngest player to represent the club in more than a century, and he did not go backward from there. He went straight up.

There is a piece of trivia here so perfect that people assume it is fake. In 2007, Barcelona ran a charity photo shoot in which players bathed local infants. The player was Lionel Messi. One of the babies was Lamine Yamal. Sixteen years later that baby would inherit Messi’s number 10 shirt and his throne. You could not write it. And yet the on-field story somehow lives up to the myth attached to it.

Euro 2024: The 16-Year-Old Who Won a Continent

Spain · Summer 2024

The world found out at Euro 2024. Still 16, Yamal became the youngest player ever to appear at a European Championship, then the youngest ever to score in one, curling a ridiculous strike past France in the semifinal from an angle that did not exist until he invented it. He lifted the trophy the day after his 17th birthday, already the youngest player to win the competition, and walked away as its Young Player of the Tournament. Most players would build an entire career around that month. For Yamal it was the opening act.

Hype-to-Delivery RatioFully Earned · 98%

OverhypedUnderrated

The goal that announced him

Down 1-0 to France in a Euro semifinal, with the tournament tilting away, a 16-year-old cut inside and bent a shot into the far top corner off the post. It was not a lucky hit. He had been threatening it all night. That is the tell with Yamal: the highlight is never a fluke, it is the thing he was building toward the whole match.

The recognition stacked up almost faster than he could collect it. The Golden Boy award as Europe’s best young player. The Kopa Trophy at the Ballon d’Or gala. Then, in 2025, a runner-up finish for the Ballon d’Or itself, second only to Ousmane Dembele, an astonishing podium result for an 18-year-old. If you were introducing yourself to the sport, this was already the resume of a great career. Yamal was just getting the paperwork out of the way.

Chapter Two

The Coronation in New Jersey

The trophy that turned a superstar into a historical figure.

The 2026 World Cup was supposed to be Yamal’s coronation, and it was, though not in the tidy way the buildup imagined. He arrived still shaking off a hamstring injury, and his sharpness came and went through the group stage. The goals did not pour in. What did not change was the simplest and most damning stat for any opponent: when Yamal starts, Spain do not lose.

His one goal of the tournament, against Saudi Arabia, made him the youngest Spanish player ever to score at a World Cup. In the knockout rounds he stopped needing the scoresheet to dominate. He won the penalty that cracked open the France semifinal, and he finished the World Cup as its most prolific dribbler, beating defenders more often than Messi, Mbappe, or anyone else in the field. Spain won all seven of their matches and beat Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the final, Ferran Torres striking in the 106th minute.

Age at World Cup win

1st

Ever to win Euro + WC this young

WC/Euro starts, 12 wins

Dribbles completed, most at WC

And then came the image. At full time, Yamal found Messi, 39 years old and beaten, and embraced him. A tearful old king and a teenage heir, in Barcelona’s number 10, at the end of a World Cup final. A former England goalkeeper watched it and said Yamal had simply “completed football.” It sounds like an exaggeration until you remember he was too young to legally work past 11pm during the Euro 2024 final two years earlier.

Hot Take
Yamal’s “quiet” World Cup is the most overrated criticism in football right now. He was carrying a hamstring, drawing double coverage every match, and Spain still went a perfect seven-for-seven. Judging him on his goal tally is like judging a chess player on how many pieces they captured. He warped every game he played. That is not a down tournament. That is a gravity well.

Chapter Three

The Numbers That End the “Just a Kid” Argument

Precocious is easy. Productive is the hard part. He is both.

Here is where Yamal separates from the long, sad history of teenagers who were going to be the next big thing. The production is already elite, not promising. In 2025-26 he scored 16 league goals and led all of La Liga in assists as Barcelona won the title. Across all competitions he posted 24 goals and 18 assists in 45 appearances, a direct hand in 41 goals in a single season, at eighteen and nineteen years old.

In February 2026 he scored the first hat-trick of his career against Villarreal and became the youngest player of the 21st century to record a La Liga hat-trick. He was named La Liga’s Most Valuable Player. He shared the Zarra Trophy as the league’s top Spanish scorer. Across his Barcelona career he has already reached 49 goals and 44 assists in 151 appearances, and the market has responded accordingly: his valuation now sits around 250 million dollars, level with the highest figure in world football.

Why the Profile Is Scary, Not Just Good

The scorer-creator combination

Most young attackers are one thing. A poacher, or a creator, or a dribbler. Yamal is all three at elite volume simultaneously, and that is the specific profile that ages into an all-time great rather than a very good player. He curls finishes from the right, he sets the table for his striker, and he leads tournaments in beating his man off the dribble. There is no obvious hole to attack, which at 19 is close to terrifying for the rest of the sport.

Two-Way Offensive CeilingGenerational · 96%

Very GoodAll-Time

The one thing he is still working on

By his own admission, raw goal output is not yet his obsession, and there is a running debate that he plays his best when he is not scoring and scores when he is not playing his best. It is the pickiest possible criticism of a teenager with 24 goals in a season, but it is the honest one: the day Yamal decides to be a 30-goal machine on top of everything else, the ceiling conversation is over.

If you have felt the pull to plant a flag on this era before the rest of the world fully catches up, this is the moment collectors tend to act. The hand-drawn Lamine Yamal collection turns that instinct into something you can actually wear.

The Debate

Does He Win the 2026 Ballon d’Or, Or Not?

This is the fault line. Here is the honest case on both sides.

Everything above is settled fact. This is not. The question dividing the sport right now is whether 2026 is finally Yamal’s year to be crowned the best player alive, and it is genuinely closer than the highlight reels suggest. We are going to give you both sides straight, because anyone selling you certainty here is selling something.

The Case FOR Yamal

Why he lifts it

He did the two things Ballon d’Or voters historically reward above all else: he won a World Cup and he won his domestic league, in the same cycle, as a driving force in both. Add elite personal numbers, a La Liga MVP, and the tournament-leading dribbling at the World Cup, and you have a candidacy that checks every traditional box. Winning would make him the first player under 21 ever to claim the award, a story voters may find irresistible.

Ballon d’Or LikelihoodFrontrunner · 60%

Long ShotLock

The Case AGAINST

Why it might slip

Voters who wanted a signature individual World Cup, a defining goal, a man-of-the-match final, did not quite get it, because his fitness blunted his output when the cameras were closest. Meanwhile the field is loaded. Harry Kane put up a monster goal season. Champions League standouts have real arguments. The award measures a season, and a couple of rivals arguably had louder ones, even if none matched Yamal’s trophy haul.

Room for an UpsetLive · 40%

No ChanceReal Threat

Our call

We lean Yamal, narrowly. The World Cup plus La Liga double is the single most vote-friendly combination in the game, and the “first teenager to win it” narrative is a thumb on the scale. But if it goes to Kane or a Champions League hero, do not call it a robbery. Both readings are defensible, which is exactly what makes this the most interesting Ballon d’Or race in years.

Chapter Five

The Ceiling Nobody Can Find

The scariest part for everyone else: this is the floor, not the peak.

Sit with the timeline one more time. Yamal turned 19 in July 2026. He is under contract at Barcelona until 2031. He has already won a World Cup, a Euros, and three league titles, and by any reasonable projection his best football is still four or five years away. The comparisons to Messi and Maradona, which used to be the reflexive thing you said about any shiny Barcelona teenager, have quietly hardened into sober analysis. Nobody rolls their eyes anymore.

There is a real durability question worth naming honestly: he has played an enormous number of high-intensity minutes at a young age, and the hamstring issue before the World Cup was a reminder that the body has limits even when the talent does not. Manage that, and he has a clear runway to the 2030 World Cup as the best player in the world, in his prime, chasing the one or two records that would put him past everyone. That is the stakes now. Not whether he is good. Whether he ends up the greatest.

The Bottom Line

Lamine Yamal has compressed a Hall of Fame career into his teenage years: the World Cup, the Euros, three league titles, and the goals and assists of a bona fide superstar, all before turning 20. The Ballon d’Or may or may not land in 2026, and reasonable people can argue it either way. But the bigger question has already been answered. The sport has a new center of gravity, and everything now orbits a 19-year-old from Mataro. The only thing left to settle is how high the ceiling goes, and football will spend the next decade finding out.

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Lamine Yamal: Your Questions, Answered

How old is Lamine Yamal and what has he won?

Yamal turned 19 in July 2026. He has already won the 2026 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2024, and three La Liga titles with Barcelona, along with individual honors including the Golden Boy award, the Kopa Trophy, and La Liga MVP. He is the youngest player ever to win both the European Championship and the World Cup.

Is Lamine Yamal going to win the 2026 Ballon d’Or?

He is the frontrunner and finished runner-up in 2025, so the momentum is real, but it is not a certainty. His World Cup and La Liga double is exactly the kind of resume voters reward, though rivals like Harry Kane had louder individual seasons. Winning would make him the first player under 21 to claim the award.

What were Lamine Yamal’s stats in the 2025-26 season?

Across all competitions he recorded 24 goals and 18 assists in 45 appearances, a direct contribution to 41 goals. In La Liga he scored 16 goals and led the league in assists, was named La Liga MVP, and shared the Zarra Trophy as the top Spanish scorer while helping Barcelona win the title.

Why is Lamine Yamal compared to Lionel Messi?

Both emerged from Barcelona’s La Masia academy as teenage prodigies, both wear the number 10, and there is a famous 2007 photo of a young Messi holding an infant Yamal. Beyond the symbolism, Yamal’s blend of dribbling, creativity, and scoring from the right wing draws direct stylistic comparison to Messi’s early career.

Statistics, records, and match details verified via ESPN, beIN Sports, FIFA, and Al Jazeera reporting as of August 2026. Ballon d’Or likelihood and ceiling assessments are the author’s editorial judgment, not a statistical model, and reflect the state of the race at the time of writing.

19Aug

2026

Brent Thompson / Sports / 0 comment

NFL Rookies Preseason Week 1

NFL Preseason Week 1: The Rookies Who Turned Heads

The wait is over. After six months without football, all 32 teams took the field for the first week of the 2026 preseason, and while most stars watched from the sideline in baseball caps, the games belonged to someone else entirely: the rookies. The 2026 draft class got its first taste of NFL action, and a handful of first-year players did more than just show up. They announced themselves. Here is what we learned about the most-watched rookies from an opening weekend that lived up to the hype.

Fernando Mendoza Looked the Part in Las Vegas

All eyes were on Allegiant Stadium for the debut of the number one overall pick, and Fernando Mendoza did not disappoint. The Raiders quarterback completed 10 of 16 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown with zero turnovers in his first professional action, taking over after veteran Kirk Cousins handled the opening drive. The highlight was a six-yard scoring strike to Jack Bech in the second quarter, the kind of decisive, accurate throw that made Mendoza the consensus top prospect in the class.

It was not flawless. Mendoza was pressured on nearly 39 percent of his dropbacks and struggled when the pocket collapsed, a reminder that even a polished rookie has NFL speed to adjust to. But the poise was evident, and Raiders head coach Klint Kubiak praised how his rookie handled a heavy game plan, noting that Mendoza executed the way he does in practice rather than freezing up when the lights came on. For a first look, it was exactly the kind of outing that keeps the excitement building in Las Vegas, where the Cousins-to-Mendoza bridge plan is officially underway.

Jeremiyah Love Was Electric Before an Early Exit

If Mendoza was steady, Jeremiyah Love was electric. The Cardinals running back and number three overall pick made his preseason debut against the Raiders after sitting out the Hall of Fame Game, and it took him only a quarter to show why Arizona spent premium capital on him. Love piled up 14 touches for roughly 72 total yards, but the box score undersells it. He made a pair of Raiders defenders miss on a third-down conversion, then hurdled clean over a defender on a draw play, the kind of highlight that goes viral before halftime.

The one sour note was an ankle tweak that ended his night early and is expected to keep him out of the next preseason game. Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur downplayed the severity, and the team is expected to have him ready for the regular-season opener. For a back drafted to be the centerpiece of a new-look Arizona offense, the flashes were more than enough to validate the pick, even if the durability question is worth monitoring.

Ty Simpson Was the Surprise of the Weekend

Not every standout was a top-five pick. The most polished rookie quarterback performance of the weekend arguably belonged to Ty Simpson, the Rams’ first-round selection at number 13, who completed 21 of 25 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns in a win over the Chiefs. Facing a live pass rush for the first time as a pro, Simpson settled in after a slow start and delivered a remarkably sharp outing, posting a 125.0 passer rating and showing the poise to operate on the move as Sean McVay tested him with rollouts and tight-window throws.

Simpson landed in an enviable situation, sitting behind veteran Matthew Stafford with no pressure to play before he is ready. But a debut like this one accelerates the timeline of the conversation, and he made a real case to climb the depth chart sooner rather than later. In a quarterback class that was thin at the top, Simpson’s performance was a reminder that draft position and pro readiness do not always move in lockstep.

Drew Allar Stole the Show in Pittsburgh

With Aaron Rodgers resting against his former team, the Steelers handed extended run to their young quarterbacks, and third-round rookie Drew Allar seized the moment. The former Penn State standout led Pittsburgh to three touchdowns in a 28-9 win over the Packers, including a 74-yard catch-and-run connection with fellow rookie Kaden Wetjen and a three-yard rushing score on a read-option keeper two plays later. For a Day 2 pick in a crowded room, it was the kind of debut that forces a coaching staff to take notice.

Allar’s night is a useful case study in why preseason reps matter so much for rookies outside the first round. A highly drafted quarterback gets time; a third-rounder has to make his own. Allar did exactly that, turning limited opportunity into the loudest rookie showing of Thursday’s slate and giving Steelers fans a genuine reason to pay attention to the quarterback room behind Rodgers.

The Ohio State and Two-Way Stories to Watch

Not every debut was a triumph, and that is part of the value of preseason football. Fourth overall pick Carnell Tate, the latest in Ohio State’s remarkable pipeline of first-round receivers, had a quiet night, failing to haul in any of his three targets against the 49ers while catching passes from a struggling Cam Ward. It was a forgettable line, but a single quiet preseason game means little for a receiver of Tate’s pedigree, and the Buckeye track record suggests patience is warranted.

The most fascinating rookie storyline remains Travis Hunter, the two-way star whose usage is unlike anyone else’s in football. Hunter continues to log snaps on both offense and defense, the experiment the Jaguars promised when they traded up for him, and how Jacksonville manages his workload will be one of the defining subplots of the season. For a player attempting something the modern NFL has essentially never seen sustained over a full year, every rep is a data point worth tracking.

The Quarterback Battles Took Shape

Preseason Week 1 is also where the summer’s position battles start to resolve, and a few came into sharper focus. In Cleveland, the Browns’ quarterback competition tilted toward veteran Deshaun Watson, who played a clean, conservative game while rookie-season signal-caller Shedeur Sanders struggled through the third quarter, finishing 6 of 11 for 79 yards with an interception. The rooms in Las Vegas and elsewhere will keep sorting themselves out, but the first live reps gave coaches real evidence to weigh rather than the controlled looks of practice.

That is ultimately what makes this weekend so valuable. The games do not count, the starters barely play, and the final scores are forgotten by Monday. But for the rookies trying to prove they belong, and for the fans dreaming on what a new favorite might become, preseason Week 1 is the first real glimpse of the future. Some of these first-year players will fade; others are the breakout stars of tomorrow. The fun is in watching it start to sort itself out.

The Bottom Line

The 2026 rookie class passed its first test with flying colors, led by Fernando Mendoza’s poised debut, Jeremiyah Love’s electric flashes, and a pair of surprise standouts in Ty Simpson and Drew Allar. There are cautionary notes too, from Love’s ankle to Tate’s quiet night, and a full slate of position battles still to be decided. But the overriding takeaway from preseason Week 1 is that this rookie class arrived ready to make noise, and the coming weeks will only raise the stakes as the regular season draws near.

28Jul

2026

Brent Thompson / Sports / 0 comment

NFL Position Battles 2026

2026 NFL Preview · Camp Battles

Six QB Jobs Are Genuinely Up for Grabs. We Called Every One, and Ranked Them by How Much They Matter.

Some of these battles decide a playoff run. Some decide a franchise’s next five years. We sorted them by stakes, then told you who wins each one and how sure we actually are.

Training camp is the one time of year when a starting job is truly open. Coaches say “best man wins” in June and mostly mean it, and for a few weeks in late July the depth chart is written in pencil.

This summer has an unusually loaded slate of them, and the quarterback ones carry the most weight, because nothing else on a roster moves the needle like the guy taking the snap. But not every battle matters equally. A coin-flip for a backup slot is not the same as a competition that decides whether a playoff-ready roster wastes another season.

So we did two things. We sorted the battles into three tiers by stakes, from season-defining down to ripple-effect. And for each one we gave you a pick and a confidence meter showing how sure we are. High stakes and a coin flip can live in the same battle, and that combination is exactly where the drama is.

Jump to a Battle

Go straight to the one you care about, then see if you agree with our call.

Murray vs. McCarthy Vikings · QB
Tua vs. Penix Falcons · QB
Sanders vs. Watson Browns · QB
Beck vs. Brissett Cardinals · QB
Jaguars WR1 Jaguars · WR
Stewart’s Leap Bengals · EDGE

Stakes · Season-Defining

These decide a playoff run

Both of these teams have the roster to win now. The only unanswered question is who plays quarterback, and the wrong answer wastes a season a contender can’t get back.

Kyler Murray vs. J.J. McCarthy

Minnesota Vikings · Starting QB

Why it mattersThe Vikings won nine games last year with a top-tier defense and a loaded skill group, and still missed the playoffs because of unstable quarterback play. This is a finished roster waiting on one position.

This is the biggest battle of the summer, and the setup is almost too good. Minnesota signed Murray, the No. 1 overall pick from 2019, to a one-year deal worth just $1.3 million because Arizona still owes him $36.8 million this season. A former Pro Bowl quarterback on a veteran-minimum flier is the definition of a no-risk swing.

Standing across from him is McCarthy, the 2024 first-round pick whose career has barely started. He missed his entire rookie season recovering from knee surgery, then lost most of last year to an ankle sprain, a concussion, and a broken hand, finishing only eight of ten starts. Two years in, the Vikings still don’t really know what they have.

Coach Kevin O’Connell has said publicly that both men have a real shot, and reporting suggests the competition could run all the way to the season opener. But there’s a number that tilts it: O’Connell’s record is far better when one quarterback plays a full season than when he’s forced to juggle. He wants a clear winner, and the veteran with the higher floor tends to win jobs that a contender needs settled fast. Vikings fans ready to back the veteran can find the hand-drawn Kyler Murray collection here.

Our PickKyler Murray · 62%

Coin flipLock

The case for McCarthy

The Vikings didn’t spend a first-round pick on McCarthy to bench him in year two, and O’Connell has spoken warmly about his spring. If Minnesota believes his ceiling is higher than Murray’s floor, the developmental logic and the sunk draft cost both point his way. He’s also spent two years in this system with these receivers. Our 62% is a lean, not a lock, precisely because this argument is real.

Tua Tagovailoa vs. Michael Penix Jr.

Atlanta Falcons · Starting QB

Why it mattersAtlanta has playmakers everywhere (Bijan Robinson, Drake London) and eight straight losing seasons. A new regime inherits both, and the quarterback answer shapes this year and whether they chase one next year.

The battle of the lefties, and it comes with an asterisk nobody can remove yet: health. Penix tore his left ACL last November, his third ACL surgery in eight years counting college. As of the spring he was doing 7-on-7 and individual work but had been held out of full 11-on-11 practice and contact.

That’s why Atlanta signed Tua, on the same bargain $1.3 million one-year structure the Vikings used for Murray. Tua is coming off the worst season of his career and his own troubling concussion history, but he was among the league’s best quarterbacks as recently as 2023, and he took the majority of the first-team reps during offseason work while Penix recovered.

Reps are the whole story here. You can’t win a job you’re not fully cleared to compete for, and even once Penix gets the green light, the coaching staff noted how hard it is to fairly evaluate two quarterbacks working on different schedules. The pick reflects availability more than talent. Atlanta fans can rep either lefty with the Tua Tagovailoa graphic tees or the Michael Penix Jr. design.

Our PickTua Tagovailoa · 71%

Coin flipLock

The case for Penix

Penix is the younger player with the higher ceiling and the arm talent Atlanta drafted in the top ten. If his knee checks out and he’s cleared early in camp, the Falcons have every incentive to find out what their recent first-rounder can do rather than commit to a stopgap. The whole thing hinges on a medical clearance date, which is why this is a lean and not a lock.

The $1.3 Million Pattern
Notice something: both the Vikings and Falcons landed a former high-pedigree starter for exactly $1.3 million on a one-year deal. That’s the veteran minimum, and it’s become the smartest move in football. A proven quarterback with something to prove, at no financial risk, is the ideal insurance policy against a young passer who isn’t ready. Two contenders ran the same play this offseason.

Stakes · Franchise Direction

These decide a rebuild’s path

Not playoff teams yet. These battles are about evaluation: figuring out which young player is part of the future and which was a detour.

Shedeur Sanders vs. Deshaun Watson

Cleveland Browns · Starting QB

Why it mattersCleveland needs to learn whether Sanders is a building block. Even competent play matters, because it lets the team fairly judge every young piece around him.

On the surface this looks like a strange competition, and under the surface it might be a motivational tactic. Sanders struggled badly as a rookie, but did it in poor circumstances and flashed real moments. Watson has more experience in new coach Todd Monken’s kind of system, but hasn’t played a full, healthy season since Cleveland acquired him.

Early in the offseason Watson seemed to hold a clear edge, then Sanders reportedly closed the gap. One prominent analyst floated the theory that handing Watson the early advantage was simply Monken’s way of lighting a fire under the rookie. For a team this early in a rebuild, the long-term answer almost has to be the younger player. And few rookies move merch like this one: the hand-drawn Shedeur Sanders collection is among the most popular in the shop.

Our PickShedeur Sanders · 58%

Coin flipLock

The case for Watson

Experience in the system is a genuine edge for a first-year head coach who wants competence while he evaluates the roster. If Monken values a known quantity early, Watson could open the season and hand off later. But betting on a full healthy Watson season has not paid off in years, which is why the lean is to the rookie.

Carson Beck vs. Jacoby Brissett

Arizona Cardinals · Starting QB

Why it mattersArizona has a rookie running back to build around and a rookie-ish quarterback question. The bridge veteran buys time; the timing of the handoff shapes the season.

This is the clearest of the QB battles, and the pick is the veteran, for now. Beck, a mid-round rookie, projects as Arizona’s quarterback of the future, but “future” is the operative word. He’s closer to pro-ready than most late picks, yet he isn’t ready to start in September.

Brissett is the definition of a steady bridge: last year he posted a 23-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio with a 94.1 rating and completed nearly 65% of his passes. With a rookie back to protect and a young roster to stabilize, a veteran who makes smart decisions is exactly what Arizona needs on opening day. Beck’s time comes later in the season.

Our PickJacoby Brissett (Week 1) · 80%

Coin flipLock

The case for Beck starting early

If Beck lights up camp and the preseason, a rebuilding team has little reason to delay the future. Rookie quarterbacks who look ready sometimes force the issue. But the smart baseline for a young roster is a veteran bridge, and Arizona’s staff has signaled patience.

Stakes · Ripple Effect

These quietly swing a unit

Not headline quarterback drama, but battles whose winners change what an entire offense or defense is capable of.

Brian Thomas Jr. vs. Jakobi Meyers vs. Parker Washington

Jacksonville Jaguars · WR1

Why it mattersA playoff-hopeful Jaguars offense still lacks a clear No. 1 target for Trevor Lawrence. Whoever emerges sets the ceiling for the whole passing game.

Jacksonville has a genuinely good receiver room and no obvious alpha, which is a strange problem to have. Thomas looked like a foundational star as a rookie, exploding for 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns, then cratered in a sophomore slump to 48 catches for 707 yards and two scores. The talent that produced the first season didn’t vanish, but the drop was real.

Meyers arrived at last year’s trade deadline and immediately built rapport with Lawrence; stretched over a full season his production projects to a borderline No. 1 line, though at age 30 his ceiling is defined. Washington quietly broke out for 847 yards. The likeliest outcome is that Thomas rebounds, because a talent like that rarely disappears at 23, but this is the rare three-way battle with no wrong answer. Whoever wins, they will be catching passes from Trevor Lawrence, and Duval fans can also back the bounce-back with the Brian Thomas Jr. tee collection.

Our PickBrian Thomas Jr. bounces back · 64%

Coin flipLock

The case for Meyers as the steady WR1

If Thomas’s slump was about more than variance, Meyers is the safer bet: reliable, already in sync with Lawrence, and a proven target-earner. The floor is high even if the ceiling isn’t. That’s why the confidence here is a moderate lean, not a strong one; Thomas has the higher upside, Meyers the surer floor.

Shemar Stewart: Can He Make the Leap?

Cincinnati Bengals · EDGE

Why it mattersCincinnati’s defense was among the league’s worst. It doesn’t need to be elite, just mediocre, and a Year 2 jump from last year’s first-rounder is the cheapest way to get there.

Not a head-to-head battle so much as a battle with expectation. Stewart, last year’s first-round edge, was always a developmental project, and he enters his first full NFL offseason with the Bengals having invested heavily around him at defensive line, edge, and safety.

The bar is refreshingly low and that’s the point: Cincinnati’s offense is good enough that the defense only needs to climb from terrible to ordinary for the team to contend. A second-year leap from a toolsy first-rounder is exactly the kind of internal improvement that gets a unit to “mediocre,” and mediocre would be plenty.

Our PickReal Year-2 jump · 55%

Coin flipLock

Why we’re not more sure

“Developmental first-rounder” is a label that breaks both ways. Some make the leap in year two; some take three seasons or never arrive. The tools are real and the surrounding investment helps, but projecting a specific jump on a specific timeline is genuinely uncertain. Hence the coin-flip-adjacent read.

The Bottom Line

If you only track two, make them Minnesota and Atlanta, because those are the ones where a finished roster is holding its breath over one position. Our board leans veteran across the board this summer: Murray, Tua, and Brissett all get the early nod, largely because contending and rebuilding teams alike tend to value a settled, higher-floor option when the season opens. The rookies and recent picks get their turns, most of them later rather than sooner.

But every one of these is written in pencil until the pads come on. Camps open across the league through late July, and the depth chart starts getting written in ink. Pick your battle. Then tell us where we got it wrong.

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2026 NFL QB Battles: Your Questions, Answered

Who will start at quarterback for the Vikings in 2026?

The Vikings are holding an open competition between veteran Kyler Murray and 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy, and coach Kevin O’Connell has said it could run into the preseason. Murray, signed to a one-year deal, is widely viewed as the early favorite because of his experience and higher floor, though the job is not settled.

Is Michael Penix Jr. healthy for Falcons training camp?

Penix is recovering from ACL surgery on his left knee last November. During spring work he participated in 7-on-7 and individual drills but was held out of full 11-on-11 practice and contact. Because he took most first-team reps during that stretch, Tua Tagovailoa entered camp with an early edge for the Week 1 start.

Why did the Vikings and Falcons both sign quarterbacks for $1.3 million?

Both Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa signed one-year deals at the veteran minimum of roughly $1.3 million. In each case the player’s former team still owed most of his prior salary, allowing a proven starter to be added at almost no cap cost as insurance against a young quarterback.

When does NFL training camp start in 2026?

Camps opened in waves in late July 2026. Rookies for some teams reported in mid-July, the Cardinals and Panthers reported July 22 ahead of the Hall of Fame Game, and the rest of the league was in camp with full rosters by July 28.

See the full range of hand-drawn athletic apparel at Planet Euphoria.

Competition status, statistics, and camp reporting verified via ESPN, NFL.com, CBS Sports, and official team sources as of late July 2026. Injury and clearance situations were still developing at publication. Predicted winners and confidence figures are the author’s editorial judgment, not a statistical model.

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13Jul

2026

Brent Thompson / Sports / 0 comment

Home Run Derby Predictions 2026: We Ranked All 8 Sluggers

2026 T-Mobile Home Run Derby · Citizens Bank Park

Home Run Derby Predictions 2026: We Ranked All 8 Sluggers

Eight guys. Twenty swings. One new format that quietly changes everything. Here’s our full countdown — starting with the man we think goes home first.

Monday night, eight of the best power hitters alive walk into Citizens Bank Park and start launching baseballs into the Philadelphia sky. The T-Mobile Home Run Derby goes at 8 p.m. ET on Netflix, and for once, the smart-money analysis isn’t as simple as “who hits the ball hardest.”

Because this year, the rules changed. And almost nobody is talking about what that actually means.

The Rule Change Nobody’s Discussing
MLB scrapped the timer. The 2026 Derby is swing-based: 20 swings in Round 1, then 15 swings each in Round 2 and the final. Every cut counts — whether it leaves the yard or not. Homer on your last swing and you keep going until you don’t.

Translation: rhythm hitters are in trouble. The old timed format rewarded guys who could find a groove and machine-gun 30 swings in three minutes. This one punishes every wasted hack. Efficiency beats raw power now — and that reshuffles the entire field.

Add in one more wrinkle: Citizens Bank Park is a left-handed hitter’s playground. That’s not a hot take, that’s just the park. Keep it in mind as you scroll — because it’s about to matter a lot.

We’re counting down from 8th to 1st. Let’s start at the bottom.

Willson Contreras

Boston Red Sox · 1B

Someone has to go home first, and the math here is brutal — not because Contreras can’t hit, but because of where he hits.

He’s a right-handed pull hitter, and this season, 19 of his 20 home runs have gone to left field. The lone exception was a 411-foot shot to center. Now put him in a ballpark famous for rewarding lefties. He’s swinging into the deepest part of the field while Schwarber and Harper get to aim at a phone booth.

Then stack the new format on top. Contreras is 33 — and for context, the oldest player to ever win this thing is Dave Parker, at 34, back in 1985. A 20-swing cap gives a veteran zero margin to warm up. He’s a genuinely great hitter having a career year. He’s just the wrong hitter, in the wrong park, in the wrong format.

Verdict: Wrong-handed in a lefty park. First one out.

Jordan Walker

St. Louis Cardinals · OF

This one hurts, because Walker might have the single highest ceiling in the field. He’s 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, and his Statcast page is a fire alarm: 100th percentile bat speed. 98th percentile exit velocity. 93rd percentile hard-hit rate. When he connects, it is not a fair fight.

That phrase — when he connects — is the whole problem.

Walker sits in the 17th percentile in whiff rate. In a timed Derby, that’s survivable; you just swing again. In a 20-swing Derby, every miss is a bullet you don’t get back. He’s the definition of boom-or-bust, and the new format sharpened the bust end of that considerably. If he gets hot, he could win the entire thing. We just don’t think he will.

Verdict: Best raw tools here. Worst format fit.

Ben Rice

New York Yankees · 1B/DH

The best story in the Derby, and we’re rooting for it.

Rice is a 12th-round pick and barely-ranked prospect who has become the centerpiece of the Yankees lineup in his third season — top-five in baseball in home runs and slugging. And here’s the part that’ll get you: his dad Dan, who pitched at Brown in the 1980s, is coming out of retirement to throw to him. If that doesn’t move you a little, check your pulse.

So why sixth? Derby pitching is its own dark art — the rhythm, the location, the tempo. A career year and an emotional edge are real, but the guys ranked above him have park advantages Rice simply doesn’t. A win would make him the fifth Yankee to take the crown, and the first since Aaron Judge in 2017. We’d love it. We just don’t see it.

Verdict: Best story, tough draw. Dad throwing is worth the watch alone.

Jac Caglianone

Kansas City Royals · 1B/OF

A first-round pick just two years ago, and in his second season the light has come on. June was the announcement: nine home runs while slashing .309/.387/.649, including a five-game stretch where he launched six.

He’s the sixth Royal to swing in a Derby, following Bo Jackson, Danny Tartabull, Mike Moustakas, Salvador Perez, and Bobby Witt Jr. That’s a real lineage, and Caglianone has the kind of easy, natural power that plays anywhere.

He’s young, he’s ascending, and honestly he’s the most likely guy in this field to blow our rankings up. But experience matters in a swing-capped Derby, and he’s got the least of it. Fifth is a compliment — it means we think he’s a threat, not a tourist. The fans who’ve watched this breakout happen in real time already know what they’ve got, and a hand-drawn Caglianone design is the kind of thing you own before everyone else catches up.

Verdict: The dark horse. Most likely to embarrass this list.

Munetaka Murakami

Chicago White Sox · 3B

The last man to join the field, and the one we’d least like to face.

Murakami arrived from Japan with an elite-power reputation and immediately proved it — homered in each of his first three games, then piled up 20 before a hamstring strain cost him 35 games on the IL. Here’s the stat that matters: at the moment he got hurt, only Kyle Schwarber had more home runs than him. Read that again.

He’s back healthy, and his batted-ball profile is genuinely absurd: 98th percentile or better in barrel rate, average exit velocity, and hard-hit rate. He does not hit warning-track flyouts. He hits the ball flush, and that is exactly the skill a 20-swing format rewards.

He’s chasing history twice over — first rookie to win since Pete Alonso in 2019, and only the second White Sox player ever, joining Frank Thomas in 1995. The health question is the only thing keeping him out of our top three. If the hamstring holds, look out. Fans who want to rep the rookie before the rest of the country learns his name should look at the full Murakami collection — this is the “before everyone else knew” window.

Verdict: Barrel-rate monster. Perfect format fit. Health is the only asterisk.

Junior Caminero

Tampa Bay Rays · 3B

The first man to commit to this Derby, and he did it while in the middle of one of the loudest heaters of the season: 11 home runs in 12 games in June. Not a hot week. A hot month, at a pace that makes pitchers reconsider their careers.

Caminero is the youth-movement pick that actually has the résumé to back it up. He beat out a crowded American League third-base field to earn an All-Star start, and he’s arrived as a legitimate middle-of-the-order force in a lineup that needed one.

Why not higher? Two Phillies stand between him and the trophy, and they get to swing in their own backyard. That’s a hell of a headwind. But if the hometown magic fizzles, Caminero is the guy standing there ready to take it — and a hand-drawn Caminero graphic tee is how Rays fans call it early.

Verdict: Hottest bat in the field. Wrong zip code.

Bryce Harper

Philadelphia Phillies · 1B

Let’s just say the quiet part out loud: are you really going to doubt Bryce Harper, in his own ballpark, in a Home Run Derby?

The man already did this. 2018, Nationals Park, his home field — he won the whole thing in front of his own crowd. He knows exactly what this moment feels like, and he has never in his life been accused of shrinking in it. He’s a nine-time All-Star, he’s here as the Commissioner’s Legend Pick, and he’s rebuilt his power stroke in 2026, already closing in on last season’s 27 homers with his slugging back over .500.

And if Harper gets hot on Monday night? The Bank is going to come apart at the seams. There is no crowd in America that will get louder, faster.

So why second? He’s 33, and his underlying power metrics sit a tick behind the young monsters in this field. That’s not an insult — it’s a scouting report. Reality says the swing-capped format favors the guy with the loudest contact. Sentiment says never bet against Harper at home. We’re splitting the difference, and we’d be thrilled to be wrong.

If the Bank does erupt, the fans who were there for it will want something better than a rack tee. The hand-drawn Bryce Harper designs exist for exactly that kind of night.

Verdict: Won a Derby at home before. Please prove us wrong.

Kyle Schwarber

Philadelphia Phillies · DH — Our Pick To Win

You knew. Somewhere around the third entry, you knew.

Here’s the thing about picking Schwarber: it doesn’t require any clever analysis. It requires being able to read. His 32 home runs lead all of baseball. He hit 56 last year. He is a left-handed hitter, in a left-handed hitter’s ballpark, which happens to be his own ballpark, in front of the loudest fans in the sport.

And then there’s the résumé of the moment. This is a man who, in last year’s All-Star Game, stepped into the first-ever swing-off with the game on the line and went deep on all three of his swings to win it — taking home MVP honors. He does not blink. Big lights make him bigger.

This is his third Derby. He made the finals in 2018 before losing to a guy named Bryce Harper — who is now, delightfully, his teammate and the man standing between him and the crown again. If those two meet in the final on Monday, the roof comes off. A Schwarber win would make him just the fourth player to take a Derby in his home ballpark, joining Ryne Sandberg (1990) and Todd Frazier (2015).

The one thing that scares us: he’s been dealing with lower-back tightness that had him in and out of the lineup a couple weeks back. Max-effort Derby swings are precisely the wrong medicine for a cranky back. If Schwarber goes out early, that’s why.

But we’re not betting against him. League-leading power, perfect park, perfect handedness, home crowd, and a proven big-moment gene. The hand-drawn Schwarber collection is where Philly fans go when they want to wear the moment instead of just watching it — and Monday night has the makings of one.

Verdict: League HR leader. Lefty park. Home crowd. Ice in his veins. Our champion.

Rep Your Slugger — Hand-Drawn Player Designs

Kyle Schwarber

Bryce Harper

Junior Caminero

Munetaka Murakami

Jac Caglianone

Explore more hand-drawn Derby designs →

The Bottom Line

Our board: Schwarber over Harper in the final, with Caminero and Murakami the two most likely to wreck the party. Contreras is fighting his handedness, Walker is fighting his whiff rate, and Rice is fighting the schedule — though we’d genuinely love to be wrong about the kid whose dad is throwing to him.

The new swing-based format is the quiet variable everyone’s going to be talking about by 10 p.m. Twenty swings is not a lot of rope. The guys who barrel everything survive; the guys who need a rhythm go home early.

Pick your slugger. Argue with ours. And enjoy the best night of the baseball calendar.

Home Run Derby Questions, Answered

Who is competing in the 2026 Home Run Derby?

The eight-man field is Kyle Schwarber (Phillies), Bryce Harper (Phillies), Junior Caminero (Rays), Ben Rice (Yankees), Jac Caglianone (Royals), Jordan Walker (Cardinals), Willson Contreras (Red Sox), and Munetaka Murakami (White Sox).

What is the new 2026 Home Run Derby format?

MLB replaced the timer with a swing-based format. Hitters get 20 swings in Round 1 and 15 swings each in Round 2 and the final. Every swing counts whether or not it’s a home run — though if a player homers on his final swing, he keeps hitting until he doesn’t.

When and where is the 2026 Home Run Derby, and how do I watch?

Monday, July 13, 2026, at 8 p.m. ET from Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, broadcast exclusively on Netflix.

Who is favored to win the 2026 Home Run Derby?

Kyle Schwarber is the logical favorite. He leads MLB with 32 home runs, he’s a left-handed hitter in a park that favors lefties, and he’s swinging in his home ballpark in front of Phillies fans.

Has anyone ever won the Home Run Derby in their home ballpark?

Yes, but rarely — only three times since 1985. Ryne Sandberg did it at Wrigley Field in 1990, Todd Frazier at Great American Ball Park in 2015, and Bryce Harper at Nationals Park in 2018. A Schwarber or Harper win Monday would make it four.

See the full range of hand-drawn athletic apparel at Planet Euphoria.

Field, format, and statistics verified via MLB.com, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated reporting as of July 11, 2026. Predicted finishing order is our own opinion. Stats are current through July 9.

04Sep

2024

Brent Thompson / Uncategorized / 0 comment

Clifton Construction: Your Trusted Deck Contractor in Albany, NY

If you’re looking for a reliable “deck contractor near me” in Albany, NY, Clifton Construction is your go-to choice. Specializing in deck building and outdoor renovations, Clifton Construction combines quality craftsmanship with a variety of decking materials to create beautiful and functional outdoor spaces.

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Investing in a well-constructed deck can significantly enhance your home’s value. A beautiful outdoor space not only provides a perfect setting for relaxation and entertainment but also attracts potential buyers. Features such as outdoor kitchens, fire pits, and custom lighting can elevate your deck’s appeal, making it a standout feature of your property.

For homeowners in Albany, NY, looking to enhance their outdoor living space, Clifton Construction is the premier deck contractor to consider. With their expertise, quality materials, and commitment to customer satisfaction, they can help you create the perfect deck that meets your needs and exceeds your expectations. Reach out to Clifton Construction today to start your deck project and transform your outdoor area into a beautiful oasis.

Citations:
[1] https://cliftondevelopmentgroup.com
[2] https://www.procore.com/network/p/clifton-development-group-albany
[3] https://albanypavingcontractors.com
[4] https://www.cliftonpark.com/home-improvement/decks/