In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by Bud Light:

Coming into a new season is always a fresh start for everyone. Your fantasy team didn't live up to your expectations? Your husband had to go to a Waffle House for 24 hours? The Bears were disappointing … AGAIN?

Now, we get a clean slate heading into the 2025 campaign. That also means all 32 NFL teams do too, but what really matters is what they do with it.

Whether it's a new head coach, a change of scenery, or just a different philosophy, now is the time we can dream of bigger and better outcomes for certain players (and hopefully scoop them up at a discounted price).

Let's see which team could be changing the outlook for some key fantasy assets, for better or worse …

WHO RANKS BETWEEN WILLIAMS AND LAWRENCE?

OK, Fantasy Football fans …

Sure, the NFL season may be long over … but next season’s action is already well underway.

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Two Quarterbacks Set To Change The Narrative

A relevant Trevor Lawrence?

Speaking of changing the narrative, Trevor Lawrence has been a disappointment since being drafted into the league, but could this be the year things change? 

Lawrence points per game rank by year:

  • 2024 - QB24
  • 2023 - QB17
  • 2022 - QB12

Yeah, that's not great, but Lawrence is only going to be 26 years old in October and already has two seasons with 4,000+ passing yards to his name. He also has a new head coach and weapons around him. Plus, Liam Coen's system could be exactly what Lawrence needed … Here's what he said after the first organized team activity:

"There are a lot of things I like about it … It is definitely unlike any system that I have learned before, so it has been cool to learn, pick the coaches’ brains and try to get it down as fast as possible.”

The 2024 Buccaneers ranked third in passing yards per game, and Baker Mayfield's yards per pass attempt rose from 7.5 to 8.0, all with Coen. What's wrong with looking at Lawrence as a solid buy-low quarterback? He's currently ranked as Fantasy Life's QB17.

What's one more shot? It's just our mental health on the line!

Will Ben Johnson be the knight in shining armour for Caleb Williams?

The Bears have a … bad history with their quarterbacks, to put it nicely. We all know the stats by now—they have never had a quarterback throw for 4,000 yards in a single season. Like Caleb Williams' dad, Carl, said, Chicago is where quarterbacks go to die. But could this year truly be different?

One thing is for certain: Ben Johnson established (again) in a press conference earlier this week that he really wants to enact change. 

"I love the opportunity to come on in and change that narrative … That's where great stories are written. So, we're looking to write a new chapter here."

Our Fantasy Life consensus rankings have Williams at QB11, and he's currently being drafted on Underdog as the QB10.

With the addition of Colston Loveland and Luther Burden, plus an overhauled offensive line, Dwain McFarland has a ceiling outcome projection for Williams set at 23.3 points per game. It looks like Williams could be in the best shape of his life though?!

Please Ben, give us fantasy managers hope again.

WHO RANKS BETWEEN WILLIAMS AND LAWRENCE?

The Early Bird Gets The Worm

We know rookies are the skeleton key to unlocking teams with massive upside in best ball tournaments.

Specifically, each of the past five Best Ball Mania rosters has included at least one late-round rookie WR who made a significant impact in at least one of the playoff weeks:

  • BBMI - KJ Hamler
  • BBMII - Amon-Ra St. Brown
  • BBMIII - Tyquan Thornton
  • BBMIV - Jayden Reed
  • BBMV - Ricky Pearsall

The market is hip to this strategic angle, though. The Round 1 and Round 2 WRs all go within the top 125 picks. The days of Round 1 rookie WRs like Garrett Wilson going in Round 12 of drafts, or the aforementioned ARSB going in Rounds 17 and 18, are long gone.

That doesn't mean we should throw in the towel on selecting rookies, though. It just means we have to dig deeper and be even more picky with our selections

This year's crop of Round 3 and Round 4 WRs provides us with a handful of intriguing options at various price points, but some of them come with significant risk.

The concept of a "watch list" in May, or even “priority targets,” might seem silly, but it was this exact time two years ago when we flagged positive drumbeat on two late-round rookie WRs who would go on to be stone-cold league winners.

So, who are Peter Overzet’s two priority targets in this range, and could they be the next late-round league-winners? ⬇️

IS THIS ROOKIE THE NEXT MICHAEL THOMAS?

Around the Watercooler

The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness, and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds.

👀 Every QB1 for 2025 … how high could Kyler Murray fly?

🤔 Should you sell Jonathan Taylor in dynasty leagues? The time is right …

🐻 Oh, baby. The Caleb Williams hype train is going to take off.

🚀 Garrett Wilson to the moon? Aaron Glenn thinks so.

✈️ The rest of the Jets … may be a work in progress.

🤿 Are we diving in again with Kyle Pitts?