2025 Fantasy Football Rankings And Projections Update (August 20)
With the start of the 2025 NFL season just over two weeks ago, the fantasy market is fine-tuning its player rankings and projections. There is one more preseason game remaining, but almost all starting players won’t play. With each injury, an opportunity opens for a lower-ranking player. Here’s a look at this week’s update and changes in my projections.
Editor's Note: Scroll all the way to the bottom to view the updated projections.
Arizona Cardinals
The Cardinals’ wide receivers were upgraded by a few catches, with Marvin Harrison being the most rewarded. Trey McBride only lost a couple of chances.
Atlanta Falcons
There still hasn’t been an update on the injury status of Darnell Mooney. I still have him out for four games. His final projection next week should have more clarity on his expected missed time. I sense that Kirk Cousins may be more of a factor this year than initially expected, especially if Michael Penix doesn’t deliver wins out of the gate.
Baltimore Ravens
DeAndre Hopkins has been battling a knee injury, but remains a low-rated player in this offense at age 33. There is no timetable set for the return of Isaiah Likely after he underwent foot surgery in early August. The Ravens suggested that Likely had an outside chance to play in Week 1. I have him out longer than that.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills continue to expect Khalil Shakir (high-ankle sprain) to be ready for Week 1 despite no updated news over the past 10 days or so.
Carolina Panthers
Over the past week, Tetairoa McMillan (hamstring) picked up a hamstring issue that appears to be minor. I made no changes to their projections this week.
Chicago Bears
Caleb Williams looked sharp in the first preseason game. He got the ball out quickly and on time while spreading his passes around to his receiving options. Based on his play, I see value in many spots in the offense, and I upgraded their passing touchdowns from 26 to 29. Their wideouts picked up the added scoring. I also moved Kyle Monangai to RB2, ahead of Roshon Johnson. Both players are battling what looks like minor injuries.
Cincinnati Bengals
No changes.
Cleveland Browns
Quinshon Judkins had his charges dropped in Florida over the past week, but the cloudiness of his off-the-field situation has impeded his contract deal with the Browns. I adjusted the outlook on the Browns’ backfield, with the assumption that Judkins signs. Cleveland named Joe Flacco as their starter for Week 1. I already had him rated as their starter for 10 games, which will hinge on his success on the field. The Browns’ backup quarterback remains in flux with Kenny Pickett and Shedeur Sanders battling injuries. Cleveland signed Isaiah Bond this week, replacing David Bell in their wide receiver projections.
Dallas Cowboys
No changes. Dallas hopes to have Jaydon Blue (heel) for their final preseason game.
Denver Broncos
I bumped Troy Franklin to WR3 last week, and added some catches this week after he played well in the Broncos’ second preseason game (4/67/2). His summer reports have been positive, and his college ties to Bo Nix should lead to a much better opportunity this season.
Detroit Lions
By the end of this year, Isaac TeSlaa should pass Tim Patrick on the Lions’ wide receiver depth chart. I moved him to WR3, but he continues to have low projections.
Green Bay Packers
Reed remains at risk of missing Week 1, but he had his walking boot removed this week. There hasn’t been an update on Dontayvion Wicks’ calf issue. No changes.
Houston Texans
No update on Joe Mixon for Week 1, and I made no changes in the Texans’ projections.
Indianapolis Colts
The Colts named Daniel Jones their starting quarterback. I gave him 11 starts, compared to six by Anthony Richardson. As a result, all of Indianapolis’ receivers get a slight bump in catches, receiving yards, and scoring. Jonathan Taylor picks up a few more carries with the change to a lesser running quarterback.
Jacksonville Jaguars
No changes.
Kansas City Chiefs
Rashee Rice will have his suspension hearing in late September. There’s been a rumor floating around that a settlement could happen before the start of the regular season. The fantasy market would much rather see him miss time over the first few weeks of the season. I still have him priced to miss four games. No changes.
Miami Dolphins
The Dolphins lost Alexander Mattison for the season last week, which is actually a win for their run game. I’m bumping Ollie Gordon to RB3, and I’m bullish on his ceiling at the goal line this year. De’Von Achane was added to the injury report this week with a calf issue, which has led to him sliding in drafts. The running back projections have been adjusted this week for Miami.
Minnesota Vikings
Jalen Nailor suffered a hand injury this week that may affect his availability for the opening weekend of the season. Tai Felton should be rewarded with more snaps and targets if he can suit up for Week 1. No projection changes were made this week.
New England Patriots
TreVeyon Henderson's momentum (4/20/1) continued in the Patriots’ second preseason game. Over the first two preseason games, Chism has been highly productive (6/50/1 and 6/71/1 on 14 targets), giving him a chance to make the Patriots’ opening day roster.
Look at our guy TreVeyon Henderson!
— Jon Gruden (@BarstoolGruden) August 16, 2025
Cannot believe he fell to the 2nd round! pic.twitter.com/gKTavayGcR
In a way, Chism’s catch opportunity is almost directly tied to Douglas, who checks the speed and quickness boxes. He is an undersized slot-type wideout (5’8” and 190 lbs.), with two years of experience with New England. I won’t make any more wide receiver changes until the Patriots clean up the backend of their wide receiving corps.
New Orleans Saints
I expect Spencer Rattler to win the starting quarterback job for Week 1. I gave him 50% of their quarterback snaps, up from 33%.
New York Giants
No changes.
New York Jets
No changes.
Las Vegas Raiders
No changes.
Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles acquired John Metchie for wide receiver depth. He’ll earn a WR4 rating in their offense this week after Johnny Wilson suffered an injury. Philadelphia has multiple receiving options with injury tags next to their name this week. Hopefully, they are all minor.
Pittsburgh Steelers
No changes.
Los Angeles Chargers
No changes.
San Francisco 49ers
No changes despite multiple key players continuing to have injury tags.
Seattle Seahawks
No changes.
Los Angeles Rams
This week, Matthew Stafford returned to practice, but he still isn’t a lock to start in Week 1. I’ll stick to my guns with the ratings for Puka Nacua and Davante Adams. I made no changes this week.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
For the third week in a row, Emeka Egbuka gets another bump in the projections due to the Buccaneers losing Jalen McMillan for at least four weeks with a neck injury.
Tennessee Titans
I bumped Elic Ayomanor to WR3 in the Titans’ offense, at the expense of Chimere Dike.
Washington Commanders
Jacory Croskey-Merritt has been a big mover over the past week, especially with Washington trying to move Brian Robinson. He broke a 27-yard touchdown in the Commanders’ second preseason game, but gained only 19 yards on his other 10 carries. His big run came via a big hole, so I would temper expectations on his 2025 opportunity. I’m not taking his preseason bait (against the recent public opinion). His projections remain the same until Robinson is no longer an option in this offense, and I’m relying on my early research on Croskey-Merritt:
He entered the draft at age 24 with almost a reverse running back skill set than one would expect. Croskey-Merritt is 5’10” and 205 lbs., with the vision and quickness to hit cut-back lanes before they even open. His 40-yard dash at Big 12 Pro Day came in at 4.41 in late March. Based on his size and speed, he profiles better as a change-of-pace runner with value on third downs. Unfortunately, Croskey-Merritt had minimal work in the passing game, painting him as an early-down runner off the bench who likes to play physically when running the ball.
Many of his highlights start with inside runs. Croskey-Merritt fires into contact while taking advantage of daylight to make big plays. When in the open field, he has the tools to make defenders miss and the power to finish his runs into contact. His physical style of play will likely lead to injuries down the road. Age isn’t on his side, but that will be priced into his draft capital. Croskey-Merritt has relatively low mileage. His NFL career may start in the return game.
CLICK HERE to view our 2025 Updated Projections.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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