Flag-Planting Time: Who are The Wolf’s 10 Best Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football?
The 2025 Fantasy Football season is just three days away from kicking off. I’ve done over 500 Best Ball drafts, while I have my 7th and 8th redraft fantasy drafts tonight. I’m sick, I know. But I am confident that, by now, I know the best picks in 2025 fantasy football.
Maybe you’re squeezing in a few last-minute drafts. Or maybe you’re admiring your glorious rosters and looking for some validation.
Regardless, it’s time to plant some flags. Here are The Wolf’s 10 Best Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football.
For more of the Best Picks for 2025 Fantasy Football, as well as Round-by-Round strategy, targets, and fades check out The Wolf’s 2025 Fantasy Football Guide! Support a small fantasy brand & dominate your draft.
The Best QB Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football
Drake Maye (QB-NE)
If a true Jayden Daniels level of “Unicorn Fantasy Football Breakout QB” emerges in 2025, Drake Maye would be the best bet.
No, this is not just my Patriots homerism. Unlike, say, Justin Fields, Maye does have the arm talent to emerge as a Josh Allen style passer – Allen was Maye’s most common “ceiling comparison” as a prospect.
Everything was stacked against Maye as a rookie. His line was, by far, the worst in the league. His weapons were similarly the worst in the league – Pop Douglas is a great No.3 / slot specialist, but should not be any team’s true No.1 WR. Worst of all, the Patriots’ play-calling was completely inept.
Despite all this, in Maye’s full games, he averaged 18.7 FPPG, which would’ve been QB11. This excludes a Jets game he got hurt after raking in 11.5 FPs in one quarter (45 FPs pace). Maye still delivered a 75th percentile accurate throw rate, and certainly passed every eyeball test.
In 2025, everything has improved. The Line is still problematic, but new arrivals Will Campbell, Morgan Moses, Georgia’s Jared Wilson, and maybe Garrett Bradbury are all honestly better than a single lineman the Pats trotted out in 2024. This line will still be outside the Top-20, but it’s at least capable. Throughout the 2025 Preseason, they’ve held up mostly well.
Meanwhile, Stefon Diggs is already back and tearing up camp. Rookie WR Kyle Williams looks like a stud so far. Pop Douglas has taken his game to new heights. Is it the best supporting cast in the league? No, but it’s 10,000x better than what Maye was throwing to last year.
Then stir in the playcalling. Say what you will about Josh McDaniels’ as a head coach, but the man knows offense. In his last OC stint, he coaxed a playoff berth and Pro Bowl season out of Mac Freakin’ Jones, who went for 3801 yards and 22 TDs and a 10-7 record. After I visited joint practices vs. the Commanders, I couldn’t have been more impressed with the scheme. WRs & TEs were running wide open, and Maye was hitting them in stride for huge YAC gains. Life just seemed way easier.
When he first returned to New England this offseason, McDaniels emphasized Maye has “got great size, really athletic…I’m interested to see how that develops. Like, is he gonna be a little bit of a runner like Josh Allen was in Buffalo? I don’t think he’s quite as big as Josh is, but guys like that that have those kinds of attributes, you can use them to run the football too…I’m interested to see when he plays if he becomes a little bit more of a dual-threat guy or if he’s just a pocket passer and a big, tall, strong guy in the pocket”
Recently in camp, McDaniels emphasized his desire to get Maye rolling on more designed runs, which could be absolutely massive:
“I mean, he had [421] yards rushing last year on no designed runs,” McDaniels said of Maye’s running ability. “The reality is those loose plays are hard to predict when they come up.”
It sounds like McDaniels is at least open to using Maye more as a rusher – Cam Newton averaged a career high 9.1 rush attempts under McDaniels. Last year, the Pats called only 7 TOTAL designed runs for Maye, despite him leading all quarterbacks in YPC (7.8). He ranked second in scramble rate, ranked second in scramble yards per game with 31.3.
Yet, Maye averaged 0.1 fantasy points per game on design runs. Jayden Daniels, Josh Allen were all at 3.5+. Jalen Hurts was at 7.4. The NFL’s leader in YPC was at 0.1 FPs on designed runs!
Maye’s 18.7 FPPG look even better with all this in mind. He can seemingly only go up from here with improved line, playcalling, and weapons. Maye looked phenomenal in the Training Camp I visited, carving up the Commanders in joint practices. Maye’s rushing usage will determine just how high his value skyrockets– but Unicorn Upside exists.
Drake Maye presents as my top 2025 Fantasy Football Breakout QB Candidate and a massive mid-to-late round fantasy buy. He is my QB8 (+8 ECR!) and 87th Overall Player (+31) in my 2025 Fantasy Football Rankings.
Bo Nix (QB-DEN)
The Broncos are projected for just the 14th most points in the league, but I think they’ll finish as a Top-7, possibly Top-3 offense, in 2025.
Bo Nix was the perfect “point guard” for Sean Payton as a rookie. He started slow, but ultimately seemed to find his footing by Week 5. From this point on, Nix was the QB5 in FPs w/ 21.4 FPPG.
In fact, Nix was one of only six QBs (Allen, Lamar, Daniels, Baker, Hurts) to hit 30+ points on 3+ occasions:
I believe Nix keeps that pace rolling all of 2025 and even takes another step forward. The results will be fantasy fireworks. In fact, he “spent the offseason training with Drew Brees–and it shows.” Brees praised the sophomore’s mental approach to the game, and drew many comparisons to his own process.
Plus, Nix’s weapons should be significantly upgraded. Evan Engram is set to man the invaluable “Payton Joker” role, and already flashed his YAC upside with a nice 58 yard catch-and-run. Rookie WR Pat Bryant has drawn “Michael Thomas” comparisons from Payton. Marvin Mims has added to his “playmaking menu” and looks ready for a full-time role, while Troy Franklin has also taken a “major year two leap.”
Plus, the Broncos running game should be vastly improved in 2025. Rookie RJ Harvey brings massive big-play juice, while JK Dobbins should be the nice, drive-converting, steadying factor Javonte Williams never could be last year.
Perhaps best of all, The Broncos also boast PFF’s No.2 offensive line for 2025. Continuity is crucial for linemen, and all five of Denver’s starting offensive linemen return. The Broncos’ offensive line led the NFL with a 90.8 PFF pass-blocking efficiency rating last season, allowing only 110 pressures on 677 snaps. Nix should have all the time he needs to operate Payton’s amazingly efficient aerial bonanza.
Ultimately, I do expect Nix to outscore Drake Maye, but he also goes 2+ rounds higher. There are WRs in Nix’s range I often look at instead, but when my WR room is full and/or Nix falls a tad, I click the Broncos’ QB as fast as I can. We could be looking at him like Drew Brees for years to come.
The Best RB Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football
Chase Brown (RB-CIN)
We were all in on Chase Brown last year, calling him the “Next Raheem Mostert” & a “Must Draft” after Round 9. Boy, did he make us look good! The price has gone up, but Chase Brown remains a phenomenal pick. He’s a bonafide League Winner any time he falls to Round 3, but even in Round 2, Chase Brown is a must-draft. I currently have him at 15th Overall on my 2025 Fantasy Football Big Board, a whopping +7 ECR.
Brown did not become the full-time starter until Week 8 – but once he did, Brown was a genuine league-winner. From Week 9 on, Brown played 85% of the snaps (crazy!). Per RotoViz’s NFL Stat Explorer:
Even crazier was just how much Brown monopolized the touches – from Week 9 on Brown saw 193 touches, compared to just EIGHT for the other RBs (97% opportunity share).
Brown averaged 24.4 Opportunities per game and led all RBs in Expected Fantasy Points during this span, too. He ultimately finished in the Top-12 RBs in 75% of those games and was the RB5 in fantasy, averaging nearly 19 FPPG. He was fifth in the NFL in yards from scrimmage over this span, just 29 yards behind Ja’Marr Chase! Extrapolated over the season, he was on pace for 1976 scrimmage yards.
According to The Athletic, “the Bengals won’t give him the same nearly 100 percent workload of that stretch, but it won’t be too far off.” The same article notes how the Bengals “restructured the run game specifically around his skill set to increase his 4.3 yards per carry and are utilizing him more split out wide versus linebackers.” To the moon!
Sure, the team added Samaje Perine, who will siphon some passing-down work, mostly for protection. Which is perfectly fine– Brown got the vast majority of his receiving work on 1st and 2nd down on designed routes & averaged 5.5 targets per game (including an 11 target game in a shootout vs. Baltimore. If Perine becomes a goalline vulture, that would be annoying – but Brown absolutely thrived at converting TDs.
Bengals OC Dan Pitcher is clearly all-in on Brown. He recently gushed, “I think Chase Brown is going to, by the end of the season, be a household name– He’s everything that Austin Ekeler was. … I think that by the time the season’s over, [you’ll all] know who he is.” Pitcher also called Brown a “focal point of the Bengals offense this year.”
Ultimately, this is a featured RB in a Top-5 offense – one who can shoulder all responsibilities. In one of the best Rookie RB classes in decades, the Bengals only added a 6th Rounder – Tahj Brooks – who is an intriguing handcuff, but no major threat. I am drafting Brown with supreme confidence – he is the perfect follow-up to a Ja’Marr Chase / Justin Jefferson at the top of your draft.
Omarion Hampton (RB-LAC)
Selected by the Chargers at No.22, Omarion Hampton is an athletic FREAK with a phenomenal production track record.
Hampton ripped off a blazing 4.46 forty despite weighing a sturdy 221 lbs, while also posting elite explosion metrics in the vertical and broad jumps:
He broke out as a sophomore for Drake Maye’s Tar Heels, posting a 253-1,504-15 rushing line (5.94 YPC) and adding 29-222-1 as a receiver over 13 games. Even with Maye gone and UNC crumbling, Hampton continued to thrive as a true workhorse, recording 281-1,660-15 on the ground (5.91 YPC) with 38-373-2 receiving.
His 138.3 rushing YPG led all Power Conference RBs and ranked as the best season of any Power Conference RB in this stacked 2025 class, and placed Hampton in some elite company:
Even more impressive? Hampton hit 1,000 yards after contact in both years. He’s a tackle-churning, three-down beast with enough breakaway juice to hit the long one. He actually led UNC in receptions per game (3.2, min. 8 games) in his final college season!
Hampton also has a dream environment. The Chargers have PFF’s No.10 ranked line. Greg Roman’s offenses are routinely among the run-heaviest, never finishing outside the Top-11 in attempts. His scheme is incredibly RB friendly, with diverse blocking concepts that get backs in space. Just last year, that Chargers offense was tied for the sixth-most RB carries inside the 5-yard line. Justin Herbert’s rocket arm promises to keep boxes light and TD chances aplenty. It’s a gold mine situation.
The only issue appeared to be Najee Harris, who the team signed to a one-year deal worth “up to $9.25M.” However, Harris suffered an eye injury in a fireworks accident, and missed pretty much all of Training Camp. While Harris avoided the PUP, suggesting he will be back in the early portion of 2025, he still has yet to practice in full.
Hampton was likely to beat out the sluggish Harris by midseason anyways, but his runway for the Day One starting job has been clear. Throughout camp, “Hampton was the clear lead back” with “game-changing talent” according to The Athletic’s Daniel Popper. OC Greg Roman said Hampton “looks even faster with pads on” and is absolutely thrilled with the rookie.
Matthew Berry has been lights-out with recent “Ride or Dies” (Jalen Hurts, Amon-Ra St. Brown), and Hampton was his pick this year:
He mentions Hampton has won over all of his teammates, who “hate tackling him” in practice because of the boom he is bringing.
A fresh and explosive talent, with three-down skills, within a creative and run-obsessed scheme, playing with a Top-10 Line and Top-10 QB? The math is easy, and Hampton is a smash RB2, especially given his late third, early fourth price.
Jaydon Blue (RB-DAL)
Jaydon Blue is my favorite bet to be a true fantasy football league-winner after Round 10, and my favorite 2025 Fantasy Football Sleeper, regardless of position.
The opportunity in the Cowboys backfield is wide-open, and Blue possesses the receiving skills and second gear no one else on the depth chart comes close to matching.
Let’s talk about the prospect first. Blue blazed a 4.38 at The Combine despite dealing with a “little groin injury.” He followed this up with a 4.25(!) Pro Day Forty (best in this class, and second best all-time among RBs!). This isn’t just timed speed, either – Blue ripped a 77 yard TD vs. Clemson, and multiple other 30+ yard scores. It pops on tape.
Despite his small frame (5’9”, 198 lbs), Blue is also phenomenal at running through contact. 73% of his rush yards were after contact, #1 in this class. His 4.0 yards after contact/rush were #4 in this class, and his 3.4 YPC when hit at/behind the line-of-scrimmage was #1. He can make something happen out of nothing with the best of them. Ultimately, he took 134 carries for 730 yards (5.4 YPC) and 8 TDs, including a ton of production in the biggest games.
Where Blue really thrived was a receiver. His 25% target rate was #2 in this class, while his 16% slot share was #1. He’s capable of a full route tree, and recorded some impressive contested TD grabs. Ultimately, he hauled in 42 passes for 368 yards and 6 TDs.
Ultimately, Blue might be the best big-play outside zone threat in this class – he averaged 7.3 YPC on these types of runs, which was best in the class. The Cowboys run outside zone at a Top-5 rate, making this a glove-like fit.
The Cowboys vacated 91.6% of their carries from last year (317), both by far the most in the league. Blue is competing with luminaries like Javonte Williams (the least efficient rusher in the NFL since his injury) and Miles Sanders (who couldn’t get on the field despite the Panthers losing their second-round rookie RB last year). This should not be a hard depth chart to ascend.
Plus, plenty of intriguing prospects like DJ Giddens and Ollie Gordon were still on the board when the Cowboys took Blue. They specifically sought him out, and likely have a large role in mind.
Sure, the random OTAs report from an ex Cowboys coach that “Blue was borderline lazy” had me a little spooked. Yet, that rumor seems completely unfounded, or has at least been buried by Blue’s impressive start to Training Camp.
Beats noted it’s “hard to ask for a much better first week of camp,” while also “making the catch of camp” – an insane, diving-backwards, one-handed snag reminiscent of OBJ. Another noted “the rookie rusher seems to effortlessly get to top speed faster than the defenders attempting to corral him.” HC Brian Schottenheimer seemed to take a direct shot at this quote when asked about Blue’s camp so far:
“The speed. The dynamic playmaking ability. He’s a dual-threat guy. You can hand him the ball and he doesn’t need a lot of space to make guys miss. His acceleration is uncanny, his ability to get to top speed is unique. He’s such a talented young man … What I like is the professionalism he’s shown at this camp,” Schottenheimer said of Blue, per Patrik Walker of the team’s official website.
Two days later, Schottenheimer left me with an erection that lasted far longer than four hours: “The quickness and ability to accelerate into the hole, it’s just different. He’s got incredible lateral agility and quickness. … He reminds me of a larger version of Darren Sproles. I don’t use that lightly.” Sir, I can only get so hard.
Meanwhile, when asked about Javonte Williams, OC Klayton Adams on how Javonte Williams has stood out so far:
“Uh, I think experience and … wisdom. I know that he’s not a real, real older player. But he’s been through some things in the league. … So you see a really good level of maturity in the guy. You really see that the most when he’s helping his teammates.”
Um… yeah. I’ll take “Bigger Darren Sproles” and the “dual threat with uncanny speed and acceleration” any day over “uhhhh. Wisdom.”
Yes, Blue missed some time with a bruised heel. Still, the RBs have just looked god awful throughout the preseason in his absence. It’s only a matter of time ‘til he’s proven to be too talented to keep off the field.
Should Dak Prescott remain healthy, this offense looks to be Top-8 in total scoring. The Line isn’t what it once was, but still is league-average at worse.
Given Blue’s Round 11+ Price Tag, if you miss, no sweat. But if you win, you are getting “Diet Jahmyr Gibbs” in an explosive offense. Jaydon “Your my Boy” Blue could go absolutely ballistic, and is my favorite sleeper in 2025 Fantasy Football. I have Blue at 111 Overall on my 2025 Fantasy Football Big Board, +27 ECR!
The Best WR Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football
Mike Evans (TB-WR)
Entering his 12th NFL Season, Evans continues aging like a fine wine. In 2024, he tied Jerry Rice for an insane 11th straight 1,000 yard season despite missing 3 games.
He also finished as the WR9 in FPPG (14.5 Half PPR), which was the third most FPPGs of his illustrious career. Even crazier, Evans also posting a career-high YPRR (2.44), his best target-rate since 2016, and finishing 2nd in FantasyPoints’ separation score.
If you had any doubts: the man can still ball!
Evans is especially valuable in Best Ball. He trailed only Ja’Marr Chase in total “spike weeks” (18+ FPs) with 6, and Evans’ 42.9% Spike Week Rate was the best in the entire league. Indeed, Evans can be a bit maddening in typical sit-start leagues – he was either a Top-8 WR (43%) or outside the Top-25 (50%) in nearly every contest.
Still, Evans’ ADP falling to Round 4 after the season he just posted is disrespectful. Sure, losing Liam Coen might hurt this whole offense, and Baker Mayfield is a clear TD regression candidate. Yes, Evans is older than most. But he’s shown no signs of slowing down and is truly one of the All-Time greats.
Plus, Chris Godwin is not expected back until October at the earliest. Cade Otton is now questionable for Week 1. Jalen McMillan suffered a neck injury and will be out until Week 9, at the earliest.
This has caused Emeka Egbuka‘s price to skyrocket, and understandably so. Yet, Evans has barely moved, despite looking like a clear Target Hog in a Top-5 passing offense. Motivated to take the consecutive 1,000 yard season record all for his own, Evans is going to ball once again.
Courtland Sutton (WR-DEN)
Courtland Sutton has become my Priority Round 4 / 5 WR, and someone I want on every team to close out 2025 Draft Season. Last year’s WR11 is now going as the WR22, even though Bo Nix and the entire offense project for a nice step forward, and Sutton is the Clear No.1.
Yes, some “competition” was added in Evan Engram and Pat Bryant, but Sutton has locked down Payton’s Michael Thomas “move the chains” role and thrived.
In fact, after his random goose egg in Week 7, Sutton averaged 18.2 PPR FPs and was the WR7 in fantasy. This coincided with Bo Nix’s QB5 stretch run, and Sutton was nearly unstoppable; he finished as a Top-12 WR in 50% of his games during this stretch, while never dropping below 10 PPR points:
Plus, if the preseason is any indication, Sutton should once again be the runaway No.1 target for this ascending passing game. Across two drives with Bo Nix, Sutton logged 100% snaps, 100% routes, 50% targets, 75% of yards. He posted 7 targets, 4 catches, 83 yards, and 1 TD across.
No other pass-catcher topped 2 targets from Nix in the same span. Those catches include a sick back-shoulder to convert a 4th-and-7, followed by an incredible TD grab. Sutton still has plenty of juice, and for whatever reason, is not viewed as the Alpha WR1 in a Top-10 Passing Attack like he should be.
I’ll eat up Sutton anywhere in Round 4, but especially in Round 5 where he currently falls too. Sutton is the safest high floor, high ceiling bet in the Round 4/5 range with legitimate Top-10 Upside.
Sutton has emerged on The Wolf’s Must Draft List!
Jameson Williams – ADP 65, WR29
Jameson Williams already had a mini breakout in 2024, leaping from the WR74 to the WR25 in FPPG while topping 1,000 yards.
Yet, I believe this was just the beginning of Williams’ ascent, and feel he could ascend as high as the Top-15 in 2025.
New Lions OC John Morton is reportedly emphasizing the vertical game even more, and Williams has been thriving as a result. HC Dan Campebll said Williams has “gotten so much stronger” and “the sky’s the limit,” while Morton expects a “breakout year.”
Where Williams can grow most is his consistency. He was quite boom-or-bust in 2024, with three games above 22+ FPs, but also five below 10 FPs (via RotoViz):
Yet, Williams reportedly embraced “the grind” according to Campbell, who said “No player has developed more as a player and just as a teammate like Jamo has, in really his four years.” This has led Morton to expand Williams’ route tree:
“I knew I could run more routes, but he’s putting me in position to run more routes. I’m getting better with cuts and angles and how to run this route and that route. So I would say, more polished is my route game.”
By all Training Camp reports, Williams has been the hardest player to cover, both by the Lions and by any team they’ve faced in joint practices. Ultimately, Amon-Ra St. Brown should still be the largest target earner here, but with an expanded route tree, Jameson could narrow that gap. Given how deadly Williams is with his looks, he could steady out his weekly floor while raising his ceiling, considering he can break the long one in the blink of an eye.
I am extremely high on Williams, ranking him as the WR19 in my 2025 Fantasy Football Rankings — a whopping +10 spots on his ADP. I also have him up at 43 overall on my 2025 Fantasy Football Big Board, which is +22 spots above his ADP. Williams has 2025 Fantasy Football Breakout written all over him.
The Best TE Picks in 2025 Fantasy Football
George Kittle (SF-TE)
George Kittle might be the best pick in 2025 Fantasy Football.
He has finished as a Top-5 TE in FPPG in seven straight years, including a TE1 finish last year (15.8 FPPG). Yes, Kittle scored more points than Bowers last year… on 59 fewer targets. Kittle’s floor has always been incredible, but Brock Purdy has raised Kittle’s ceiling to new heights.
In all three years Purdy has been with the 49ers, Kittle has ranked No.1 in Fantasy Points Over Expectation, emphasizing both Kittle’s insane efficiency and also his tremendous rapport with Purdy. This is especially true in the Red Zone – Kittle had never topped 6 TDs in a single-season through his first five years, but has averaged 10 per season with Purdy at the helm.
Kittle also averaged 14+ yards per catch for two straight years, which is even more insane considering his 83% catch rate in 2024. He has led TEs in YPRR in both full seasons with Purdy, with 2.3 and a whopping 3.1 respectively. In fact, Kittle has led TEs in YPRR for five of the last six seasons.
Despite ranking just 7th in targets, Kittle finished 2nd in YAC (522), 4th in Air Yards (800), 3rd in target depth (8.5), and 2nd in Red Zone tgts (21) in 2024.
In short, Kittle gets the high-value volume and does more with his touches than any TE in the league.
People often label Kittle “boom-or-bust,” but he was a Top-12 TE in a whopping 87% of games last year and Top-5 with over 14+ FPs over half the time (53.3%). For comparison, Bowers and McBride both spiked for 14+ FPs in just 35% and 31.3% of their games respectively:
Even better? His only two real duds are easily explained. Week 18, Kittle did not play most of the meaningless game with backup Josh Dobbs at QB. In Week 13, it was a blizzard – Purdy threw 98 yards and Allen wasn’t much better with 148. If you remove those two duds, Kittle would have finished as THE WR5 in fantasy!
Overall, since Purdy took over in Week 13 of 2022, Kittle has been a Top-12 in 72% of games as well. He’s scored 25 TDs over that span, by far the most in the league.
The craziest part? Kittle is set up for the most volume of his career in 2025. Deebo Samuel is gone. Brandin Aiyuk is expected to miss a large chunk of the season. I like Ricky Pearsall and Jauan Jennings, but Kittle will very likely be the main vein of this passing attack.
In 5 full career games with Brock Purdy at QB while Deebo Samuel was out, Kittle averages a herculean 5.5 receptions, 92 yards, and 1 TD per game. His 17 game pace would be 94 rec, 1564 yards, and 17 TDs – this would amount to 352.4 FPs (21 FPPG), which would be the most ALL TIME, besting Gronkowski’s insane 2021 by 20 points.
You may say the sample size is small, and it is at five games. Yet, Kittle’s explosions in these weeks makes sense. He’s the best YAC TE in the game, and his routes overlap a ton with Deebo Samuel in those short to intermediate ranges. When Samuel was removed, Kittle was leaned upon more than any one else to provide this element – and he could see that type of volume all of 2025 now.
When he does miss, Kittle misses hard – he’s been outside the Top-24 TEs in 22% of games with Purdy. Clearly though, he’s hitting far more often than missing. Sure, Kittle is 31 and he typically misses 1-2 games per season. Christian McCaffrey is also a volume sponge.
So the floor is Top-5, the ceiling is the best TE season of all-time, and the price is almost 2 rounds cheaper than either Brock Bowers or Trey McBride? Sign me up ALL DAY for George Kittle, who could easily outscore either of those two (as he just did last year) but with far less opportunity cost.
Tyler Warren – ADP 101, TE10
I’ll get this out of the way now: Tyler Warren is NOT on the level of Brock Bowers, who was featured in this section last year. Quite frankly, few, if any, are.
Still, Warren is an elite prospect. His 2024 season was the stuff of legends, among the greatest in college football history: 104 receptions (135 tgts), 1233 yards, 8 TDs, along with 26 carries, 218 yards, and 4 TDs as a RUNNER!
His 1451 YFS are the most by a TE in Power Conference history, and over 400 more than Brock Bowers in 2022, who was next closest. His receptions and targets also rank 1st, as do his first downs (67) and YAC (693 – most of any player in 2024, including WRs). His 2.77 YPRR is bested only by Bowers’ 3.01 in 2021 among Power Conference TEs.
Warren is incredibly versatile; he played 40+ snaps at: RB, QB, Wide, Inline, and Slot. These numbers are ABSURD – especially for a Tight End. Sure, a lot of it was designed and dink-and-dunk. That doesn’t change how voraciously Warren feasted once he had the rock.
He lands in with a Colts team that’s crowded, but not insurmountable. All of Josh Downs, Michael Pittman, and deep threat Alec Pierce are fine. But this is far from an impossible Target Totem Pole to climb atop.
In fact, that’s what Warren has done thus far in camp, with both QBs. Some beat writer hype includes: “It was practically impossible to watch an Indianapolis practice and not notice how often Warren touched the football.”
Another reporter gushed, “Through the first week of camp, Warren has looked the part of a pro, and projections for his rookie season seem to keep increasing with every strong practice he stacks. The Colts have been looking for a game changer at TE for so long, and the early signs in camp suggest they have finally found it in Warren.”
The hype dates even further back, though. Coach Speak Index compiled all the quotes here, but some standouts:
-GM Chris Ballard: “He can do a lot. He can play multiple spots. He’s got the quarterback background, so he can play in the backfield. He’s a great 50/50 ball catcher. He’s violent after the catch. He brings an element of toughness that I thought we needed to add offensively…I think Shane [Steichen] will find unique ways to use him. He’s one of those guys who’s always open. That’s part of his uniqueness. His hands are pretty rare. I thought he had the best hands of any player in the draft. He’s a unique dude. He’s gonna be able to handle a high volume of whatever we ask him to do.”
-HC Shane Steichen: “Tyler Warren can do it all. He’s physical with the ball in his hands. He gets YAC, he’ll lay the wood on you, he’ll hurdle you. He’s gonna bring a lot to our team, for sure. He’s a big target who plays above the rim. When guys are on him, he’s still open… We’ll have some fun with all the things Tyler Warren is able to do…Tyler Warren is very smart, he picks up things very quickly. He’s been phenomenal so far. His movement skills, great feel, great instincts.”
-OC Jim Bob Cooter: “We’re putting a lot on Tyler Warren’s plate. I think he’s gonna be a very versatile piece for us. We’re gonna try a bunch of different stuff with him, give him a bunch of shots at a bunch of different aspects of playing offensive football. I think he’s gonna do a bunch of it really, really well.”
So everyone in the building is obsessed with Warren, praising his versatility and promising a high-volume role. Warren has been a target vacuum all Training Camp, and he paced the Colts in preseason targets with the first-team too.
Factoring in his production profile, and Warren is a slam dunk as the highest-upside TE available in Round 10+. This is especially true with Daniel Jones now locked-in as the Colts starting QB — while he isn’t great, anything is better than Anthony Richardson. Plus, Jones LOVES checking down, and Warren has looked like his go-to safety valve all summer.
Ultimately, Warren is my TE7 (+4 ADP) in my 2025 Fantasy Football Rankings and my favorite Fantasy Football Breakout candidate at Tight End.
If you enjoyed this content and would like to support The Wolf and a small fantasy-brand like us, check out The Wolf’s 2025 Fantasy Football Guide! He gives plenty of more 2025 Fantasy Football Targets, and so much more on the perfect Draft Strategy to feast in 2025 Fantasy Football!
