The 2024 wide receiver class was great for fantasy football last year. Now that we’ve seen a year from the 2024 rookie class let’s break down what other players will break out for 2025 fantasy football.
This list will contain the bull case for players who have not already dominated yet relative to expectations in fantasy football. Outside of Malik Nabers, Brian Thomas Jr, Xavier Worthy, and Ladd McConkey, there are not a ton of big names left.
Not only can you find value in seeing which players are on this list, but take note of the players who aren’t. Keon Coleman, Ja’Lynn Polk, Xavier Legette, and Rome Odunze are not on this list for a reason.
Sophomore WR Breakouts For 2025 Fantasy Football
1. Marvin Harrison Jr (ARI)
Starting with Marvin Harrison Jr, he’s an easy name to put down, but it needs to be said. With how good Nabers and Thomas looked, it was a bit disappointing that the highest-drafted receiver didn’t have the same elite stats.
That said, let’s calm down. Harrison is just 22 years old, and he was an elite prospect coming out of Ohio State. In 2024, Harrison had 62 catches for 885 yards and eight touchdowns.
This is a good rookie season, and it puts him in the perfect position to have a massive year two. With a bit of natural development and another year to build chemistry with Kyler Murray, Harrison is set up well for 2025.
2. Ricky Pearsall (SF)
Ricky Pearsall didn’t have much of a chance to be productive as a rookie, given his circumstances. Pearsall was shot leading up to the NFL season, which is a good reason to throw away his 2024 campaign entirely.
While Pearsall only played in 11 games, he looked great down the stretch. In fact, in all games where Pearsall had at least six targets, he had 17 points or more.
It’s a small sample size, but in the final two weeks of the season, Pearsall had 28.7 and 18.9 points. With Brandon Aiyuk recovering from his ACL and MCL injury last season, Pearsall has the opportunity to become the WR1 or WR2 on a good 49ers offense.
3. Adonai Mitchell (IND)
While the two players ahead of Adonai Mitchell are a lot safer projections, there’s a path for him to produce in 2025. Mitchell was drafted with the 52nd overall pick (round two) of the 2024 NFL Draft, giving him strong team investment.
Although the Indianapolis Colts wide receiver room is fairly crowded with Josh Downs and Michael Pittman in town, Mitchell had a strong rookie season.
Although the box score stats won’t blow you away, Mitchell was 9th in ESPN’s open score last season. This tells me that Mitchell is getting open, but the quarterback play isn’t good enough to get him the ball.
While Anthony Richardson is likely going to start for the Colts next year, Daniel Jones is now on the team as well. Jones has a lower ceiling, but he’s shown more accuracy than Richardson so far.
With Mitchell, he has a real chance to break out if something falls his way. Mitchell either needs Richardson or Jones to take a big step. While that’s not a sure thing by any means, I’m betting on the talent of Mitchell in 2025 fantasy football.
