Fantasy Hot Takes | 25 Bold Predictions for 2025

Fantasy football season is here, and with it come rankings, projections, and safe predictions. But where’s the fun in playing it safe? In this article, we’re diving into 25 Fantasy Hot Takes from 5 of our Senior Writers that might raise eyebrows, but could just win you a championship. Whether it’s a breakout star no one sees coming or a top name ready to fall off a cliff, these takes aren’t for the faint of heart. Let’s turn up the heat!

Fantasy Hot Takes | Bold Predictions

Mychal Warno | Senior NFL Writer | @dynastydadmike

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Bucky Irving will finish as the overall RB1.

Many are expecting a regression season for Bucky Irving in 2025. I say nonsense! Bucky Irving has the potential to finish as the overall RB1 in fantasy football for the 2025 season due to his exceptional efficiency and increased passing role in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ offense. Irving only saw over 50% of the Buccaneers’ team snaps in 6 games. He averaged 5.4 yards per carry and failed to record a receiving touchdown. I do not anticipate that to be the case this year and can easily envision Irving catching multiple touchdown receptions while also seeing a bulk of the team’s snaps.

New Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard has stated that Irving is “light years ahead” from last year. The confidence Grizzard has displayed in Irving is very promising for the second-year back in Tampa’s offense.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Kaleb Johnson finishes as RB2 in FPPG for rookie running backs.

Kaleb Johnson thrived in Iowa’s outside-zone system in college, and that’s what offensive coordinator Arthur Smith runs in Pittsburgh. Johnson isn’t a dynamic, make-you-miss runner, but he is a patient and powerful one-cut runner with instinctive vision.

Pittsburgh has vacated 263 carries with the departure of Najee Harris. I anticipate Johnson to exceed that number of carries. Johnson is expected to be the early down back, especially near the goal line. He dominated in college with 21 touchdowns and over 1,500 rushing yards. His ability to break tackles makes him a fantasy touchdown machine. I anticipate Johnson finishing only behind Ashton Jeanty in FPPG.

🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Trey Benson will outscore James Conner in total fantasy points.

Benson was my RB1 in the 2024 NFL Draft class. James Conner turns 30 this season. Historically, Conner will miss a few games, leading to an opportunity for Trey Benson. Once Benson gets the chance, Arizona will be forced to showcase his talent regularly.

🌶️🌶️ | Caleb Williams finishes as a top 8 QB in fantasy points and becomes the Chicago Bears’ first 4,000-yard passer.

The 2025 season will be the year Chicago Bears fans can rejoice. With the help of Ben Johnson, Caleb Williams will become the first Chicago Bears quarterback to pass for 4,000 yards. In doing so, Caleb Williams will also finish as a top 8 quarterback. Williams has a buffet of offensive weapons, including: Luther Burden, Cole Kmet, Colston Loveland, D.J. Moore, Rome Odunze, and D’Andre Swift.

This goal is also on the mind of Caleb Williams. “Being the first 4,000-yard passer in Bears history, that’s a goal of mine,” Williams said Tuesday, via the team’s official website. 

🌶️ | Daniel Jones, Riley Leonard, and Anthony Richardson will all start games for the Indianapolis Colts.

The Indianapolis quarterback room is a mess, and so are the Colts. I expect this season to be Shane Steichen’s final one in Indianapolis and anticipate Daniel Jones, Riley Leonard, and Anthony Richardson all starting games as Steichen’s final attempts to save his job. Indianapolis Colts, you are now on the clock!

Keith Ensminger | Senior College Writer | @TheSmingDynasty

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | After several years of coming so close, the losses, injuries, and grind catch up to the Lions, and their top fantasy assets (Jared Goff, Jahmyr Gibbs, Amon-Ra St. Brown, et al.) will disappoint.

It is difficult to maintain success year after year in the NFL, and I feel like time is running short on the Detroit Lions. The grind of deep playoff runs wears on teams, and even the Lions recognized this by not holding a minicamp this offseason. Much like other successful teams, not only do they lose players to free agency, but they also experience coaching brain drain, losing both defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn and offensive coordinator Ben Johnson. The Lions play 11 games this season against 2024 playoff teams (most in the NFL). Their star center, Frank Ragnow, abruptly retired, and they lost guard Kevin Zeitler to free agency.

To me, like death by a thousand cuts, these signs point to dark times for the Lions and their tormented fanbase. With a young and inexperienced offensive line and a green offensive coordinator who is not used to calling plays, we could be looking at troubled times for Jared Goff and the entire offense, especially if they can’t rely on their signature running game.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Cam Ward will prove why he should have been taken earlier in rookie drafts.

I have played in SuperFlex leagues for over a decade, and in that time, I have never witnessed the level of disrespect given to a rookie quarterback like I have seen given to Cam Ward. I have watched with disbelief as Ward routinely falls to 1.06 in rookie drafts, to say nothing of his 5th round ADP in startup drafts.

The talent around Ward with the Titans may not inspire confidence, but Calvin Ridley and Tyler Lockett are experienced NFL receivers who can bring the rookie along while fellow draft picks Chimere Dike and Elic Ayomanor develop. Add in talented pass catching options in Chig Okonkwo, Tony Pollard, and Tyjae Spears, and I think Ward will have a rookie season to silence his dynasty detractors.

🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Ashton Jeanty will disappoint.

Player A – 343 carries for 2,587 yards and 29 touchdowns in 14 games in his final college season.

Player B – 374 carries for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns in 14 games in his final college season.

Player A is Melvin Gordon, 1st Round pick of the San Diego Chargers in 2015. He finished his rookie season with 641 yards on 184 carries, playing in 14 games. Famously, he finished without any rushing touchdowns that season.

Player B is Ashton Jeanty. Concerned yet?

I am not here to tell you Jeanty will bust, but maybe everyone should pump the brakes on him being a high-end RB1 in his rookie season. Being a top fantasy running back is about more than just talent. It’s also about the situation. Pro Football Focus recently ranked the Raiders’ offensive line as a pedestrian 18th in the NFL, and the Raiders face off this season against many of the toughest defensive lines in the game.

For Jeanty to live up to the expectations of some, he needs to have a rookie season similar to Ezekiel Elliot, but Jeanty is not running behind the 2016 Dallas Cowboys’ offensive line. The more likely outcome for Jeanty’s success would be to replicate Saquon Barkley’s outstanding rookie season, but Jeanty, in my opinion, does not have Barkley’s otherworldly athleticism or pass catching prowess.

🌶️🌶️ | Jordan Love finishes as a top 6 fantasy quarterback

Based on average points per game, Jordan Love finished a season troubled by early injuries as the QB14 in 2024. Despite the injuries, Love was the QB4 through the first 7 weeks of the season before fading as the tundra froze and his injuries mounted.

If Love can remain healthy this season, he is primed for a return to his breakout season from 2023 when he finished as QB7. With the addition of 1st Round pick Matthew Golden and an increase in passing volume (they finished 30th in the league in 2023, passing on only 49.31% of plays), I expect Jordan Love to remind fantasy players why he deserves to be included on the short list of elite young NFL quarterbacks.

🌶️ | J.J. McCarthy will be a late 1st round startup pick in 2026 Superflex startup drafts

Sam Darnold of “seeing ghosts” fame finished the season as the QB8 in 2024 with 4,319 yards passing, 35 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions. I am here to tell you as a Jets fan that if Kevin O’Connell can pull those numbers out of Darnold, I can’t wait to see what he does with his hand-picked 1st Round draft selection, J.J. McCarthy. McCarthy looked great in limited preseason action and was well on his way to being named the starter before he went down with injury. Between the coaching and a supporting cast which includes Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, and Aaron Jones, McCarthy is poised for fantasy success in 2025.

Bobby Bishop | NFL Draft Specialist | @_bobbybishop

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🌶️ | Roschon Johnson leads the league in rushing touchdowns

While a scorching hot take, I think this is legitimately possible. Ben Johnson has consistently given work to two running backs, and Roschon Johnson is a much better power back than D’Andre Swift. Out of all the running backs not named Swift, I think Johnson is by far the most talented back. If he gets 100% of goalline work and the Bears offense is humming, Roschon Johnson’s 2025 season could look similar to Jamaal Williams’ 2022 season when he led the league with 17 rushing touchdowns. This hinges heavily on the Bears offense—loaded with weapons—breaking out in a big way for any Bear to have this many goalline opportunities in 2025. If things go very right for this 225-lb. back, Johnson could lead the league in rushing touchdowns

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Elijah Arroyo will be the highest scoring rookie tight end in all formats

After taking a peek at Elijah Arroyo, the Seahawks decided to cut Noah Fant. Arroyo has zero competition for the TE1 job (A.J. Barner is basically a 6th offensive lineman). Arguably, Arroyo is the 2nd best receiving weapon on the team depending on how much Cooper Kupp has left in the tank. With defenses focusing on stopping the running game and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, I think Elijah Arroyo could feast in this offense. Colston Loveland is in an offense stacked with weapons. Who will be Tyler Warren’s QB? Mason Taylor is interesting, but he is only 20 with development still forthcoming. I doubt Tyler Ferguson is going come out swinging. Elijah Arroyo is my pick to be the highest scoring rookie tight end in all formats. 

🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Patrick Mahomes will finish at the fantasy QB1

This would be a lukewarm take at best a few years ago, but he’s finished as QB8 and QB11 the last two years. The Chiefs defense has been dominant, and their offense has just been okay. Patrick Mahomes is currently getting drafted in the same tier as Drake Maye, Justin Herbert, Bo Nix, Caleb Williams, and Jordan Love. Patrick Mahomes is still the best quarterback in the league and will remind people in 2025. During what may be Travis Kelce’s fairwell tour, the Chiefs offense will get back to their explosive ways. Other elite QBs will push for this title, but my hot take is that Patrick Mahomes will reach 400 fantasy points and be crowned QB1 once again.

🌶️🌶️ | Garrett Wilson will finish as a top 5 WR in 2025

The Justin Fields toe scare almost derailed this take, but I feel really good about it. In 2024, Garrett Wilson finished as WR10 in PPR leagues and WR11 in .5 PPR leagues. I think he’ll take the leap into the next tier this season while adding more consistency. He’ll have no shortage of targets, maybe even leading the league. Fields doesn’t have any other talented receiving options, and he has strong trust in Wilson, going back to their Ohio State days. Even though many people will hate on Fields’ passing abilities, Justin Fields was the QB for D.J. Moore’s WR6 season in 2023. Garrett Wilson is undeniably talented, but his situation is finally aligning to allow a top 5 finish among WRs in 2025.

🌶️ | Trey McBride will score more touchdowns in 2025 than in his first three seasons combined

Trey McBride is an extremely talented tight end who has struggled to find the end zone at times in his career. In three seasons, he only has 6 touchdowns. McBride is simply too good to continue his run of bad end zone luck. With Marvin Harrison Jr. taking a step forward, MHJ will demand more attention from defenses, allowing McBride more openings. Arizona Cardinals offensive coordinator, Drew Petzing, would be misusing his resources if he doesn’t find ways to target McBride in the end zone. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Trey McBride scores at least 7 touchdowns this year.

Mike Johrendt | Staff NFL Writer | @MJohrendt

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Chase Brown is the only Bengal to finish atop his position, as the overall RB1.

Ja’Marr Chase is arguably the WR1 in dynasty football right now, Tee Higgins has one of the highest upsides as a WR2 in his own offense, and Joe Burrow’s passing volume alone cements himself as one of the top scorers at his position, giving the Cincinnati Bengals the best offense for fantasy football.

Yet with all of this talk, Chase Brown frequently is left out of the conversation. Heading into his 2nd year as the starter, Brown has cemented himself as the leader for the RB room for Cincinnati. With veteran Zack Moss no longer in the picture and the depth chart behind him offering value but nothing threatening to Brown, it looks like the coaching staff is ready to give him even more carries than last year.

Brown earned 283 touches last year, finishing as the RB10, falling 10 yards short of the century mark. If he can do that last season on an offense that had to throw the ball what felt like 60 times per game, his possibilities are endless heading into this season.

Look for Brown to be the running back everyone is “chasing” this year, as he will finally cross the 1,000-yard rushing mark and double his receiving workload on his way to finishing as the overall RB1. With this breakout season on tap, Brown would immediately vault himself into top-8 status for dynasty RBs.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Marvin Harrison Jr. makes good on his rookie-year hype (a year late) and finishes as a top-5 WR in 2025.

The hype for rookie Marvin Harrison Jr. fizzled out last year, as the heralded Buckeye failed to make his 1st Round selection look like a sure thing. Outside of Trey McBride, this offense relies on Harrison to carry the passing attack, something he will look far more comfortable doing in 2025.

Kyler Murray had more than enough inconsistent performances last season that showed the impact of not having Harrison step up as his top target, with most of that workload going to McBride. Even with the rookie struggling, Harrison still managed 885 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns, finishing as the WR30 on the year.

Expect the 2025 season to be a year of change for the Arizona offense, as Harrison and McBride will combine to give the Cardinals a fighting chance in the up-for-grabs NFC West. With Murray looking to improve upon his QB10 season, Harrison is the biggest proponent (and beneficiary) of an improved passing attack.

🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Dak Prescott relies on both CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens to finish as a top-8 QB.

The offseason hype train for the Dallas Cowboys offense is at full speed ahead, especially after the acquisition of George Pickens. Finally giving Dak Prescott a solid WR2 will not only balance out the passing attack, it will free up a ton of work for CeeDee Lamb as he looks to continue his WR1 body of work.

The new wrinkle of having Pickens in tow easily opens up this offense to a level it has not seen in a while, especially with Prescott at the helm. The running game will likely be unreliable all year, as Javonte Williams, Miles Sanders, and rookie Jaydon Blue form the grossest trio in the entire league. That shift in offensive philosophy will absolutely put more on Prescott’s shoulders, which will in turn lead to fantasy goodness.

🌶️🌶️ | Brock Purdy pays the price for the injured San Francisco WR room, finishing as a low QB2 in 2025

Having just signed a massive $265 million extension this offseason, Brock Purdy still has some holes in his game that he needs to clean up. His receiver room issues notwithstanding (injuries to Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings, and Ricky Pearsall), Purdy’s turnover issues plagued the San Francisco offense last season, as he fumbled 7 times (3 lost) and threw 12 interceptions.

While welcoming back (a hopefully healthy) Christian McCaffrey can help reinvigorate this offense, Purdy likely will pay the price for having an injured receiver room. McCaffrey and George Kittle can only shoulder so much of the passing attack, and expecting the likes of Jacob Cowing, Demarcus Robinson, and others to pick up the slack isn’t realistic.

🌶️ | Jakobi Meyers becomes Geno Smith’s favorite target, scoring double-digit touchdowns and finishing as a top-15 WR.

Currently, Brock Bowers is the known commodity in the fantasy football community with Jakobi Meyers holding a spot as a WR2 or WR3 but nothing more.

Entering the 2025 season, the Raiders have their offense set up for Meyers to be the focal target, at least from the receiver group. With rookies Jack Bech and Dont’e Thornton slotting in behind him, Meyers looks to be nearly untouchable when it comes to funneled passes his way. Geno Smith comes from a Seattle passing game that saw the likes of D.K. Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba all on the field at the same time, but he still tended to hyper target one receiver at times.

This bodes well for Meyers, who is in line to see the biggest workload of his six-year career. Last season saw Meyers set career marks in targets (129), receptions (87), and receiving yards (1,027), while averaging over 11 yards per catch for the third season in a row. On a team that isn’t expected to be horrible but will likely be in passing situations quite often, Meyers is a screaming value.

Steven Pintado | NFL Data Analyst | @coachstevenp

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | The Bears finish with a QB1, an RB1, and 2 Top 15 WRs.

The Ben Johnson effect could stun everyone and lead the Bears offense to an elite fantasy season. Caleb Williams is going to see better protection and has even more weapons than he did as a rookie. While D’Andre Swift was average last season, Johnson has shown in the previous few seasons how to run an efficient backfield as Detroit had 56 rushing touchdowns during his stint as OC. If Williams can develop into a star, then he’ll have a few pass catchers who benefit from it. D.J. Moore could be the Amon-Ra St. Brown for the offense, and Rome Odunze should take another leap with already a 100-target season under his belt.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Drake London takes over as the WR1 in Dynasty

In 2026, you may be shocked by the name sitting at the top of dynasty receiver rankings as it could very well be Drake London. London is in his prime years and could follow in other receivers’ footsteps like Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson and land as the WR1 in fantasy in their age 25-26 seasons. London, in 3 games with Michael Penix Jr., had 22 receptions for 382 receiving yards. The second pass catcher is currently hurt, Darnell Mooney, and the inconsistent Kyle Pitts. London could be the No. 1 receiver everyone wants after the 2025 season.

🌶️🌶️🌶️ | Emeka Egbuka leads the Bucs in targets & receptions

The Buccaneers have a great problem in their wide receiver room with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Jalen McMillan, and newly drafted Emeka Egbuka all looking for targets. While the veterans are the presumed reception leaders, it could very well be the rookie Egbuka. Evans and Godwin are aging, and Godwin isn’t yet fully recovered. McMillan is solid, but there was a reason why Tampa Bay went out and drafted Egbuka. Egbuka has a chance to show everyone who passed on him in rookie drafts they made a mistake if he leads the Buccaneers in receptions and targets.

🌶️🌶️ | D.K. Metcalf has a career season under Aaron Rodgers

D.K. Metcalf has dealt with inconsistency during his NFL career. Metcalf could be primed for a massive season with the Pittsburgh Steelers. It all starts with Aaron Rodgers and how much he prefers to throw to his WR1 in the offense. He has thrown his WR1 120 or more targets in 4 of his last 5 full seasons. Metcalf has minimal competition to take away targets from him in this Steelers offense, despite a TE-heavy scheme approach. If Metcalf can reach the 140-target range, it could be his best season yet.

🌶️ | Omarion Hampton leads all rookie RBs and cements himself as a top 5 dynasty RB.

The Chargers’ rookie running back is going to make noise during the 2025 season. While it all could depend on Najee Harris’ role in the offense, Omarion Hampton should lead the backfield in touches. Hampton is getting praises early on in training camp as a potential three-down running back for the Chargers. Last year, the Chargers gave injury-prone J.K. Dobbins 228 touches, so expect Hampton to at least reach that and be successful in one of the better run offenses. Hampton should see early start-up value in 2026 after this season.

Reddit Hot Takes Q&A

Make sure to check out our /r/DynastyNerds subreddit. Our writers will be interacting on the thread with any interested readers. Let us know who had the spiciest takes or your hot takes! Who do you have as deep sleepers, busts, and league winners?

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