5 Potential League Winners to Target in 2025 Fantasy Football Drafts

You can't win your fantasy football league without rostering a few league winners.

It may sound obvious, but targeting players who have upside -- even if they don't necessarily have a high floor -- is integral.

Which players have a path to significantly outperform their average draft position (ADP) this season?

Note: All ADPs (average draft position) come from FantasyPros' Consensus ADP for half-PPR leagues.

League-Winning NFL Fantasy Players

Matthew Golden, WR, Green Bay Packers

ADP: 97.3 (WR42)

Emeka Egbuka could easily make this list, but Matthew Golden is my favorite rookie wide receiver who looks primed to deliver a strong return on investment in 2025.

Golden was selected by the Green Bay Packers with the 23rd overall pick in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He initially joined a Packers group that had a lot of depth at receiver, but injuries figure to impact his fantasy football outlook in a good way.

Christian Watson tore his ACL in Week 18 and will start the year on the PUP list, most likely eyeing a midseason return. Dontayvion Wicks (calf) has been sidelined for the majority of the preseason, too. And then there's Jayden Reed. Reed has a Jones fracture in his left foot but plans to play through the injury. A Jones fracture typically requires surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation process. At the very least, it could inhibit Reed's effectiveness this season, but no one should be surprised if Reed ends up missing time later down the line.

With that, there's a real possibility Golden ends up as the No. 1 target in a Jordan Love-led Packers offense. Green Bay has been searching for their "guy" at wide receiver and will look to find that in Golden this season. Our Jim Sannes projects the Packers to average 24.0 points per game (12th-most in the NFL), too.

With his ADP nearly sitting outside the top 100 picks, Golden is a candidate to help win fantasy managers their league this season.

Ricky Pearsall, WR, San Francisco 49ers

ADP: 84.7 (WR36)

Deebo Samuel is gone, Brandon Aiyuk is on the PUP list and reportedly eyeing a Week 6 return, and Jauan Jennings has recently been denied a trade request while also dealing with a calf injury that could sideline him for Week 1.

Ricky Pearsall time.

The 2024 first-round draft pick started his rookie campaign on the reserve/NFI list and made his NFL debut in Week 7. He popped for 73 yards and a score in Week 9 before totaling 210 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns across the final two games of the season.

Brock Purdy has been at the helm of some great fantasy seasons. Samuel (WR9), Aiyuk (WR14), and Kittle (TE5) each churned out top-15 finishes in points-per-game at their positions in 2023.

Backing Pearsall is by no means a unique take, but as the potential focal point in a San Francisco 49ers offense that usually finds a way, I think he boasts top-15 potential at the WR position.

De'Von Achane, RB, Miami Dolphins

ADP: 16.3 (RB8)

De'Von Achane is currently being drafted in the middle of the second round, but I think he'll be a consensus first-round pick in one year's time.

In his second-career NFL game back in 2023, Achane erupted for 233 scrimmage yards and 4 touchdowns in that infamous 70-20 Miami Dolphins rout over the Denver Broncos. From then on, he was the overall RB3 on a points-per-game basis, netting an impressive albeit unsustainable 7.3 yards per carry on 103 attempts.

Miami's 2024 season was marked by an unfortunate injury to Tua Tagovailoa, but Achane still finished as the overall RB6. What's more, Achane averaged a thunderous 19.5 half-PPR points in 11 games alongside Tua. Across 18 career games where Tua at the helm and Achane handled eight-plus carries, the 23-year-old back has averaged a whopping 20.9 half-PPR points -- 2024 Saquon Barkley territory.

With Raheem Mostert out of town, Achane is primed to erupt in 2025. He is dealing with a calf injury, but the Dolphins expect Achane to be ready for Week 1. Of course, we'll need a few things to break the right way, namely Tua and Achane's health, but the same can be said for any player across the league.

After seeing what Achane can do in an expanded role alongside Tua, he has a strong path to achieve league-winning status this season.

Javonte Williams, RB, Dallas Cowboys

ADP: 112.3 (RB40)

Admittedly, this is a tough sell.

The Dallas Cowboys' running back room has been a wasteland in fantasy since Tony Pollard left, and Javonte Williams has been a hard player to get excited about -- even in an expanded role.

But all signs point to Williams being the firm lead back in this Dallas offense, as Miles Sanders isn't winning a meaningful gig any time soon while rookie Jaydon Blue was the backup behind the since-cut Deuce Vaughn in Dallas' final preseason game, one where they rested the majority of their starters.

Holding an RB1 standing alone isn't good enough -- it wasn't last year in Dallas. But with Dak Prescott healthy and backed by receivers CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, the Cowboys' offense could make some noise this year with Williams enjoying a hefty workload, even if it seems to be by default.

Plus, Williams is now nearly three years removed from a serious knee injury, so the 25-year-old could get some of his burst back this campaign.

Kyle Pitts, TE, Atlanta Falcons

ADP: 133.7 (TE15)

A "surely it must work this time" approach isn't terrible if we're shooting for a league winner, especially when they can be obtained outside the top 125 picks.

Kyle Pitts -- the highest-drafted tight end in NFL history -- logged 1,000-plus yards in his freshmen campaign but hasn't been able to put the pieces together since.

However, among tight ends who caught 40-plus balls in 2024, Pitts ranked fifth in yards before catch per reception (7.0) and sixth in yards after catch per reception (5.8), totaling the third-most yards per catch (12.8) and ninth-most total air yards (634).

Even after putting up a career-high in touchdowns last season, he still sports only a 3.0% touchdown rate for his career (10 TDs on 333 targets) and has ample room to grow in this regard. With Michael Penix Jr. taking over signal-calling duties for the Atlanta Falcons, we can take another shot on Pitts at his adjusted -- perhaps over-adjusted -- ADP.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.