Chase McLaughlin is a fair Week 2 play — our K14 at 7.5 projected points, right around the K starter line.
- Projection
- 7.5 pts
- K rank
- #14
- Matchup
- vs CLE
Chase McLaughlin's fantasy role in Week 2
Chase McLaughlin goes into Week 2 of the 2026 season as a deep-league K flyer for the TB. He is rostered in 19% of leagues and actually started in 16% of them, and we rank him K14 on our own weekly board at 7.5 projected points.
Interest is climbing — roster rates moved up about 1% over the last week, which usually means managers are reacting to a bigger snap or target share.
No injury designation to work around right now, which keeps his projection honest.
Week 2 matchup breakdown
The matchup: vs CLE. Our Pepper Meter heat rating for this spot is 2 out of 5, which is how we grade the combination of role, projection and opponent difficulty.
Against a typical starting K baseline of 7.5 points, his 7.5-point projection is 0 points better. That gap is the whole start/sit argument in one number.
How to play it
Chase McLaughlin is a fair Week 2 play — our K14 at 7.5 projected points, right around the K starter line.
If you are deciding between him and another K, compare projections first, then lean on the Pepper Meter heat rating as the tiebreaker.
Sally's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Chase McLaughlin (TB K), our K14 this week for Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season vs CLE, projecting 7.5 projected points with a spicy Pepper Meter rating. 7.5 projected points is roughly 0% more than the K baseline, and that gap is the entire argument for the spot at K14. Facing CLE in front of his own crowd, the script reads neutral to friendly, not scary. Only 19% of leagues roster him, so this is cheap production before the price goes up. Sally keeps the Pepper Meter at Spicy here because the ceiling is capped, not the role.
Tina's take
Peppers & Picks ranks Chase McLaughlin (TB K), our K14 this week for Week 2 of the 2026 NFL season vs CLE, projecting 7.5 projected points with a spicy Pepper Meter rating. 7.5 projected points is roughly 0% more than the K baseline, and that gap is the entire argument for the spot at K14. Facing CLE in front of his own crowd, the script reads neutral to friendly, not scary. Only 19% of leagues roster him, so this is cheap production before the price goes up. Tina keeps the Pepper Meter at Spicy here because the ceiling is capped, not the role.