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Chip Bayless FEATURED Football Latest 

2025 Fantasy Football Rankings: WRs 1-10

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By Chip Bayless (click Howie for more Chip)

 

 

 

 

1) Ja’Marr Chase

Chase easily clears the top spot on this year’s list due to his talent level, target share, and quarterback, versus Justin Jefferson’s QB situation is still an arguably unknown variable.

Chase’s best traits are his ability to leap into the sky to snare jump balls, and his after-the-catch skills which are akin to a running back.

Among 2024 WRs, Chase ranked:

  • 1st in fantasy PPG and total points
  • 1st in receptions
  • 1st in yards
  • 1st in TDs
  • 1st in targets (Chase/Nabers were the only WRs with 160+ targets)
  • 5th in catches for 20+ yards

Moreover, Chase’s catch radius combined with his body control on sideline catches allows him to literally extend the field and make plays 99% of NFL receivers simply can’t make, like he did on this incredible leaping sideline grab:

While Chase led the league in receiving volume and ranked second to only Jerry Jeudy in total routes run, his efficiency was off the charts too as he ranked tied for eighth in yards per target among all positions.

He also led receivers in broken tackles on receptions.

In addition to the triple crown, Chase led WRs in receptions for first downs with 75 too.

His vision when he has the football in his hands is maybe the best at the position, and he uses creative and changing angles to turn defenders’ pursuit angles against them.

Those traits translate to the stat sheet, and last year Chase led the NFL in YAC with 787 yards, over 100 more than the next-closest player and almost 200 more than the next closest WRs.

Additionally, Chase’s league-leading TDs were no aberration either, as Chase had the sixth-highest red zone target share among 2024 receivers.

Throw in the fact that he is one of the fastest players at the position and has maybe the highest TD potential in the league, and its easy to see why Chase will be a top-3 pick in every fantasy draft this summer.

As long as Joe Burrow’s frosted tips don’t accidentally open a portal that sends him back to the early 2000s to live out a life as Guy Fieri’s stand-in, Chase will finish the season as one of the top-5 scorers in all of fantasy football.

 

 

2) Justin Jefferson

Jefferson’s ability to explode off the line of scrimmage and in and out of his breaks is probably the best the league has to offer.

His route running and release techniques are beyond impressive, and it feels like there’s never a week where his matchup truly impacts him, or a corner is able to lock him down.

Once you consider the fact that this immensely-talented playmaker also accrued at least five targets in every single game he played while scoring double-digit fantasy points in 82% (all but three) of his outings, it becomes easy to see why he was the consensus #1 overall pick in fantasy drafts a few years ago.

In terms of last season’s WRs, Jefferson finished:

  • 4th in fantasy PPG and 2nd in total points
  • 1st in receptions for 20+ yards
  • 2nd in receiving yards
  • 4th in targets
  • 4th in receptions
  • Tied for 5th in receiving TDs

Jefferson is also one of the most dynamic ball-handlers at the receiver position and ranked eighth in YAC and fourth in receptions that resulted in first downs (per ESPN).

While Jefferson is undoubtedly force-fed, and will be even more so with an incoming Jordan Addison suspension due to a DUI after police found his drunk ass asleep in his Rolls on the side of the road at 11PM on a Friday night (mf couldn’t even make it to 1am like a real NFL player), his advanced metrics are off the charts too.



Last season he was tied for eighth in the NFL in yards per route. He led WRs with 130+ targets in that statistic, and he led in yards per route among players who ran at least 500 routes.

He was ninth in yards per target too, and led players with at least 115 targets in that category.

Much like Chase, regardless of Jefferson’s ungodly talent level, his volume makes him a high-end lock-it-in, high-ceiling, high-floor WR1 as he trailed only Jerry Jeudy and Chase in routes run last season (per ESPN).

It doesn’t hurt Jefferson’s case that he was eighth in red zone target share as well.

 

 

3) Malik Nabers

Nabers barely edges Lamb for the third slot on this season’s list, and the main reason is the fact that Nabers worked with more volume last season (top three in receptions and targets) and was able to produce despite the dumpster fire of QBs the Giants rolled out every week.

Russell Wilson isn’t anything special at this point in his career; however, he does have a Super Bowl ring and has made multiple Pro Bowls, something that can’t be said for any quarterback Nabers caught passes from last season.

And if Dart starts, then that likely means either the Giants are going to be playing from behind and thus throwing most of the time, or it means the promising first rounder has already shown that he’s talented enough to be a significant improvement in the team’s passing success.

In either case, Nabers should actually perform better than he did last year, when he finished as fantasy’s WR6 in just his first NFL season.

After all, as long as his QB can complete a few screen passes Nabers will take some balls to the house:

 

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Just how insane were Nabers’ rookie numbers?

Here’s a look at his 2024 WR ranks:

  • 7th in fantasy PPG and 6th in total points
  • 2nd in targets to only Chase
  • 3rd in receptions
  • 7th in yards
  • Tied for 8th in receptions for first downs (per ESPN)

As another example of his absurd target share, Nabers also ranked fourth in the NFL in his share of his team’s air yards as the rookie accounted for a monstrous 40% of all of the Giants 2024 air yards.

He was seventh in red zone target share too, accruing 29.5% of all of the Giants red zone looks.

 

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In terms of his efficiency, one proof point could be the fact that ESPN Analytics uses player-tracking data from Next Gen Stats to evaluate every route pass catchers run and score their performance, and Nabers boasted the seventh-best overall rating.

He also finished the season tied for the league lead in open rating with Mike Evans and AJ Brown (not bad company to be in for a rookie catching passes from a QB with less than a quarter of the talent level of a Baker Mayfield or Jalen Hurts).

The young LSU product isn’t just a possession receiver raking in a massive target share either and is a an absolute weapon with the ball in his hands.

He broke the seventh-most tackles on receptions in 2024 (12th-most across all positions).

As long as the promising sophomore doesn’t post a picture of himself shirtless on a boat wearing jeans and Timberlands with ten other dudes doing the same thing, he’ll be just fine even if the Giants roll Daboll himself out there as QB.

 

 

4) CeeDee Lamb

CeeDee Lamb comes in barely behind Malik Nabers for the fourth spot on this year’s list due to Nabers’ youth and slightly higher workload.

Although, unlike Nabers, Lamb will be catching passes from a perennial Pro Bowler and not a rookie, and the Cowboys made it abundantly clear over several seasons that they didn’t pay Lamb to not target the absolute fuck out of him.

While Lamb didn’t place among the top three in both categories like Nabers, he did place among the top six WRs in both targets and receptions in 2024, and those targets will likely have greater value due to less defensive attention with George Pickens now added to the fold.

Even without a true threat opposite him last season, Lamb still finished (among receivers):

With a true threat opposite him now that should scare defenses, Lamb’s efficiency and production should hopefully tick up at least a little this season, and it helps that Dallas still lacks a trusted, proven running back.

The Cowboys love getting their paid playmaker the ball early and often as much like Chase sometimes all it takes is getting him a screen pass and he’ll do the rest.

It helps that Lamb has some of the best hands in the league, and can beat one-on-one coverage anytime anywhere.

It comes as no surprise that Lamb trailed only Chase among WRs in broken tackles on receptions.

Lamb’s red zone target share should either be unaffected or a decrease will be a direct result of more touchdowns and fewer attempts/opportunities due to converting on more looks than last season as a result of having another true red zone weapon across from him in Pickens.

Last year Lamb’s red zone target share was 25%, good for 12th-best among WRs, so as long as the Cowboys don’t drastically change his workload he should be just fine.

It doesn’t hurt that he accounted for a quarter of all of Dallas’ air yards last season too (per Next Gen Stats).

 

 

5) Amon-Ra St. Brown

Amon-Ra St. Brown comes in barely inside the top-5, ahead of Nacua and Collins in large part because he plays in a more productive offense than both, and had 200 more receiving yards than both, and averaged more fantasy PPG than Collins.

Nacua’s numbers are also more likely than Brown’s to take a hit in 2025 considering how much their head coach and the entire organization has raved about the acquisition of Davante Adams throughout the offseason.

As far as St. Brown, he’s like a more compact version of Justin Jefferson mixed with Deebo Samuel’s after-the-catch skillset.

In terms of 2024’s crop of WRs, St. Brown finished:

He can run any route or play an offensive coordinator can dream up, and his jitterbug-like acceleration combined with his underrated strength makes him incredibly hard to tackle and one of the most dynamic playmakers in the league.

From 50/50 balls, to short drags, to body-contorting sideline grabs, to end-arounds, St. Brown is a do-it-all WR.

He also might be the Lions #1 go-to guy when they need a first down, a big play, or a touchdown and last year he ranked second to only Chase in receptions resulting in first downs.

Plus, he led Detroit in air yard percentage and accounted for 31% of all of the Lions’ 2024 air yards (per Next Gen Stats).

St. Brown’s production relative to his volume was elite as well, and last season he ranked tied for 10th in yards per route.

Moreover, his passer rating when targeted was sky-high at 129, which was the fourth-highest among 2024 WRs (per Pro Football Reference).

His receiving success rate was also second among receivers to only Chris Godwin.

Much of that is due to St. Brown’s aforementioned skillset, but some of it is also due to the Lions’ high-octane offense which should rank top-10 in the NFL again in total yards and scoring, if not towards the top-3.

Finally, St. Brown should score at a high clip again as the Lions haven’t added any notable red zone targets (not that they need any), and Amon-Ra finished 2024 with the third-highest red zone target share in the league.

 

 

6) Puka Nacua

Nacua takes the number six slot on 2025’s list over AJ Brown, simply due to the fact that he plays in a much more pass-heavy offense.



Nacua also averaged more fantasy PPG last season than Brown, and last year his WR ranks were:

Due to missing six games, most of Nacua’s regular-season jump off the stat sheet about as much as whatever came out of your ass this morning; however, when he was healthy his dominance was undeniable, and finishing third in fantasy PPG despite getting injured mid-game several times is an impressive feat.

He finished third in receiving yards per game too, trailing only Chase and Jefferson.

Insanely, over half of his receiving yards actually came after the catch too and last year Puka ranked fourth among WRs in YAC with 518. It’s worth noting every WR ahead of him on the YAC rankings played at least four more games.

Nacua also ended last season ranked fourth among WRs in broken tackles on receptions, and much like with his YAC rankings, every WR ahead of Nacua in broken tackles played in at least four more games than the diminutive Rams’ dynamo.

Looking for one final absolutely glaze-worthy Nacua stat? He led the NFL last season in yards per route, averaging 3.7 yards for every route he ran regardless of if he was even targeted or not.

 

 

7) AJ Brown

If not for the existence of Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith, and if the Eagles threw the ball as much as the offenses the players listed above him belong to, A.J. Brown would be a lock as a top-5 fantasy receiver.

And while the Eagles don’t throw as much as other team’s represented on this list, A.J. Brown does collect a significant portion of Philadelphia’s passing volume.

Last season he accounted for just over a third (34%) of all the Eagles’ 2024 air yards, a mark which ranked 13th-highest among receivers (per Next Gen Stats).

Who led the NFL in overall receiver rating (per ESPN Analytics) with 90 and was the only WR with a rating over 74?Arthur. Juan. Brown.#gobirds #eagles #NFLTop100

— Vote The Process (@votetheprocess.bsky.social) 2025-08-19T12:20:18.338Z

Additionally, Brown’s monumental talent level (9th among 2024 WRs in passer rating when targeted and 4th among WRs in YAC over expectation) and unique strength/explosiveness combination ensures he should be a top-10 fantasy receiver for years to come.

He can body any defender covering him, has some of the strongest hands in the league and one of the NFL’s best vertical leaps, and runs like a back once he’s in open space.

Last season, despite missing four games, AJ Brown ranked (among WRs):

Brown is also maybe the most physical receiver in the league, and his ability to beat press coverage with ease and peel defenders off his body is elite.

In 2024, Brown ranked fifth among WRs in broken tackles on receptions while also placing fifth in yards per target (per Pro Football Reference).

It doesn’t hurt Brown’s case that he ranked seventh in receiving success rate too.

Searching for one last AJ Brown stat to convince you he’s worthy of a top-15 pick?

ESPN Analytics uses player-tracking data from Next Gen Stats to evaluate every route pass catchers run and score their performance, and Brown led the league with a 90 overall rating and was the only WR with an overall rating over 74.

 

 

8) Brian Thomas Jr.

Brian Thomas Jr.’s fantasy prospects are interesting because Trevor Lawrence’s talent level is still hotly debated, and the Jaguars just drafted a supposedly revolutionary offensive weapon in fellow receiver (and corner) Travis Hunter, although we aren’t sure exactly what Hunter’s offensive workload or target share will look like.

Either way, Thomas should be firmly inside WR1 territory this season as in the best-case scenario Hunter’s presence will at least draw some attention away from Thomas, and in the worst-case scenario where Hunter does have a massive target share, there should still be plenty of footballs to go around given the difference in their skillsets, the departure of Evan Engram, and Thomas’ glacial talent level (8th in the NFL in yards per route last season).

Thomas exploded onto the NFL scene, notching fantasy WR1 numbers in just his rookie season and putting together highlight-reel plays seemingly every single week.

Last year, Thomas’ WR rankings included:

The fact that Thomas trailed only Jefferson and Chase in despite ranking outside the top ten receivers in targets and outside the top 30 in routes run screams efficiency, and in all likelihood points to Thomas having an even better sophomore season in Jacksonville than the one he just had – where he ranked fourth in WR fantasy points as just a rookie.

His deep speed is elite, and his ability to leap up to snatch footballs at their highest point is likely the best the 2024 draft class has to offer.

Thomas also shows phenomenal burst off the line of scrimmage, and uses his size and remarkable agility to beat press coverage quickly and easily.

His size and catch radius make him one of the league’s top red zone targets too, and he had the 10th-highest red zone target share of any WR last season.

Thomas’ scoring potential isn’t just limited to the red area either, and its worth noting Thomas had the second-fastest ball carrier time last season and was clocked at 22 MPH, according to Next Gen Stats.

His overall workload should remain substantial in 2025, and in 2024 he ranked inside the top-15 WRs in air yard share as he accounted for 35% of all of Jacksonville’s air yards.

As some final proof points that Thomas should finish inside the top eight receivers in fantasy points for a second consecutive season, look at the fact that Thomas finished last season fourth in total burns, fifth in total EVE, and eighth in burn yards per route (per Opta Analyst).

 

 

9) Nico Collins

Due in part to Dank Dell’s knee exploding towards the end of last season, the fast, big-bodied Nico Collins should be the undisputed top-target for talented young QB in an offense that plays half its games in a dome.

Once Collins was healthy following his own major injury, he certainly looked like his old self and displayed remarkable consistency.

He scored at least 8.9 fantasy points in every game he appeared in, and scored 12.5 or more fantasy points in 10/12 games.

In terms of 2024 receivers, Collins ranked:

According to Opta Analyst, he was also among the top-10 WRs in burn yards per route and in total efficiency versus expected.

Collins only appeared in 12 games last season so much of his season totals are about as impressive what’s in your toilet right now; however, the consistency he displayed and chemistry he has with C.J. Stroud solidifies him as a mid to low end fantasy WR1, especially since Tank Dell is likely to miss the entire season.



 

 

10) Drake London

Now with a promising, young, strong-armed quarterback with quick decision making skills instead of an over-the-hill veteran coming off an achilleas tear, Drake London should finally enter discussions around the league as one of the NFL’s premier receivers.

London’s target share, consistent and natural hands, and sharp route running (15th in yards per route in 2024) combined with the Falcons’ high passing volume made him a WR1 last season, but this season the young wideout should take another step forward as hopefully will the entire offense.

Here’s how London’s 2024 numbers looked with respect to his fellow WRs:

  • 14th in fantasy PPG & 5th in total points
  • 3rd in targets
  • 4th in receiving yards
  • 7th in receptions
  • 8th in ESPN Analytics‘ overall receiver rating
  • Tied for 8th in receiving TDs

London should continue to sustain a high target share in 2025 as the Falcons didn’t add any notable offensive receiving weapons, and he will likely have improved quarterback play and offensive efficiency this season.

Playing the majority of his games in the pass-friendly weather in the NFC South, and at least half of them in perfect weather inside the Falcons’ own dome, barring injury there’s no reason to expect that London won’t be a lineup lock and a low-end WR1 at minimum in 2025.

Moreover, it is abundantly clear that when the Falcons need a big play, it is Drake London that they look for.

London ranked third to only Jefferson and Amon-Ra St. Brown in receptions resulting in first downs last year, and London trailed only Nabers and Chase in targets.

In addition, he led the NFL in red zone target share last season as 42% of Atlanta’s passes inside the 20 sailed London’s way, and he was the only receiver that notched a red zone target share above 40%.

Finally, London also ranked eighth in the NFL in air yard share and was responsible for 38% of all of the Falcons air yards, according to Next Gen Stats.

 

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