In today's Fantasy Life Newsletter:
Han Solo & Chewbacca. Wayne & Garth. Lennon & McCartney. What do these iconic duos have to do with football? THEY REMIND ME HOW BADLY I WANT ICONIC DUOS ON MY FANTASY SQUAD, DAMMIT!
It's not difficult to find championship-level duos on the draft board:
- Saquon Barkley & Jalen Hurts.
- Derrick Henry & Lamar Jackson (Though you won't always be able to snag them together at their current ADP).
- Ja'Marr Chase & Joe Burrow
But what about some less-popular pairings? Here are a few of my favorite "unconventional" draft duos going into 2025.
Sure. You could draft only one and you'd be doing great, but …
"Why Not Both?"
A Pair of Raiders: RB / TE
RB Ashton Jeanty
FL Rank: RB4
FL Projection: 250-1,114-8
ADP: 8
TE Brock Bowers
FL Rank: TE1
FL Projection: 94–985-6
ADP: 16
2024 reminded us that drafting "Zero RB" can, in fact, hurt. If you punted the RB position last year, you likely turned green with jealousy (read: cursed like a sailor) as your friends cruised comfortably into the playoffs with Barkley or Henry steering the ship. (That one was for you, boating community.)
But this year's going to be different. If you're sitting at the end of your league's draft, you've got a shot at securing two elite player positions from the same team. Well … that is, if you're brave enough to start with an RB/TE build.
Who needs an early-round WR when you can snag "Generational Rookie" Ashton Jeanty and "The Tight End That Was Promised" Brock Bowers?
Oh, and if you miss out on either of these dawgs in the early rounds, don't panic. You can still get a piece of this offense in the late rounds with former-TE-turned-WR Jack Bech, who has been compared to some guy on the Rams named Puka Nacua.
A Pair of Buccaneers: RB / WR
RB Bucky Irving
FL Rank: RB10
FL Projection: 225-1,023-7
ADP: 21
WR Jalen McMillan
FL Rank: WR66
FL Projection: Don’t worry about it
ADP: 153
I don't want to hear about Baker Mayfield's "regression" potential in 2025 anymore. Since joining the Bucs, he's proven himself as a high-end fantasy QB. And this was before they added rookie Emeka Egbuka to an already-stacked WR corps this offseason.
- 2023: 4,044 yards (QB9), 28 TDs (QB7)
- 2024: 4,500 yards (QB3), 41 TDs (T-QB 2)
Even if Baker regresses to 3,800 passing yards and 30 TDs in 2025, he’s gonna keep slinging it. Plain and simple.
While you can theoretically argue with a wall about drafting any of Tampa Bay’s WRs, I'm planting my flag in Jalen McMillan, who scored 8 TDs on just 37 catches in 2024. Sure, he's got Mike Evans and Chris Godwin ahead of him, but I'm not afraid to take a chance at such a low cost (even with the addition of the shiny, new rookie).
But the real firepower I want from this offense is Bucky Irving. Given his success on the ground and through the air, he pairs nicely with a late-round flier like McMillan in an offense that is bound to be c-l-i-c-k-i-n-g all season long.
A Pair of Falcons: RB/TE
RB Bijan Robinson
FL Rank: RB2
FL Projection: 267-1,200-8
ADP: 4
TE Kyle P—SIKE!
I'm not touching Pitts in 2025, remember?
WHERE DID THESE PLAYERS GO IN THIS MOCK DRAFT?
We’ve Got Your Rankings
If you’re picking in the back half of Round 1, how can you decide between Malik Nabers, Ashton Jeanty, and Brian Thomas Jr.? Is Jayden Daniels in a good spot to go elite QB? As Matthew says, “Faith in 5!” And is Round 2 a good spot to get a Hero RB? The Fantasy Life Rankings Hub is here for you.
PPR, Half-PPR, Best Ball, even Superflex … we’ve got you covered. Yes, even our Standard scoring holdouts get rankings love. Dynasty Bros., you too. Our Fantasy Life experts have crunched the projections and created their rankings, which they update throughout the offseason to give you the most up-to-date ranks for you to peruse and get you ready for the fast-approaching fantasy draft season. And if you want to peek at Week 1, well, just click on that tab. We’re here for all your rankings needs.
THIS WORKHORSE RB IS AT PICK 14
Targets From Top To Bottom
32 teams, 32 players.
Matthew Freedman went team by team to highlight his favorite target from each in fantasy drafts this season. It’d be easy to just take the best player from every team, but Freedman embraces challenge—matter of fact, he thrives off of it.
Sure, some of the targets he prefers are the team’s most expensive and obvious player …
Arizona Cardinals
TE Trey McBride (ADP: 24.0)
“As I mentioned in my updated "Freedman's Favorites" for 2025 fantasy football drafts, I want one of the top two TEs, and we have Trey McBride slated with a position-high 130 targets in our 2025 season-long player projections. Last year, he also had a position-best 9.3 Utilization Score (per our industry-leading Fantasy Life Utilization Report).”
But not all of them are. Some are true, late-round home-run threats …
Buffalo Bills
RB Ray Davis (140.1)
“Starter James Cook is in the final year of his deal and is in the middle of a contract dispute, which could result in him missing training camp and maybe even some games. Ray Davis was serviceable in 2024 as a change-of-pace rookie with 631 yards and six TDs, and he could get even more playing time and opportunities (especially near the goal line) in 2025.”
So, who is his #1 target from every single team ahead of 2025? ⬇️
Do You Have The Time?
Time to Throw rate appears simple compared to some of advanced stats, and on the surface it is. Quarterbacks like Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, and others can make magic happen when they have time. Or even create time for some big plays with their legs. But there is more below the surface.
Chris Allen steps up in the pocket to take some deep shots on how TtT can impact fantasy football, as well as some of the passers who are most effective and could be targets in drafts.
SOME OF THE NFL’S BIG GAME HUNTERS ARE HERE
Around the Watercooler
The latest fantasy nuggets, silliness, and NFL gossip from our merry band of football nerds.
🔮 Will this QB make history and finally beat all 32 teams? He just needs a win in Week 8.
🚀 Will Travis Hunter go this low in August?
👀 Holy Sh*t. Lamar Jackson was still the QB1 despite this?!
🙈 This fantasy punishment might be the craziest of all time. He has to build WHAT?
🛶 Fantasy punishment results: 2 hours later
🚱 Don’t drink and draft, if you’re a first-time fantasy player.
🏈 ICYMI: Team previews for the Ravens, Steelers, Bengals, and Browns.
