Biggest Quarterback Training Camp Battles For 2026 Fantasy Football

There’s nothing quite like a quarterback competition in football. This isn’t like the other positions where you can just rotate guys in and out and spread the ball around. Your starting QB is expected to not only play every snap but to be a leader of the organization. So, given the nature of the role, these QB battles have a massive impact in fantasy football. The losers of those QB battles can sometimes be a flat-out zero in the scoring column and drift often into obscurity. The winner could score a $100 million contract - and win YOU millions in Best Ball on sites like FFPC.

So, right now, we have to be cautious in our fantasy football rankings. Because some of these battles are only just now beginning. As our NFL 2026 Offseason Schedule Tracker shows, OTAs have just started for most teams, and NFL training camp schedules have yet to be announced (we’ll update our article as soon as they are). Right now, our focus is on identifying where those battles are taking place and assessing why they might matter for fantasy football. 

Biggest QB Camp Battles For Fantasy Football

The winners and losers will obviously have an immediate impact on the weapons, and the QB values themselves for seasonal fantasy football. In our 2026 Fantasy Alarm Best Ball Cheat Sheet, with early best ball drafts already underway, we are taking our best guesses with the info at hand. But we have to be ready to pivot as the information comes to light. And these battles could have an even longer-lasting impact on our Dynasty Fantasy Football Rankings. Some veteran QBs are on their last chance, while many of these younger guys might never get a chance at all if they can’t carve out some real estate now. So let’s dive into the top fantasy football QB battles going into 2026 training camp!

Minnesota Vikings QB Training Camp Battle

Let’s say you were to take all 32 teams and group the wide receivers and tight ends together for each one. Then you were to rank them from best to worst for fantasy football purposes. How far would you get before you said the Minnesota Vikings? With Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Jauan Jennings, and T.J. Hockenson, I can’t imagine any objective ranker would make it too far past the top five. 

The Vikings had hoped that NCAA champion JJ McCarthy would take to the NFL quickly, but a slow start, partially hindered by injury, has them adding competition to the room. Kyler Murray was released by the Arizona Cardinals after seven years without much winning, so he’ll hope to reinvigorate his career with a steadier franchise. It will be a true QB competition as neither the incumbent nor the veteran is being handed the job. And the winner will have a meaningful impact on fantasy football. 

Why This Matters for Fantasy Football

Not only does this battle matter for the success of the weapons, but these two quarterbacks are not created equal when it comes to fantasy football upside. Say what you will about Kyler Murray as a “winner”, he’s mathematically the QB8 all-time in fantasy points per game. And that’s largely due to his rushing ability. That makes the potential of him winning this job a little more interesting for the fantasy football world, though he’s only on a one-year deal, so that wouldn’t be the end of the road for JJ McCarthy long term. Vikings OTAs are already underway, so make sure to check back in regularly to our NFL Offseason Practice Tracker, where we will continue to update the key dates for training camp, joint practices, etc., as those are announced. This is a battle worth staying on top of. 

Atlanta Falcons QB Training Camp Battle

The Atlanta Falcons understand the value of the quarterback position in the NFL. That’s why they spent the money on Kirk Cousins and the draft capital on Michael Penix, but that didn’t quite give them their final answer, as they’ve since moved on from Kirk Cousins. With questions about Penix and him coming back from an ACL injury, the Falcons need to make sure they leave no stone unturned.

And, in this case, the perfect addition to their QB room fell in their lap. Because Tua Tagovailoa was released by the Dolphins and offset language in his contract is largely covering his costs, the Falcons can pay him the veteran minimum. And since both Tua and Michael Penix are left-handed, they don’t need to make major changes to the offense based on who wins the competition. With Penix still not 100% going into OTAs, it’s hard to find many flaws with the logic of kicking the tires on Tua.

Why This Matters for Fantasy Football

According to the most recent reports, Michael Penix is still not cleared for full team activities. That gives Tagovailoa the head start here to work with last year’s fantasy RB2 overall in Bijan Robinson, the TE2 in Kyle Pitts, and Drake London, who was nicked up for part of the year but was WR7 in points per game. Not only is the starting QB crucial for those weapons, but the winner of this battle is potentially going to be a solid asset given their depressed value across all formats. Check our Dynasty Fantasy Football Rankings to see if you think it’s worth investing in one. In formats like superflex leagues where QBs are so valuable, it might even make sense to grab both and corner the market given that Atlanta offense. 

Cleveland Browns QB Training Camp Battle

Even the most casual of football fans are aware of the Deshaun Watson saga. They took a MASSIVE risk by trading for Watson and giving him a gigantic, fully guaranteed contract. Since then, he’s played poorly through a shoulder injury before tearing his Achilles. And then he tore it again. The acquisition of Deshaun Watson has been one of the worst PR nightmares in NFL history.

Since it’s already a circus, they figured they might as well take a shot on Shedeur Sanders, who brings his own media attention as the son of NFL legend and NCAA coach Deion “PrimeTime” Sanders. Sanders proved last year that he was the best of a bad QB room, so he managed to finish out the season as the starter despite poor numbers. Now that Watson is healthy in the last year of his deal, the two will square off to start for this Cleveland Browns team.

Why This Matters for Fantasy Football

The Browns have continued to build the rest of this team with hopes that the QB situation can be solved. In the last two drafts, they have added Quinshon Judkins, Harold Fannin, KC Concepcion, and Denzel Boston to go with veteran Jerry Jeudy. That’s a high-upside group of options. People don’t want to hear it, but even with the bad Cleveland games factored in, Deshaun Watson is still the QB4 all-time in fantasy points per game. That’s how good he was in Houston. Both Watson and Sanders often go undrafted in best ball, and the winner of the competition would likely blow that ADP out of the water. And we are accounting for that on our 2026 Best Ball Cheat Sheet.

Las Vegas Raiders QB Training Camp Battle

The Raiders decided to bring in new faces this year for their QB competition. They first signed veteran Kirk Cousins, who was released by the Falcons. Then they drafted Fernando Mendoza with the first pick of the NFL Draft. Incumbent Aiden O’Connell is still with the team as well, and despite him impressing in early practices, the real battle is expected to be between Cousins and Mendoza. Maybe O’Connell could find himself a new home via trade.

The general consensus is that Kirk Cousins is expected to start - and could even start the entire year. But, per beat writer James Palmer, Mendoza is already impressing folks around the clubhouse and in early team activities. The plan is obviously for him to be the franchise quarterback, and if the Raiders aren’t winning games with Cousins, the pressure to put him in there will continue to grow.  

Why This Matters for Fantasy Football

One of the curveballs here is that the Raiders have a fairly late bye week in Week 13. It’s typical for a team to make a QB change with the extra week of preparation, but if that’s when the Raiders do make the switch, it could be a nightmare for best ball. There are no waivers in that format, and the final weeks are when all the big prizes are decided. So Kirk Cousins could go away at the worst time, but your Mendoza teams might not make it far enough to matter. So, though we do like Fernando Mendoza in our 2026 Dynasty Rookie Rankings, the news coming out of Raiders camp over the summer here is going to be crucial to our decisions to draft him in seasonal formats. We need to know he’s actually going to play.

Arizona Cardinals QB Training Camp Battle

As we’ve already discussed in the article, the Kyler Murray era is over in Arizona. But there isn’t an obvious solution moving forward. In fact, it’s one of the more complex quarterback rooms. Last year’s season-ending starter, Jacoby Brissett, would presumably have the leg up - if he were with the team. But the QB, who went 1-11 last year, has not reported to OTAs as he holds out for more money. 

That leaves journeyman Gardner Minshew as the current veteran QB1 competing with third-round rookie Carson Beck and practice-squad QB Kedon Slovis. To add even more drama, there is a contingent of Arizona Cardinals supporters hoping that they might consider taking a stab on embroiled prospect Brendan Sorsby in the NFL Supplemental Draft. After some gambling issues at the NCAA level, it’s unclear if he’ll be cleared to play college football again. The supplemental draft date is set for June 22, so he has until then to declare for that if he’s coming to the big leagues. 

Why This Matters for Fantasy Football

This is yet another team that is completely loaded with weapons but does not have the QB position locked down. Trey McBride is widely considered the top tight end in the league. They just drafted running back Jeremiyah Love at three overall. Marvin Harrison Jr has superstar potential, while Michael Wilson has developed into a rock-solid receiver himself, delivering a 1,000-yard season last year with injuries to Harrison Jr. The Brissett contract issue is the first shoe to drop before we can fully assess this competition, so we’ll be keeping a close eye on the Fantasy Alarm NFL News Feed for a resolution on that.