The 2025 NFL season kicks off tonight, and after all that time spent researching and drafting your team, you’ll want to put your players in a position to succeed, starting with our Week 1 rankings. Need to dive deeper? Start with Tristan H. Cockcroft’s positional matchup rankings, where you can see the best and worst matchups for each position group for every team.
Of course, this week is just the beginning of your championship run. There will be plenty to learn from the first slate of games and Matt Bowen tells you exactly what to look for with his biggest questionsheading into Week 1, with thoughts on teams who have new offensive schemes and about which players could see bigger opportunities.
There’s still time to draft another team before kickoff. Any team drafted before Sunday at 1 p.m. ET will play a Week 1 matchup, after which times new leagues will begin play the week they are drafted. Check out the draft guideand get your roster ready for game day.
The Bears spent their first two picks of April’s draft on highly touted pass catchers (Colston Loveland and Luther Burden III), providing Williams with a deep and talented corps. And, of course, the addition of head coach Ben Johnson cannot be understated. All of this points toward Williams having the tools to make the leap.
Pollard may not possess much flash, but his value makes him extra shiny. With Tyjae Spears now on IR, the rest of the fantasy community is getting on board. Pollard received all of the work while Spears was sidelined last year, averaging nearly 25 touches per contest over those particular four weeks.
A contested-catch specialist with just eight career drops to his name, London is poised to replicate — if not beat — the career numbers (100-1,271-9) he posted in 2024. With Michael Penix Jr. under center and little competition for looks, the 24-year-old’s ceiling has been undeniably lifted.
Some managers might hesitate to invest in a first-year player attached to Bryce Young. Yet, the numbers suggest considerable growth on the part of Young. With Adam Thielen heading back to Minnesota, T-Mac appears locked into a massive target share of 120-plus looks. McMillan could surprise as this year’s Brian Thomas Jr.
Okonkwo finished second in team targets and receptions last season. With 33-year-old Tyler Lockett and fourth-round rookie Elic Ayomanor as his main competition for looks behind Calvin Ridley, the 25-year-old TE figures to become one of Cam Ward’s most trusted receiving options.
The No. 19 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft opened eyes during the preseason, and should see additional targets in the early part of the season while Chris Godwin Jr. (ankle) and Jalen McMillan (neck) continue to work their way back from injuries. A star at Ohio State, Egbuka gives Baker Mayfield another terrific option in the passing game to go with veteran Mike Evans and tight end Cade Otton.
Kenneth Walker III Seattle Seahawks
Foot soreness plagued Walker during training camp and he was held out of preseason games as the Seahawks took precautions to keep him healthy. Zach Charbonnet stepped in as the starter in August’s exhibition games and shined in the team’s new power running attack, giving further reason for fantasy managers to be cautious about trusting Walker, who is now RB18 in live draft trends.
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