Ranking the Top Bounce-Back Candidates for the 2025 Fantasy Football Season

Fantasy football managers can find great value in bounce-back players who slide in drafts. Take a chance on notable veterans returning from injuries if all signs indicate a full recovery, or on a player in an intriguing new situation.

Comeback players can be league-winners and key contributors on a fantasy playoff roster.

So, we'll identify and rank eight bounce-back candidates to look out for as you set up your draft queue.

These players once ranked as follows in terms of point-per-reception scoring settings in a single season:

• Top-10 quarterback 
• Top-20 running back 
• Top-30 wide receiver 
• Top-10 tight end 

Based on the ranking criteria, none of the eight selections are second-year pros. A bounce-back player has had at least one year of standout fantasy scoring relative to his position and a down season.

Let's go through the top bounce-back candidates and how they rank in ascending order.

8. WR Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

AP Photo/Michael Conroy

2024 WR Rank: 53

Before Chris Godwin dislocated his ankle in Week 7 of the previous season, he averaged 82.3 receiving yards per game, his second-highest rate in a single term.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed Godwin to a three-year extension. In May, general manager Jason Licht appeared on The Pat McAfee Show and said the team is "expecting him (to play)" in Week 1 (h/t Fox Sports' Greg Auman).

Some managers have concerns about Godwin because of his recovery timetable, the Buccaneers losing offensive coordinator Liam Coen and the addition of rookie first-round wideout Emeka Egbuka.

While those factors cloud Godwin's outlook, he remains the Buccaneers' most dynamic receiver, still in his prime. At 31, Mike Evans barely kept his 1,000-yard receiving season streak alive last year. Entering his second term, Jalen McMillan is in the early stages of development. Egbuka has to earn quarterback Baker Mayfield's trust as a reliable receiver.

The Buccaneers promoted pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard to replace Coen. So, they won't go through a complete reset in the passing game. If healthy, Godwin will remain a key playmaker in what could be an aggressive aerial attack. In 2021 and 2022, he finished 15th and 19th, respectively, in fantasy scoring among wide receivers.

7. RB Kenneth Walker III, Seattle Seahawks

AP Foto/Jed Jacobsohn

2024 RB Rank: 27

In his first two seasons, Kenneth Walker III was a top-20 fantasy running back, but every year his rushing numbers have declined, and he battled injuries that cost him six games last year.

Despite the development of backup running back Zach Charbonnet, Walker should be able to rebound in a contract year. With the motivation to earn a pay raise on the open market next offseason, expect him to do whatever he can to be available and productive.

Moreover, the Seattle Seahawks hired offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak to replace Ryan Grubb, who only had one year of experience as a play-caller in the NFL.

In two seasons as a play-caller, Kubiak's offenses have featured a top-16 fantasy running back: Dalvin Cook in 2021 and Alvin Kamara last year.

Walker doesn't have a resume comparable to Cook or Kamara, but in a lead role, he can match or eclipse his rookie rushing numbers (1,050 yards and nine touchdowns) and boost his fantasy scoring with receiving production. Even in a down 2024 campaign, he caught 46 passes.

Walker ranks one spot higher than Chris Godwin because the Tampa Bay Buccaneers don't have to rush the wideout back from injury with a well-rounded receiver unit. Additionally, Godwin signed an extension this offseason, while Walker needs a strong campaign to secure a pay raise next year.

6. TE Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys

AP Photo/ Brynn Anderson

2024 TE Rank: 25

In 2024, Jake Ferguson was limited by a combination of short-term injuries and his quarterback situation. He missed three games, and Dak Prescott sat out nine outings because of a torn hamstring that required surgery. Ferguson caught 59 passes for 494 scoreless yards.

After playing half the previous season with Cooper Rush under center, Ferguson's fantasy outlook gets a boost as long as Prescott stays healthy. Even with the addition of wideout George Pickens, he should see enough targets to produce at the level of a top-10 fantasy tight end.

In 2023, Ferguson had a strong rapport with Prescott. He hauled in 71 out of 102 targets for 761 yards and five touchdowns, finishing ninth in scoring among tight ends.

With the Cowboys' uninspiring running back group, expect Prescott to fire away through the air for stretches in the upcoming term. He'll have enough targets to spread around for Ferguson to get back into Pro Bowl form.

Ferguson slides ahead of Kenneth Walker III for the sixth spot because of a higher upside with his recent Pro Bowl accolade.

5. QB Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars

AP Photo/John Raoux

2024 QB Rank: 27

Once upon a time, Trevor Lawrence was an ascending fantasy asset. Three years ago, he finished eighth among quarterbacks in scoring as a Pro Bowler, throwing for 4,113 yards, 25 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He also logged a career-high five rushing touchdowns that year.

Since then, Lawrence has fallen in the rankings and hit rock bottom in an injury-riddled season last year.

However, the Jacksonville Jaguars haven't given up on Lawrence and neither should you.

Lawrence is entering the second year of a five-year, $275 million extension, so he's not in danger of losing his job under Jacksonville's new regime. Liam Coen is Jacksonville's third full-time head coach in the last five years, and finally, the team got it right for Lawrence's sake and fantasy managers who still believe in him.

As a first-time primary pro offensive play-caller in 2024, Coen helped Baker Mayfield post career numbers. He finished fourth among quarterbacks in fantasy scoring, throwing for 4,500 yards, 41 touchdowns and 16 interceptions with 378 yards and three scores on the ground.

Coen has a limited sample size as a play-caller in the NFL, but if Mayfield's 2024 numbers are an indicator of what Lawrence can produce with Pro Bowl wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and rookie sensation Travis Hunter, the Jaguars quarterback can get back into the top 10 in fantasy scoring at his position.

Unlike Jake Ferguson, who's ranked fifth, Lawrence isn't as reliant on other players for a bounce-back year. As a former No. 1 overall pick, he will be the focal point of the Jaguars offense.

4. RB Travis Etienne, Jacksonville Jaguars

AP Photo/Stew Milne

2024 RB Rank: 35

Trevor Lawrence won't be the only player to benefit from the Jacksonville Jaguars coaching changes; include his former Clemson teammate in the discussion.

Travis Etienne is coming off his least productive season, and the Jaguars selected Bhayshul Tuten in the fourth round of this year's draft, which generated trade speculation.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler talked to people around the league who believe the Jaguars' new regime "is not so high" on Etienne's status with the club, but Coen shot down rumors that the team will move on from the fourth-year running back.

Based on recent reports, the outlook on Etienne's short-term future in Jacksonville has shifted in his favor, with more details about his prospective role.

Sports Illustrated's John Shipley believes Etienne will be the Jaguars' RB1 over Tank Bigsby and Tuten.

Demetrius Harvey of the Florida Times-Union agrees with Shipley on Etienne's spot on the depth chart, though he also noted that the running back could see a lighter workload as the team's ground game evolves and he develops as a pass-catcher.

If you're in a PPR league, you're not concerned about Etienne seeing slightly fewer carries and more targets in the passing game. In 2023, he caught 58 passes for 476 yards and a touchdown in addition to 1,008 yards and 11 scores on the ground. That year, Etienne finished third among running backs in fantasy scoring.

If Etienne averages 15 or more carries and about five targets per game, he can be a top-10 fantasy running back. With that ceiling, Etienne would have more fantasy value than Lawrence, which is why he's ranked one spot higher than his teammate.

3. TE Evan Engram, Denver Broncos

AP Photo/David Zalubowski

2024 TE Rank: 33

Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton found his "Joker" playmaker in Evan Engram, and he could turn the two-time Pro Bowler back into a fantasy gem.

Engram finished within the top five among tight ends in fantasy scoring for back-to-back years in 2022 and 2023 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Though he turns 31 in September, the pass-catching tight end is in a position to be a primary target in the Broncos' aerial attack.

Denver has one established wide receiver, Cortland Sutton, and Engram won't face stiff competition for the starting tight end position.

Some managers may have concerns about Engram missing time in another injury-riddled campaign, but his recent track record shows a mostly healthy player over the previous few years, suiting up for all but two games between 2020 and 2023.

If you're looking for a consistent week-to-week sleeper option at tight end, Engram fits the bill. With a recent Pro Bowl campaign on his resume and no real competitors to take targets away from him, he edges Travis Etienne for a top-three spot.

2. WR Rashee Rice, Kansas City Chiefs

AP Photo/Charlie Riedel

2024 WR Rank: 100

After a promising rookie campaign with 79 receptions for 938 yards and a team-leading seven touchdowns, Rashee Rice suffered a season-ending knee injury, limiting him to just four appearances last year.

During the Kansas City Chiefs' organized team activities, quarterback Patrick Mahomes told reporters that Rice has "no limitations." Head coach Andy Reid said that the third-year receiver will be a full participant at training camp.

Though second-year wideout Xavier Worthy could take on a more prominent role in the Chiefs' passing game this year, Rice has a good chance to lead the Chiefs in multiple receiving categories.

Reid told reporters that Travis Kelce will have a similar snap count to the previous season (84 percent of the offensive snaps), but the team will monitor the 35-year-old tight end's playing time as the season goes on.

Aside from Kelce's rookie year when he sat out nearly the entire 2013 season, Kelce finished with his lowest totals in receiving yards (823) and touchdown receptions (three). He could see a further decline if the Chiefs preserve him for the playoffs.

The Chiefs want to attack defenses with a more explosive passing game. Worthy, with his blazing speed, will be a valuable asset in an aggressive vertical passing game, though he can also open up windows for receivers on underneath routes.

Worthy will produce the chunk plays, and Rice can be a more consistent go-to option than Hollywood Brown, who has seen a decline in his receiving numbers since 2021.

As the No. 2 bounce-back player in the rankings, Rice will play with arguably the league's best quarterback in Mahomes. So, he has a higher production ceiling than Evan Engram (ranked third), who will catch passes from second-year signal-caller Bo Nix.

1. RB Christian McCaffrey, San Francisco 49ers

AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

2024 RB Rank: 69

According to FantasyPros' ADP (average draft position) rankings, Christian McCaffrey is a mid-first-round pick in PPR league drafts, which is a fair spot for him and why he's No. 1 in the rankings.

When healthy, McCaffrey is arguably the best fantasy running back to roster, but he comes with significant risk because of his recent injury history.

McCaffrey has missed 10 or more games in three of the last five seasons. Moreover, San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan talked about protecting the star running back from himself following an injury-riddled campaign.

Managers should expect a lighter workload for McCaffrey compared to recent years, but he's still one of the league's best pass-catching running backs.

In the five seasons that McCaffrey hasn't missed more than one outing, he caught at least 67 passes and finished within the top 10 in scoring among running backs. Even with fewer carries, he's a tier 1 fantasy tailback.

Fantasy rankings are provided by FantasyPros.

Maurice Moton covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @MoeMoton.