Mid-Season 2025 Rookie Big Board (Top 48): How many Top RBs and where do the QBs go?
The Player/Tier Specific Notes are too long for this board / a Reddit Post.
The Full Write-Up with an Audio Version can be found via the Fantasy for Real podcast or through this substack link:
(FULL-->) https://cjfreel.substack.com/p/59-2025-rookie-big-board-v10-top
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Class Note
This class remains a stronger 1QB class than SF class. This can change if the QB profiles have strong end seasons, postseasons, draft processes, and ultimately get good draft capital, but I am not confident on an individual level with the QBs in this class. Likely we get 2-4 1st Round QBs, but I am approaching these QBs cautiously. The RBs in contrast are exciting and showcase significant upside. There are players ranked in the late-20s that I’m sure will have many quite upset that they aren’t a bit higher, but I have a clear top 6 RBs in this class as of now, and outside of the top 6, it is hard for several of these RBs to distinguish themselves at this point in time. The WR position is still defined more by ceiling than by floor. Between Hunter, Stewart, Williams, Bond, and Ayomanor we may have a strong number of early declare WRs. We also may only get 1 or 2 and a CB. There may also be no Brock Bowers in this class, but the top 2-4 TEs are looking quite good, and there is a depth to this class that exists beyond them.
Note: Always remember this is a one-man operation. Great effort has been taken to avoid omissions, but keep an eye on future posts for any amendments that might be necessary due to omissions.
Names in Bold are seemingly out of eligibility, which would suggest they are locked in as members of the 2025 NFL Draft Class.
Rankings are most suited to a 12-Team, Superflex, Half PPR League
Editing Note: Reddit is not allowing the numbered list to count up after the tier lines. Because I want to keep the tiers, I've listed the overall player numbers in that range in the tier heading, so this should make it a bit easier to follow what the number is.
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Tier 1: Top Draft Capital, Top Talent (Players #1 - 3)
- Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Arizona
- Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State
- Luther Burden III, WR, Missouri
*Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado
Tier 2: Near Top Draft Capital, Near Top Talent (Players #4 - 7)
- Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
- Nicholas Singleton, RB, Penn State
- Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ohio State
- TreVeyon Henderson, RB, Ohio State
Tier 3: Top QBs, Top Tier RB/WR Upside, Top TEs (Players #8 - 19)
- Cam Ward, QB, Miami (FL)
- Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado
- Carson Beck, QB, Georgia
- Evan Stewart, WR, Oregon
- Trevor Etienne, RB, Georgia
- Kaleb Johnson, RB, Iowa
- Antonio Williams, WR, Clemson
- Jalen Milroe, QB, Alabama
- Isaiah Bond, WR, Texas
- Elic Ayomanor, WR, Stanford
- Colston Loveland, TE, Michigan
- Tyler Warren, TE, Penn State
High Floor Veteran (23.5 Draft Age) WRs (Players #20 & 21)
- Tre Harris, WR, Ole Miss
- Xavier Restrepo, WR, Miami (FL)
Probable 2026 QBs Who Could Compete for QB1 Still in 2025 (Players #22 - 24)
- Cade Klubnik, QB, Clemson
- Drew Allar, QB, Penn State
- Garrett Nussmeier, QB, LSU
Where 2025 1QB Drafts Could Get Really, Really Good (Players #25 - 30)
- Jordan James, RB, Oregon
- Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
- Ollie Gordon II, RB, Oklahoma St.
- D.J. Giddens, RB, Kansas St.
- Dylan Sampson, RB, Tennessee
- Devin Neal, RB, Kansas
Other’s Top QBs ; Less Confident in Talent + Draft Capital (Players #31 & 32)
- Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss
- Quinn Ewers, QB, Texas
Other Top Players (Players #33 - 48)
- Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Bowling Green
- Dane Key, WR, Kentucky
- Jonah Coleman, RB, Washington
- Damien Martinez, RB, Miami (FL)
- Phil Mafah, RB, Clemson
- Desmond “Dez” Reid, RB, Pittsburgh
- Mason Taylor, TE, LSU
- Ricky White III, WR, UNLV
- Raheim “Rocket” Sanders, RB, South Carolina
- Barion Brown, WR, Kentucky
- Tai Felton, WR, Maryland
- Jayden Higgins, WR, Iowa St.
- Aaron Anderson, WR, LSU
- Denzel Boston, WR, Washington
- Elijah Sarratt, WR, Indiana
- Jalen Royals, WR, Utah St.
Honorable Mentions List in the Link Above
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A few tidbits from the tier-based write-ups:
Tier 1: Top Draft Capital, Top Talent
It is important to note up front that last year, the top tier (at this time) also had 3 players, but for Superflex Leagues, I would rank all 3 of Caleb Williams, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Drake Maye above this trio. Tetairoa McMillan remains my favorite as he has priors in high professional grades, has been consistently rated at the top of the class, and has no physical questions. Ashton Jeanty likely has the highest fantasy upside, but I have the most concerns about his NFL Perception through the most highly scrutinizing parts of the process. I would estimate Jeanty plays at closer to 5’ 8”, 205 lbs, and at this position, I’ll feel more comfortable with Jeanty once he is actually drafted.
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Tier 3: Top QBs, Top Tier RB/WR Upside, Top TEs
This tier could potentially be multiple tiers, but we are still early in the process and so it makes some sense to keep it a bit open. All four QBs who I rank highly enough to potentially be 1st Round QBs AND believe will declare for the 2025 NFL Draft are in this tier. Others likely have a greater gap between the top 3 QBs even if they maintain the same order, but each of these QBs still has significant issues, and who is drafted first may come down to who plays the best down the stretch and potentially even in the postseason. There are a lot of improvements and advancements to get excited about in the game of Cam Ward, but he has not maintained the level of clean play that he experienced early on in the season. When it comes to avoiding pressures, Ward took only 2 Sacks on 32 Pressures in the first 4 Games of the season, a 6.25% Pressure-To-Sack% which was a marked improvement on his career totals so far. He has regressed in this number with 14 Sacks on 68 Pressures in the last 4 games (20.6%). Ward did not have a terrible game against Florida State, but he was frustrated by the FSU defenses and did little throughout the game other than scramble around and take check downs. If Ward continues to grow in his discipline and showcase his upside, he could very well be the 1.01 in the NFL Draft. Right now, I’m still skeptical, and it is worth noting that Miami (FL) has an abysmal schedule, which may put disproportionate attention on the theoretical ACC Championship and Playoff Games.
Selecting Carson Beck above Shedeur Sanders was one of the most controversial decisions on last week’s mock draft, and I have obviously flipped them here, but they remain neck-and-neck with the remainder of the season being a big factor for both players. [...]
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There is a massive amount of upside between Evan Stewart, Antonio Williams, Isaiah Bond, & Elic Ayomanor. Unfortunately, whether it is situational or not, there is very little consistency. Evan Stewart has played in 8 games and has 26 yards are fewer in 5 of them. His game against Ohio State may single-handedly make him a 1st Round Pick with a good process, but he also needs to have a good process.
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High Floor Veteran (23.5 Draft Age) WRs
Tre Harris & Xavier Restrepo could each be in the higher tier of WRs, but as slightly older players who do not have ideal prospect profiles outside of age, their profiles feel a bit capped compared to the upside of the other WRs. Tre Harris has good size and contested ability, but there are some reasons to doubt his separation ability and much of his production comes on “free space” routes against off-coverage. He is also currently dealing with an injury. Xavier Restrepo is in that category where I question his role on the outside. Playing slot is not an issue if you can be an inside+outside versatile WR as I project Egbuka + Antonio Williams, but Restrepo seems to be more of a “slot-heavy” at best and a “slot-only” at worst, which may limit his upside. Restrepo’s value may also slant towards PPR formats.
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Where 2025 1QB Drafts Could Get Really, Really Good
Many of these RBs could compete with Etienne/Johnson, but right now there is something with each holding them back. With Draft Capital though, this tier could easily rise to the late-1st. This is also the point where RB Rankings can diverge a bit based on what role or draft capital is anticipated. Perhaps others don’t agree with this idea, but there are certain RB profiles that I would prefer with high draft capital and a guaranteed role, while others I may prefer in a Day 3 environment. For example, Jordan James is one of my favorite pure runners, so while I questions about his overall upside, how his size translates with his play style, and what his receiving role looks like, he is someone who is so good at something in particular that I believe he can force his way into making an impact in a murky, Day 3 situation. However, players like Ollie Gordon II & Omarion Hampton in particular I have some questions about their translation for one reason or another, but if they were drafted highly, their size, speed, and pass-catching ability would give them the potential for fantasy volume that would raise them above a Jordan James even if all three RBs were taken say around pick 50. For Gordon, while he is an excellent explosive back in space, sometimes that explosion does not showcase in burst or successful play ability. He is very inconsistent for a bigger back. Hampton has excellent burst, but showcases sometimes what I see as a lack of feel for rushing lanes or gaining extra yardage. While Hampton is fairly large, he too often simply plunges forward in the open field, where utilizing his speed and acceleration would likely be a more effective maneuver.
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Once again, write-ups for each tier can be found by clicking the link above/below, and an audio version discussing the prospects can be found via the Fantasy for Real podcast.
https://cjfreel.substack.com/p/59-2025-rookie-big-board-v10-top
Will be around to answer any fantasy related questions/comments,
C.J.