Fantasy football preseason Week 1 recap: Shedeur Sanders, Tetairoa McMillan, Cam Ward dazzle

Griffin Missant

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Fantasy football preseason Week 1 recap: Shedeur Sanders, Tetairoa McMillan, Cam Ward dazzle image

You've heard it before: "It's just preseason. It doesn't matter." This could not be more false when it comes to fantasy football. 

Preseason helps paint a clearer picture of certain positional battles and rookie involvement in offenses. Having just a little more clarity can help with those tough fantasy draft decisions. 

Here are some of the noteworthy performances and news from preseason Week 1 that fantasy football players should know about. 

Preseason Week 1: Best rookie performances 

Shedeur Sanders, QB, Cleveland Browns 

Sanders stole the show Week 1 of preseason with his first start as a Brown.

Sanders completed 14 of his 23 attempts for 138 passing yards. He also threw for two first-half touchdowns. Sanders looked calm in the pocket and showed his ability to run when he needed. 

Sanders still might not be intriguing for one-quarterback fantasy leagues. However, he is becoming more valuable for superflex or two QB leagues, and potentially as a streamer in 1QB games as the season goes on.

MORE: Fantasy football rookie rankings

Travis Hunter, WR/DB, Jacksonville Jaguars 

Hunter indeed played both ways in his first preseason outing.

The Colorado alum logged 10 snaps with the starting offense on the opening series alone. On this drive, Hunter caught two passes for 9 yards. He also played eight snaps on the defensive side of the ball with the backups. 

While not overreacting, this shows how the Jaguars value Hunter: He's an offensive player first, and a defensive player second. Hunter is still drafted fairly low and is a great high-upside draft pick in fantasy football. 

MORE: Read about how Travis Hunter can break fantasy football.

Cam Ward, QB, Tennessee Titans

After going three-and-out on his first drive, Ward looked in control on the second series. Ward completed five passes for 67 yards and led the Titans to an 11-play drive that was capped off with a touchdown:

Out of Ward's five completed passes, three of them were caught by Calvin Ridley. Ward is an aggressive thrower and should be in good game scripts all season for him to air it out a ton.

He even recently described himself in three words as 'Calvin Ridley's sidekick.'

This enhances the upside of both Ward and Ridley.

Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Carolina Panthers

McMillan stood out in his preseason opener, seeing five targets and playing all 13 snaps with the starting offense.

McMillan and QB Bryce Young connected on two passes, one of them being a 30-yard dime by Young.

McMillan was also targeted in the end zone on a great route, though he dropped the pass.

McMillan has yet to climb in draft position for all the upside he offers. Young clearly wants to get him the ball and trust the rookie from Arizona.

McMillan is officially a must-draft player in 2025.

MORE: PPR RANKINGS - TOP 300 Cheat Sheet | QB | RB | WR | TE

More fantasy news from preseason Week 1

  • Denver Broncos rookie RB RJ Harvey started the game with the first-team offense and performed as a near workhorse. J.K. Dobbins still may eat into many series, but Sean Payton could go to the rookie as at least the strong 1A option immediately.  
  • Cincinnati Bengals RB Chase Brown received every RB touch with the first team offense, which may ease concerns about a backup bruiser like Tahj Brooks taking too much work away from the frequent top-25 pick.
  • Pittsburgh Steelers rookie RB Kaleb Johnson played 22 snaps and rushed for 20 yards on eight carries. Fantasy players should still expect a near-even split with Jaylen Warren.
  • All four of the Giants' QBs looked good in their preseason opener. This is reassuring for WR Malik Nabers, who had a special rookie season with poor QB play in 2024. 
  • Seattle Seahawks rookie WR Tory Horton caught 3 catches for 31 yards and a touchdown; he's quickly emerging as a possible third pass-catcher who could find fantasy utility throughout the season.
  • The New Orleans Saints' QB room did not look good vs the Chargers. Rookie Tyler Shough went 15-for-22 with 165 yards and 1 TD, but he threw a pick-6. Spencer Rattler mustered 53 yards on a 7-for-11 passing day while scoring zero points. The concerns around the fantasy ceilings of Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed remain justified.

Griffin Missant

Griffin Missant joined The Sporting News in 2025 as a fantasy football intern. He graduated from Grand Valley State University, where he covered the Lakers football program. He has also worked for Sleeper and the Fantasy Trade Room. He has played fantasy for over a decade, and has been passionate about fantasy football ever since.