Before All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey won the award in 2025, the previous seven NFL Comeback Player of the Year award winners were quarterbacks.
Quarterbacks get the ball every play, so they're low-hanging fruit when it comes to major awards at the end of a season like this. And entering the 2026 season, with a player like Patrick Mahomes coming off of injury, it almost feels like this award going to a quarterback is a foregone conclusion.
But who are some of the more underrated candidates around the league to pull off the McCaffrey-level upset and get a win?
We're going to take a look at three players we think will make a strong case for NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2026, but might not win it because of the positions they play.
3 underrated candidates for NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2026
1. Tucker Kraft, tight end, Green Bay Packers
Tucker Kraft played just eight games this past season, but still finished 22nd in the NFL among tight ends with 489 yards. His 6 touchdown catches still ranked 8th-most among tight ends.
Simply put, Tucker Kraft is on a trajectory to become the best tight end in the entire league, and the only reason he wasn't a 1st-team All-Pro last season is because he missed 9 games due to injury. As he makes his way back in 2026, Kraft has already been clocking speeds over 21 MPH while working out this offseason.
Even if the Packers put Kraft on the PUP to start training camp, the projection is that he'll be ready to go for Week 1. And if he's back, the path has been cleared for him to dominate the target share for the Packers' offense. Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks are both gone, and Jordan Love is going to be looking to Kraft early and often.
Kraft finishing this season with over 100 receptions, 1,000 yards, and 10 touchdowns is not out of the realm of possibility.
2. Nick Bosa, EDGE, San Francisco 49ers
If there's one NFL team that desperately needs a pass rush upgrade, it's got to be the San Francisco 49ers, who finished dead last in the league in sacks last season.
The 49ers added some players to their defensive front, including trading for defensive tackle Osa Odighizuwa from the Cowboys, but they are clearly banking on Bosa returning to form. Over the course of Bosa's NFL career, he averages 13 sacks per 17 games played. The problem over the past couple of seasons hasn't been sack production, but time missed due to injury.
Especially in a year where the Rams added Myles Garrett, it would give Bosa a huge edge in winning an award like this if he was able to lead the league -- or even his own division -- in sacks. If he can get 13 or more sacks, he might be a dark horse candidate and potentially the first defensive player to win this award since Eric Berry in 2015.
3. JK Dobbins, running back, Denver Broncos
At the time he went down with an injury in Week 10 this past season, JK Dobbins ranked in the top 5 among all NFL running backs in:
- Rushing yards: 772 (5th)
- YPC: 5.0
- 10+ yard runs: 21 (T-4th)
The Broncos' running game completely fell off after Dobbins went down with an injury, but he made enough progress in his recovery that they re-signed him to a 2-year deal in free agency this offseason. Dobbins's physicality and explosiveness have not suffered a bit despite his many unfortunate injuries as an NFL player.
Talent has never been a question for Dobbins, who was once a 2nd-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens. If Dobbins can play the majority of the 2026 season, he could be among the league leaders in every rushing category.
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