Although fantasy football season is still far away, it still may be time for a refresher on which players are slated to be selected in the top three rounds of next year’s fantasy drafts. We’ll also be going over the biggest risks and potential values from each of the three rounds to make things more interesting.
While this order will certainly change over the course of the offseason, it’s still fun to see how the picks would look if next year’s draft happened today. Using PPR scoring, here is a mock draft of how I believe the top three rounds should go in 2025 redraft fantasy football leagues.
Round One
1.01 - Ja’Marr Chase - WR, CIN
1.02 - Saquon Barkley - RB, PHI
1.03 - Justin Jefferson - WR, MIN
1.04 - Bijan Robinson - RB, ATL
1.05 - Jahmyr Gibbs - RB, DET
1.06 - Amon-Ra St. Brown - WR, DET
1.07 - CeeDee Lamb - WR, DAL
1.08 - Puka Nacua - WR, LAR
1.09 - Malik Nabers - WR, NYG
1.10 - Brian Thomas Jr. - WR, JAX
1.11 - Nico Collins - WR, HOU
1.12 - Drake London - WR, ATL
Riskiest Pick
CeeDee Lamb (1.07)
I’d like to start off by saying that I do not think CeeDee Lamb will be a fantasy football bust in 2025. However, out of the 12 players listed in the first round, I have the most worries about Lamb’s outlook.
CeeDee Lamb managed to put together a solid fantasy season in the midst of one of the Cowboys’ worst seasons of the past decade. Quarterback Dak Prescott struggled mightily in comparison to his near-MVP season in 2023, tossing only 11 passing touchdowns in eight games before being shut down for the season with a hamstring injury.
Dallas’ season was practically over after that point. They limped to a 7-10 finish as their defense regressed significantly, placing bottom-five in the NFL in both scoring defense and opponent yards per game. Despite all of this, Lamb still compiled 1,194 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns. While he didn’t have any huge performances, he provided stability for fantasy teams over the course of the year.
My main worry with Lamb is the state of the offense, as well as first-year head coach Brian Schottenheimer. As previously stated, Dak Prescott didn’t amaze anyone in the weeks before his injury. If there are any lingering effects on his movement in the pocket or his ability to launch a ball downfield, Lamb may have a pretty low ceiling in 2025 compared to the other players going in the first round.
If Brian Schottenheimer can’t get this offense moving like it was in 2023, Lamb might not have a path to be the overall WR1 in fantasy football.
Best Potential Value
Drake London (1.12)
Drake London is one of my favorite players heading into the 2025 fantasy football season. After putting up a top-five season at his position with Kirk Cousins at quarterback for most of the year, London gets to have a full season with second-year quarterback Michael Penix Jr. under center.
London and Penix showed fantastic chemistry on the field last season. Through Penix’s three starts in 2024, London averaged 13 targets, 7.3 receptions, and 117.3 receiving yards per game. If the pair continue on this pace, Atlanta’s top wideout will undoubtedly repeat as a top-five player at the wide receiver position in fantasy football.
The USC product was also one of the safest players to start during the 2024 fantasy season, only scoring less than 10 PPR fantasy points in a game two times. London, who is one of my Top Targets In 2025 Fantasy Football Drafts, has emerged as one of the best young playmakers in the entire NFL, and I believe he will continue to impress fantasy managers in 2025.
Round Two
2.01 - De’Von Achane - RB, MIA
2.02 - Ashton Jeanty - RB
2.03 - A.J. Brown - WR, PHI
2.04 - Jonathan Taylor - RB, IND
2.05 - Josh Jacobs - RB, GB
2.06 - Bucky Irving - RB, TB
2.07 - Jaxon Smith-Njigba - WR, SEA
2.08 - Brock Bowers - TE, LV
2.09 - Trey McBride - TE, ARI
2.10 - Derrick Henry - RB, BAL
2.11 - Kyren Williams - RB, LAR
2.12 - James Cook - RB, BUF
Riskiest Pick
A.J. Brown (2.03)
Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown wasn’t a fantasy football disappointment in 2024, but, at the same time, didn’t exactly blow anyone out of the water statistically. Brown only played in 13 regular season contests but still managed to put up over 1,000 receiving yards.
Despite this, he remains the offense’s second option behind superstar running back Saquon Barkley, especially in the red zone. This has caused his ceiling to drop slightly, even if his floor in fantasy is still relatively high.
I think A.J. Brown will have a good season in 2025, but may not be quite as spectacular as some of the other names that will come off of the board in the second round.
Best Potential Value
Derrick Henry (2.10)
Derrick Henry had one of the best seasons of his career during his first year in Baltimore, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards as well as 16 touchdowns on the ground. He was named a finalist for the Offensive Player of the Year award and helped lead the Ravens to a fantastic season.
I believe Derrick Henry could be undervalued in 2025 because of two main factors: his age and the overall strength of the running back position.
There are plenty of intriguing, young backs who will be on the board during the first three rounds of fantasy drafts. However, I’m not ready to doubt Henry despite his age. He has a clear role in the offense and was given plenty of volume in 2024. If he is half as good as he was this season in 2025, his ADP will be a great value to fantasy managers.
In the second round, Henry will be one of the best values in all of fantasy football if he receives similar volume to 2024.
Round Three
3.01 - Lamar Jackson - QB, BAL
3.02 - Josh Allen - QB, BUF
3.03 - Christian McCaffrey - RB, SF
3.04 - Ladd McConkey - WR, LAC
3.05 - Jayden Daniels - QB, WAS
3.06 - Terry McLaurin - WR, WAS
3.07 - Tyreek Hill - WR, MIA
3.08 - Jalen Hurts - QB, PHI
3.09 - Chase Brown - RB, CIN
3.10 - Tee Higgins - WR, CIN
3.11 - Garrett Wilson - WR, NYJ
3.12 - Chuba Hubbard - RB, CAR
Riskiest Picks
Christian McCaffrey (3.03)
Tee Higgins (3.10)
Christian McCaffrey was arguably the biggest bust in all of fantasy football this season, only playing in four games due to Achilles Tendonitis and a PCL injury. After disappointing fantasy managers in 2024, he is hard to trust heading into next year. This is compounded by the fact that many of San Francisco’s top weapons had underwhelming fantasy seasons.
McCaffrey’s 2024 season has once again brought his health into question. He’s only played more than seven games in two of the past five seasons. This reason alone is enough for me to hesitate when thinking of selecting McCaffrey, who is one of the Top 5 Veteran Running Backs To Avoid in 2025, next season.
Bengals wideout Tee Higgins is also a risky pick in the third round, but for a completely different reason. At this point, we don’t know where Tee Higgins will be catching passes next year. Cincinnati is expected to use their franchise tag on the young receiver, but they would still have the option to trade him if they end up doing so.
Higgins is a great player, so my only current concern is that we don’t know which team he’ll be suiting up for in 2025. I expect an answer to this sooner rather than later.
Best Potential Value
Chuba Hubbard (3.12)
Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard was one of the biggest breakout players in fantasy football this season. The fourth-year running back averaged 4.78 yards per carry while stacking up 1,195 yards on the ground, as well as 11 total touchdowns.
Hubbard should be the team’s starter for at least the majority of the 2025 season after it was announced that 2024 second-round pick Jonathon Brooks is expected to miss the entire season with a knee injury he sustained late this year.
With this unfortunate fact in mind, Hubbard should produce similarly in 2025, making him an absolute steal in the late third round. He will once again have legitimate RB1 upside for fantasy teams looking for elite value in the first few rounds. Hubbard will put together another elite season in 2025 fantasy football.