In a league where touchdowns can vanish in a hurry, the race to finish first in receiving scores for 2026 already has a familiar feel: the biggest names are back at the top, and Davante Adams is still very much in the conversation.
Adams led the NFL with 14 receiving touchdowns in 2025, doing it as part of a Los Angeles Rams offense that also featured Puka Nacua, who scored 10. That made Adams the league’s touchdown king for the third time in his career, adding to seasons with the Green Bay Packers in 2020, when he had 18, and with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022, when he finished with 14. But at 33, the six-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro is a long shot to keep ruling the category.
The market leans toward a different star anyway. DraftKings’ odds as of Aug. 11 put Ja’Marr Chase at the top at +650, with Adams and Amon-Ra St.
Brown next at 7/1 (+700). CeeDee Lamb follows at 9/1 (+900), then Puka Nacua at 10/1 (+1000), A.J.
Brown at 15/1 (+1500), Nico Collins and Tee Higgins at 18/1 (+1800), Drake London at 25/1 (+2500), and Brock Bowers, Rashee Rice, Mike Evans and George Pickens at 30/1 (+3000). DeVonta Smith and Christian Watson are listed at 40/1 (+4000).
Chase’s case is easy to understand. When he and Joe Burrow last played a full season together in 2024, Chase scored a league-high 17 touchdowns. And in each of the three seasons Burrow has played 16 or more games, Chase has reached at least nine receiving touchdowns.
The list is stacked with the usual elite wideouts, but not every big name carries the same touchdown profile. Justin Jefferson, for example, is listed at 20/1 and could look like value on talent alone, but he has reached double-digit receiving touchdowns only twice in his career, in 2021 and 2024, and has never hit 11 or more in a season.
Brock Bowers is the first tight end on the board at 30/1, but the path is rocky. A quarterback change could come at any point from Kirk Cousins to No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza, and no tight end has led the NFL in receiving touchdowns in 15 years, since Rob Gronkowski did it in 2011 with 17 scores from Tom Brady.
Still, the pick here isn’t the favorite. It’s A.J. Brown.
Brown is listed at 15/1 and is entering his age-29 season as the clear No. 1 receiver in New England’s offense, which is expected to be far more pass heavy than the one he leaves behind in Philadelphia. He has three straight seasons with seven touchdowns, and he has topped double digits twice in seven years, including 11 scores in his first season with the Eagles in 2023.
Brown has never led the league in touchdowns or any other category, but the move to New England gives him his best shot yet. He may need time to build chemistry with Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, but the setup is intriguing. Maye is coming off a sophomore season in which he threw 31 touchdowns and finished runner-up in NFL MVP voting despite working with one of the weakest wide receiver rooms in the league.
The bar is high. Brown will need to get past 11 touchdowns for the first time in his career to truly contend. But in this offense, he looks like the top red-zone weapon, and that makes him the most interesting bet to come out on top in 2026.
In Other News...
Rams Hype Just Ran Into A Brutal Playoff Warning
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But Priscos view turns sharp once the playoffs actually begin. Even with the appeal of recent additions like Myles Garrett and the return of Aaron Donald, he is skeptical the Rams will handle the pressure of those expectations, and he has them falling in their first postseason game to the Seahawks. Its a warning that lands hard for a team built to contend, because the regular-season ceiling may be high even if the postseason path still looks fragile. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Make Another Quick Draft Pick Decision Fans Will Notice
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Sheriff arrives as developmental depth at a position the Rams continue to monitor, bringing a fresh look after spending time with the Seahawks. For a team that has been willing to turn over the bottom of the roster quickly, the move fits a familiar pattern, even if it leaves the larger question of how the Rams want to build out that edge group still hanging there. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Opener Just Got Tougher With Nick Bosa Trending This Way
The Rams trip to Australia for the season opener already carried enough unfamiliarity without having to factor in Nick Bosa, and the 49ers edge rusher is suddenly looking much more like a real part of the opener picture. Bosa returned to practice for the first time since Aug. 3 after dealing with tendinitis in his right knee, the same knee that previously went through ACL surgery, giving San Francisco a late but meaningful lift as the teams prepare to open in Melbourne.
Bosa is traveling with the 49ers and said he is cautiously optimistic about being ready for the game, which is exactly the kind of development the Rams would rather not have to monitor this close to kickoff. He also sounded settled into the unusual road trip ahead, talking about the recovery process and even looking forward to trying some local coffee and checking out nature exhibits, but for Los Angeles the bigger issue is simple: the opener just got a lot more complicated if Bosa keeps trending this way. [Read more 🡒]