NFL Fantasy Start Em, Sit Em: 20 Players to Start or Sit in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL Season
The 2025 NFL season is finally upon us, and many fantasy football questions will be answered early on. Peter Alexis breaks down who you should start and sit entering Week 1, especially focusing on players with new teams. Check out these fantasy football start-sit rankings for NFL Week 1.
Peter Alexis - September 3, 2025, 9:00 AM EDT
6 Minute ReadNFL Fantasy Start Em, Sit Em: 20 Players to Start or Sit in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL Season
We've been waiting all summer for the return of fantasy football, and after an early dose in the preseason, it's time to see if you drafted the right guys. Will George Pickens or DK Metcalf find success on their new teams? Will Trevor Lawrence or Kyler Murray have a better year in 2025? We answer those questions and more for Week 1 of the new NFL season.
Let's check out our AI projections for each player, and why their matchup should lead to a start or sit status in fantasy football this week. These can also be applied to daily fantasy contests as you build your lineups for NFL Week 1.
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Quarterbacks To Play in Week 1
1. Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2. Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals
3. Trevor Lawrence, Jacksonville Jaguars
Baker Mayfield may be missing a few weapons, but the Falcons defense was porous a year ago, and Mayfield saw statistical success despite close losses in both games. He had six total touchdowns, and will get some help from a red-hot Bucky Irving to open up the play-action game.
Kyler Murray has a favorable matchup against an atrocious Saints team, who may end up being the worst unit in the NFL this year. They had the 5th-worst pass defense a year ago, and that should continue here in Week 1. Murray will look to connect more with Marvin Harrison Jr. this season, as well as continue clicking with Trey McBride. We project him as a top-8 fantasy QB this week.
Trevor Lawrence is hoping to bounce back from a rough 2024 that ended early with injury. He only played in nine games, but did find breakout star Brian Thomas Jr. during that time. He'll try to expand that relationship against a weak Colts defense (26th in yards allowed) this week.
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Quarterbacks To Sit in Week 1
4. Geno Smith, Las Vegas Raiders
5. Dak Prescott, Dallas Cowboys
6. C.J. Stroud, Houston Texans
Geno Smith is with a new team, though he's reunited with his old Seahawks coach. The Raiders have a lot of question marks entering Week 1, and heading up to face a Mike Vrabel defense is a tall task. Take the skip on Geno here until we see more of this Vegas team.
The vibes are low in Dallas right now after the Micah Parsons trade, and the Cowboys may come out sluggish against the reigning Super Bowl Champions. They have a lot of turnover on offense, and Dak needs time to gain chemistry with new weapons like George Pickens. On the road in Week 1 against the Eagles is not the time to figure that out.
C.J. Stroud is going against a Rams defense that was 11th in fewest passing yards allowed per game, and his offense is rocked with injuries. Joe Mixon is out, inhibiting the ability to establish the run. Stefon Diggs is off to New England, and Tank Dell is out for the season. He will have to rely heavily on Nico Collins, as the Rams will try to take him out of the equation. This is a wait and see situation in Houston.
Running Backs To Play in Week 1
7. Alvin Kamara, New Orleans Saints
8. Jaylen Warren, Pittsburgh Steelers
Alvin Kamara has been a fantasy star for nearly a decade now, but he's starting to get overlooked after turning 30 this summer. He should still get a truckload of touches for the Saints with Spencer Rattler trying to get ahold of this struggling offense, and they have a good matchup against the Cardinals, who allowed the 9th-most points to RB's in 2024.
With Najee Harris off to Los Angeles, Jaylen Warren was finally named the "feature back" on Tuesday afternoon. While the Jets defense has been solid, they are switching things up under Aaron Glenn, and it may take some warming up. Warren is a speedy back that showed great agility out of the backfield on third downs in recent years, and should seize his opportunity here in Week 1 to make a splash.
Running Backs To Sit in Week 1
9. Najee Harris, Los Angeles Chargers
10. Breece Hall, New York Jets
11. Kenneth Walker Jr., Seattle Seahawks
The Najee Harris saga has been wild this summer, with a fireworks incident causing damage to his eye. It remains to be seen how bad the situation is, because the information has changed so many times. He was just finally cleared this week after trying and failing to return in the preseason. Let's take a pass on Harris here, especially with rookie Omarion Hampton in the mix for Harbaugh's committee backfield.
Breece Hall was also seemingly demoted in the offseason, with the Jets new leadership looking to share the rock around more. Hall has shown flashes of strength in his time with NYJ, but inconsistencies and injuries prevented him from becoming a star. The rumblings now are that he'll be more of a limited third-down back and will see much less opportunity on a weak Jets team.
Wrap up the sit list of RBs with Kenneth Walker, who saw his draft stock fall hard from last year. He was the RB18 in most league drafts, and was banged-up often a season ago. Much has changed in Seattle, and he may be sharing more carries with Sam Darnold under center. Wait and see how the Seahawks approach this.
Wide Receivers To Play in Week 1
12. Brian Thomas Jr., Jacksonville Jaguars
13. Emeka Egbuka, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This one's a no-brainer, but it's important to highlight the ascension here. Brian Thomas Jr. is now a top-10 WR in fantasy after a breakout rookie season, and saw himself drafted in the top-20 of most leagues. He should light it up with more consistency at QB in Jacksonville as Trevor Lawrence looks to bounce back.
The rookie out of Ohio State figures to be a key role player for the Bucs offense early on. With Chris Godwin out for the foreseeable future and Jalen McMillan banged up, Egbuka will get a large share of targets alongside Mike Evans. The Falcons also gave up the 4th-most fantasy points per game to Wide Receivers a year ago.
Wide Receivers To Sit in Week 1
14. DK Metcalf, Pittsburgh Steelers
15. George Pickens, Dallas Cowboys
16. Davante Adams, Los Angeles Rams
DK Metcalf arrives to Pittsburgh via trade, and will now lineup with Aaron Rodgers. It could have been a superstar pairing a few years ago, but Rodgers is at the tail end of his career and we don't know what we'll get from him on yet another new team. Wait and see how these two connect to start the season.
As soon as DK arrived, George Pickens was promptly shipped off to Dallas, with Mike Tomlin and the Steelers essentially exchanging one chaotic receiver for another. Pickens will need time to warm up with Prescott, and as we explained earlier, Thursday night in Philly is going to be a rough start to his time with the Cowboys.
Another new team situation, Davante Adams has had virtually no time to develop chemistry with Matthew Stafford. The 37-year-old QB was out for over a month of training camp with a disc issue, and didn't play a single preseason game. They have had limited interaction together, and while Adams is still talented, Stafford will want to get in a rhythm with a known commodity like Puka Nacua early on as he gets back from injury.
Tight Ends To Play in Week 1
17. David Njoku, Cleveland Browns
18. Zach Ertz, Washington Commanders
The Cincinnati Bengals gave up the most fantasy points to tight ends a year ago, part of a defensive unit that struggled mightily. Njoku is reunited with Joe Flacco following their dominant stretch in 2023, and should continue to rack up targets as long as Flacco remains the starter in Cleveland.
Zach Ertz saw a bit of a renaissance last season with the Commanders, racking up over 650 yards and seven touchdowns, his highest TD rate since 2018. The 34-year-old has a good veteran connection with Jayden Daniels, and has a favorable matchup against the New York Giants, who may struggle to possess the ball on Sunday.
Tight Ends To Sit in Week 1
19. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles
20. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons
Dallas Goedert is looking like a pass in Week 1, with many hungry hands to feed for the Eagles offense. The Cowboys also ranked in the top-12 against tight ends a year ago. They may be missing Parsons, but the secondary is still solid with Daron Bland and others.
Do we even have to say it? There's no way we can start Kyle Pitts in Week 1 after his continuous letdowns each season. If you decided to do the meme and draft Pitts again, he'll need to earn his spot in the starting lineup with a few solid weeks and a rapport with Michael Penix Jr.
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