Welcome to my fantasy football breakdown of the 2025 NFL Draft’s first round, where dreams were made for 32 bright-eyed rookies, and the chessboard of professional football is reset with fresh, ambitious talent.
In this featured piece recapping round one, I will delve into the immediate impact of the newly minted rookies and how their arrival alters the dynamics for veteran players within their teams.
From soaring fantasy stocks of rookies poised to make a significant mark in their debut seasons to veterans who might find their positions threatened or bolstered by these young additions, we’ll explore who emerged as the winners and losers of this pivotal day in the NFL calendar.
Join me as we break down the changing landscapes of NFL squads and assess the potential shifts in strategy and performance prompted by this year’s Day 1 selections.
- Dynasty Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- Dynasty Rookie Draft Simulator
- DBro’s Dynasty Rookie Draft Primers
- NFL Draft Guide
2025 NFL Draft Losers
The Packers were always going to add a wide receiver at some point.
Makes sense, given the injury to Christian Watson (contract year) and Romeo Doubs entering the last year of his rookie contract after dealing with a flurry of concussions in 2024.
They took Matthew Golden in the first round. But Golden’s profile is hardly that of a true alpha, which means he will just be thrust into the wide receiver committee in Green Bay.
This team doesn’t want a true No. 1 WR, which is probably why they felt Golden was a good fit. I think he’s going to end up as a real “better-life” fit for the Packers, than one for fantasy football.
Golden will have his fair share of spiked weeks, but he still might not lead the Packers in routes run. I don’t believe the consistent target share will ever be apparent unless more injuries hit the Packers’ wide receiver room.
Golden also dampens the outlooks of Dontayvion Wicks/Romeo Doubs, as that is where we can see the most overlap in on-field playing time.
Well, if there’s anyone who knows about target competition, it’s Emeka Egbuka. The landing spot for 2025 isn’t great, given Egbuka will have to work his way up the depth chart.
But Mike Evans and Chris Godwin probably aren’t reliable enough to bank on staying healthy all year. Godwin is coming off a season-ending injury, although the Bucs’ front office made it clear that the Egbuka selection had nothing to do with Godwin’s injury.
They simply went best player available on offense with the 19th overall pick.
Jalen McMillan showed out in the second half of last season, but more competition for him is also concerning. He has also dealt with injuries in the last two football seasons. It was tough enough when the team re-signed Godwin, but drafting Egbuka makes McMillan’s path to fantasy relevance much tougher.
Both of these guys are good future bets to make, and I think that’s a reason to remain bullish in dynasty. As for redraft, we should be a bit more bearish. Although for best ball formats that reward more points scored in the latter portion of the year, there’s a lot of upside for both McMillan and Egbuka if they get into the starting lineup.
I would say that long-term, Egbuka’s slot ability mirrors that of Godwin’s career archetype. Factor in first-round draft capital, and I prefer Egbuka over McMillan in dynasty.
so jalen mcmillan and emeka egbuka
mike evans and chris godwin
baker mayfield is going to COOK
— Andrew Erickson™ (@AndrewErickson_) April 25, 2025
Speaking of potential bad landing spots. I’d argue that Tyler Warren got the worst spot between the two top tight ends in this class. There is a ton of talented pass-catchers on the Colts’ depth chart, but also a depleted offensive line and serious question marks at quarterback, both short and long-term.
Yes, Warren’s path to starting tight end reps is clear (third-highest vacated tight end target share), but what does that mean in a 2025 Colts offense?
If it’s closely ranked between Warren and Loveland in rookie drafts, I’m firmly on the Loveland side.
The Chargers drafted Omarion Hampton 22nd overall to be their future bell cow. Najee Harris is on a one-year deal. Fantasy football doesn’t have to be hard.
It’s never a good look for a first-round wide receiver after a disappointing season to see his team immediately draft another wideout in round one. I was already pretty firm on my stance for Jalen Coker over Xavier Legette heading into 2025, so adding McMillan is a real bad sign.
Raheem Mostert never stood a chance.
We knew it was over when Liam Coen listed off the entire receiving corps behind Brian Thomas Jr. and “conveniently” forgot to mention Gabe Davis’ name. It’s over.
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