Breakout Candidates: One Player From Each AFC Team Poised for a Star Turn

The hope for every NFL team ahead of each season always comes down to one truth: The belief that they have a player (or players) who will finally exceed their expectations. Someone, they think, is about to become a star. And they believe the whole team will be carried along for the ride. So who’s primed to break out in 2026? Some are familiar names. Some have flown way under the radar. Here are 16 breakout candidates — one for each AFC team. AFC EAST The 2024 second-rounder started to flash what he’s capable of last season when he had three interceptions, two sacks and 85 tackles in his first full season as a starter. Now he’s surrounded by some sages to help him take the next step. The Bills’ new defensive coordinator is Jim Leonhard, who spent a decade playing safety in the NFL. And the Bills brought in veterans Geno Stone and C.J. Gardner-Johnson to play alongside Bishop. The 6-2, 206-pounder is a weapon who has proved he can line up almost anywhere in the Buffalo secondary. Leonhard is the right guy to figure out how to use him best. If the Dolphins are going to avoid being a total disaster, they’ll need a breakout from new quarterback Malik Willis. But if Willis breaks out, he’s going to carry a receiver along with him, and the 26-year-old Atwell is the top candidate for that. The Rams once had big plans for the 5-9, 165-pounder with electric speed. But he was buried behind a lot of talent in L.A., and then hurt last season by a hamstring injury. He’s still only 26 and has averaged an impressive 14.6 yards per catch in his career. As a slot receiver in an offense that lacks weapons overall, he could end up being one of Willis’ favorite and most productive targets. He likely won’t put up Pro Bowl numbers, but they could be big for him. There’s a reason the Patriots took the 6-5, 319-pound left tackle No. 4 overall last year, even if it wasn’t always evident. He gave up five sacks during the regular season as a rookie, and then struggled even more in the playoffs, eventually giving up a sack and (by one count) 14 pressures in the Super Bowl. In fairness to him, Campbell was battling a knee injury over the past couple of months. Also, he’s still only 22 years old. And now he’s got a little more help next to him in new left guard Alijah Vera-Tucker. In other words, there is plenty of hope, even after Campbell’s disappointing season. He’s entrenched at left tackle in New England, and he’s definitely a lot better than he showed as a rookie. He looked like a throw-in in the Sauce Gardner trade, but maybe he was a little more than that. The 6-2, 205-pound Mitchell was a second-round pick in 2024, but he had some drop issues in Indianapolis, plus a bone-headed fumble when he prematurely celebrated near the goal line, costing the Colts a touchdown. But he is still only 23 years old, and he had 24 catches for 301 yards and two touchdowns in eight games for the Jets in 2025 despite their horrific quarterback situation. That part should be a little better this season with Geno Smith throwing him the ball. Mitchell will also have less attention from defenses with a healthy Garrett Wilson lining up alongside him. That’ll give Mitchell plenty of room to start fulfilling his potential and show he can be, at least, a good No. 2. AFC NORTH The 22-year-old thought he played just “OK” last season, which is probably a bit of an understatement. He did have 84 tackles and two interceptions, while leading the Ravens in defensive snaps. But the good news for him is that new Ravens coach Jesse Minter has a well-earned reputation for developing and getting the most out of defensive backs — and few he’s had have been as talented as Starks. Playing on a defense alongside safety Kyle Hamilton, Starks has a chance to put up much bigger numbers. And if the Ravens improve their pass rush (they had 30 sacks last season, third-fewest in the league), he’ll be one of the biggest beneficiaries this year. It took a while for the Bengals to figure things out with Hill, but late last season, it looked like they finally did. When they shifted him to outside cornerback and let him take advantage of his blazing speed, the fourth-year pro’s production skyrocketed, and he looked like the lockdown corner many always thought he could be. Hill, who played safety and nickelback in college, was mostly a safety in the two years after the Bengals drafted him in the first round (2022). Then, after they moved him to corner in 2023, he tore his ACL in Week 5. But he finally looks healthy and settled in at the correct position. His speed and skills should take care of the rest. If you were watching carefully, you saw Fannin break out a bit last year as a rookie, finishing with 72 catches for 731 yards and six touchdowns for an awful team with terrible quarterback play. He also had to compete for snaps with TE David Njoku. Now Njoku is gone and new head coach Todd Monken will run an offense that will probably lean even more on the 21-year-old receiver — and Fannin might just be the Browns’ best weapon in the passing game. With a little better play from his quarterbacks — obviously not a guarantee — he has a chance to put up truly elite numbers, especially if he can finally harness some of the explosiveness he once showed at Bowling Green. The No. 21 pick of the 2025 draft sprained his knee in the Steelers’ preseason finale, and though he only missed the first two games, he was never fully healthy (and missed another three games in December). Still, he had three sacks in somewhat limited playing time over 12 games. If he’s fully healthy, he’ll be a bigger part of a defensive line that still has T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward to draw most of the attention. Harmon probably won’t put up huge sack numbers, but he’ll have an increasing impact and show everyone why he’s being groomed as Heyward’s successor. AFC SOUTH With Christian Kirk gone and Tank Dell still recovering from a gruesome leg injury that cost him all of last season, there is opportunity for an expanded role in the Texans’ offense. Higgins, a 2025 second-rounder, was targeted 68 times last season and caught 41 passes for 525 yards and six touchdowns. But the 6-4, 215-pounder is capable of a lot more, especially as a red-zone weapon. He should clearly be C.J. Stroud’s No. 2 option behind Nico Collins. And if Higgins can’t deliver, don’t rule out a breakout from his former Iowa State teammate, WR Jaylin Noel, who went 45 picks later in the same draft. Noel has better speed, but Higgins has already emerged as a starter. Colts GM Chris Ballard said that Latu is on the verge of a breakout, and it’s easy to see why he believes that. The 25-year-old had 8.5 sacks last season, with six of those came in the final nine games. He was credited with 20 quarterback hits while Pro Football Focus gave him 61 total quarterback pressures. Double-digit sacks seem like a lock for the 2024 first-round pick, especially with Arden Key now on the opposite end to take some of the pressure off. Latu has shown in spurts how disruptive he can be to opposing offenses. The Colts think this season he’ll prove to be one of the best disrupters in the entire league. It would be easy to say the best breakout candidate in Jacksonville is Bhayshul Tuten, since he was the backup to the departed Travis Etienne. But don’t sleep on this former sixth-rounder who spent the past three seasons with the Commanders. Rodriguez was an under-the-radar signing, but he’s a Liam Coen favorite from their one year together at the University of Kentucky (2021). Assuming Rodriguez fully recovers from offseason foot surgery, I believe he’s a good bet to emerge as the workhorse back in the Jaguars’ offense. He might not have Tuten’s breakaway ability. But he could get the majority of the carries, especially when it comes to the tougher, shorter yards. Yeah, OK, as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 draft, Ward should break out. In fact, he should have done it already. But in reality, he was the third-best rookie quarterback in the NFL last year behind Jaxson Dart and Tyler Shough. Don’t just blame Ward, though. His paltry numbers (3,169 passing yards, 15 touchdowns, 7 interceptions) were mostly a product of his weak supporting cast. The Titans have since upgraded their offensive line and receiving corps, the latter of which now includes Wan’Dale Robinson and Carnell Tate. Plus, Ward has a much better offensive coordinator in Brian Daboll. All the additions should put Ward in position to prove he was worthy of being the top pick. AFC WEST J.K. Dobbins was on his way to an impressive season last year, only to do what he often does — get hurt. That forced the Broncos to turn to Harvey, who has big-play potential and breakaway speed. He wasn’t explosive as a rookie, but he did end up with 896 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns in pretty limited action. He also showed he’s capable of carrying a bigger load. He averaged just five carries per game before Dobbins got hurt. He’ll almost certainly get more touches this season even if Dobbins is healthy. The Chiefs lost both their starting corners this offseason as they traded Trent McDuffie and let Jaylen Watson leave. They replaced them by drafting Mansoor Delane in the first round and brought back L’Jarius Sneed. But the 29-year-old Sneed has played just 12 games over the past two seasons, which means the door is wide open for Williams. The 23-year-old third-rounder was excellent in limited action as a rookie. By some measures, he was one of the NFL’s best cover corners while recording seven passes defensed. He’ll likely start alongside Delane on the outside. But even if he doesn’t, he’ll have a much larger role in a Steve Spagnuolo defense that should be much better overall. It’s hard to view his rookie season as anything other than a major disappointment. He rushed for just 975 yards and caught only 55 passes for 346 yards after being drafted No. 6 overall. And not all of it can be chalked up to the Raiders being so awful that defenses knew to key on Jeanty. He simply struggled much more than anyone thought he would. The Raiders might not be much better this season, but Jeanty will at least have an improved offensive line that now features three-time Pro Bowl center Tyler Linderbaum. Las Vegas has a few more weapons this year, too, which should give Jeanty more room to operate. And new head coach Klint Kubiak certainly got a lot out of his running backs in Seattle. The stage is set for Jeanty to show why he was drafted so high. After a really strong rookie season (82-1,149-7) in 2024, last year was supposed to be McConkey’s breakout season. But things went wrong right from the start. Despite a heavy workload early in the season, his production suffered from his inability to hold onto the ball. And then late in the season, as the Chargers offensive line crumbled and QB Justin Herbert battled injuries, McConkey’s target share started to disappear. While his final numbers were a huge disappointment (66-789-6), the speed and skills that made him an early second-round pick are still present. In fact, he seems exactly like the type of speedy receiver new Chargers offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel would want to feature. Don’t be surprised then if McConkey ultimately blossoms into a star.