2025 Fantasy football draft strategy: Tiers, cheat sheets, PPR deep sleepers, breakout picks via NFL expert

Football

Last-minute Fantasy football drafts can be difficult to prepare for, but having a reliable set of 2025 Fantasy football rankings should be a top priority as you conduct your draft prep. PPR is the most popular format in Fantasy football today, so understanding target volume can also give you an enormous leg up. Browns wide receiver Jerry Jeudy was sneakily the ninth-most targeted player in the NFL last season, and the decision to go with veteran Joe Flacco over rookies Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel seemingly benefits Jeudy.

So where exactly should you be targeting Jeudy in your upcoming drafts, and who are some of the underappreciated players that might help you win your Fantasy football leagues this season? Before locking in your 2025 Fantasy football draft strategy, be sure to check out the 2025 Fantasy football PPR rankings with deep sleepers, breakouts and best values from SportsLine Fantasy football analyst Jacob Gibbs.

A Fantasy Football Today newsletter writer and Beyond the Boxscore podcast contributor, Gibbs uses a data-driven approach that has helped him consistently provide accurate rankings at every position. He has proven to be one of the nation’s most accurate Fantasy rankers in recent years, posting the eighth-most accurate results over the past few seasons, according to Fantasy Pros.

Now, Gibbs has projected every Fantasy-relevant player’s stats and shared his exclusive PPR rankings for the 2025 season, along with plenty of sleepers, breakouts and busts. Head to SportsLine now to see them

Football Top 2025 Fantasy football deep sleepers and breakouts

One of the 2025 Fantasy football breakouts Gibbs is predicting: Cowboys running back Jaydon Blue. The sixth-round pick out of Texas is expected to be part of the running back committee in Dallas, but he remains a bit of a wild card for Fantasy players after missing a chunk of camp with various injuries. 

“The reason that I have Blue ranked so high among these sleepers is because he’s cheap,” Gibbs said. “He’s almost always available after pick 120, and I really think that you might be able to scoop him off waivers at some point. So I’m rarely aggressive in pursuing him in drafts. His chances of being a league winner relative to the cost feel very high.”

Another 2025 Fantasy football deep sleeper Gibbs has identified in his 2025 Top 150 PPR rankings: Texans wide receiver Jayden Higgins. In two seasons at Iowa State, Higgins caught 140 passes for 2,166 yards and 15 touchdowns. That production combined with a 6-foot-4, 215-pound frame that clocked 4.47 seconds in the 40-yard-dash and 39 inches in the vertical is what led the Texans to spend the No. 34 overall pick on him. With Joe Mixon out and C.J. Stroud looking for retribution after a difficult second season, expect Houston to incorporate him early.

“Houston drafted Higgins with a premium pick — TreVeyon Henderson and Luther Burden were both on the board, but the Texans prioritized adding a contested catch profile to create matchup problems in tandem with Nico Collins,” Gibbs said. “If Collins remains healthy, Higgins could produce points in a Jordan Addison-like way — he’s too good to be the second or third priority for defenses. If Collins goes down, Higgins could step into a big target share and be a strong Fantasy contributor based on volume alone.” See which other Fantasy football breakouts 2025 to pick here.

Football How to find proven 2025 Fantasy football football rankings

Gibbs is also extremely high on a receiver who is not going off in the first round in many drafts, but he says is a top-five player overall. He ranks him ahead of even players like Justin Jefferson and Nico Collins. You can only see who it is, and the 202 Fantasy football rankings for the top 150 Fantasy-relevant players, at SportsLine.

So which 2024 Fantasy Football breakouts and deep sleepers should you target, and which receiver shocks the NFL with a top-five performance? Visit SportsLine now to get 2025, all from one of the most accurate experts in the world, and find out.

Read More Daniel Lewis

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