Three weeks into the 2026 NFL season, the fantasy football tiers are starting to be clearer and clearer. Some players are meant to be starters for the entire season; some seem to be matchup-dependent, while others are just clear bench candidates at this point. However, there are a few players in Week 3 who had bad performances that should not be indicative of how they will perform in the future. Let's look at these players.
Chase Brown, Cincinnati Bengals
One of the top running backs heading into the 2026 season, Brown was projected to be a major beneficiary of the Bengals' revamped offense. However, in Week 3, Brown stumbled big time. In a game where the Bengals scored 27 points, Brown had just 8.9 fantasy points in PPR leagues. He recorded two catches and 69 total scrimmage yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Still, this game isn't exactly the end of the world for fantasy managers who invested a pretty penny in Brown in their drafts. Brown's usage rate is still pretty high (appearing in 71% of Cincinnati's offensive snaps and a 48% Util%, according to FantasyPros), and he still got 13 carries in their loss. Samaje Perine, the Bengals' RB2, is used mostly as a pass-blocking back. He should have easier matchups coming this season with Cincinnati's third-place schedule.
Bucky Irving, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After two strong outings to start the season, Bucky Irving recorded his first single-digit performance in Week 3. The Buccaneers running back had just 7.8 fantasy points last week after a 58-yard, two-catch performance against the Minnesota Vikings. What's even more concerning was Irving's absence through most of the final quarter: despite being on the sidelines, Irving wasn't used much in the fourth quarter by Todd Bowles.
Just like Brown, though, the metrics point to Irving's Week 3 slump being a blip on the radar. He has a similar usage profile to the Bengals running back (64% Snap% and 45% Util%), and he's proven to be productive more often than not. Baker Mayfield's injury will likely mean more touches for Irving on the ground as well. As a final note, Irving's absence doesn't seem to be related to injuries, which can be taken as a good sign.
Malik Nabers, New York Giants
Wide receivers in fantasy are always reliant on their quarterback's performance. So when Jaxson Dart went down with a season-ending knee injury, Malik Nabers fantasy managers were in some distress. Jameis Winston could get Nabers the ball a lot… or he could also be a shell of himself and throw it to the other team. Week 3 saw the worst-case scenario for Nabers, securing five catches for just 26 yards en route to a 7.6 FPTS this week.
Article Continues BelowStill, Nabers was targeted heavily by Winston in the game. With the veteran quarterback staying as the QB1 despite the JJ McCarthy trade, one can still trust Nabers as a low-end WR2 option. A matchup against the Arizona Cardinals (2nd in fantasy points allowed to wide receivers) should get the star back on track next week.
Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
Kincaid was one of the pleasant surprises from the tight end group this season in fantasy. In the first two weeks of the season, Kincaid recorded 44.5 fantasy points. It seemed like the Bills tight end recovered his spot as one of the more underrated TEs in the league. However, Kincaid put up a big fat goose egg in Week 3, getting just 1.8 fantasy points after recording two catches for 28 yards and a fumble.
The fumble was just the icing on top of a rotten cake for Kincaid, but the Bills as a whole struggled against the Chargers in Week 3. One can chalk up this performance to a team-wide bug instead of a harbinger of things to come.
Tetairoa McMillan, Carolina Panthers
One of the players who have benefited from Bryce Young's early-season surge was McMillan. The reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year recorded double-digit fantasy points in his first two games, including a 15.1 FPTS performance in Week 2 despite not recording a single touchdown. However, the Panthers hit a brick wall in Week 3, and McMillan was part of the car crash. He recorded just 3.7 fantasy points against the Cleveland BRowns.
That being said, there's reason to believe that McMillan and the Panthers will bounce back in the coming weeks. Their next game is against the Detroit Lions, a team that's given up a ton of yardage to wide receivers through the first three weeks of the season.