Best Ball Targets For 2025 Fantasy Football: 4 Draft Values

John's top fantasy football best ball targets. 2025 draft values and sleepers for best ball draft and leagues, including Nico Collins and more.

Second-year breakouts are very common in the NFL. While some players have great rookie seasons and get off to running starts, plenty have ceilings that they haven't reached and need time to develop. Yet others may have been stuck in poor situations that have since improved.

That doesn't mean that every sophomore player in the league will improve, but sometimes, it's worth betting on them early, as the upside can be tremendous. Sometimes, a confluence of unfortunate circumstances truly does hold a player back from producing well.

It is important to look for player situations set to improve. Snooping out the pathways one can follow to be more successful is very useful. So, let's dive into some players to target early in 2025 for best ball and how they can beat their ADPs.

WR Brian Thomas Jr.

Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. is worth taking in the middle of the first round of 2025 fantasy football best ball drafts. We saw how talented he was last season, and while his league-winning stretch over the playoffs was largely due to massive target volume, the addition of new head coach Liam Coen could boost this offense to much greater heights.

Thomas quickly established himself as the team's clear WR1, and that's not about to change. He developed nicely throughout his rookie season, improving his route-running markedly. He's perhaps the most athletically talented WR in the league when taking into account his size.

Brian Thomas Jr topped out at 22.15 MPH on this 85-Yard TD, the 2nd fastest ball-carrier of the 2024 #NFL season.
pic.twitter.com/UAEPMO6FKj

— Daniel Griffis (@DanDGriffis) February 7, 2025

He's also one of the fastest. Standing at 6-foot-3 and weighing 209 pounds, he additionally possesses extremely long arms, so he's able to nab passes out of the reach of defenders while running full-speed, which makes him very tough to defend.

Playoff football is cool and all but I really miss Brian Thomas Jr. pic.twitter.com/ZMIu1PDyzw

— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) January 17, 2025

There isn't another wideout in the league with his blend of route-running skills, which are still under heavy development, and physical tools. He's an absolute coverage nightmare already, and he succeeded even before his massive uptick in targets, despite being on a poor offense run by a now-fired head coach and offensive coordinator.

Brian Thomas with 87 yards and a TD in Week 13 BUT:

1. Underthrown on potential 77-yard TD
2. Overthrown on potential 69-yard TD pic.twitter.com/W4c1tvSKSr

— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) December 2, 2024

He's certainly earned himself plenty of targets in 2025. He was burning defenders left and right toward the end of the year -- were it not for backup QB Mac Jones' struggles for accuracy, Thomas could have completely busted fantasy leagues. That's someone you want to bet on in best ball.

Also... WR Christian Kirk and TE Evan Engram won't be on the team next year. So that's good news.

RB Tyrone Tracy Jr.

Let's be clear here first- you would be fine reaching a round for him, but pay attention to his ADP. We're not saying to draft him in the first or anything!

Regardless, the New York Giants have been a cursed franchise for a long time now, and their offensive line has been a serious issue for a long time. Yet, RB Tyrone Tracy Jr. shined at times despite poor quarterback play dragging down the offense.

The Giants will likely select a rookie QB to be their next franchise leader for years. Even if that situation doesn't get better, though, it was just Tracy's second year playing the RB position. He's also a converted wide receiver. Naturally, it follows that he has a lot of untapped potential heading into 2025.

Been watching Tyrone Tracy film and he reminds me of a mix of Ahmad Bradshaw and Wayne Gallman pic.twitter.com/4ijUYOhn7z

— Brody (@ItsGiantsSzn) January 9, 2025

It's important to lean into players who succeeded despite poor situations, especially as rookies. Fighting against that is never easy, and that capability often foreshadows even better production if the tides turn in the team's favor. Yet, even if New York continues to field a terrible team, Tracy's pass-catching skills could make him a larger part of the passing game in 2025. And they should.

What a great catch by Tyrone Tracy in the back of the end zone!#Giants pic.twitter.com/0tNiiIaink

— Drew Davenport (@DrewDavenportFF) December 22, 2024

I feel his ceiling is much higher than we've seen and that Giants head coach and offensive play-caller Brian Daboll will pore over the film, realize what he can do, and get No. 29 plenty more targets next year.

RB James Cook

It's hard to find a player who consistently smashes his ADP more and yet still gets ranked lower than necessary than Buffalo Bills running back James Cook. He's very elusive and has breakaway speed to rip off long runs. He's a capable pass-catcher and shifty with the ball in his hands. He's in a great offense with an excellent run-blocking offensive line.

Having quarterback Josh Allen running things helps quite massively, as well. Cook had a monster year in 2024, and despite his concerning snap share, offensive coordinator Joe Brady will be staying in Buffalo for 2025, setting up Cook for another year of very high production.

On the season, James Cook is one of five running backs to clear both:

+ 1k scrimmage yards
+ 5.0 yards per rush pic.twitter.com/psrxLrHSMs

— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) December 23, 2024

Cook played with great efficiency as well. Often, it's a red flag when a player's yards per carry take a nosedive (see Los Angeles Rams RB Kyren Williams), yet the Bills' RB1 has shown no signs of letting up. He housed quite a few long runs on his way to scoring 18 total touchdowns (16 rushing, two receiving) and gaining 1,267 scrimmage yards in 16 contests.

Great players on great offenses are your best bets at getting consistent and sky-high production, which helps you win in Best Ball leagues.

WR Nico Collins

Collins followed up his 2023 breakout campaign with an even more impressive 2024. He dealt with a hamstring injury that caused him to miss five contests. However, when he was healthy and on the field, he was one of the most dominant wideouts in the league. It looked like he'd break fantasy football before his ailment struck.

Collins was on pace to gain 2,078 yards receiving and nab at least eight touchdowns if you only include the four games before he got injured. In his injury game, he played just 13 percent of the total offensive snaps before going down, yet he had already caught two passes for 78 yards and a touchdown.

Also you're gonna be shocked to learn that A.J. Brown and Nico Collins have both broken a chart,,, pic.twitter.com/WZtIdO31gW

— Fantasy Points Data (@FantasyPtsData) December 4, 2024

His efficiency was simply chart-busting. You typically only see the most elite players be massively efficient, even with plenty of volume, and when the defense plans its game primarily around stopping that singular player. Collins was mostly uncoverable for most teams.

His quarterback, C.J. Stroud, had a terrible season, at least compared to his rookie year. He was wildly inconsistent and failed to get comfortable at any point, largely due to the poor play of his offensive line. But 2024 proved that No. 12 was quarterback-proof.

The C.J. Stroud vintage deep post anticipation throw to Nico Collins.

A lot of good times in 2023 with this play. pic.twitter.com/IDQcRGZXyX

— Jeremy Branham (@JeremyBranham) January 14, 2025

Collins is physically dominant, so there are no problems there. He's one of the league's best receivers and is one of the few who have a shot at finishing as the overall WR1, even if his quarterback doesn't play well, as long as he can stay healthy.

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