diontae-johnson-carolina-panthers-usatsi-2.jpg
USATSI

The 2025 NFL offseason is in full swing with the first full waves of free agency in the books and a lot of major roster changes that will impact the 2025 Fantasy Football season already in place. However, the 2025 NFL Draft is that final piece that could swing momentum in many directions. Adam Aizer and the Fantasy Football Today team recently dove into some of their favorite early breakouts heading into draft season. These are players that can be drafted at a cost that will return major value for your Fantasy squads in 2025 and possibly even evolve into league-winning draft picks. We're looking at the next best thing at every position and why you should go out of your way to add them to your rosters.

You can find the full episode below, on our Fantasy Football Today Youtube page and wherever you get your podcasts, but today, we'll profile a few players who the FFT team considers sleepers and late-round value plays to target. Jamey Eisenberg and Heath Cummings broke down their favorite sleepers and let's dive into them now.

Quarterbacks on Jamey and Heath's Breakouts List

Caleb Williams, Bears

Bo Nix, Broncos

Drake Maye, Patriots 

Jamey pointed to the upgrades Williams got when it comes to play caller and offensive line. He expects that the Bears will upgrade via the draft at wide receiver in Keenan Allen's absence. A similar case was made for Drake Maye as the Patriots look to build around him this draft -- something all signs point to them doing. Nix, on the other hand, performed inside the top 10 at the position last year and has the backing of the Broncos -- he could too get a weapons upgrade this draft. Jamey suggested the best way to play this position is by pairing Nix with one of Maye or Williams in 2025 drafts. 

Adam dove into some Aizer Stats on the show, referencing a Word Document of prorated stats should Maye have played a full 17-game season, but you'll have to check out the full episode to get Aizer Statted.

Aizer threw cold water on the Williams breakout case. Williams had a 28.2% sack per-pressure rate in 2024. That was second worst in the NFL. If you look throughout the years into the quarterbacks who are worst in this metric, Williams is not in great company. Jamey countered by leaning on the belief in Ben Johnson and what he can do for a quarterback who had previously dealt with sack issues (like Jared Goff when Johnson helped mold him into the quarterback he is now during his Lions tenure).

Running Backs on Heath and Jamey's Breakouts List

Ken Walker, Seahawks

Bucky Irving, Buccaneers

Both Walker and Irving were on both Jamey and Heath's breakouts list. Heath could see Walker being drafted ahead of Breece Hall and in the first half of Round 2 if the preseason buzz with new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak picks up. However, Dave countered that enough Fantasy managers have been burned by drafting Walker that his ADP will fall into the Round 3 range.

For Walker, volume will be the key assuming his skill set is a strong fit for Kubiak's outside zone scheme -- and it should be. Over the past three seasons when Walker has gotten 15+ touches in a game, he has averaged just under 17 PPR points per game. When he doesn't get 15 touches, Walker has averaged just 7.8 PPR points per game. Dave mentioned issues with the Seahawks offensive line and skepticism over whether or not there is still time to improve that unit for 2025. Relying on rookie additions only can be a fool's game at times.

As for Irving, Jamey isn't concerned with his draft capital (Day 3) because he is on track to be the guy for Tampa based on his production. Dave added that Irving only had three games where he played at least 60% of his snaps. If he gets more playing time and touches while maintaining the same level of efficiency, breaking and forcing missed tackles, behind a solid offensive line, what is stopping him from finishing as a top-five RB overall? Irving was RB6 overall from Weeks 10-18. 

Jamey and Heath went into depth on their breakouts on the show -- find their full list on Fantasy Football Today.