Fantasy Football 2025 Rookie Rankings: Nos. 5-1

Today, we’ll rank the Top 5 rookies for the 2024 fantasy football season. You can check out Nos. 10-6 here, and the Honorable Mentions here. Remember, these are ranked for this upcoming season, not for dynasty. Without further ado…

5. Tyler Warren, TE, Colts (Round 1, No. 14 overall)

Warren was the second TE taken in the Top 15 of this year’s draft, as the narrative of rookie TEs struggling to make immediate impact has been blown to smithereens the past two seasons. While I am not suddenly racing annually to make the best TE in the draft my season-long solution, Warren really does look like he could be a massive difference maker on Day 1. His stats until last season, his fifth at Penn State, were very pedestrian but it’s impossible to ignore his output as a fifth-year senior. Warren racked up 104 receptions, 1,233 yards and 12 total touchdowns (eight receiving). Those are elite WR numbers, they’d be historically significant TE numbers at the NFL level, and they’re unfathomable for a college TE.

Warren has high-end speed for a TE, running a 4.75 40-yard dash at 6’5 and 256 lbs. He’s a matchup nightmare, your classic “too fast for linebackers and too big for safeties” ideal weapon at the position. Sometimes, we fall in love with TE prospects because of their tantalizing physicality, but they don’t have the production to match. This TE has the entire package, and he also mixes in a Taysom Hill-esque Swiss Army knife capability. It’s been mentioned a ton, but he did play QB in high school, and Penn State had him carry the ball 26 times. Those carries turned into 218 yards and four touchdowns, which is significant additional production. His landing spot has pluses and minuses. He’s surrounded by very strong pass-catchers; Michael Pittman Jr. and Josh Downs are proven weapons, Jonathan Taylor is among the NFL’s elite rushers, and even Adonai Mitchell and Alec Pierce are dangerous. Defenses will not be able to load up and scheme specifically to take Warren out. However, it’s a lot of players who need targets, and while that shouldn’t stop us from adding talent to our rosters, it matters when the QB is insufficient to feed everyone.

It honestly might be better for Warren and the rest of these players if Daniel Jones eventually assumes the job, but the Colts as a whole are certainly in better position if Anthony Richardson pans out. Warren might actually be even higher than this had he landed with a better QB, but he’ll have a big role right away in Indy, and I do believe he can be a season-long TE. Brock Bowers showed last season that if you’re good enough, even terrible QB play can’t hold you down.

4. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Browns (Round 2, No. 36 overall)

Judkins was TreVeyon Henderson’s backfield mate at Ohio State, and despite Henderson’s explosive capabilities, Judkins led the team in rushing attempts and yardage. Judkins is not the electric big play merchant that Henderson is, but while he’s on the bigger side, Judkins can rip off big plays of his own. He eclipsed 1,000 yards for the Buckeyes in 2024, and put up 1,700 yards from scrimmage as an Ole Miss freshman, following up that campaign with over 1,300 yards as an Ole Miss sophomore. Judkins caught 22 passes in back to back seasons and has proven in every season of his college career that he’s tailor made for bell cow work.

That is why the Browns leapt at the chance in the second round. With Nick Chubb still on the market as a free agent, Cleveland has clearly moved on from him and found a new franchise back who is reminiscent of a young Chubb. Cleveland still has Jerome Ford on the roster, whom they seem to view as a complementary back, and they also drafted Dylan Sampson out of Tennessee in the fourth round. Both players should expect to see a bit of work, but second round capital on a RB typically signals a lot of excitement for the player and impending opportunity. The Browns also have a giant mess of a QB situation. Whether it’s Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel or Shedeur Sanders under center in 2025, the Browns are gonna run the hell out of the ball. That means their rugged rookie is going to have a lot of volume, and probably a lot of receptions too. I am excited about Judkins’ prospects right away.

3. Omarion Hampton, RB, Chargers (Round 1, No. 22 overall)

Hampton, for my money, looked like the best RB in the draft on film. He has all the size you want from a bell cow back, breakaway speed, and top-notch college production. Hampton surpassed 250 carries in back-to-back seasons, put up over 1,700 yards from scrimmage as a sophomore, and followed that up with more than 2,000 yards in 2024. His junior season was truly insane, as he averaged 138.1 yards per game on the ground and he’s scored 23 touchdowns in the last two seasons. His first round draft slot means he’s getting on the field right away for the Chargers, who we know have a head coach who absolutely loves establishing a power run game. Hampton would have been No. 1 with a bullet on my rookie list if it weren’t for the offseason addition of Najee Harris.

Harris will be the No. 2 at some point, but he’s a power back who has always had major volume and has never rushed for fewer than 1,000 yards in any of his three seasons. He’s not better than Hampton, but he could be the starter owing to his veteran status, and he’ll undoubtedly be involved and have a role. I still believe Hampton will be a weekly start, and I think if he assumes bell cow status at any point there is league-winning potential. He’s a different style than Jahmyr Gibbs, but I can see him playing a Gibbs-ish role to Harris in a David Montgomery role. Hopefully Harris’ presence cools his ADP near Draft Day and he can come at a value.

2.R.J. Harvey, RB, Broncos (Round 2, No. 60 overall)

Harvey doesn’t have the prototype size of Hampton, but he’s got a clear path to a big workload in Denver for an offense that desperately needs some juice at RB. Sean Payton has always coveted a dynamic RB to act as a focal point for his scheme, and Harvey brings that in spades. He’s a bit undersized for a three down back, but his resume includes back-to-back seasons with 220+ carries, 1,600+ yards from scrimmage and in 2024 he scored 25 total touchdowns. Harvey is not likely to pound the rock 20+ times a game, but he has 4.4 speed to be efficient, and shown the ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. With underwhelming names like Audric Estime, a plodding battering ram, and Jaleel McLaughlin, a specialist passing downs back as competition it’s hard to not see Harvey being a regular starter for fantasy managers. And it helps that while the main argument for this placement is expected volume, he’s also been wildly productive too.

1. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Raiders (Round 1, No. 6 overall)

Jeanty was far and away the most productive RB in college, putting up more than 2,700 yards from scrimmage and scoring 30 total touchdowns. For reference, Hampton scored 23 touchdowns in the past two seasons combined. Jeanty isn’t a hulking RB by any means, but while he’s short, he’s powerful. He’s got incredible balance on contact, can make defenders miss and look silly, but also run away from them once he’s got the edge. Jeanty also has a 43-reception season on his resume, which new head coach Pete Carroll will love. This is a match made in heaven. Carroll loves to establish the run, and he secured the most productive and highly rated RB in the draft who has zero significant in house competition for reps. Some might get cute with other names as the No. 1 rookie for 2025, but picking anyone but Jeanty seems like it’s fishing for click. This man is the real deal and could justify first round fantasy draft capital.