Latest news with #fantasy football
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Fantasy football guru names NFL player he wants this year... and which celebrities are his toughest rivals
When Matthew Berry was growing up, fantasy sports were far from the all-encompassing hobby they are today. 'I think it was sort of thought of as this nerdy thing, it's this kid game,' he recalled in an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail. Things have changed, drastically. Berry's hugely successful career as a fantasy football analyst has seen him compete with Avengers actors, bristle at John Legend 's surprising savviness and receive funding from the likes of LeBron James, Joe Burrow and Josh Allen for his Fantasy Life business. Everyone, as Berry put it, from 'rock stars to grandmas to little kids' is playing now. 'I think it's become a lot more respected,' he said, before lifting the lid on one of his highest-profile rivals. 'I'm in a league with John Legend, and he drives me crazy, because he always snipes me,' Berry cracked. 'I'll have my sleepers and everything. And, I'm like "Ahh, come on, John Legend - EGOT, Chrissy Teigen. He can't be paying attention, he's got a lot going on." And then I'm in the draft room, and he's like two spots ahead of me, and I'm just like, "Effing John Legend, sniping me!" Left and right.' Fantasy football draft rooms were not always something a 13-time Grammy winner would be found in. Early versions of the previously niche activity, which is believed to have originated in 1962 from former Raiders minority owner Wilfred 'Bill' Winkenbach, saw the scant amount of participants manually track their players' points by hand. In the 90's, when Berry was a young adult, some football-obsessed fans dialed into a toll-free number to pick their teams for the 'Pigskin Playoff' game. Several decades later, fantasy sports have exploded into a multi-billion dollar business - and Berry has been one of the biggest benefactors (and drivers) of that transformation. Now on air at NBC Sports/Peacock, he became a household name at ESPN from 2007-22, providing advice and widespread exposure for a hobby whose rise corresponded with his own. An estimated 62.5million Americans and Canadians played fantasy sports in 2022, according to the Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association - up from 19.4million in 2007. And the former TV writer has certainly gained access to circles he wouldn't otherwise be a part of due to his fantasy football expertise. In one league, he faced off against Avengers universe actors like Robert Downey Jr., Ryan Reynolds, Chris Pratt, Chris Hemsworth and Simi Liu. 'The trash talk that was in that was pretty epic and fun,' he said. He was once even summoned to Jay-Z's fantasy draft to help the legendary rapper with his picks. In 2011, during his ascendancy at ESPN, he also provided a hilarious cameo on 'The League,' an FX show about a group of friends competing against one another in a cutthroat fantasy football league. Such was one character's reverence for him that he described Berry as 'the prettiest girl in this bar' as he worked up the courage to talk to him. More recently, his fantasy and gaming company Fantasy Life, which was founded in 2022, secured a $7million round of seed funding. Investors (in addition to James and Legend) included names like Jacksonville Jaguars owner Tony Khan, former NFL star Larry Fitzgerald, Philadelphia 76ers owner David Blitzer and more. Back in February on Super Bowl's radio row, he welcomed star receivers Tyreek Hill and Justin Jefferson to his 'Fantasy Football Happy Hour' set. And as he held court with a group of NBC Sports sponsors prior to speaking with Daily Mail, it it was wholly evident that fantasy had far outpaced its more underground beginnings. 'I think what drew me to fantasy is what I think drives a lot of people to fantasy, which is: it's fun, it's really fun,' he said. 'And it's one of the things that's easy to play, it's hard to master, right? And because you're dealing with players that are playing a game with a leather ball that's an oblong shape, weird stuff happens.' If there is one downside to the fantasy boom that has occurred in recent years, it might the abuse that some disgruntled players serve up to athletes on social media. While Berry contended that such unsavory fan behavior also happens in the arenas of politics, music and more, he admitted that there is a 'small percentage' of 'a*****e' fantasy players who overstep. 'The ones that really get me are when a player gets injured, and then there'll be some jerks, they'll be like, "Oh, man, you just killed my fantasy league." This guy just tore his ACL, man… this is how he provides resources for his family,' he said. 'This is how he provides for his family and his health is his livelihood. He's not worried about your fake football team, dude. And so, those are the ones that really bother me.' By and large, though, there isn't a ton for Berry to be upset about. He's gearing up for another season of NFL action, and there is finally optimism around his beloved Commanders due to quarterback Jayden Daniels. Of course, there's also some fantasy advice baked into his excitement surrounding the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year. 'He'll be on all of my teams next year,' Berry said.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
2025 Fantasy Football Tight End Preview: The Big 3, and everyone else
At tight end in 2025, there's a clear dividing line. George Kittle, Brock Bowers and Trey McBride aren't just the top three on my board — they're in their own tier, a category reserved for players who project as the unquestioned No. 1 target earners of their offenses. People will debate which one should be ranked first, but the reality is they're all true TE1s. If you land any of them, you're drafting the focal point of an NFL passing game. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] McBride led all tight ends with a 29.3% target share and topped the position in expected fantasy points per game (19.2), turning that into 111 receptions, 1,146 yards and 15.6 fantasy points per game — second-best at the position. Bowers commanded a position-leading 153 targets, finishing first in receptions (112), yards (1,194) and yards after the catch (596), while matching McBride's fantasy output at 15.5 points per game. His ability to create downfield separation (2.09 yards) and post a 27.8% dominator rating as a rookie is absurd. Kittle continues to be the model of efficiency — first in yards per route run (3.10), yards per target (11.8) and yards per reception (14.2) — and matched the others in production at 15.8 points per game. His eight touchdowns tied for second among tight ends, and his 2.33 yards per team pass attempt was also best at the position. These are your 'Big 3' — whichever one you land, you're drafting a player with a locked-in role, elite metrics and weekly difference-making upside. RayG's Top 24 Fantasy Tight Ends for 2025 George Kittle Brock Bowers Trey McBride Travis Kelce TJ Hockenson Mark Andrews Sam LaPorta Evan Engram Tucker Kraft David Njoku Tyler Warren Dallas Goedert Jake Ferguson Dalton Kincaid Zach Ertz Hunter Henry Jonnu Smith Brenton Strange Kyle Pitts Sr. Colston Loveland Mike Gesicki Dalton Schultz Ja'Tavion Sanders Mason Taylor Preferred Draft Strategy My plan at tight end is simple — I'm chasing elite outcomes. The players whose offenses run through them. The guys who can give you 20 points in any given week and finish as the WR1 in their own offense. If I get Kittle, Bowers or McBride, I'm locking them in as my starter every week, only sitting them for their bye. If I don't land one of those top options, I pivot to cost-conscious plays with paths to volume. In that middle TE8–TE16 range, I'll take small bites but rarely go heavy-exposure. At that point, I'd rather throw late darts on players who can massively outperform ADP and give me a streaming edge. [Subscribe to Yahoo Fantasy Plus and unlock Instant Mock Drafts today] 3 Tight Ends I'm Targeting at Cost Tyler Warren, Colts – Rookie tight ends rarely deliver right away (Bowers and LaPorta bucked that trend), but Warren steps into a clear role in a shallow target tree. Indianapolis will play conservatively, and Warren's athleticism plus early opportunity make him worth the shot at his price. Hunter Henry, Patriots – While the focus in New England is on Drake Maye's young wide receivers, Henry remains the constant. He ranked top 10 in air yards share (19.2%), red-zone targets (18) and expected fantasy points per game (12.2). At cost, he's one of the few tight ends outside the elite tier who can realistically lead his team in touchdowns. Ja'Tavion Sanders, Panthers – Bryce Young needs middle-of-the-field weapons, and Sanders' second-year jump could be real. Practically free, with room to grow into a key target-earner. Sleepers to Watch Elijah Arroyo, Seahawks – Seattle's rookie from Miami is one of the best downfield weapons in the 2025 tight end class. Right now, his path to fantasy relevance may only require beating out AJ Barner for the starting job. In an offense with Cooper Kupp underneath and Jaxon Smith-Njigba stretching the field across multiple formations, Arroyo could carve out chunk plays as soon as Year 1. Tyler Conklin, Chargers – Conklin isn't going to break fantasy scoring records, but in deep formats he's a free square for a steady floor. The Chargers will be without LT Rashawn Slater, meaning quick throws to safety valves like Conklin could be a bigger part of Justin Herbert's plan. With Keenan Allen and Ladd McConkey commanding coverage, Conklin should see favorable 1-on-1s — a solid waiver-wire TE who won't give you a zero. Zach Ertz, Commanders – A 34-year-old veteran with little dynasty appeal but sneaky 2025 value. With Terry McLaurin's status in Washington up in the air, Ertz steps in as Jayden Daniels' likely security blanket. His ability to find soft spots in coverage makes him a high-floor streaming option who could easily outproduce ADP. 1 Fade at Cost Sam LaPorta, Lions – I love the talent, but he's coming off the board as TE4 in most drafts — three spots ahead of my ranking. We don't know what Detroit's offense will look like under new leadership, and paying elite capital for a player in a changing system is a bet I'm not willing to make right now. Final Word If you're going to spend up, spend for the ceiling. The safest path is securing one of the top three and walking away from the position until bye week. If you miss, attack the late rounds with upside swings — because the gap between TE12 and TE24 isn't as wide as most think.
Fox News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Q & Trey: Why Live In A Fantasy World?
Earlier this week, President Trump addressed his decision to deploy the National Guard to Washington, DC, to crack down on incessant crime. Trey answers a question on the surge of crime across major cities and the role the legal system plays in punishing perpetrators. Plus, Trey reveals whether he'll partake in a 2025-2026 fantasy football league. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
2025 Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Preview: The position is as deep as ever, with one key section of drafts full of upside
We continue to live in the golden age of wide receiver play in the NFL. It's a direct impact from the reality that we will never have a bad wide receiver draft class again. Every year, we get a new batch of exciting young prospects ready to push onto the fantasy football radar, and we still have a healthy amount of veterans who haven't entirely aged out just yet. The new wave of play-callers from the McVay/Shanahan trees, and the new branch sprouting off of Sean Payton's tree via the Lions offense and Ben Johnson, are creating innovative roles within the position to elevate new positional archetypes. The style of a wide receiver that can become a highly productive option has expanded. All that is why it continues to feel like there's a wealth of appealing options deep into your draft board. [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] Now, that's not to say that you should entirely punt wideouts until the late rounds. While the depth of the position is excellent, the wealth of options has only made the truly elite difference makers at the position even more apparent. Top 24 at the WR position for 2025 Ja'Marr Chase CeeDee Lamb Justin Jefferson Nico Collins Drake London Malik Nabers Puka Nacua Amon-Ra St. Brown Brian Thomas Jr. A.J. Brown Ladd McConkey Tee Higgins Jaxon Smith-Njigba Mike Evans Marvin Harrison Jr. Garrett Wilson Terry McLaurin Tyreek Hill Davante Adams George Pickens Zay Flowers Jaylen Waddle Calvin Ridley DeVonta Smith Preferred draft strategy for WRs Even with the depth of wide receiver talent in the league right now, that doesn't mean I want to just wait around forever to take my WR1. While the pool of starting-caliber wideouts is plenty full, there is still a healthy gap between them and the truly elite players at the top. You need to fall in the right area of the draft to take a shot on players in my first tier this year but they're worth the plunge over the non-elite RB1s. I have all three of Ja'Marr Chase, CeeDee Lamb and Nico Collins ranked inside the top seven overall picks. If you can't grab those, I'm higher than consensus on names like Drake London and Malik Nabers this year, both of whom I have above their overall ADP and are worth snagging in late Round 1. The second round is also an appealing range to take your WR1. I haven't dabbled much in the Round 3-4 wide receivers this year. This is partly because I want to escape the top-four rounds with multiple shots at running back this year, but also because I don't think the risk/reward proposition for these players is all that different from what you can get in the next tier. You'll find a mix of names that are younger and in their primes like Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Garrett Wilson and Marvin Harrison Jr. We like those guys as talents but there are offensive ecosystem and quarterback questions. The first name is my favorite, if forced to pick. Then there are veterans like Tyreek Hill, Terry McLaurin and Mike Evans. The latter is the only one I'm not actively avoiding at the moment. As mentioned, this is less about my disdain for the players above and more about how much I love taking 2-3 shots at wide receiver between Rounds 5-8. I go into an extensive breakdown of the wide receiver landscape in my annual Draft Day Blueprint article, especially how to attack this section of the position. Still, we can dive into a high-level view in this space. This area of your drafts is what really crystallizes why this position is so strong in today's NFL. We have established good players who might not be elite but are excellent starters like Zay Flowers, DeVonta Smith, Jameson Williams and Courtland Sutton. There are players who, with the right breaks or ecosystem changes, can take a new leap in fantasy like George Pickens, Chris Olave or Rome Odunze. You'll find veterans who haven't aged out yet and are looking at new and possible ascending quarterbacks like Calvin Ridley, Stefon Diggs and Jakobi Meyers. Then, you'll find, outside the top-70 picks, the two wide receivers who went in the top 10 of this year's draft — and saw strong usage in the preseason — Tetairoa McMillan and Travis Hunter, both excellent upside bets I want to take in Year 1. The quality of options here is why I've flagged this as the best range of fantasy drafts to double, if not triple-dip, at the position. Sure, you can take some value players I like in the 100s of your drafts, and in fact, you should, but just don't sacrifice this section. Three targets I want at cost Normally, I don't end up naming someone from my top-24 overall players in an exercise like this, but Drake London is someone whom I'm multiple position spots ahead of ADP and a full round higher on than the consensus. London is knocking on the door of being one of the best and most complete wideouts in the game and could push to lead the NFL in targets this year. He had an outrageous 38.9% target share in Michael Penix Jr.'s three starts at the end of 2025. Ricky Pearsall came back from offseason injuries that stalled his practice time, not to mention an August gunshot wound, to get on the field as a rookie. It took some time before he looked like himself but he was smoking man coverage toward the end of 2024. He can play inside and out, while winning as a separator at all three levels. He's the 49ers wide receiver I want to draft this year with Brandon Aiyuk coming back from a multi-ligament knee injury that will cost him time this year. I'm cheating and using my third answer to offer up both Emeka Egbuka and Matthew Golden. We can group them together, as they are Round 1 rookie wide receivers who go outside the top-115 overall picks. Neither was expected to be a major Year 1 hit because of the crowded pass-catching corps on their new teams. However, injuries have opened up the door for both to challenge those expectations. They also happen to play for two offenses that should be among the most efficient units in 2025. Egbuka and Golden were second and third in Reception Perception's success rate vs. zone coverage, behind only Travis Hunter, among prospects I charted in this year's draft. Round 1 rookie wide receivers pushed down for ambiguous target trees are great bets in fantasy when they go this late. One fade at cost At this point, Tyreek Hill has never once shown up in my draft plans for 2025. He still goes high based on his name, but there are multiple reasons to be scared off. The most important is that Hill showed significant signs of decline last year. Not only was this expressed in production-based efficiency metrics, but his play in isolation fell short of his career expectations. Perhaps Hill can still be a helpful player as he ages but I'll bet against him getting back to elite form at age 31 after a dip like that. We've also not touched on some of the environmental concerns we have about the Dolphins' offense, and the seemingly constant tension between Hill, his team and his quarterback. If I'm taking a shot on a Dolphins wide receiver, I'll go with Jaylen Waddle, who is still in his prime and goes much later.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
2025 Fantasy Football: The top 15 WRs 25-years-old and under
The wide receiver position is absolutely loaded in both fantasy and reality. It's so hard to put together any sort of position ranking list without feeling like you left someone off or slighted a really good player or two. And yet, I'm going to give it a shot … and I'll absolutely feel the aforementioned regret, shame, etc. After pouring hours into charting a ton of the guys drafted the last few years for Reception Perception, I decided to sit down and rank the top 15 wide receivers who are currently 25 years old or younger heading into training camp (not including rookies). Advertisement [Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2025 NFL season] Note: These are not simply fantasy rankings. Instead, this is how I view these guys as pure individual NFL players removed from the context of their situations. 1) Ja'Marr Chase In last year's version of this piece, I wrote that 'Ja'Marr Chase hasn't necessarily had that 2022 Jefferson or 2023 Lamb season quite yet' but he had every part of the skill set needed to do it and could indeed 'have that type of campaign as soon as this season.' Sure enough, that's exactly what happened, as Chase essentially ran away with the 2025 Triple Crown, leading the sport in catches, yards and touchdowns. Advertisement Chase is an undeniably explosive player; he might be the best bet among all NFL wideouts to snag a short reception and take it to the house. However, he's always been well undersold as a route runner, technician and overall craftsman. I've spoken with him over the years about his intention to master all three wide receiver positions and win from every alignment. That was well expressed in 2024, as he took a career-high 32.2% snaps from the slot. 2) Puka Nacua Puka Nacua didn't disappoint one bit in his follow-up to a record-breaking 2024 rookie season. While he missed some time with a knee injury, he was the most efficient wide receiver in the NFL when he played. He led all wide receivers with 200-plus routes in successful targets per route run (23.5% of routes), yards per route run (3.57) and first downs per route run (17.7% of routes). There's a healthy gap between Nacua and the second-place finisher in each category. Advertisement While we all agree that Nacua benefits from playing with Matthew Stafford in Sean McVay's offense, he is not a creation of his surroundings. His 91st percentile success rate vs. zone coverage and 92nd percentile success rate vs. press in Reception Perception help confirm that. Nacua was already an after-catch demon, playing with rare power at the receiver position, but he made significant strides as both a separator and ball-winner in tight coverage in 2025. Overall, based on his film, I'm comfortable saying that Nacua made the leap into the Tier 1, elite group of NFL wide receivers. 3) Amon-Ra St. Brown It's tough to argue against the production of Amon-Ra St. Brown. Among this cohort of receivers, he ranks first in successful target rate (64%) and second in first downs per route run (13.9%) since 2022. He's been a hyper-efficient player who has carried a large burden of the targets in one of the NFL's best offenses. St. Brown is one of the best power slot receivers in the NFL, if not the best. Knocking him down too far in your rankings because of alignment is outdated thinking. St. Brown also deserves tremendous credit for improving as a separator against man and press coverage on an incremental basis every single season of his career. At worst, he's the first option among the NFL's second tier of receivers. Advertisement 4) Malik Nabers Malik Nabers was a walking, talking, explosive-play machine back at LSU and he largely brought every bit of that to the NFL field. Frankly, he was even more impressive as a technician than I expected right out of the gate. Some of his outrageous 2024 volume numbers (targeted on 31% of routes) are a reflection of a poor surrounding cast but his talent is commensurate with a player who should get the football as much as possible. It was a close call between Nabers and Ladd McConkey in terms of the best rookie wide receiver at beating man coverage last season. Those are the types of players we want to be super bullish on going forward. His ability to survive a poor rookie-year landing spot is a testament to his separation skills and big-play ability with the ball in his hands. On that note, I spoke with Nabers earlier this year and was quite impressed with his detailed approach to winning after the catch. Someone with his athletic traits paired with such a strong sense of the work and craftsmanship of the position can push to be one of the best wideouts in the NFL in due time. Advertisement 5) Drake London Drake London exploded for a major breakthrough third season and showed off his multi-layered skill set. After being deployed as a near-exclusive X-receiver in his first two seasons under Arthur Smith, London took career-high snaps in the slot and off the line of scrimmage in his first season with a new Rams-based coaching staff. Zac Robinson and co. really weaponized London's separation skills by putting him in motion and getting him work from multiple alignments. We got to see his strong ability over the middle on quick-hitters with Kirk Cousins through most of the season and then were reminded of his elite traits as a ball-winner on deeper, out-breaking routes with Michael Penix Jr. at the close. Hopefully, we see the best of both worlds come together in Penix's first full season as the starter in what's a well-constructed passing game. London should be viewed as an already established star player, considering he's right alongside Ja'Marr Chase in this cohort in yards per route run (2.10 to 2.18) and successful targets per route run (both 14.2% of routes). However, there's another level to jump in his game and he's a dark-horse bet to lead the NFL in targets this year. 6) Ladd McConkey While this doesn't mean he will be the top guy over the long term, as you can see based on my ranking here, Ladd McConkey was the best rookie wide receiver on film last season. It wasn't just tape; McConkey was productive as the clear-lead dog in the Chargers' passing game. Among this cohort of players, his 3.01 yards per route run vs. man coverage ranks second behind only Puka Nacua since 2022. Even better, his 84.4% success rate vs. press is currently the sixth-best mark in the Reception Perception full history database (2014 to present). Advertisement Don't you dare call him a slot-only player. He has all the skills needed to be considered a true No. 1 receiver. He is extremely quarterback-friendly as a technician, wins contested catches and is a menace with the ball in his hands. The only question about McConkey's future is whether his body can survive the full-season punishment a featured player on a good offense can expect to go their way. He suffered through several dings as a rookie and had injury issues in college. Otherwise, the sky is the limit. 7) Brian Thomas Jr. Brian Thomas Jr. was the fourth wideout drafted among the 2024 class but he could easily go down as the best among the group. Thomas was outrageously good in a bad situation as a rookie and put in his best work, both in the box score and on film, late in the season. He has a unique skill set among NFL receivers because he has the size and speed — along with the press- and man-coverage-route chops — to win out at X-receiver on a full-time basis. However, he was dynamic on designed touches with the ball in his hands, averaging 10 yards per target on screens last year. Advertisement In Year 2, Thomas finds himself paired with a play-caller who should be able to weaponize his special traits from multiple alignments. He needs to be a bit more consistent settling down and running routes with timing against zone coverage but that's a normal critique for rookie wideouts. I have full faith that Thomas has all the tools in the kit to be one of the best wide receivers in the NFL for a long time. 8) Garrett Wilson Garrett Wilson was just rewarded by the New York Jets with a massive new contract extension, and he's, without question, worth every penny of that deal. Wilson embodies the rotten situational luck often placed upon receivers drafted in the 2022 class. Each season in the NFL, Wilson has been saddled with bottom-barrel quarterback play and/or some of the worst-designed offenses we've seen in recent memory. Still, he's been incredibly productive and has gotten better each season on an individual basis. The Justin Fields pairing is a question mark for his fantasy outlook, but Wilson's worth among NFL receivers is beyond reproach at this stage. Wilson is an elite separator and can run any route on the tree. Even more notable, he took a big step in the contested-catch game last season, as he routinely had to adjust in-flight to passes behind or above him at the catch point. Those are the qualities that make him a true No. 1 receiver. After he spent most of the last two seasons tethered at X-receiver, only running mostly go, slant and out routes, I'm excited to see him with more dynamic deployment under OC Tanner Engstrand, who was the passing-game coordinator in Detroit. Advertisement 9) Chris Olave Since he entered the league in 2022, Chris Olave ranks sixth amongst this cohort in yards per route run (2.22) and sixth in first downs per route run (11.1% of routes). Fantasy football players seem to think Olave is more of a theory than an actualized player but that's just simply not true. He's been an extremely productive wideout since he was drafted by New Orleans. Olave is a fantastic route runner and a dangerous separator down the field. While there are some areas where he can improve his game, the issues for Olave have largely been outside of his control: an archaic offense in 2022/2023, his wayward chemistry with Derek Carr and, of course, serious concussions. He played extremely well as the X-receiver in Klint Kubiak's offense last season but I'm excited to see how he's deployed in a more versatile way with Kellen Moore. DeVonta Smith took a career-high 47.5% snaps in the slot last year under Moore and posted his most efficient season to date. I can envision a similar outlook for Olave if concussion issues don't rear their ugly heads again this year. Advertisement 10) Josh Downs The next three names, all of whom were drafted in the 2023 class, are really tight but give me Josh Downs at the top of the group. The Colts wide receiver trailed only Nacua and Nabers among this cohort in targets per route run (29.4% of routes) and was fifth in successful targets per route (15.1% of routes). Throwing the ball to Josh Downs produced good results and provided some of the few highlights in an otherwise downtrodden Indy passing game last season. Downs is such a positive force in the offense because he's a dynamic separator at all three levels, and against both man and zone coverage. He is truly one of the best route runners at the position. Additionally, he's an excellent ball-winner in tight coverage and has been such dating back to his UNC days with Drake Maye. He's more like a Tyler Lockett-type of player than your typical popgun slot merchant. Downs needs a better offensive environment to really put it in the box score but he's a fantastic young wide receiver whom the Colts need to put a premium on featuring in their passing game. Advertisement 11) Jaxon Smith-Njigba Jaxon Smith-Njigba took a major step forward in Year 2 from a production standpoint. The reality is that he was always a good player; the per-route metrics from his rookie season were a false flag and were impacted because he played behind two great receivers. JSN has always been a fantastic receiver when working against man coverage and the Seahawks finally weaponized that last season. He led all wide receivers with 4.96 yards per route run against man coverage from Week 10 on. Smith-Njigba's ability to win against man coverage and the condensed nature of Klint Kubiak's offense should ease any concerns about him taking more reps outside in Year 3. I'd like to see him improve as a tackle-breaker with the ball in his hands to put the final touches on his case as a true No. 1 receiver in what should be a breakthrough third season. 12) Rashee Rice Rashee Rice was only in our lives for a brief moment last year but he was excellent in his role with the Chiefs. I said after his rookie season that if he was going to maintain high volume with this play style and presnap deployment, he would need to become an elite zone-beater. It wasn't a full season but he turned in a 99th percentile success rate vs. zone coverage mark in Reception Perception. Over the last two seasons, he ranks second among this cohort in yards per route run (2.56) and third in first downs per route run (12.6% of routes). Some of that is inflated because of the small sample (he's 42nd among the group in total routes run), his unique role and his playing with Patrick Mahomes, but his unique blend of speed and power also does a ton of heavy lifting. Advertisement Right now, Rice profiles very similarly to JuJu Smith-Schuster's early career run with the Pittsburgh Steelers. That's not a bad place to be but I'm hoping to see signs of growth against man coverage this season and beyond so that he can walk further down the power-slot receiver archetype, a la Amon-Ra St. Brown. Rice's rookie season Reception Perception profile did carry some similarities to St. Brown's Year 1 showing. 13) Marvin Harrison Jr. Marvin Harrison Jr.'s rookie season was a disappointment relative to overly lofty expectations based on his predraft hype and his fantasy football ADP. However, when viewed in isolation, he was a good starting-level NFL X-receiver as a rookie. That's not nothing; it's a difficult gig, especially in this offense. I expect offensive coordinator Drew Petzing to make a more concerted effort to increase MHJ's reps in the slot and off the line of scrimmage in 2025. Advertisement Harrison is a much better separator than credited, especially when breaking off man coverage routes over the middle of the field. His quarterback needs to find him more effectively in those moments in Year 2. For Harrison's part, he needs to work on coming back to the ball, in addition to playing with more physicality and cleaner attack techniques at the catch point. Overall, I'm still optimistic about Harrison's chances to develop into a star-caliber player on his own, even if there are big outstanding questions about his deployment in Arizona and match with Kyler Murray. 14) Zay Flowers Zay Flowers held down this exact same spot in last year's version of this piece. He enjoyed a strong second season, during which he improved in several key areas. Flowers gets his share of schemed touches but showed growth against press coverage and remains one of the better zone-beaters. He and Lamar Jackson were much more in sync for downfield shots, and Flowers made defenses pay. Advertisement Flowers is still a bit mistake-prone at the catch point and can get a little loose on the details of his routes against man coverage. Those are some of the areas he needs to take another step to launch further up this list and be considered a true No. 1 wide receiver. He is, however, a really good player who has made the Ravens' pass offense better because of the layups his quick separation ability brings for Jackson. 15) George Pickens Just like Flowers, George Pickens is also ranked in the same position as he was last season. I will note that it was a close call between him and the first three names in the 'just missed the list' section below and I wouldn't argue if you prefer any of them to the former Steelers wideout. Advertisement Even if he wasn't a consistent player all through the course of last season, 2025 was still the best season of Pickens' career when viewed in isolation. He improved dramatically as a separator against man coverage, especially on quick stop routes and slants. He's the perfect fit for what was a vacant X-receiver gig in Dallas prior to his arrival. As long as Pickens is locked in, he could have a 2024 Tee Higgins-like season; one of the most productive No. 2 receivers in the league across from a versatile alpha wideout. Just missed the list, in order Jayden Reed didn't take a step forward as an individual player in Year 2, but he didn't regress, either. His frustrating production was mostly due to the offense's run-heavy nature after Jordan Love's injury and some confusing deployment. I still have plenty of hope for a true breakthrough season for Reed because he's an excellent separator and has improved in the contested catch game. He needs to address the drop issues from last season. Jameson Williams took a big step forward in his third NFL season. He's not a perfect player but was dangerous as a run-after-catch weapon on digs, slants and crossers. His speed shows up more in his ability to run away from people than it does on go routes on the outside. Advertisement Jordan Addison is an excellent option as the No. 2 receiver across from Justin Jefferson. He took a step forward as a ball-winner in tight coverage. His production might take a hit if this offense is a little bit less dangerous through the air with J.J. McCarthy set to start in the NFL for the first time. Rome Odunze is someone I'm willing to bet on as a big riser up this list in future seasons, if not as soon as this year. He was in the same tier of prospects as guys like Nabers and Harrison but was stuck in a uniquely miserable situation as a rookie. His play as a rookie was more than acceptable, much better than the per-route zealots will let you believe — they made the same mistake with JSN. He should be the X-receiver of Ben Johnson's offense and could lead this team in receiving. Rashod Bateman is a long-time personal favorite of mine. I still hold out hope that he can offer a real boom season at some point in his career. Even after multiple challenging injuries, his individual talent level is not far off from some guys ranked above him on this list. Advertisement Khalil Shakir emerged as a great answer in the slot for the Bills. He's a tough and rugged runner after the catch with good hands and instincts for zone coverage. Xavier Worthy looks like a useful player for the Chiefs' passing game but it'll be interesting to see where his role settles with Rashee Rice coming back. Hopefully, some of those missed deep shots from early last season connect in 2025 because that's where he's at his best as a separator. Ricky Pearsall doesn't have a case for this list based on a nearly lost rookie season after an August shooting. However, he was so fantastic as a man-coverage-beating receiver down the stretch of last season that I want to include him in the hopes he takes a big jump in Year 2. He's someone I'm betting on.
