Which rookies should you be keeping track of in 2025?

By Martin Richardson

We’re getting closer to that wonderful time of the year where we all draft those players who will define our weekends for the next 17 weeks, and I for one cannot wait to get started.

With the NFL draft out of the way, Fantasy football players now have a host of new players to take a look at to be difference makers on their 2025 rosters and I want to look at a few of them over two pieces. I don’t want to look at the bigger names like Ashton Jeanty, Travis Hunter or even first overall pick Cam Ward, I want to take a look at some of the players who will slip down the Fantasy drafts because they are rookies and may be a less attractive option than a seasoned Fantasy football veteran.

KALEB JOHNSON:

Any player who is an RB1 for a team has Fantasy upside. Johnson is hard to stop when he gets going and he steps in to replace Najee Harris in Pittsburgh in an Arthur Smith offense that loves to use backs in a zone running plays. Whilst it may have taken Johnson time to hit the highs in college, his 1500+ rushing yards and 21, yes TWENTY ONE, rushing touchdowns last year make him a great option to turn to in your draft. I mentioned Arthur Smith as OC here because you only have to think of the last talented RB he had to work with and the magic that happened there.

Naturally there will be people vying for the hallowed Ashton Jeanty pick when it comes to running backs, and then Fantasy outlets have Omarion Hampton as the next rookie RB, but Johnson will be starting week 1 for the Steelers, and Hampton may have to wait for the novelty of, ironically enough, Najee Harris to wear off before he gets his chance. If you have a need for an RB or that starting FLEX, Johnson fills that need and could well be a great mid round pick up, as his current ADP is the 28th RB and a 6th round pick in Fantasy football.

Jack Bech

Embed from Getty Images

Some say that this pick was a bit of a reach by the Las Vegas Raiders in the draft, but I think it will prove to be a very savvy piece of draft work in 2025. Bech proved to be a great contributor in college, with over 1000 yards and 9 touchdowns in his final college year, he has the talent to step in and be an option for new QB Geno Smith, who only really had Jacobi Meyers as a WR option prior to the draft. Now there is the massive talent in Brock Bowers also there on offense, but as we know, the ball can’t go to him all the time, so Bech could be a sneaky stash and see how he does as we head into the season.

Why do I like Bech so much? Well, he has great route running and just think what Geno Smith did with Jaxon Smith Njigba who is also a great route runner. He has great hands and as a former TE, Bech has the tenacity to keep hold of the ball in those contested zones should Geno have to change the options on the play.

Jayden Higgins

With injury comes opportunity. The awful injury to Tank Dell means he will miss the entirety of the 2025 season, which meant the Texans went and made some moves in the 2025 draft, where the Houston Texans doubled down on Iowa State wide receivers in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel.

Out of the two, it looks as though early on in camps and pre-season that Higgins is the one getting more of the first team reps and making those plays to be the WR2 to support Nico Collins and CJ Stroud. Yes, there is Christian Kirk, but I’m not convinced that he is what he once was. But, when you have a 6’4’’ WR who can run a 4.4 and has a 3% drop rate, then you have to take notice. His 9 touchdowns over 1100 yards also makes for very good reading when it comes to that transition to the NFL.

So, what is the upside of taking a rookie second round pick? Well, number one is that he will be a low risk, high reward pick for you in Fantasy football because he may well be WR2 week one for Texans and not every ball can be thrown to Nico Collins. Number two would be that he will not be high on people’s radar because people will want the quick win and not want to risk a potential WR2 that is unproven in the NFL. Number three is the schedule of the Texans and how easy it is overall. Higgins has a chance to be a weapon for Stroud as they play a schedule that is certainly favourable for WR and the way Stroud plays.

Tre Harris

The 6’3’’ Ole Miss standout has become the WR2 for Justin Herbert before a competitive snap has even taken place, which is great for Fantasy football players. This comes from the retirement of Mike Williams in the off-season so now Harris has stepped up and is making those plays in camp that are getting him noticed as a potential Fantasy pick up in later rounds.

His college stats show he has the promise to be a solid contributor: over 1000 yards and 7 touchdowns in 2024 and 8 touchdowns in 2023 with just shy of 1000 yards as well as an average yards per catch over 16 yards, so the talent is there.

You may just need to take him a round or two before you think you should if you want him to contribute; I say this because I think that the Tre Harris hype is going to escalate as the off-season progresses.

Elijah Arroyo

I think this guy could be a ‘no matter what’ late round pick up. I said in my TE rankings that should the Seahawks decide to get Noah Fant, then watch the stock of Elijah Arroyo rise. And look what happened: Fant has been released and Arroyo’s stock is on the up and up. He currently sits as TE4 behind Colston Loveland, Mason Taylor and Tyler Warren but I wouldn’t be surprised if is more productive than Masion Taylor by the halfway point of the season. There I’ve said it.

Now, what is the appeal of someone who currently is rostered on less than 5% of any Fantasy football outlet? First of all, OC Klint Kubiak is utilizing Arroyo all over the field in a variety of positions, so that tells me that he will have the chance to part of the offense in a number of ways. Secondly, with 7 touchdowns from just shy of 600 yards as a TE he has the production as a weapon in a dynamic offense lead by Sam Darnold. Finally, most people will be looking to the aforementioned Loveland et al as players who are being taken before Arroyo, so you could easily come away from your draft with a starting TE who could be stashed on your bench but I wouldn’t be shocked if he starts for you by about week 4 or 5 and be a starting Fantasy TE.

MARTIN RICHARDSON

NFL/FANTASY FOOTBALL ANALYST

A Yorkshireman living in Lancashire, Martin is a massive NFL fan but his heart belongs to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Also a huge Fantasy Football enthusiast and spends far too long crunching the numbers! Follow him at @MRBucsFan31

5/5