Raiders Grab New LB Starters in Quay Walker, Nakobe Dean

2026 Fantasy Football Impact

The monetary specifics probably won't matter all that much, because both contracts point to the new guys becoming full-timers right away.

So who will be the top fantasy option?

Well, we probably need to start off expecting Walker to lead. Besides the fact that he's getting more money, he hit the league as a first-round pick and spent all four of his Green Bay seasons in the starting lineup.

Of course, he also posted just OK numbers and failed to motivate the Packers to exercise his fifth-year option (which would have covered 2026).

Dean landed with Philly in Round 3 of the same draft. He's signficantly smaller -- 5'11, 231 vs. 6'4, 241 -- and has started just 27 of his 47 appearances in the NFL.

But most of those non-starting days (17) came in his rookie campaign. Dean entered the lineup the following year but has seen multiple injuries limit his time.

That's obviously a knock on him -- and perhaps influenced by his size -- but Dean has flashed more cross-category potential when on the field.

It's also worth noting that these two played together at Georgia. Dean played more snaps than Walker in each of their three shared seasons, beat him in Pro Football Focus grading each year (including both in pass rush and coverage), and outproduced his teammate in their final season:

Ultimately, I'll probably wind up projecting Walker a little higher. But I also expect drafters to take him first, and perhaps by a wide margin.

That could turn Dean into the better value in 2026 IDP drafts.