2025 NFL Draft: Day 1 Takeaways

After an NFL Draft first round in 2024 that featured six quarterbacks and three wide receivers just in the first 12 picks, we were bound to suffer a bit of a letdown in the fantasy football firepower department in 2025. And we did, as the offensive weaponry going off the board Thursday night focused more on the trenches than we’ve seen in recent years — eight offensive linemen went off the board Thursday, compared to 9-10 (depending on your Travis Hunter designation) players at all the fantasy-relevant positions.

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That’s not to say there weren’t some big-time difference makers for fantasy selected Thursday night. There’s a new borderline top-10 fantasy running back, a guy who could remake the future of IDP leagues if deployed in a certain way and two tight ends with huge upside. So as we get ready for Day 2 Friday, let’s take a look at how the moves and picks of Thursday matter (or don’t) for fantasy football in 2025.

Fantasy Football Fallout of the 2025 NFL Draft: Round 1

Ashton Jeanty, Fantasy Star in Vegas?

Exactly where the former Boise State running back would go in the draft was one of the hottest topics of the pre-draft conversations. After all, Jeanty profiles as one of the most exciting running back prospects to enter the league in a long time, and no fewer than four teams (Las Vegas, Chicago, Dallas, Denver) were in perfect position to take advantage of a stud back.

In the end, the first of those teams with a crack at Jeanty grabbed him, with the rookie landing in Las Vegas with the Raiders at sixth overall. Behind an average-or-better offensive line, with no other real threats in the backfield (no, I’m not buying anything out of 33-year-old Raheem Mostert) and with a run-first-run-forever head coach in Pete Carroll, the table is just about perfectly set for Jeanty to be a fantasy superstar from Week 1. He’s a borderline first-round pick in fantasy, even as a rookie, and in dynasty, he jumps to the top of the RB rankings.

What Is Travis Hunter?

We can’t possibly evaluate Travis Hunter’s fantasy outlook now that he’s a Jacksonville Jaguar, because we don’t even know what he is. Are the Jags going to deploy him as a receiver with some corner packages? That’s ideal, except playing corner only now and then is really hard. Or a corner with some run as a receiver? Well, then he won’t do enough for fantasy to matter at all. What about a full-time two-way player? Great, but … I mean, he’ll get hurt, because nobody is that amazing (right?). We’ll need to hear (and see) a lot out of Jacksonville, Hunter and Liam Coen to know what to do with this situation.

If he does end up being a full-time (or close to it) receiver, he’ll slot in behind Brian Thomas Jr. in the Jags’ target tree, but given their WR3 is Dyami Brown and their tight end is Brenton Strange, those two wouldn’t command a huge target share. A Hunter who is a full-time receiver is an interesting fantasy flyer. We just don’t know if that’s what he is.

Cam Ward > Will Levis, Shockingly Enough

Not that that’s a bold statement, but the Titans moved on from the Will Levis experience after only two seasons, the latest team to punt on a big quarterback decision quicker than you might guess (think Justin Fields and the Bears, Josh Rosen and the Cardinals). Ward looked like the first overall pick for much of the spring, and the Titans locked it in Thursday. He immediately takes over as the starter in Tennessee with Calvin Ridley, Tyler Lockett and RB Tony Pollard to throw to.

That’s not an elite cast, but it’s enough for Ward to have an opportunity to succeed. Our Jeff Ratcliffe projected Ward to have 3,188 passing yards and 18 pass touchdowns, plus 310 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground. That comes out to numbers that would have him as a back-end QB2 over the full season. He won’t matter in one-QB leagues, but in superflex, Ward could be an interesting later pick.

Double the Tight Ends, Double the Fun?

Only three times in the last 20 years have multiple tight ends gone off the board in the first round—Vernon Davis (6) and Marcedes Lewis (28) in 2006; O.J. Howard (19), Evan Engram (23) and David Njoku (29) in 2017; and T.J. Hockenson (8) and Noah Fant (20) in 2019. Make it four, with Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren both going Thursday, Loveland at 10 to Chicago and Warren at 14 to Indianapolis. There’s plenty of potential in the landing spots for both — Loveland should immediately jump over Cole Kmet as the Bears’ TE1, while Warren only has to surpass (all descriptions redacted as they were too mean) in Indianapolis.

While it’s true that both found nice landing spots, fantasy managers have to be very careful not to fall into the trap laid by Brock Bowers last year. Bowers came in and was the PPR TE1 as a rookie, and that’s great … but it’s also extremely rare, and betting on another unicorn (or two!) a year later is a flawed bet. Get Loveland or Warren as a back-end fantasy starter late in the draft? Cool, fine, low price that lets you move on if you miss. Relying on a rookie? No thank you.

Carolina Mac

At the start of draft season, Arizona WR Tetairoa McMillan was talked about as a potential top-five pick. In the lead-up to the draft, his stock started falling, with him falling to the late teens or even later in mocks. In the end, he didn’t quite go top five, but rumors of his demise were greatly exaggerated, as McMillan landed in Carolina with the eighth overall pick. He immediately becomes the WR1 for the Panthers, although given their depth chart beyond McMillan is 34-year-old Adam Thielen, potential bust Xavier Legette and 2024 UDFA Jalen Coker, that’s not saying a lot. McMillan’s fantasy outlook is really only a mid-range WR3 (or lower), but he has the upside for more and, more importantly, he gives Bryce Young a potentially elite weapon he desperately needed.

O Line as Far as the Eye Can See

Will Campbell, fourth to the Patriots. Armand Membou, seventh to the Jets. Kelvin Banks Jr., ninth to the Saints. Tyler Booker, 12^th to the Cowboys. Grey Zabel, 18^th to the Seahawks. Donovan Jackson, 24^th to the Vikings. Josh Conerly Jr., 29^th to the Commanders. Josh Simmons, 32^nd to the Chiefs. It was an offensive line-palooza Thursday, as teams scrambled to keep their quarterbacks upright. We’ve seen what can happen when guys like Drake Maye, Justin Fields and Sam Darnold aren’t protected, and their teams decided to mitigate that. Add in the Cowboys having built around an elite offensive line when they were last contenders, the Saints not having an obvious solution at quarterback, the Chiefs only losing the Super Bowl when they allow pressure on Patrick Mahomes, and these linemen are going to be key pieces for their new teams in 2025.

Later Picks

Emeka Egbuka to Tampa

Egbuka could be great. The problem is, will he get enough targets? Mike Evans is an institution, Chris Godwin just got good money to re-sign and Jalen McMillan had a nice rookie season. We know the Buccaneers have the talent; now, the question is whether they can manufacture enough work for each of them.

Omarion Hampton to the Chargers

That sound you heard was Najee Harris’ fantasy value, which was mostly wrapped up in being the only game in town in Los Angeles, crashing to the floor. Hampton should waste no time in taking over as the RB1 for the Chargers. The problem? Harris is still around, and considering a Greg Roman offense has never found a running back it likes throwing to, it’s hard to picture enough work for Hampton to be a fantasy starter himself. Good real-life backfield, frustrating fantasy one.

Matthew Golden to Green Bay

Golden is blazing fast. And with Christian Watson out with a torn ACL for at least a chunk of 2025, the Packers could use “blazing fast.” I’m very skeptical that he can be a true WR1, though — check out his numbers in Texas when Isaiah Bond was healthy vs. when Bond was injured. In a receiver room that, even without Watson, is crowded with Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks, Golden is going to have a hard time being a real fantasy factor.

Jaxson Dart to the Giants

Maybe Dart can be a starter (and a star) long term, but Brian Daboll didn’t even wait until the end of the action Thursday night to reaffirm Russell Wilson as the team’s starter. With Jameis Winston and Tommy DeVito also on the roster, it wouldn’t be a big shock at all to see Dart have a de facto redshirt season. There’s upside if he sees the field, but there’s no guarantee he does.

Still to Come

The most notable name left after the first round is obviously Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders, who was in discussion to be first overall earlier in the draft season. Even with his stock dropping, don’t be surprised to hear his name called early Friday, and Tyler Shough and/or Jalen Milroe might go in Rounds 2 or 3 as well. It’s very possible none will start in 2025, but there’s certainly a shot.

The biggest names at wide receiver and tight end are gone, but guys like Jayden Higgins, Luther Burden III and Jaylin Noel have all gotten some real buzz. But it’s running back where we could see some serious thunder on Day 2. Yes, Ashton Jeanty and Omarion Hampton went Thursday, but with guys like TreVeyon Henderson, Quinshon Judkins, Kaleb Johnson and Cam Skattebo out there, we could see some situations where guys get drafted on Day 2 and walk into seriously fantasy-relevant roles.