More than half a season has passed in the 2025 NFL season, and at this point, the rookie class is starting to round into form. While some promising players are still waiting for their shot, it’s no longer too early to get a sense of dynasty owners’ return on investment.
To that end, today we’re redrafting the first two rounds of dynasty rookie drafts. For the purposes of this article, we’ll be assuming a 12-team Superflex league with full PPR and a 0.5 TE premium.
If your draft picks are fallers in this article, not to worry. These players might just be about to explode. Just imagine how much higher TreVeyon Henderson is in this article than he would have been merely three weeks ago.
Round 1
1.01 - Emeka Egbuka, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Egbuka is currently the WR8 in full PPR leagues as a rookie, is running above the coveted 2.0 yards per route run threshold, and projects to be the long-term WR1 in a prolific and fantasy-friendly Buccaneers passing attack.
Stable WR1 scoring is one of the most valuable assets you can find in dynasty, and Egbuka balances current production with a favorable long-term outlook as a consistent high-end fantasy scorer.
Compared to the blue-chip running back prospects, who still project just fine long term, Egbuka’s rookie season contribution to your fantasy lineup gives him the edge.
1.02 - Tyler Warren, TE, Indianapolis Colts
After Egbuka, the next six or so names can go in pretty much any order without complaints from me. Because I’m assuming a 0.5 TE premium format here, and again because of rookie season production, I’ll narrowly give Tyler Warren the edge over the blue-chip rushers and Tetairoa McMillan.
Similarly to Egbuka, I give Warren the edge because the long-term projection is every bit as good as the prospects he’s edged out, just with outstanding rookie year production. He’s no longer a projection, since he’s already one of the best players at his position and on his team.
There are certain players I’ll be mentioning in the near future who I’m still confident will one day be considered among the elite at their positions, but it is still a projection. Warren and Egbuka eliminated the guesswork.
For his part, Warren is on pace to eclipse 85 catches and 1,000 receiving yards, is attached to an elite offense, and could quite possibly be the most compelling pass catcher on his team. When a fantastic role meets elite projection and outstanding production, you have yourself an elite dynasty asset.
1.03 - Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders
There’s no sugar coating it, it’s been a disappointing rookie season for Ashton Jeanty. However, dropping him too far would be extremely reactionary for two reasons.
First, draft capital is very sticky for running backs, as it’s rare for running backs who receive top ten draft capital to not post an RB1 season over the course of their rookie contract. Secondly, the lack of production is not so much due to Jeanty’s performance as it is the Raiders’ abysmal run blocking and offensive environment.
While the state of the Raiders’ offense is concerning, and I can’t just shrug it off, Jeanty was too good a prospect to lose faith in this early, and I still believe in him as the highest scoring running back in this class over the course of his rookie contract. The Raiders have some serious work to do this offseason after they badly misread how ready their roster was to compete. Expect Pete Carroll, who isn’t getting any younger, to be active in the veteran quarterback market, for better or for worse.
1.04 - Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Carolina Panthers
What a difference a week makes. After spending the entire season looking like a fine player but languishing on an anemic passing attack led by an uninspiring Bryce Young, McMillan was finally rewarded with a monster week against the Atlanta Falcons.
Long term, McMillan projects as the WR1 of Dave Canales’ passing attack, and he’s more than capable of making good on that projection. While I don’t believe in Bryce Young long-term, talent tends to be stickier than situation, and I have no doubts about McMillan’s talent.
1.05 - Jaxson Dart, QB, New York Giants
This is the most high-risk, high-reward selection so far in this redraft. If Jaxson Dart continues scoring fantasy points with his legs at his current rate (or even somewhat slower), and if he keeps on passing the eye test, he could even become the most valuable rookie in this draft class for Superflex fantasy formats.
Quarterbacks who score points with their legs are gold, and Dart has looked like he could be good not just for fantasy but for real life. However, if Dart turns out to be more of a “good for fantasy, bad for winning football games” type of player, then this spot will prove way too high for him. For now though, his value is insulated, as he’s clearly doing enough with a bad supporting cast to deserve a hype train going into next season with a healthy Malik Nabers and further improvement to the roster.
1.06 - Omarion Hampton, RB, Los Angeles Chargers
Hampton’s high ankle sprain really killed his momentum, as prior to that he was stepping into a bellcow role. With his size/speed combination and secure hands, Hampton can score points every which way in fantasy formats, all while sharing the field with an elite quarterback who keeps defenses honest.
It's important to note that I don't consider Hampton a faller in this redraft. It's more accurate to say that other players passed him while he was idle recovering from his high-ankle sprain.
1.07 - TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots
While the early vibes surrounding Henderson were downright weird, and it’s still an open question how he performs once Rhamondre Stevenson comes back, at the moment, he’s the most explosive weapon in a Drake Maye-led offense.
Maye has taken the next step and looks like a superstar, and a rising tide raises all ships. Going forward, Henderson projects as an explosive weapon both on the ground and through the air, on an offense that should continue putting up points throughout his rookie contract.
1.08 - Quinshon Judkins, RB, Cleveland Browns
Admittedly, Judkins has outplayed Henderson over the course of the whole season, so there may be some recency bias involved in drafting Henderson first. For his part, Judkins looks like an excellent rusher, with a nose for getting tough yards but also enough vision and explosiveness to bounce runs to the outside.
However, Judkins is on an abjectly terrible offense. I know just a couple paragraphs ago I said that talent trumps situation, but within the same tier, I’m going to break ties in favor of Henderson, who already is tied to an MVP-caliber quarterback. It doesn’t help that the Browns’ offensive line is extremely far from being even just average, and who knows whether the quarterback situation will get fixed in our lifetimes.
1.09 - Cam Skattebo, RB, New York Giants
Skattebo really looked like he was going to run away with a role as the Giants’ bellcow before a gruesome ankle injury. Fortunately, his prognosis is favorable, with Ian Rapoport mentioning that this injury has a relatively straightforward rehab process.
Before his injury, Skattebo looked like an excellent rusher with a stranglehold on goal-line work and solid production in the receiving game. While his top-end speed will never be his calling card, he produces explosive plays with great tackle-breaking and surprisingly effective movement ability in short areas.
Long term, Skattebo forms part of an exciting young core of the Giants’ offense along with Malik Nabers and Jaxson Dart.
1.10 - Oronde Gadsden, TE, Los Angeles Chargers
By far the biggest riser on this list, Gadsden was an afterthought during dynasty rookie drafts. Despite not profiling as a full-service tight end, he’s quickly carved a big role for himself in the Chargers’ passing attack.
There are lots of mouths to feed in this offense, and that generally prevents a tight end from becoming a consistent elite fantasy producer, but in the meantime, we can just enjoy Gadsden playing well in a Justin Herbert offense.
1.11 - Travis Hunter, WR, Jacksonville Jaguars
Honestly, I was very disappointed with how the Jaguars handled Hunter this year. Yes, it was bold to commit to him as a two-way player, but the execution left something to be desired. In an effort to get Hunter on the field in both phases, the Jaguars neglected to actually utilize him in either phase.
Focusing on the offensive side of the ball, Hunter started the season as essentially a pop gun PPR scam, but one who wasn’t on the field very often. Hunter owners need to hope this was just the first phase of his integration into the offense, soon to be followed by a larger role. Neither the Jaguars nor dynasty owners will get a return on investment on Hunter if he doesn’t find his way into two-receiver sets.
In college, Hunter showed the skillset of an alpha WR1, with elite movement skills and ability at the catch point. Long term, the regression of Brian Thomas Jr nudges open the door for Hunter to work as the WR1 in Jacksonville, but he’ll need to learn the entire offense, rather than languishing as merely a package player. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait for next season to see that, as Hunter’s season-ending injury scuppered any hopes of a breakout down the stretch.
1.12 - R.J. Harvey, RB, Denver Broncos
Early on, Harvey struggled for touches behind J.K. Dobbins, who was gobbling up most of the early down rushing work. Additionally, the Broncos’ offense has been inconsistent all year, looking unwatchable for long stretches before kicking into gear just long enough to eke out a win.
Due to J.K. Dobbins’ season-ending injury, Harvey is in the driver’s seat of that running back room for the rest of the season. On the other hand, in certain games, there just won’t be much opportunity for him, and Sean Payton runs one of the least concentrated offenses I’ve ever seen, with double-digit players getting touches in a single game.
With a wide-open path to playing time down the stretch, Harvey could easily turn into a league winner and vault up several spots. However, it’s hard to say he’s shown enough to simply assume he’ll take over a room that hasn’t produced a high-end fantasy scorer in a long time.
Round 2
2.01 - Colston Loveland, TE, Chicago Bears
At this point in the redraft, it’s starting to take more guesswork to project who will emerge down the stretch. For my money, Loveland is closer to being an above-average real-life player and fantasy asset than the others who fell into the second round.
The targets haven’t been there consistently, but Loveland has flashed with a big game in the last couple weeks and is generally taking advantage of his opportunities. There are a lot of mouths to feed in this offense, but it’s an ambiguous group in which Loveland has the chance to take the bull by the horns and emerge as the best pass-catcher in a Ben Johnson offense.
2.02 - Cam Ward, QB, Tennessee Titans
On the one hand, Ward has not played well at all this season. On the other hand, he has several valid excuses, as he’s been hampered by a now-fired coaching staff, bad offensive line play, and just about the worst receiving corps I can remember.
While the excuses are valid, Ward has also just played poorly himself in the aspects he can control. That will have to get cleaned up fairly early in year two to prevent a major crash in his dynasty value.
Long term, Cam Ward still has great arm talent and draft capital insulation, and his offensive environment can only improve from here. However, he’ll need to operate more effectively to avoid getting passed up by the others on this list.
2.03 - Jayden Higgins, WR, Houston Texans
Higgins is gradually earning a full-time role in Houston and starting to string together some solid games. He moves very well for his size and fits in well as a complement to Nico Collins. Long term, I believe C.J. Stroud can support two talented receiving weapons, but that offensive line will have to get a lot stronger to get back to the good old days of massive catchable air yard totals out of Stroud.
2.04 - Harold Fannin Jr, TE, Cleveland Browns
While nobody on this Cleveland offense can put up a huge fantasy season with how awful the quarterback play and offensive line have been, Fannin is stringing together a solid rookie season, and there is easy projection for an increased role with David Njoku aging and coming to the end of his contract.
Even if in the near future Fannin isn’t a full-time starter who never leaves the field, he’s clearly valued in this offense as a pass catcher and has lots of opportunities to earn an even bigger role. This is another offense where it’s possible he is a top-two receiving weapon on the team long term.
2.05 - Woody Marks, RB, Houston Texans
Woody Marks is slowly but surely beginning to take over the backfield in Houston. He would be much higher in this redraft, except I don’t like his long-term projection to a valuable role for fantasy football. I think the Texans view Marks as a pass-catching complement to a starting running back, one who may not currently be on the roster. Outperforming the ghost of Nick Chubb doesn’t convince me otherwise.
However, we can’t take for granted that Marks will defintiely be replaced, so I don’t dare put Marks any lower.
2.06 - Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars
Tuten owes his spot in this redraft entirely to his Week 11 performance, in which he finally showed signs of taking playing time away from Travis Etienne. If that continues for the rest of the year, Tuten will be a must-start player down the stretch, as well as a long-term high-end RB2. There is a lot of projection there, but at 2.06, I’ve discounted him for the uncertainty just about as much as I can.
2.07 - Luther Burden, WR, Chicago Bears
Burden hasn’t earned a consistent role yet, and the rookie year production isn’t exactly encouraging, but he has flashed just enough to be interesting. He has a golden opportunity to earn a major role in Ben Johnson’s offense, and controls his own destiny in an ambiguous position group.
For a raw player who needs to develop, he’s at least seeing the field and flashing. While Burden is a major projection, and his value could easily crater in the next year, he’s a high-upside swing with some positive indicators.
2.08 - Terrance Ferguson, TE, Los Angeles Rams
This pick is almost entirely a projection, but hear me out. We know that Sean McVay wanted Ferguson so badly that during the 2025 NFL draft he needed to be convinced that Ferguson would still be available if the Rams executed their trade back with the Falcons.
Secondly, as early as training camp, the Rams’ beat reporters were already making it known that Ferguson was viewed by the organization as the “heir” to Tyler Higbee, who is on his way out this offseason.
Thirdly, Ferguson has created explosive plays those few times he’s been called into action. He’s an explosive athlete who will absolutely feast in run-after-catch situations schemed up by a genius playcaller.
2.09 - Matthew Golden, WR, Green Bay Packers
This might be too far a fall for Golden, but I’m very worried about his role in this offense, and his poor target-earning. While we’re not exactly surprised that this Packers’ passing offense continues to be highly decentralized, the hope with Golden was that he’d prove to be good enough to concentrate the offense more.
Instead, Golden has been a pretty abysmal target-earner, which is a huge red flag for a player who is ostensibly a starter. While it wouldn’t take much to turn this around, I wouldn’t want to have Golden shares right now.
2.10 - Mason Taylor, TE, New York Jets
Taylor has had some inconsistent production for the Jets, but that’s entirely understandable given how bad the Jets’ quarterback play has been this season. In the meantime, he’s locked down a full-time starting role, has a legitimate chance of being a top two receiving option on his team, and has ideal movement skills for the position.
2.11 - Kyle Monangai, RB, Chicago Bears
While Monangai has flashed enough to earn a shoutout in this redraft, I have serious long-term concerns about his role in Chicago. I expect the Bears to be aggressive adding a running back this offseason, and Monangai hasn’t shown me quite enough to earn the benefit of the doubt.
Though I doubt Monangai’s long-term outlook, I can’t just pretend the 26 carry, 176-yard game never happened. It’s eye-catching, and it contains a signal that this guy can play in the NFL.
2.12 - Tyler Shough, QB, New Orleans Saints
I don’t especially believe in Tyler Shough as a prospect, and he hasn’t done anything to make me reconsider, but he will be starting football games for the rest of the regular season. That means he has an immediate and realistic path to increasing his value, unlike many players who didn’t make it onto this list.
To his credit, Shough did lead the Saints to a win over the division rival Panthers, albeit in a low-scoring game. If he wins a few more games and earns a longer look as a starter going into next season, he’ll certainly move up a few slots.