Instant Reaction: NFL Draft Rounds 2-3 Winners/Losers For Fantasy Football

Justin Carter's fantasy football winners and losers after the second and third rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft. Whose stock is up and whose is down for fantasy football?

Day 2 of the NFL Draft has come and gone, and it's time to take a look at how Round 2 and Round 3 have impacted the fantasy football landscape.

It was a wild second day, headlined by one of the biggest storylines in recent draft cycles: Shedeur Sanders dropping hard. Sanders was viewed as a potential top-five pick just a couple of months ago. Now, we're two days through the draft, and Sanders is still on the board.

Here are the biggest fantasy football winners and losers after the first round of the NFL Draft.

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Winner: C.J. Stroud

The Texans entered this draft with one major goal: to improve an offense that fell off in 2024. They accomplished that in a roundabout way after trading out of the first round, but they ultimately accomplished it.

Houston used its first three picks on the offensive side of the ball, drafting Iowa State wide receiver Jayden Higgins in the second round, then grabbing Minnesota offensive lineman Aireontae Ersery later in the round.

But the third round was what really showed the team's commitment to the offense, as general manager Nick Caserio took another Iowa State wideout, grabbing Jaylin Noel.

Jayden Higgins and Nico Collins are gonna be a nasty WR duo for CJ Stroud. Love it 🤘

6’4, 214, 4.47 40YD for Jayden
6’4, 215, 4.45 40YD for Nico

pic.twitter.com/boI6oSWVe5 https://t.co/CuDnEaRGG1

— Jordan Pun (@Texans_Thoughts) April 25, 2025

Houston needed to protect Stroud more and to give him more weapons. The jury's still out on the first part of that, but they've certainly made a strong effort on the latter need.

Winner: Tyler Shough

Whatever quarterback the Saints ended up drafting was going to be set up well as the Derek Carr injury means there's an opening for someone to step directly into the starting role.

While most people saw New Orleans on the board in Round 2 and expected it would be Shedeur Sanders as the target, New Orleans pulled a bit of a surprise, drafting Louisville quarterback Tyler Shough.

Now, look: It's perfectly fine to not understand this pick. Shough's rise to the QB3 spot in this draft class has been weird and mostly unbelievable. He's been in college so long that this is a fact about him:

This is kind of wild. That's Juwan Johnson lined up at receiver for Oregon. That's Tyler Shough at QB. Juwan Johnson just signed his third NFL contract. Tyler Shough is in this draft. pic.twitter.com/JM7blup2XA

— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) April 17, 2025

Shough has a great touch on his passes, but the fact that he was such a late bloomer should be at least a little concerning for the Saints and fantasy managers with an interest in him. He'll open 2025 as a fantasy QB3 with upside.

Loser: Shedeur Sanders

Well, that was unexpected.

Early in the draft process, Shedeur Sanders looked like he could go as high as No. 2 overall behind Cam Ward, but as the draft got closer and closer, the hype around Sanders fell off. By last week, suggesting Jaxson Dart would go before Sanders had become a fairly normal take.

That happened. Then Tyler Shough went ahead of Sanders. Then Jalen Milroe. And then, somehow, Dillon Gabriel went ahead of him, and suddenly, it was clear that Sanders was about to fall to Day 3.

On March 4th, 2025 I wrote this in my "25 most interesting things I heard at the NFL combine" column about Shedeur Sanders. pic.twitter.com/DUkdNnvJL2

— Matthew Berry (@MatthewBerryTMR) April 26, 2025

So, what have we learned? No QB-needy team wanted to spend a Day 1 or Day 2 pick on Sanders, so it's safe to assume none of those teams view him as a starter. That's a huge knock to his fantasy value.

At this point, the only team he could land with that would remotely offer a chance to play would be Pittsburgh, but the Steelers have already passed up on two chances to draft Sanders. Taking running back Kaleb Johnson over him in Round 3 seems like a moment where the door slammed on his chances of being a Steeler.

Loser: Rome Odunze

When the Bears let Keenan Allen go in free agency this year, it seemed to signal that Rome Odunze was in for a larger role in 2025. As a rookie, Odunze caught 54 passes for 734 yards and three touchdowns.

But through three rounds, the Bears have worked hard to add receiving threats who'll make the offense better, but will also siphon off opportunities from Odunze.

After drafting tight end Colston Loveland in the first round, the Bears added Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden III in the second. Burden is a big-play receiver who's still a bit raw, but has the upside to be a major part of this offense fairly soon.

It's a good weekend to be Caleb Williams. It's just not a good weekend to be an established skill position player in Chicago's offense.

Loser: David Njoku

Harold Fannin Jr. was one of my favorite players in this draft class. The BGSU product is a weapon at tight end, someone who can excel in a kind of hybrid role between tight end and slot receiver.

That's bad news for veteran tight end David Njoku. Njoku has been one of the league's most productive players at the position in recent years, but heading into his ninth NFL season, it appears his role as the TE1 in Cleveland wasn't as safe as some may have assumed.

Njoku should still open 2025 as Cleveland's starter, but Fannin's presence kills his dynasty value. He's probably still a low-end TE1 for 2025, but his floor takes a major hit.

Winner: Jack Bech

The Raiders added quarterback Geno Smith this offseason, then used a first-round pick on running back Ashton Jeanty, but the team's investment in the offense didn't end there.

Vegas had three picks on Day 2. It used two offensive linemen and the other on TCU wide receiver Jack Bech, who figures to immediately see heavy snaps on a team that was very shallow at wide receiver.

You can question how many opportunities Bech will get as a rookie and just how reliant this team will be on the run game, but you can't deny how bad things were at receiver in Vegas and how Bech won't need to do much work to be at least the No. 3 receiver in Vegas.

Winner: Kyle Williams

If the Patriots drafted a wide receiver, that wide receiver was going to be a fantasy football winner. That's because New England is an ideal landing spot for a young receiver. The Patriots have an intriguing young quarterback and a receiving corps that isn't deep at all.

My man Kyle Williams. WR2 this year. Blown away by the film. Quickest feet in the draft combined with real acceleration. He runs away from people all the time. Pats and Drake Maye got a gem

— Chris Simms (@CSimmsQB) April 26, 2025

Kyle Williams has things to clean up still, but his breakaway speed means that he's almost always a big play waiting to happen. He should be able to gain yards after the catch and add a new dynamic to this Patriots offense.

His rawness will matter early on, so don't go out there and overdraft Williams, but by the end of 2025, he could be a popular waiver wire add as he integrates himself into this offense.

Loser: Savion Williams

What are the Packers doing?

Taking Matthew Golden in the first round made sense. Despite having a lot of wide receivers on the roster, Green Bay lacks a true alpha at the position. Golden could be that guy.

But adding Savion Williams in Round 3? I don't get it. Yes, Williams is a versatile weapon, but he's barely going to be able to see the field considering how many receivers Green Bay already has. He shouldn't be on fantasy draft boards in 2025.

Winner: Dillon Gabriel

The Browns taking Dillon Gabriel over Shedeur Sanders made no sense, but I suppose you have to view it as a win for Gabriel.

He'll begin his NFL career behind Joe Flacco and Kenny Pickett, but that's far from an insurmountable battle for Gabriel. While he likely won't be the Week 1 starter for the Browns, he has a chance to see the field at some point in 2025, something that likely wouldn't happen if he'd landed elsewhere.

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