It feels like it was just yesterday that we were all prepping for fantasy football draft season. Then BOOM, the season is over, just like that. Hopefully you are biding your time with some off-season/playoff leagues to keep the fantasy football blood pumping. I am in one league for charity and enjoying the off-line discussions I am sharing with my partners @RazzballNFL (Home – Razzball Fantasy Football). So, you are aware, our football group will be publishing articles throughout the off-season while also hosting podcasts to discuss the upcoming draft, the free agency periods (legal tampering and normal free agency), and, before you know it, BOOM, we will be talking 2025 fantasy football draft prep. What a time to be alive!
For my next group of articles, I will focus on the Wide Receiver position. I will discuss hits and misses, sleepers and busts, and the general outlook for the 2025 season. Our work may be done for 2024, but that only means we are looking forward to winning our leagues in 2025. Stay tuned for rankings, with updates to follow throughout the offseason.
Remember to check in with the @Razzball NFL team of writers as we host our You Tube podcasts where we chat all things off-season fantasy football, and maybe weave in some music and pop culture chatter. Join Sky Guasco @SkyGuasco, The Lineup Builder @Derek_Favret, Jeff Kezar @Jefferson__21, Dave Crews @crewser128, and me, Matt Stiles @stiles08 on out various You Tube sows as we answer all your questions thus keeping you engaged for the 2025 season while looking back at what coulda, shoulda, woulda been in 2024. Come for the analysis and stay for the laughs!
First Round MVP
- Player: Ja’Marr Chase
- Team: Cincinnati Bengals
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR1 (WR4)
Two Words: Triple Crown. Chase channeled his inner Sterling Sharpe to bring home the WR Triple Crown while missing the actual NFL playoffs. The Bengals simply lost too many one score games as their defense could not hold up. This offense was on fire down the stretch and Chase was a major reason. Ja’Marr was one of eight WR with 100+ catches. In fact, he led the league with 127 (on 175 targets), 12 more than second place Amon-Ra St. Brown. Additionally, he finished 175 yards ahead of Justin Jefferson. These two WRs were the only two to crack 1,300 yards. Mix in Chase’s 17 TDs, four more than Terry McLaurin, and you have the makings of an historic season. With Joe Burrow at the helm, Chase is poised to bring an immense return in 2025 and should be the WR1 off the board. Some, and you can count me as one, will consider him as the Overall #1 player to draft this season.
Honorable Mention: Amon-Ra St. Brown, Miami Dolphins (141-115-1,263-12)
Mid Round MVP
- Player: Malik Nabers
- Team: New York Giants
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR8 (WR24)
Full transparency from me here. You know I am always honest about my hits and misses. I was not completely out on Nabers, but I was not in at the WR24 level for Nabers. I was in favor of another rookie WR that could be drafted much later. We will get to that name a little further down this list. For now, let’s talk about the season Nabers just put up as a rookie. His line (170-109-1,204-7) is WR1 territory, and you were able to grab him at the top of round five. That, my friends, is insane value. Consider Nabers was drafted behind names like Cooper Kupp, Michael Pittman Jr., DK Metcalf, and Jaylen Waddle and within one round of Amari Cooper and George Pickens, and you have the makings of an absolute steal at his ADP. Mix in the fact Nabers was the recipient of less than NFL caliber QB for the entire season and his numbers should jump out as something he can (and will) build on when the Giants draft/acquire a true QB1.
Honorable Mention: Terry McLaurin, Washington Commanders (117-82-1,096-13)
Late Round MVP
- Player: Jerry Jeudy
- Team: Cleveland Browns
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR15 (WR55)
You would have called me crazy if I told you Jerry Jeudy would be on any kind of WR MVP list at the end of the 2024 season. To double-down on that statement, you would have had me institutionalized had you I told you Jerry Jeudy would put up Top 15 WR numbers. To go one step further, you would have clowned me on the internet when you read that Jerry Jeudy would go 145-90-1,229-4 with Deshaun Watson, Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and Jameis Winston throwing him the football. Pause, for just a moment and read those names again. Sure, Jameis is fun during waiver wire season, but let’s be honest here; there is no fantasy analyst that handed you “Jerry Jeudy – Top 15” in the off-season, yours truly included. If Jeudy can get into the huddle with a league average QB, and improve on the TD count, he could bring significant value, again, in 2025.
Honorable Mention: Jakobi Meyers, Las Vegas Raiders (129-87-1,027-4)
The Rookie MVP
- Player: Brian Thomas Jr.
- Team: Jacksonville Jaguars
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR4 (WR48)
As mentioned two sections above, I was hyping up this rookie WR over Harrison, Nabers, McConkey, and Worthy. The eye test from his college games, and the 2024 fantasy draft day discount had me all over Thomas. Most analysts were discussing Harrison at the end of Round 1 or early in Round 2. I was simply not going to pay that price, especially for Harrison. Look at me getting this one right. Thomas finished the PPR season as the WR4 where Nabers only bested him in receptions and targets. Thomas was better, where it counts, with 59 more yards (on 22 fewer catches) and three more TDs. The key to these numbers is found in overall ADP where Nabers went 49 overall and Thomas was drafted at 118, almost six full rounds later. Consider a WR4 will probably be hard to repeat, but it is imperative we recognize most of the success Thomas provided for your fantasy team(s) occurred with Mac Jones under center. Let that sink in. Mac Jones contributed to Brian Thomas Jr. as a Top 5 fantasy football WR. Imagine the possibilities should Trevor Lawrence stay healthy and figure it out at the NFL level.
Honorable Mention: Ladd McConkey (112-82-1,149-7) sits here mainly because I already addressed Malik Nabers above
What Could Have Been if Not for Injury MVP
- Player: Chris Godwin
- Team: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR56 (WR34)
The current free agent WR was putting up career numbers when a horrific injury ended his 2024 season. Through seven weeks, Godwin had seen six games of 8+ targets while breaking the 60-yard mark in every game. He had also hauled in five TDs leading the Bucs at that time. From a PPR standpoint, Godwin posted double-digits in every game with the low being 11 and the high mark at 39. At the time of his injury, Godwin was WR4 overall in an offense that was pass friendly under Liam Coen. Moving into 2025, we are holding out hope Godwin stays with TB and Baker Mayfield or transitions to another pass-first offense. With his hot start to 2024, he may have priced himself out of Tampa. Keep an eye on this situation during the off-season.
Honorable Mention: Chris Olave (did not play after Week 9)
Waiver Wire MVP
- Player: Adam Thielen
- Team: Carolina Panthers
- Positional Finish (ADP): WR49 (WR58)
Hear me out, here. The difference between where Thielen was drafted and where he finished was only a delta of nine picks. That math does not show a large enough difference, nor does it scream ‘this guy went undrafted’. Thielen was drafted in most leagues, albeit near the end of most drafts. After a lackluster Weeks 1-3 and an injury (and bye week) that saw him miss Weeks 4-11, Thielen came back on fire. In fact, Thielen was a league winner averaging 7-5-72-0.6 over the final seven weeks. For teams that lost Godwin/Olave or dealt with the ups and downs of DK Metcalf/Devonta Smith/AJ Brown/All Bears WR, had the perfect remedy in Thielen. Consider all of the missed time while understand Thielen finished ahead of these WRs: DeAndre Hopkins, Rome Odunze, and Amari Cooper
Honorable Mention: Jalen McMillan (58-37-461-8; while only playing full-time beginning Week 14)
Follow me @stiles08 on Twitter/X and send questions comments at the bottom of this article. Make sure you jump around the Razzball site for all your fantasy football needs.
-Stiles-