Transcription
What hype do we need to follow? What smoke isn't nearly thick enough for us to be worried about? And what players are the fastest risers for fantasy football after the preseason? From breakouts to sleepers to must-own candidates, these are guys that need to be on your radar.
What is going on, Headliner Nation? In today's video, we are going to be talking about some of the fastest risers now that the 2025 preseason is all over with and the regular season is just around the corner. Some of the guys that we're going to talk about today, you already know a lot about, but they have cemented themselves as players we need to be getting. There's a few guys on here that might be breakout candidates and a few others that are sleepers that you may not know nothing about yet.
Starting off with a guy that everybody is talking about. In fact, he's so popular right now that his average draft position has risen over 20 spots over the last month. Tayvon Henderson has solidified himself as the number one candidate for fantasy reasons in the Patriots backfield. And I know when he was drafted, I had a little apprehension because Raandre Stevenson is still there and he's being paid a good chunk of money, but now I'm off my boy Raandre. And remind you, he's a guy that I loved in the draft and I thought was going to have a breakout campaign a couple of years ago and he did. But with the way Trayvon Henderson is playing at this point, unfortunately with Stevenson dealing with an injury, Henderson's sky is really the limit at this point. He has looked fabulous in the preseason. He's returned a kickoff for a touchdown. He has 38 rushing yards on five attempts with another touchdown and three receptions for 12 yards on four targets. Raandre Stevenson, we'll see you later. Don't even consider drafting him. Your path to fantasy points in that backfield relies on Trayvon Henderson.
Marvin Mims is exactly one of the reasons why I have some concerns about Courtland Sutton performing as well as he did last season. And when the Denver Broncos decided to go ahead and trade Devon Weel, I knew that they were on to something with Marvin Mims. And the usage absolutely backs that up. Mims has played almost 100% of snaps with Bo Nix and also left with Bo Nix in the starters as well during his preseason games. Also, another point that we need to definitely bring up, Mims ran a route on 92% of Bo Nix's dropbacks this preseason. Last year during the regular season, that only happened three times outside of Courtland Sutton. A majority of the season, wide receivers were filtering in and out of the wide receiver two position, but it feels like the Denver Broncos have found not only their big playmaker in Marvin Mims, but their wide receiver two. And right now over on Underdog, his season projection line is set at 549.5 receiving yards. And given his big play ability, this guy could run into those yards with a few big plays and a few big games here or there. So, if I'm over on Underdog right now, I want to go higher on that projection cuz I really like Marvin Mims in this offense to exploit a big playability that they just didn't see nearly as often last season and could really unlock the Broncos offense.
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Raise your hand if you're a part of Headliner Nation and you remember me talking about Malik Washington last offseason. Maybe I was just a year too early, but it feels like in 2025 we may be on to something with Washington. And yeah, they have a lot of pass catchers there. Tyreek Hill, you've got Jaylen Wadd, you've got Devon Aan. Heck, even the recently unretired Darren Waller will probably work his way into the offense one way or another. But in three wide receiver sets with Malik Washington running out of the slot, that could really be a game-changer. And Tua is already talking this guy up in the media. And these aren't just words from Tua at this point. Yes, he has talked about Washington's high football IQ and how he just seems to be there when he needs him in the right spot. But Tua has also looked his way during the preseason as well. And Washington has delivered, catching all seven of his targets for 59 receiving yards and a touchdown. And there's also 111 vacated targets from last season from the recently traded Janu Smith. Well, yep, you could see some of those go towards Darren Waller. I wouldn't be shocked if we see three wide receiver sets a little bit more often with Malik Washington picking up some of those targets that he missed out on last season.
You've heard this name on the channel a few times this offseason already and it's Dante Thornton, wide receiver from Las Vegas. And a lot of people were on Jakobi Meyers being the rookie wide receiver to make an impact right away in Las Vegas. But it's going to be Dante Thornton who likely does that. Who was just announced as the starting X receiver and will likely be an every-down player for Las Vegas this season. He's going to be on the field for two wide receiver sets and three wide receiver sets. He caught three of his eight targets in the preseason for 43 yards and a receiving touchdown. But what really stands out about this guy are not the numbers on the field, but his historically great athletic profile. This is a tall, big wide receiver that can run a 4.3. And it's not often that you find guys that big. And a lot of people are comping him to Brian Thomas Jr. Will he make that type of an impact as a rookie? Probably not that high of a ceiling, but he really should be on your team in every single league that you play in.
We really don't need to spend any more time talking up A.M. E. C. H. I. Ibuka. We already knew that this guy was going to be a special NFL talent. We just didn't know how crowded the wide receiver room was going to be to start 2025. And now that we know for certain that there's going to be no Chris Godwin, and now that we also know that Jaylen McMillan is dealing with an injury, A.M. E. C. H. I. Ibuka is going to open the season as the number two target for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and could absolutely explode right off the bat. And the same thing could be said for his rookie counterpart in Green Bay, Matthew Golden. This is a guy that once again, great athletic profile. We knew that he had an opportunity to be a very good NFL player, but now he's got a better path to targets because it feels like every wide receiver for Green Bay has dealt with an injury this offseason. And when they're all going to be 100% healthy is not yet seen, but Matthew Golden was already a guy that we were talking about is being the number one target on this team as a rookie. And he absolutely has that shot now that guys have been missing so much time.
Everyone is going to be talking about Jakori Kroski Merritt and he is a guy that I detailed in our draft guide with a rookie profile this offseason that he had an opportunity to carve out a number two role with an injury happening in Washington. Well, it wasn't an injury. It was a trade of Brian Thomas Jr. But even though everybody's talking about Jakori Kroski Merritt right now, I don't want us to forget about Chris Rodriguez. Now, the numbers so far for this preseason, they favor Rodriguez. J.C.M., 18 carries for 70 yards and a touchdown. Not bad at all. But for C.R.O.D., 17 carries for 118 rushing yards. Chris Rodriguez is a guy that I don't want us to just glaze over. And while I feel like everyone is leaning towards Jakori Crosky Merritt right now, which they absolutely should because I do think that he could establish himself as a primary running back in this backfield. If for some reason he doesn't, Chris Rodriguez is going to see more and more touches. Do not be shocked if these guys are more of a 50/50 split with Austin Ekeler working in from time to time in the passing game. And depending on who ends up having the hot hand, they will end up having the better season if they can keep it up.
DJ Giddens in Indianapolis has firmly cemented himself as the number two running back in this offense. And the good news is right away he's probably going to have a little bit of work in the passing game. Something he can probably help with a little bit better than Jonathan Taylor can. And obviously you're going to be careful with Jonathan Taylor at the beginning of the season. This is a guy that has missed 16 games over the past three years combined. Keep him healthy. You don't need to give him so many touches. And while he'll see a majority of his touches on the ground, give DJ Giddens some work in the passing game. But if anything happens to Jonathan Taylor, it's DJ Giddens season in that Colts offense.
Ali Gordon from Miami has taken advantage of a couple of injuries to propel himself up to potentially number two on the depth chart, unseating Jaylen Wright. And the Miami Dolphins made it known this offseason. They wanted to be stronger up the middle. They wanted to run the football with a little bit more vindication than what they've been able to do between the tackles. And Alexander Madison was going to be the guy to help with that. But Alexander Madison is done now. Devon Achane has also been nursing an injury, but he's not really the guy that's going to run in between the tackles anyway. So, Ali Gordon has been getting way more work in that area, and he has been showcasing it in preseason games because right now, this preseason, he has 126 rushing yards on 26 attempts, compared to Jaylen Wright, who only has 19 rushing yards on 13 attempts. Ali Gordon absolutely could step in as the RB2 right away. And may see a decent amount of workload to begin the season if Devon Achane just isn't 100%.
Is Christian Kirk going to be a thing in 2025? Because it really feels like Houston is trying to make that happen. Christian Kirk this preseason and in training camp has not only been running in three wide receiver sets as the slot, but he's also been running outside as well in two wide receiver sets, which for the Jaden Higgins truthers, you're not going to love seeing that. But Houston may be relying on Christian Kirk a little bit earlier in the season to ease Jaden Higgins into his role. And when three wide receivers come on the field, Christian Kirk will just slide into the slot, which is a stark contrast from what he was doing when he was in Jacksonville. Because in his Jacksonville days, he didn't really play in two wide receiver sets. He would come off the field. But it seems like Houston is trying to work him in to the outside alongside Nico Collins. So, we'll see what happens in Houston, and we will definitely keep this on our radar. But at some point in time, if Houston ends up passing the ball, maybe a little bit more than anticipated, Christian Kirk could see quite a few of those targets.
It definitely feels like Tyler Warren is going to sneak his way into the top 12 tight ends this season. Do I think he's going to have the type of year that Brock Bowers did last season? No, I don't. But anywhere from top 8 to 12 is definitely doable considering the fact that Indianapolis is committed to moving Tyler Warren around the formation just like he did at Penn State. We've seen him in the slot. We've seen him on the inline with his hand in the ground. We've seen him out wide. We've seen him in the backfield. And he's performed well this season. Four catches on six targets for 65 receiving yards. He's played almost every single starter snap this preseason and it's clear that he's going to be moving around and he's going to be mismatched against opposing defenses. So, as long as Daniel Jones can actually get him the ball, he can end up having some big games.
The Michigan kid, Isaac Tesla, who ended up being drafted by his hometown team, has showed out this preseason and he is pushing Tim Patrick to be the wide receiver three right off the bat. And Dan Campbell has already acknowledged he feels like Tesla can absolutely help right away. He's caught 10 of his 13 targets for 146 receiving yards and three touchdowns. And Detroit traded some significant draft capital to move up and take him. Now, not only could he replace Tim Patrick just because he's played better, but Patrick is dealing with an injury as well. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Jameson Williams, Sam LaPorta, Jahmyr Gibbs. There's going to be a lot of guys getting passes there. But Tesla could be like a good best ball player that every once in a while shows out with some touchdowns, especially in the red zone.
How about the tight end in Cleveland? And no, I'm not talking about David Njoku. I'm talking about Harold Fannon Jr., who's one of the most accomplished tight ends to come out of the draft in recent years. But it sounds like the Cleveland Browns are looking at running some 12 personnel with keeping him and Njoku on the field at the same time because in their last preseason game, Harold Fannon played with Joe Flacco and the starters right alongside David Njoku and he rotated in and out with him as well. They kept him on the field together for 60% of the snaps. And Harold Fannon ran routes on 60% of the dropbacks that David Njoku was also on the field. And while that might not lead to any type of fantasy upside right away, you need to keep an eye on him and keep him on your watch list, especially if you drafted David Njoku because if Njoku deals with any type of an injury, Harold Fannon could find himself as a tight end one right away.
And finally, Javonte Williams seems to have secured the starting running back spot for the Dallas Cowboys to begin 2025. Jaden Blue is dealing with an ankle injury right now. Miles Sanders, the other veteran on the roster, well, he's had two different injuries, a shoulder and a knee this offseason, and it sounds like Phil Mafa and Deuce Vaughn may end up being cut, even though Mafa could end up coming back to the practice squad if no one else grabs him. So, for now, that leaves Javonte Williams as the clear-cut number one running back and should be flex viable to start the 2025 season.
Headliner Nation, make sure you're keeping an eye on all of these risers. And whether or not you should be adding them right now depends on your fantasy team. And if you haven't drafted yet, maybe you should tag a few of these guys just to make sure you don't forget about them a little bit later on in your drafts. But for now, hit the like button. Make sure you leave us a comment in the video below if there's a riser that I didn't talk about in this video that you want some more information on, and I'll try to get to as many of them as I can after the video is posted. But for now, Headliner Nation, help us out on that drive to 250,000 subscribers by hitting the subscribe button below. Stay safe, stay healthy, and I'll catch you all in the next episode of The Fantasy Headliners. [music]