Fantasy Football Best Ball Wide Receiver Rankings: Top 10 WRs and Player Analysis (2025)

May 19, 2025

John's fantasy football best ball rankings for the wide receiver position ahead of the 2025 NFL season. Which players are the best value in best ball leagues.

Many in the fantasy football community are familiar with best ball formats. In these leagues, you don't have to set your lineups or ever worry about players in your starting lineups having dud games or getting injured. Instead, after all the games have played out, your score will be that of the best possible lineup you could have set.

Evaluation of players isn't terribly different because of this, but there are other considerations to make. For example, certain types of players have higher ceilings than others, and when they have their down games, you can weather those more effectively.

So, the rankings for players in this format will be slightly different from those of others. A player who scored 30 points in half his games and zero in his others, without any forewarning which would be which, would be a significant liability in standard formats, but great in best ball. That's not realistic, clearly, but it illustrates a point! So let's dive into early best ball rankings at WR for the 2025 NFL season.

10. Ladd McConkey, Los Angeles Chargers

I like that the team drafted WR Tre Harris in the 2025 NFL Draft. I'm not worried that it will impact McConkey's production. In fact, it should help draw some coverage away from him. I'm just not sure I'd be taking McConkey over Philadelphia Eagles wideout A.J. Brown.

Ladd McConkey pic.twitter.com/rDBjiZjRtk

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) April 17, 2025

McConkey is excellent, but second-year WRs often get overhyped. Brown is the guy I'd rather take, and I'd also consider selecting Mike Evans or Davante Adams over him, though they're getting pretty old.

9. Nico Collins, Houston Texans

Collins has plenty of injury history, and his team just invested significant draft capital in Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel, two rookie wide receivers. They also signed Christian Kirk in the offseason. Collins might not see many 15-target games moving forward, which lowers his ceiling.

Nico Collins pic.twitter.com/Oo0ugSCJ1G

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) April 30, 2025

His insane run to start 2024 was wild, and he has huge upside. However, it's appropriate to have him here because of his injury issues and the new target competition in Houston, which should become more apparent as the season rolls on and Higgins and Noel acclimate to the big leagues.

8. Drake London, Atlanta Falcons

London was hyper-targeted by rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. last season. If Penix plays the whole year, we could see a huge season from London, but that's pretty much priced in. This isn't a super exciting pick, but it's reasonable.

London's high draft capital makes it reasonable that he's expensive. But he's a solid pick. Things could get weird if Penix gets benched, though. Kirk Cousins didn't lock on to London to the same degree, so he has a bit less upside if Cousins ends up starting again.

7. Malik Nabers, New York Giants

I already know that Nabers' fantasy managers will be absolutely fuming by the time the Giants have played a few of their games, as it's likely that the Giants will start the year Russell Wilson as their starting quarterback. Wilson's play suggest, in my mind, that he cares more about his TD:INT and efficiency statistics than he does about winning football games.

Some of Malik Nabers most successful route types in 2024, per @FantasyPtsData separation data:

+ Slant: 19th of 92 WRs in separation score
+ Out: 10th of 94 WRs in separation score

Jameis Winston on the above routes this past season:

+ Slant: 10.00 YPA (3rd among 28 QBs),… https://t.co/4ZXaqgpAn5

— Dataroma (@ffdataroma) March 22, 2025

Wilson is not a good quarterback, yet his stats might make you think that he is, if you don't watch the tape. If you draft Nabers, you're hoping Wilson is benched for Jameis Winston as quickly as possible. Even rookie QB Jaxson Dart would be a much better option for Nabers' fantasy prospects.

Dart is an underrated rookie and would immediately do what's best for him and the whole offense -- get the ball into Leek's hands as much as possible. Dart's not willing to put the ball in harm's way at times if the tradeoff is worth it for that playstyle. Wilson, we know, is not interested in that.

6. Amon-Ra St. Brown, Detroit Lions

While former Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson left for the Chicago Bears head coaching job after the 2024 season, ARSB remains in an offense that should continue targeting him heavily. He has been productive in the passing game and is part of a stable organization.

He should continue to be one of the NFL's best fantasy receivers. There's plenty of competition for targets in Detroit, though, with wide receiver Jameson Williams, TE Sam LaPorta, and tailback Jahmyr Gibbs all playing well enough to earn a significant target share.

GOFF TO AMON-RA ON 4TH DOWN.

📺: #DETvsGB on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/bM9SmdPW2G

— NFL (@NFL) November 3, 2024

St. Brown is adept at working in tight spaces, plays with excellent strength, is a very sound route runner, and is a quarterback's best friend. He has very sure hands and is awesome at the catch point. I don't think he should be ranked above the guys ahead of him on the list, though.

The Lions' offense is likely to be less impressive this year than last, and Detroit's quarterback, Jared Goff, is prone to collapsing at times and putting up stinkers.

5. Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars

It's probably good that Jacksonville took WR/CB Travis Hunter in the 2025 NFL Draft. A team with only one good receiver can struggle on offense, as defenses get the option to double-cover and constantly slide defensive coverage in the direction of that WR.

Thomas isn't the NFL's best route runner, so his ability to gain quick separation on a large variety of routes isn't the strongest part of his game. His elite speed makes him a force to be reckoned with, but overall, adding a fantastic route runner in Hunter will open up things for Thomas in Year 2.

Brian Thomas Jr. was the WR1 overall from Weeks 15-18

➖101.9 Fantasy Points (1st)
➖25.5 Points Per Game (1st)

Accomplishing this as a ROOKIE with Mac Jones was wildly impressive..

Since Week 13:

➖10+ Targets in EVERY game
➖16.5+ Points in EVERY game

Fantasy Playoffs GOAT pic.twitter.com/h0UTpMgsRu

— Austin Abbott (@AustinAbbottFF) April 14, 2025

Also, he got a massive upgrade at offensive coordinator with the arrival of new head coach Liam Coen. Coen's offense should be much better than the previous iterations of JAX's O. Thomas could finish as the WR1 overall, and I wouldn't be surprised. The physical talent is absolutely off the charts.

He also developed surprisingly quickly as a route runner and separator in Year 1, and should make further strides in his second season. I'd be excited about picking Thomas here.

4. Puka Nacua, Los Angeles Rams

I wouldn't be too concerned about the arrival of Davante Adams causing Nacua's target volume to fall. Instead, there will likely be fewer games where the team's other WRs are targeted more than they deserve, which isn't much at all. Nacua should still be one of the league's premier wideouts.

PUKA’S FIRST CAREER TD COULDN’T HAVE COME AT A BETTER TIME. pic.twitter.com/4uHlHhY3pI

— NFL (@NFL) October 1, 2023

An elite wide receiver in an elite offense with a great quarterback isn't someone you should overthink a lot. Nacua's injury history is pretty concerning, but when he's on the field, he usually delivers. He does somewhat lack in athleticism compared to other guys on this list, though.

In terms of absolute ceiling, generally, the more elite athletes have the potential to perform better. But you can't have absolutely everything you want all the time. I wouldn't be totally opposed to taking Thomas above Nacua.

3. CeeDee Lamb, Dallas Cowboys

I'm not the biggest fan of the Cowboys' passing offense heading into 2025. They didn't draft a receiver to help draw coverage away from Lamb, and while he will likely continue to be hyper-targeted by quarterback Dak Prescott, the Cowboys' quarterback is coming off a season-ending hamstring avulsion.

The offense also isn't likely to be better than it was last season. With former head coach Mike McCarthy gone, the Cowboys decided to hire... Brian Schottenheimer, who didn't do anything worthy of earning him a head coaching job. Great.

CeeDee Lamb pic.twitter.com/yeYcxbzq2b

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) April 1, 2025

Lamb is one of the NFL's best receivers, and we're splitting hairs here, but I wouldn't be surprised if he finishes outside of the top-5 at WR in PPR formats this season. Early in the first round, you should be splitting hairs, and players in better offensive environments have more receiving upside. I don't think I'd draft Lamb as the third WR off the board.

Obviously, it wouldn't be surprising if he finishes in the top 3 regardless. But ascertaining risk is essential.

BREAKING: Steelers to trade WR George Pickens to the Cowboys. (via @rapsheet, @TomPelissero) pic.twitter.com/Eh9kMstOPu

— NFL (@NFL) May 7, 2025

In a more recent move, the Cowboys traded for WR George Pickens, which is actually a good thing for Lamb. It shouldn't affect his massive target volume much -- instead, it should help him see softer coverages from defenses that now have to account for another solid threat.

Lamb could see better efficiency in 2025 than he did in 2024 (with Prescott playing). He isn't primarily a downfield threat. He wins more often with his elite separation skills and technical prowess in the short to intermediate areas of the field.

2. Justin Jefferson, Minnesota Vikings

The Vikings have rid themselves of quarterback Sam Darnold. While he helped Jefferson finish as the overall WR2 in 2024, he was absolutely terrible, as the last two games of the season showed. Jefferson and the rest of the Vikings' offense, with plays being called by head coach Kevin O'Connell, amount to an amazing environment for a quarterback.

JUSTIN JEFFERSON ON 3RD AND 27. HIM.

📺: #DETvsMIN on FOX
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/UIg1XAk0MB pic.twitter.com/hFmR4VnHgm

— NFL (@NFL) December 24, 2023

Jefferson will now get a massive upgrade in J.J. McCarthy. Though he missed his rookie season due to a knee injury, McCarthy is immediately a significant upgrade over Darnold if he's literally just not absolutely awful. And he's not. McCarthy should be one of the best fantasy QBs of the year to draft, by the way.

Jefferson finishing as WR2 again wouldn't be a surprise. He's one of the league's best receivers and should one day be in the Hall of Fame.

1. Ja'Marr Chase, Cincinnati Bengals

Obviously, he's the No. 1. An elite WR on an elite offense with an elite quarterback on a team with a terrible defense is bound to get a ton of work and produce very well with it. The Bengals might have a slightly better defense this season, but they don't have a great running game.

That's no shot to Chase Brown, but he's better as a pass-catching back anyway. Chase should continue to thrive. There's very little question about it. Generally, his absolute ceiling is just a bit lower when WR Tee Higgins is on the field, in the aggregate. But Higgins misses a lot of time due to injuries.

JA'MARR CHASE 70-YARD TD.

FIVE TOUCHDOWN PASSES FOR Joe Burrow.

📺: #BALvsCIN on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/XJKCC0bWOb

— NFL (@NFL) October 6, 2024

Chase's single-game upside is absurd. He's one of the few players capable of putting up multiple performances of 40 or more PPR points. You have to take him as the first WR off the board in best ball, and depending on the exact format, he should go No. 1 overall.

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