Fab's 2025 All-Bust Fantasy Football Team Led By Brian Thomas Jr., Justin Jefferson

The week after the conference championship games is always a bit slow in terms of NFL and fantasy football news. So, as the NFL does during this “dead week,” it’s a good time to celebrate greatness on the field. The league does that with the Pro Bowl Games, so I’ll be doing the same as it pertains to fantasy football.
I’ve already covered my All-Sleeper, All-Breakout teams and All-Rookie teams, so let’s move on to the players who failed fantasy managers most this past season. These are the players we projected would have breakout seasons but failed, or former superstars who missed time (injuries) or didn’t live up to their previous standards.
QB: Lamar Jackson, Ravens: Jackson scored 430.4 fantasy points in 2024, the most by a quarterback in NFL history. Unfortunately, injuries and poor play resulted in him posting only 214.7 points (or 215.7 fewer) this season. His 16.5 points-per-game average was the lowest he has had as an NFL starter, making him a major fantasy disappointment and the biggest bust among quarterbacks.
RB: Bucky Irving, Buccaneers: Irving was the 11th running back off the board based on ADP data, and he came off the board in the second round in most drafts. Unfortunately, injuries limited him to only 10 games, and he was a shell of his former self in the second half. Over his final four games, Irving failed to score more than 10.8 points. Overall, he finished the fantasy season ranked tied for 35th at the position.
WR: Brian Thomas Jr., Jaguars: Thomas was drafted as the WR7, ahead of Drake London, Puka Nacua and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. He finished as the WR44, behind Tre Tucker, Alec Pierce, Troy Franklin, Rashid Shaeed and his Jags’ teammate, Parker Washington. BTJ missed Mac Jones (with whom he thrived as a rookie), and he didn’t seem to fit well in coach Liam Coen’s offensive system.
TE: T.J. Hockenson, Vikings: The tight end position was loaded with busts, but it’s hard to find a bigger one than Hockenson based on ADP data. The sixth tight end picked on average, he finished an awful 26th in points at the position, while averaging 7.5 points per game. That’s his worst total since 2019 (his rookie season). Much of Hockenson’s failures are on J.J. McCarthy, but he was a fantasy dud regardless.
FLEX: Justin Jefferson, WR, Vikings: Jefferson suffered massive declines across the board in 2025, averaging 4.9 catches, 61.6 yards and 11.9 fantasy points per game (all career lows). In the fantasy season, he ranked 26th among wideouts. In his final five games of the fantasy campaign, he was the WR54. McCarthy is mostly to blame for his downfall, too, but Jefferson went from stud to flop almost overnight.
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Michael Fabiano is a fantasy football analyst for Sports Illustrated. His weekly rankings and Start 'Em, Sit 'Em articles are must-reads for fantasy players. He is also the co-host of the Fantasy Dirt Podcast on SI. Before joining SI in August 2020, he worked for CBS Sports, NFL Network and SiriusXM. He also contributes to Westwood One Radio. Fabiano was the first fantasy analyst to appear on one of the four major TV networks and is a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association Hall of Fame.
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