It’s never too early to start preparing for your fantasy draft.
With the NFL offseason fully in the dog days of summer, now is the perfect time to game-plan for your draft. Here’s a quick, 1-round mock draft featuring the 12 players that I think should go at the top of every draft. Just for reference, I will be using full PPR scoring. Let’s get started!
1st Overall Pick: Saquon Barkley
Even if Saquon doesn’t repeat the ridiculous production from last season, it’s still hard to imagine him not being one of the most productive players in all of football. This is about as safe of a bet as you can make.
Barkley lit the world on fire in 2024, leading the NFL in both total touches and total yards en route to winning Offensive Player of the Year. After spending the majority of his career trapped in talent-poor offenses, Barkley took full advantage of Philly’s great supporting cast.
Despite losing offensive coordinator Kellen Moore and guard Mekhi Becton this offseason, this Eagles roster is still loaded. Barkley is 28 years old and looks as explosive as ever.
Even with the revival that the running back position has seen in recent years, true workhorses like Barkley are extremely hard to come by. In a 12-team snake draft, the drop-off at running back is steep, with the next pick coming at 24th overall. Don’t overthink this, Saquon is the top pick.
2nd overall pick: Ja’Marr Chase
If you really wanted to take Ja’Marr Chase first overall instead of Barkley, I won’t knock you for it. He’s capable of going for 40 fantasy points on any given week.
Chase won the NFL’s receiving Triple Crown last season, leading the league in catches, yards and touchdowns. He also had three games of at least 40 fantasy points, including an astounding 55-point performance against the Ravens in Week 10.
Chase is in as good a situation as possible. He’s an ultra-talented receiver in the prime of his career, catching passes from an elite QB in a pass-happy offense that looks to be in plenty of shootouts again this season. His running mate Tee Higgins is good enough to take some defensive attention away from Chase, while not eating too much into his target share.
I can’t promise that Chase will win the Triple Crown again, but it’s certainly not out of the question. If you want a player who can single-handedly win you a game or two, Chase is your guy.
3rd overall pick: Justin Jefferson
Going into last season, Justin Jefferson saw his fantasy value dip a little bit, with questions over how he would produce with Sam Darnold under center instead of Kirk Cousins. So much for that.
Jefferson was as dominant as ever in 2024, turning in yet another 1,500+ yard, 100+ catch season, while also tying his career high in touchdown catches. Regardless of who is at quarterback, Jefferson’s talent and Kevin O’Connell’s commitment to feeding him targets are enough to ensure top-end production no matter what.
There’s another new QB for Jefferson to catch passes from in JJ McCarthy. We know very little about how McCarthy is going to fare in this Vikings offense overall, but it’s hard to imagine a world where Jefferson isn’t one of the league’s best receivers yet again. If anything, Jefferson may be due for an increase in production after seeing the fewest targets per game since his rookie season in 2024.
Jefferson is seemingly QB-proof and as safe a bet as there is in fantasy. He’s an excellent high-end pick.
4th overall pick: Bijan Robinson
He’s arrived.
Bijan Robinson came into the NFL with massive expectations after being taken by the Falcons 8th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft and being hailed as a “generational” running back prospect. After a solid rookie season, Robinson took the bull by the horns and broke out in 2024, rushing for 1,456 yards and 14 touchdowns. I think he can be even better in 2025.
New offensive coordinator Zac Robinson increased Bijan’s workload by nearly 100 touches last season, and I expect a similar volume this year. While Tyler Allgeier will take some of the goal-line carries, Robinson will still get plenty of goal-line carries himself, and is the far better receiver of the two.
I also think Robinson is going to benefit greatly from a full season of Michael Penix at quarterback. With Kirk Cousins at quarterback last season, the Falcons ran a very limited offense due to his lack of mobility, relying almost exclusively on outside zone runs from the pistol formation and rarely using play-action. The offense became far more diverse as soon as Penix entered the lineup, simply because he has the mobility to do more than Cousins could.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Robinson ended last season on a tear, averaging 26.8 fantasy points per game with Penix as the starting QB. I’m all in on Bijan Robinson in 2025. This is a player that I believe can win you your league.
5th overall pick: Derrick Henry
I’m not ready to bet against Derrick Henry just yet.
Turning 30 years old is typically the beginning of the end for elite running backs, but Henry has proven to be a different beast. Last year, in his age-30 season, Henry had one of the best seasons of his career, rushing for nearly 2,000 yards and leading the NFL in rushing touchdowns with 16.
Similar to Saquon Barkley, Henry is an incredibly gifted running back who has now found himself playing with the best supporting cast of his career. Few offenses run the ball more than the Ravens, and even with Lamar Jackson sure to take plenty of carries for himself, Henry is still a workhorse in every sense of the word
Perhaps the only knock on Henry’s game is the lack of work as a receiver. Henry has topped 30 catches in a season only once, and saw only 22 receiving targets last season. But he’s as good as ever as a runner, remarkably durable and should be in line for yet another 300-carry season.
This is an all-time great player and should be drafted accordingly.
6th overall pick: Jahmyr Gibbs
Jahmyr Gibbs was seen as the “other” back in Bijan Robinson’s draft class, but has proven to be just as good.
In year 2, Gibbs took his game to another level, leading the entire league in touchdowns and piling up nearly 2,000 yards from scrimmage. Even with David Montgomery sharing the backfield with Gibbs, he is a scoring machine, with 26 rushing touchdowns in the first two seasons of his career.
Even without offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, the Lions’ offense looks as strong as ever. This is a run-heavy team with a phenomenal offensive line, and Gibbs may be the hardest player to tackle in the NFL. He also gets plenty of work in the passing game, with back-to-back seasons of over 50 catches.
Gibbs is another player who could go for 40 points on any given week. He should not make it out of the top half of the first round.
7th overall pick: Nico Collins
It can not be overstated how dominant Nico Collins has been when he’s been on the field.
Collins has played in 27 games since the start of the 2023 season, totaling 148 catches, 2,303 yards and 15 touchdowns during that stretch. Averaging those numbers out over a 17-game season gives him a gaudy statline of 93 catches, 1,450 yards and 9 touchdowns. He is truly one of the very best receivers in the NFL, and could be primed for a monster 2025 season.
With Stefon Diggs out of the picture and Tank Dell rehabbing from a gruesome injury, Collins is now far and away the top option for CJ Stroud to throw to. Despite Collins’ remarkable production, he has not seen a particularly large number of targets, getting about 7.7 a game since 2023.
That number should skyrocket this season. If Collins can get up to 8 or 9 targets a game, I think he would have a shot to lead the NFL in receiving yards. 7th overall may seem a little rich for Nico Collins, but I’m willing to take the swing.
8th overall pick: CeeDee Lamb
After a historic 2023 season, CeeDee Lamb saw a dip in production in 2024, in large part due to injuries suffered by him and Dak Prescott. I think his 2025 stats will be a lot closer to his 2023 season than his 2024 season.
Prescott and Lamb have one of the best connections in the NFL, and if both are healthy, they should continue to pile up the points. The Cowboys also brought in some reinforcements in the passing game, trading for wide receiver George Pickens, a desperately needed second option. Pickens and Lamb complement each other well, with Pickens being the vertical threat on the outside and Lamb working the short and intermediate areas of the field from the slot.
After going in the top 5 in most drafts last season, Lamb is a great bounce-back candidate at 8th overall.
9th overall pick: Amon-Ra St. Brown
Coming in just a hair behind CeeDee Lamb is another excellent slot receiver in Amon-Ra St. Brown, who is especially valuable in PPR leagues.
St. Brown has been nothing but consistent since coming into the NFL, notching 3 straight 100+ catch seasons after 90 catches in his rookie season. Even with all of the talent on the Lions’ offense, getting St. Brown the football is one of their top priorities. He’s even seen his touchdown total increase every season of his career, with a high mark of 12 last season.
While he may not be the most explosive receiver in the league, his consistency, strong hands and surprisingly good red-zone skills make him one of the best receivers in fantasy.
10th overall pick: Jonathan Taylor
Jonathan Taylor may have had one of the quietest 1,400-yard seasons in NFL history. Even more impressively, he got to that mark despite missing 3 games!
Injuries are certainly a fair concern for Taylor, who’s missed a total of 17 games over the last 3 seasons. But when he has been healthy, he’s been every bit the player that nearly won Offensive Player of the Year back in 2021.
Shane Steichen has never shied away from running the football, and with a questionable quarterback room going into 2025, Taylor should be as busy as ever. As an added bonus, both Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones offer a rushing threat from the quarterback position, giving defenses another player to account for.
Given that this is a snake draft and the 10th overall pick will get to turn around and pick again in a few turns, I’m comfortable with taking a slight risk on Taylor here. The upside is worth it.
11th overall pick: Ashton Jeanty
Taking a rookie in the first round is not always the safest bet, but Ashton Jeanty is no ordinary rookie.
Jeanty enters the NFL coming off of one of the all-time great college football seasons and is primed to be the Raiders’ workhorse back from day 1. Both Pete Carroll and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly have been run-first coaches throughout their careers, and seem set on unleashing Jeanty.
The Raiders’ supporting cast isn’t quite on the level of the Eagles or Ravens, but it’s not too bad either. Kolton Miller and Jackson Powers-Johnson anchor a solid offensive line, and new quarterback Geno Smith should greatly raise the passing game’s ceiling. There’s enough here where Jeanty won’t be overwhelmed.
We’ve seen plenty of rookie running backs be great options for fantasy right off the bat. Bucky Irving, Alvin Kamara, Saquon Barkley and Jahmyr Gibbs are a few recent examples that come to mind. Jeanty has a great shot to join them this season.
12th overall pick: Puka Nacua
Puka Nacua’s rookie season was not a fluke.
Nacua followed up his record-breaking rookie season by taking his game to another level last season, nearly reaching 1,000 yards despite missing 6 games. On a per-game basis, his 2024 stats were even better than his 2023 numbers.
He also boasted the highest target share in the NFL last season, receiving over 41% of the Rams’ targets when he was on the field. While that number may slightly decrease after the Rams signed Davante Adams, I still trust Sean McVay to draw up great looks for Nacua and Matthew Stafford to get him the ball as much as possible.
If you reach the end of the first round and Nacua is on the board, get him while you can.
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