Added touch: Opportunity knocks for these players in 2025

Players power teams, teams set schemes, immoderate schemes conscionable marque for a amended fit. Change is inevitable. And successful phantasy football, alteration tin supply an accidental for managers to summation an edge.

We spot important question each offseason, with immoderate teams losing a important information of their production, whether owed to escaped agency, commercialized oregon retirement. And those vacated carries successful the tally crippled oregon targets successful the walk crippled unfastened the doorway for idiosyncratic to capable the void.

As a phantasy manager, identifying teams that person important holes to fill, arsenic good arsenic the players who could measurement up and replenish that output, is simply a worthy endeavor.

Just past season, we saw the Jacksonville Jaguars and Los Angeles Chargers code deficiencies astatine wide receiver successful the draft, adding Brian Thomas Jr. and Ladd McConkey, respectively. Thomas finished his rookie play arsenic the WR4 successful phantasy and McConkey finished WR12.

The Philadelphia Eagles made the important determination to capable their spread successful moving backmost accumulation by inking Saquon Barkley arsenic a escaped agent. It's harmless to accidental that worked retired good for the Eagles and phantasy managers who selected Barkley successful drafts.

Opportunity knocks for respective players heading into the 2025 NFL season, truthful let's instrumentality a deeper dive and place 8 who basal retired arsenic you hole for your phantasy drafts.

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Wide receivers

Jerry Jeudy, Cleveland Browns

Jeudy yet delivered for managers successful his 5th play (and archetypal with the Browns), posting vocation highs successful targets (145), receptions (90) and receiving yards (1,229). He finished arsenic phantasy football's WR13 and, if not for mediocre backmost play from Deshaun Watson, could person had an adjacent amended season. Following Watson's season-ending wounded successful Week 7, Jeudy was Cleveland's wide No. 1 receiver implicit the team's last 10 games, accumulating 103 targets implicit that span. And contempt the beingness of Cedric Tillman and offseason summation Diontae Johnson, Jeudy should stay the apical people successful 2025 for a Browns squad that has a league-high 241 wide vacated targets. Jeudy is projected for 141 targets but presently is conscionable the WR33 successful our draught trends. Despite uncertainty erstwhile again astatine backmost and an aging violative enactment that had its stock of struggles past season, Jeudy is worthy considering arsenic a WR3 oregon WR4 based connected people measurement alone.

DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers

With George Pickens gone, Metcalf steps successful arsenic the wide No. 1 receiver for QB Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers, who are tied for the league's fourth-most vacated targets (214). Metcalf finished arsenic conscionable the WR32 past play with Seattle, but helium was disconnected to a blistery commencement -- ranking successful the apical 5 successful targets and receiving yards done the archetypal 7 weeks -- earlier a genu wounded suffered successful Week 7 slowed him. Upon his return, Jaxon Smith-Njigba had taken implicit arsenic the Seahawks' apical wideout.

Metcalf has 4 top-25 phantasy seasons successful his six-year vocation connected his résumé and leads the NFL successful extremity portion targets since entering the league, yet he's being drafted extracurricular the apical 20 astatine his presumption (WR22). Arthur Smith's strategy mightiness bounds wide passing volume, but Metcalf's red-zone usage should rebound from a career-low 9 targets successful that country past year. Metcalf has the accomplishment set, accidental and backmost upgrade to present high-end WR2 accumulation astatine a WR3 price. He could easy outperform his ADP and is 1 of my favourite mid-round targets successful 2025 phantasy drafts.

Rome Odunze, Chicago Bears

Odunze is not lone a worth astatine his existent draught presumption (WR32), helium besides has breakout imaginable pursuing the Bears' offseason overhaul connected offense. Efficiency volition beryllium the key. Odunze was 1 of 34 wide receivers to spot 100 oregon much targets past season. He managed lone 54 receptions successful 2024 but posted conscionable 10 less receiving yards (734) -- connected 19 little targets and 16 less receptions -- than seasoned teammate Keenan Allen (744). Allen, 2nd successful targets for the Bears past play with 119, is nary longer connected the roster, creating a void that Odunze is the favourite to fill.

As a rookie, Ozunze ranked 11th successful the NFL with 13 red-zone targets, much than chap first-year wideouts Brian Thomas Jr. (12) and Malik Nabers (11), A.J. Brown (11), CeeDee Lamb (10) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (10), to sanction a few. Only 3 of those targets turned into touchdowns, but it seems just to expect affirmative regression successful that area.

Now successful a Ben Johnson discourtesy with Caleb Williams entering his 2nd season, and a plethora of targets available, Odunze has the illustration of a second-year breakout with existent WR2 upside.

Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders

Meyers is 1 of the astir underrated wide receivers successful phantasy heading into 2025. The Raiders person the seventh-most vacated targets (177) and, contempt inconsistent backmost play, Meyers has softly posted 4 consecutive seasons with astatine slightest 800 receiving yards (two successful New England and the past 2 seasons successful Las Vegas). In 2024, helium acceptable vocation highs successful receptions (87), receiving yards (1,027) and targets (129) with conscionable 1 drop. Following the commercialized of Davante Adams anterior to Week 7, Meyers posted a 23.8% people stock (18th among WRs) and averaged 75.4 receiving yards per crippled (12th among WRs) the remainder of the way, finishing arsenic the WR20 implicit that span.

With Geno Smith present nether halfway successful Vegas, Meyers should spot much close heavy and red-zone targets. Though choky extremity Brock Bowers is the Raiders' apical enactment successful the passing game, Meyers is projected for the second-most targets and volition beryllium a fixture connected the field. Even if the Raiders tally much with highly-touted rookie Ashton Jeanty, Meyers' measurement and consistency marque him a flex with upside and possibly adjacent a beardown WR3. Currently going arsenic the WR44 successful phantasy drafts, he's a wide worth and belongs connected phantasy managers' ticker lists.

Running backs

Omarion Hampton, Los Angeles Chargers

Boasting a uncommon size-speed combination, Hampton is 1 of the astir breathtaking moving backmost prospects from the 2025 draught class. In 3 seasons astatine North Carolina, helium racked up 3,565 rushing yards and 36 touchdowns, including back-to-back seasons with 1,500+ yards and 15 touchdowns. Selected 22nd wide by the Chargers, Hampton steps into a run-heavy Greg Roman discourtesy down a top-tier violative enactment anchored by Rashawn Slater and Joe Alt. Hampton should spot the bulk of backfield touches, adjacent with Najee Harris successful the mix. While Harris volition stay involved, his one-year declaration and declining ratio suggest he'll beryllium much of a complementary piece.

Hampton is projected for implicit 250 touches successful a backfield that has 339 vacated touches from past season, the second-highest fig successful the league. He's firmly successful the RB2 speech and has RB1 upside successful a much-improved Los Angeles offense. A cleanable acceptable for Roman's north-south tally game, Hampton should besides spot ample reddish portion chances. He's presently RB18 successful our draught trends, and the hype is justified. Managers should consciousness assured landing Hampton arsenic their RB2 or, astatine worst, a high-upside flex.

RJ Harvey, Denver Broncos

Drafted 60th wide by the Broncos, Harvey landed successful 1 of the champion environments for moving backmost production. Head manager Sean Payton's discourtesy has agelong emphasized moving backmost engagement successful the passing game. Broncos backs person a league-high 226 receptions implicit the past 2 seasons, and Harvey is projected to pb the backfield successful touches portion taking implicit arsenic Denver's superior receiving back. Harvey has a smaller framework astatine 5-foot-8, 205 pounds, but helium ran a 4.40 40-yard dash astatine the harvester (fourth among RBs) and was 2nd successful his draught people successful runs of 10+ yards successful 2024.

The Broncos backfield is wide unfastened pursuing the departure of Javonte Williams, who accounted for 285 routes tally past season, much than doubly that of immoderate different Denver moving back. J.K. Dobbins is apt to stock early-down work, but Harvey should spot plentifulness of passing-down opportunities. And with the Broncos having the fifth-most vacated touches among NFL backfields, adjacent successful a two-man committee, Harvey would spot capable measurement to beryllium a high-end flex with RB2 upside.

Harvey besides benefits from moving down 1 of the league's champion violative lines. Denver returns each 5 starters from an elite portion successful 2025. Quinn Meinerz is arguably the league's champion close guard, and tackles Garett Bolles and Mike McGlinchey were fantabulous walk protectors past season. If the Broncos discourtesy takes a measurement guardant with Bo Nix and the enactment remains dominant, Harvey could transcend expectations successful Payton's RB-friendly scheme.

Kaleb Johnson and Jaylen Warren, Steelers

The Steelers' tally crippled is 1 you'll privation to support an oculus connected erstwhile piecing unneurotic your phantasy rosters for 2025. With Aaron Rodgers bringing stableness to the backmost presumption and a young violative enactment poised to amended pursuing a trial-by-fire 2024, Pittsburgh's discourtesy arsenic a full could instrumentality a large measurement forward. Johnson, selected successful the 3rd circular of April's draft, and Warren should beryllium large beneficiaries pursuing the departure of Najee Harris to the Chargers.

The Steelers person the astir vacated rushing attempts (376) arsenic good arsenic runs wrong the opponent's 10-yard enactment (41). They besides aren't shy astir involving their backs arsenic receivers retired of the backfield. Warren ranks apical 10 successful receptions by moving backs implicit the past 2 seasons and is the favourite to clasp third-down duties successful 2025. He's efficient, explosive and has the assurance of the Steelers' encephalon spot successful captious situations and the two-minute drill. Johnson could grip much of the early-down work, but some RBs person paths to phantasy relevance successful violative coordinator Arthur Smith's scheme.

Javonte Williams, Dallas Cowboys

Rico Dowdle had a ton of occurrence successful the Cowboys backfield successful 2024, appearing successful 16 games and ranking successful the apical 15 among moving backs successful rushing attempts, rushing yards, receptions and full yards. But Dowdle signed with the Carolina Panthers successful the offseason, giving Williams the accidental to inherit a bully chunk of that volume, arsenic the Cowboys person the astir disposable year-over-year opportunities (rushing attempts+targets) successful the full league. That is encouraging for Williams' prospects, adjacent if we admit that the Cowboys' violative enactment inactive has issues with consistency that request to beryllium addressed.

Williams is the astir proven early-down backmost successful Dallas and the champion receiving enactment of a radical that includes Miles Sanders and rookie Jaydon Blue. He did suffer touches down the agelong with the Broncos past play and volition apt signifier immoderate benignant of a committee alongside Sanders and Blue, but there's upside if helium becomes the go-to enactment connected passing downs. Williams profiles champion arsenic a mid-to-late circular flex with upside, but determination is accidental to beryllium seized.