Here's how much Jeremiyah Love's rookie fantasy outlook will be impacted by ankle injury

The Arizona Cardinals were expecting big things from rookie No. 3 overall draft pick Jeremiyah Love in a new-look offense under coach Mike LaFleur. Now the team will hope the former Notre Dame star running back will be back and ready to go for Week 1 of the 2026 NFL regular season.

Love ran well in his preseason debut against the Raiders last Thursday, with 11 carries for 58 yards. He also contributed with 3 receptions for 15 yards in the passing game. Unfortunately, the ankle injury he suffered in that game has been diagnosed as the dreaded high ankle sprain.

The nature of that injury means missing multiple weeks, but time — almost a month — is on Love's side to heal and be available for the Cardinals when they play at the Chargers on Sept. 13.

Fantasy football managers still face a conundrum on high to draft Love themselves, both in relation to other running backs and values at other positions. The news shouldn't put Love out of earlier-round fantasy consideration, but before the injury, there already was reason to keep from overhyping his potential production.

Here's breaking down Jeremiyah Love's updated fantasy prognosis for 2026:

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Jeremiyah Love fantasy ranking and average draft position

According to the consensus of across-site experts on Fantasy Pros, Love was ranked No. 16 among all running backs for half-point PPR redraft leagues. His average draft position (ADP), however, has him being selected at No. 13.

In 12-team leagues, that puts Love just outside of the RB1s and at the top of the RB2s. Overall, Love is ranked No. 37, but his ADP is No. 26, making him an early third-round fantasy pick vs. an early fourth-round selection.

That proves there's a little too much buzz about what Love's rookie expectations are in Arizona.

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Jeremiyah Love fantasy outlook

Love is going off the board too high given he was still the No. 2 back on the Cardinals' depth chart to veteran free-agent addition Tyler Allgeier. LaFleur has hinted he doesn't want to overload one back with carries, and there's a fair chance the team keeps four backs on its final roster, also including incumbents James Conner and Trey Benson.

Conner is no schlub at 31 years old after being re-signed. He led the team in rushing in each season from 2021-2024 before an injury-riddled '25 that prompted Arizona to reload its backfield for LaFleur.

There was some hope LaFleur, coming from the Rams' coaching staff, would treat Love like Kyren Williams and give him 18 touches per game. That is unlikely now that Love got hurt after 14 touches against the Raiders, a game in which Allgeier also looked good with more limited work.

Despite looking like the early lead back, Allgeier is ranked No. 44 (RB4) in half-point PPR, well behind Love, with Conner buried at No. 65. There should be the expectation that Love becomes the starter at some point, but the depth will keep him from flirting with 17-18 touches per game.

In addition, the Cardinals, as one of the league's returning worst teams, had the most pass attempts (649) and the fewest rushing attempts (366) in the NFL last season. LaFleur will try to adjust from being a 66-34 team to be a little more balanced with a more talented backfield. But consider Williams capped out with 56 percent of the Rams' carry volume last season.

Love has massive upside for sure, or he wouldn't have been drafted so high. Real draft first-rounders Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs were top-10 fantasy backs as rookies in 2023. But neither Ashton Jeanty (No. 13) nor Omarion Hampton (No. 36) lived up to rankings last season.

Putting Love at No. 16 at RB and fantasy-drafting him in the fourth round makes sense. But there's a fair case for him to be lower behind strong vet-led backs such as Javonte Williams, Josh Jacobs and Travis Etienne Jr. It would make more sense to late RB2, in the range of Cam Skattebo and Bucky Irving, who both have their share of backfield touches competition.

Drafting Love in fantasy closer to the No. 20 RB makes a lot more sense than forcing him near No. 10.

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