TE · DAL · GWTTKB

Jake Ferguson — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 11.06 points per game in 2025, an ADP of 112.7, usage worth 10.9.

27 years old · 4 seasons of experience · 2022 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.
ADP 112.7
Consensus across 4 books, standard deviation 10, 24.3 picks between cheapest and priciest. Cheapest on underdog, priciest on sleeper.
SLEEPER99.8
ESPN112.7
YAHOO114.1
UNDERDOG133.1
CBS124.1
FFA111

Draft-room facts

Goes aroundRound 10, pick 5 in a 12-team draft
Positional rankTE12
Bye week14
ADP standard deviation10 picks

What we project for 2026

Our board has him at 147.5 points, 9.7 per game — 67 catches, 535 yards, 4.5 TDs. That is TE3, 111 overall.

The range runs from a floor of 8.1 points per game to a ceiling of 11.9, with the median at 9.7. Boom rate 23%, bust rate 17%. The spread is the actual bet, not the middle number.

He goes at 112.7 on consensus and our board has him 111. Those agree, so there is no market disagreement to exploit. The question is whether you want the profile, not whether it is mispriced.

Our written view

A fine late-TE target if you punted the position - better than reaching for a mid-round TE. Fits the 'TE early or late' plan; consider double-dipping late.

buy · low conviction · 2026-06-14

The offense he plays in, 2026

Dallas Cowboys returns 6 of 6 continuity slots — the whole offense is intact. Dak Prescott at quarterback, Brian Schottenheimer as head coach, Klayton Adams calling it. The offense projects to 35.8 pass attempts a game at high confidence and 27.1 rushes.

In: Sam Howell (qb2), Marquez Valdes-Scantling (wr5), Anthony Smith (wr7).

His own projected target share for 2026 is 12.9%, with a bear case of 12% and a bull case of 13.7% and a full range of 11% to 14.3%. That comes from 25 historical comparables, not from a depth chart.

The projected target split across the offense:

CeeDee Lamb22.7%
George Pickens21.4%
Jake Ferguson 12.9%
Ryan Flournoy8.8%
Javonte Williams8.2%
Luke Schoonmaker6.5%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

What the offense looks like: Cowboys offense remains essentially the same in 2026 but will be paired with a significantly more competitive defense. This is very important because there were multiple games last year where Cowboys had to pull starters in the 4th quarter because they were getting blown out. This is a high powered offense that can sustain 2 WR1s in fantasy. The real question remains if George Pickens is going to land an extension in Dallas. There is no TRUE line of sight into this yet. Jerry Jones says he wants him to be a Cowboy for the long term, but we can't trust Jerry. If someone paid enough George is gone. Ceedee is not expected to be a top 5 WR with Pickens playing at his 2025 levels, but can absolutely be a top 10 PPR fantasy WR. Ceedee is an elite WR. Cowboys also lock down Javonte Williams on 3 year exention.

Key additions: George Pickens was franchised tagged & will play 2026 season in Dallas (barring trade or hold out).

Key departures: WR Jalen Tolbert signed with Miami Dolphins (minor)

Notes: Dallas has added significantly on defense this offseason and should be VERY competitive. Multiple games last year caused starters to be benched due to blow outs. Dak remains a highly productive aging QB with a well balanced pass and rush offense. Javonte Williams landed massive 3 year extension with Cowboys & George Pickens has been franchised tagged with no current plans to land long term extension. Ceedee Lamb looks to get back on track as a top 5 WR following a rough 2025. Pickens and Ceedee should both be viewed as Dynasty WR1s. Jake Ferguson is expected to also have a great 2026 season. We want to own as many pieces of this offense as we can FOR THE RIGHT PRICE.

How the volume number was reached: Same QB Dak Prescott returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (36.7 att/g); Regressed 30% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 35.7 att/g.

How that share projection was built

25 historical comps for TEs age ~25, prior share 16.9%, same team, OC continuity. Distribution: median 16.1%, p25-p75 [13.2%, 18.6%], tails [10.4%, 20.4%]. Closest comps: Tyler Higbee 2022→2023 (LA: 18.1%→13.2%); Cade Otton 2024→2025 (TB: 15.6%→17.4%); Evan Engram 2022→2023 (JAX: 17.2%→23.5%). Adjustment: flat from opportunity_breakout (volume must hold)

self-anchored 58% to own 16.9% role (3yr), 42% to comp median 16.1%

The named comps are the closest historical matches and the arrow is what their share actually did the following season. That is the working, not a summary of it — if you disagree with the projection, this is the part to argue with.

Offensive environment: DAL rates 25.7 against a league average of 23, 2.7 points above it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted pass defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season+1.4 · neutral
Weeks 1–6+3.5 · easier
Weeks 12–17-4 · harder
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)+2.3 · easier

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

What happened when he missed time

From the absence record rather than a depth chart — who actually gained when he was out.

SeasonGames missedMain beneficiaryTheir PPR gain
20243Luke Schoonmaker+8.4
Read the full Jake Ferguson study →

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved +30.2% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as post-spike. The base rate that applies: after a +30% spike, TEs crash the following year 47% of the time (hold 53%). That puts the measured risk of his dynasty value falling sharply over the next year at 47% — a probability drawn from comparable historical seasons, not a prediction, and not a statement about his 2026 scoring.

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 1.3 elite seasons and 2.3 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
Zach Ertz202410.474%-41.3%
Dalton Schultz20229.574%+6.9%
Zach Ertz202211.668%-54%
Dalton Schultz20231066%-17.2%
Pat Freiermuth20241065%-18.5%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 1 gained value, 4 lost it and 0 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

02,0004,0002023202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2022-03 to 2026-07. From 0 to 3,581, peaking at 3,965.

The player

Draft capital and athletic profile

Drafted2022, round 4, pick 129 by DAL
CollegeWisconsin
Age at draft23
Height6′5″
Weight250 lb
40-yard dash4.81s
Vertical31.5″
Broad jump118″
3-cone7.03s
Shuttle4.48s

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game8.5
Week-to-week variation0.7
Boom rate12.8%
Bust rate25.5%
Games missed per season1
Injury historyConcussion, Knee
Correlation between his posted line and his actual score-0.03

That correlation is how closely the books’ posted line tracked what he actually scored, week to week. A higher number means the market has him figured out and there is less to exploit; a lower one means his weeks are harder to price.

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · DAL · 17 games

His best game was Week 5 against NYJ — 23.9 PPR on 9 targets and a 32.1% target share, in a game that finished 37-22. His worst was Week 8 against DEN at 0, on 1 targets, final score 24-44. Across 17 games he cleared 20 points 3 times and came in under 8 points 6 times. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 10.5; in the 9 decided by more, 11.5. He scored more when the game was not close.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 10.9 points per game. He scored 11.06, 1.6% above it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1PHI20-247.35623018.2%77%
2NYG40-3716.891278023.1%73%
3CHI14-3121.2131482031.8%57%
4GB40-40177740118.4%78%
5NYJ37-2223.97949232.1%55%
6CAR27-3012.3333318.8%67%
7WAS44-2221.97729223.3%66%
8DEN24-44001002.9%59%
9ARI17-2785750019.4%90%
11LV33-1611.64516115.6%63%
12PHI24-2111.15660017.1%69%
13KC31-288.65636016.2%71%
14DET30-4410.85758014.9%80%
15MIN26-343.62416011.4%71%
16LAC17-344.93419012.5%69%
17WAS30-237.612615.6%29%
18NYG17-341.512508.7%60%

Production

Receptions82
Targets102
Receiving yards600
Carries1
Rushing yards1
Touchdowns8
Points per game11.06
Yards per target5.88
Catch rate80.39%
Yards per carry1

Role

Snap share66.71%
Target share16.47%
Air-yards share8.95%
WOPR0.309
RACR1.251

Efficiency

Average depth of target4.7
Yards after catch per reception3.7
Yards before catch per reception3.6
Total YAC307
Broken tackles6
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted113.2
Receiving EPA per game1.12
Rushing EPA per game-0.04

Scoring position

Red-zone targets24
Red-zone target share23.8%
End-zone target share22.2%
Expected receiving TDs7.14
Actual receiving TDs7
Receiving TD luck-0.14

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game8 of 13
Yards per target13 of 13
Target share13 of 13
Air-yards share13 of 13

Who else ate

The offense threw it 624 times. He took 16.8% of the targets. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

George Pickens22.57%
CeeDee Lamb19.28%
Jake Ferguson 16.8%
Ryan Flournoy9.23%
Javonte Williams8.4%
Kavontae Turpin6.26%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Dak Prescott1610011.665.9516.96%
Joe Milton121.52.58.7%

Blowouts against close games

6 of his 17 games were blowouts, 32.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 10.18 in those and 10.54 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2024 · DAL · 14 games

His best game was Week 3 against BAL — 15.5 PPR on 11 targets and a 22% target share, in a game that finished 25-28. His worst was Week 11 against HOU at 2.1, on 1 targets, final score 10-34. Across 14 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 8 times. In the 8 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 10.3; in the 6 decided by more, 3.7. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 10.9 points per game. He scored 7.46, 31.4% below it. The engine classified the season as very_unlucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 0 against 1.54 expected, a gap of -1.5.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1CLE33-174.53515016.1%62%
3BAL25-2815.561195022%66%
4NYG20-1511.97749026.9%73%
5PIT20-17136770017.1%75%
6DET9-474.1341109.3%67%
8SF24-308.36823021.6%84%
9ATL21-2714.171071020.8%82%
10PHI6-344.44524017.2%75%
11HOU10-342.1111101.9%8%
14CIN20-276.23632019.4%77%
15CAR30-144.32423014.3%60%
16TB26-24106940027.3%58%
17PHI7-412.83518017.2%68%
18WAS19-233.22412012.1%59%

Production

Receptions59
Targets86
Receiving yards494
Touchdowns0
Points per game7.46
Yards per target5.74
Catch rate68.6%

Role

Snap share65.29%
Target share17.37%
Air-yards share9.16%
WOPR0.326
RACR1.47

Efficiency

Average depth of target4.1
Yards after catch per reception5.2
Yards before catch per reception3.1
Total YAC309
Broken tackles6
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted83.2
Receiving EPA per game-0.91

Scoring position

Red-zone targets6
Red-zone target share8.7%
End-zone target share5.1%
Expected receiving TDs1.54
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-1.54

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game12 of 13
Yards per target12 of 13
Target share11 of 13
Air-yards share13 of 13

Who else ate

The offense threw it 635 times. He took 13.89% of the targets. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

CeeDee Lamb24.56%
Jake Ferguson 13.89%
Jalen Tolbert12.76%
Brandin Cooks8.72%
Kavontae Turpin8.4%
Rico Dowdle7.92%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Cooper Rush7406.275.4716.87%
Dak Prescott6429.556.2618.83%
Trey Lance143.2312.1%

Blowouts against close games

4 of his 14 games were blowouts, 12.8% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 3.35 in those and 10.28 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2023 · DAL · 17 games

His best game was Week 9 against PHI — 22.1 PPR on 10 targets and a 22.7% target share, in a game that finished 23-28. His worst was Week 6 against LAC at 2.5, on 1 targets, final score 20-17. Across 17 games he cleared 20 points 1 time and came in under 8 points 6 times. In the 5 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 12; in the 12 decided by more, 9.8. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 11 points per game. He scored 10.42, 8.7% above it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1NYG40-03.12711028%72%
2NYJ30-1010.13411110.8%60%
3ARI16-289.85748018.9%69%
4NE38-314.77777019.4%56%
5SF10-425.83328011.5%69%
6LAC20-172.5111503.3%86%
8LA43-2014.74447111.8%80%
9PHI23-2822.171091122.7%89%
10NYG49-1712.64726115.9%67%
11CAR33-106.23532012.5%72%
12WAS45-104.5133509.4%72%
13SEA41-3519.76877120%74%
14PHI33-1312.25872020.5%73%
15BUF10-3110.46844025%86%
16MIA20-228.54845025%83%
17DET20-197.34633016.2%89%
18WAS38-1012.96669015%72%

Production

Receptions71
Targets102
Receiving yards761
Touchdowns5
Points per game10.42
Yards per target7.46
Catch rate69.61%

Role

Snap share74.65%
Target share16.82%
Air-yards share10.33%
WOPR0.324
RACR2.565

Efficiency

Average depth of target5.1
Yards after catch per reception6
Yards before catch per reception4.7
Total YAC425
Broken tackles6
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted103.4
Receiving EPA per game1.93

Scoring position

Red-zone targets29
Red-zone target share24.2%
End-zone target share21.1%
Expected receiving TDs7.83
Actual receiving TDs8
Receiving TD luck0.17

Where that ranked

Against everyone in the 80+ targets pool that season:

Points per game9 of 14
Yards per target6 of 14
Target share13 of 14
Air-yards share14 of 14

Who else ate

The offense threw it 614 times. He took 16.86% of the targets. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

CeeDee Lamb29.92%
Jake Ferguson 16.86%
Brandin Cooks13.39%
Tony Pollard11.07%
Michael Gallup9.42%
Jalen Tolbert5.95%

Blowouts against close games

11 of his 17 games were blowouts, 60.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 9.75 in those and 12.02 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2022 · DAL · 11 games

His best game was Week 6 against PHI — 14 PPR on 6 targets and a 16.2% target share, in a game that finished 17-26. His worst was Week 18 against WAS at 1.4, on 1 targets, final score 6-26. Across 11 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 9 times. In the 3 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 5.1; in the 8 decided by more, 4.1. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 3.4 points per game. He scored 4.4, 31% above it. The engine classified the season as very_lucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 2 against 0.88 expected, a gap of 1.1.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
3NYG23-163.32313010%83%
4WAS25-101.711703.8%28%
6PHI17-26144640116.2%51%
7DET24-61.711704%38%
8CHI49-297.111113.8%55%
11MIN40-33.5221506.7%50%
12NYG28-208.73357010.3%48%
13IND54-191.922-106.7%47%
16PHI40-343.4112402.9%21%
17TEN27-131.711702.4%29%
18WAS6-261.411402.8%21%

Production

Receptions19
Targets22
Receiving yards174
Touchdowns2
Points per game4.4
Yards per target7.91
Catch rate86.36%

Role

Snap share42.82%
Target share6.33%
Air-yards share2.37%
WOPR0.112
RACR1.498

Efficiency

Average depth of target3.5
Yards after catch per reception6.5
Yards before catch per reception2.6
Total YAC124
Broken tackles2
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted129.9
Receiving EPA per game0.72

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share3.5%
End-zone target share3%
Expected receiving TDs0.88
Actual receiving TDs2
Receiving TD luck1.12

Who else ate

The offense threw it 556 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

CeeDee Lamb28.62%
Dalton Schultz16.33%
Noah Brown13.58%
Michael Gallup13.58%
Tony Pollard10.09%
Ezekiel Elliott4.22%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Dak Prescott8123.679.54.95%
Cooper Rush3106.33610%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 11 games were blowouts, 32.2% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 3.12 in those and 5.13 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

Ask the Coach about Jake Ferguson →
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