NEXT TIME: Positional Tier Rankings
It is the morning of the 24th, but I do not believe Quinshon Judkins has declared his intentions yet. Once that declaration comes through, the class will be set. With the class set, instead of doing Deeper Dives next episode, I’m going to spend my show time this weekend working on a full tiered ranking, the first since the class has become official.
Don’t expect detailed write-ups as there are already Deeper Dives, but I will have a few summary write-ups and updates to the Age and Grades lists with every ranked member of the 2025 class.
Expect Ohio State Deeper Dives and a few more stragglers in the following episode.
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Apologies for not getting a show out early in the week. I don’t think I properly accounted for how the holiday + Nat’l Title would influence my schedule. My recording environment was also just a bit different this week.
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DEEPER DIVE #22:
Jordan James, RB, Oregon
Age: 21.05
Height: 5’ 10”
Weight: 210 lbs
Starting off his career as an efficient #2 behind Bucky Irving, Jordan James has spent the minimum 3 Years at Oregon and is now an early declare for the NFL Draft. He is one of the youngest players in this class, and will turn 21 years old roughly one month before the NFL Draft. Like a few different RBs in this class, Jordan James may not be the most impressive to look at. He is fairly short, and while well built, is not particularly large. That said, what James lacks in physical size he makes up for in physical tenacity. He is also a player who was at least a 4-Star HS recruit, placing just inside the top 250 recruits in his class, indicating some level of NFL ability in his physical talent. James does have some translation questions to the next level as a physical RB due to his size, but at the same time, he has far better size than former teammate, Bucky Irving. James was a favorite RB of mine in the Devy marketplace heading into 2024, and while I did not hear much buzz about James throughout most of the season, he was an instant early declare, and I have seen some more encouraging rankings on James since the season has concluded.
James did not have a small profile by any means as a 4-Star prospect, but what really put Jordan James on the radar was some excellent efficiency numbers playing behind Bucky Irving. In fact, among players with at least 100 Carries in 2023, James was PFF’s highest Graded Rusher. He was excellent both at forcing missed tackles as well as using his explosive burst to set up big plays. While James did not grade out quite as highly in 2024, he still managed to break through the 90 Grade threshold. In total, over the course of the past two seasons, Jordan James has 90 missed tackles forced (MTF) over 341 Carries, one of the better rates in this class. While James runs with an aggressive physicality and desire to extend rushes, this has not led to him putting the ball on the ground at all. Over the course of his 386 carries, Jordan James has 0 Career Fumbles. Jordan James’ physicality makes him a player that can translate between the tackles, but considering his size, it would still be nice to see just a bit more receiving work. James has been at least involved with 26 Receptions and 207 Yards, but it is also worth acknowledging that last year, Bucky Irving’s receiving output was much higher. This likely does indicate that Oregon at least saw him as being a bit more limited in that capacity, though you could argue at the least that maybe they just preferred James in a different role.
Against Michigan State, Jordan James had one of the most impressive 1st Halves of the CFB season. That is the game we’ll be using here today:
As mentioned above, the first impressive thing to notice about this video is that almost all of it occurs in the 1st Half. It is one of those halves where James is so effective, at 3:05 you see Oregon go to an interior rush with limited time on the clock 10-15 yards out of FG range. James bulldozes through the defense for 15 Yards to put his team in FG range. This is not the only time we see the tenacious and effective tackle breaking of Jordan James. He regains his balance on the carry at 0:30 and levels the defender at the second level. James is also not a RB that requires built-up momentum to avoid a tackler, such as when he breaks through contact in the hole at 1:56. There are also plenty of plays here that showcase James’ dynamic explosive ability, such as the very first play where he avoids an arm tackle and bursts through the hole. We also see speed bouncing to the outside at 0:50, and creativity with his cutbacks like at 1:30. There are not too many receiving plays on this tape, but on the 2-minute drill mentioned above, Jordan James has an excellent & high IQ play at 2:52. James breaks the initial tackle and then immediately runs in a straight line towards the sideline, getting out of bounds and preserving the clock. And while most of his damage came in the 1st Half, James’ calling card very well may be his ability to wiggle a few yards where nothing seems available. It is not a very significant carry in terms of yardage, but the carry at 3:33 is very impressive.
There seems to be a firm top 5 by at least a good percentage of the market: (alphabetically) Omarion Hampton, TreVeyon Henderson, Ashton Jeanty, Kaleb Johnson, and (should he declare) Quinshon Judkins. This is my top five as well, but Jordan James is currently my favorite RB from the rest of this class. James’ running style is aggressive, tenacious, but also effective and utilizes intelligence and burst. While he has not had a huge receiving workload and the reps he had were far fewer than his teammate’s last year, James has still effectively showcased his ability enough as a receiver to imagine he can work effectively in this role at the next level. James is the quintessential example of a player who would be ranked quite a bit more highly if he were just a bit larger. At his current size, I do have to question the wear and tear that could come with an aggressive, physical running style. There are quite a few RBs on my list that I’m not sure between a 3rd Round grade and a bit more of a fringe Day 2 grade, indicating the late 3rd / early 4th, but of these RBs, James is the most likely to be a full “Round 3” grade.
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DEEPER DIVE #23:
Damien Martinez, RB, Miami (FL)
Age: 21.07
Height: 6’ 0:
Weight: 232 lbs
Another RB that was a personal favorite heading into the 2024 season, Damien Martinez has the potential to be one of the best speed score RBs in this class. At 232 lbs, Martinez has explosive burst and acceleration that is rare for his size. Coming out of HS, Martinez was only graded as a 3-Star prospect, but he did elevate that grade to a firm 4-Stars in the consensus while in the transfer portal when he moved from Oregon State to Miami (FL). Due to Martinez’s surface statistics, I was not sure if he would join this class, but as a young RB with three full seasons of pretty good production, Martinez appears ready to take on the NFL. The big question for Martinez, if he is seen as a potential high-end ground & pound asset, will be if Martinez can develop enough as a pass catcher to give us the volume we desire in fantasy. Martinez clearly does have some potential limitations, though there is some argument that Martinez took some small steps forward in these limitations in 2024.
Talking about those limitations first, Martinez came into the year with an awful Catch% and terrible PFF Pass Protection grade. The combination of these two things, without improvement, would not necessarily mean Martinez could not be a good NFL player, but it does come close to erasing his value for Fantasy. Otherwise, you have to hope that he actually has the upside of a Jonathan Taylor or Derrick Henry, and that is hard to bet on. Martinez did take some steps forward in both these categories in 2024, so there are some signs of positive momentum for the future. The real strength for Martinez though is his two-down ability. Damien Martinez was an excellent RB both this year and throughout his career between the tackles. In fact, while Martinez did have some surface statistics that were underwhelming early in the season, even to the point where he started ceding more of his workload to sophomore Mark Fletcher, Martinez finished the season as the highest graded PFF Rusher that wasn’t named Ashton Jeanty or Cam Skattebo. Considering the hype and credit those two players get, that is a fairly impressive feat. Martinez did excel the most when splitting that workload, which is a big contrast between himself and those two, but it is still rare that we see grades as high as 94 in any category on the PFF scale. On just the surface numbers, Martinez had 982 Yards as a true freshman, with 1,100+ and 1,000+ in the last two seasons, good for three quality CFB seasons all before the age of 21.
In order to show the explosive upside of Damien Martinez, we’re going to dig into his game against Florida State, found here:
The biggest advantage that I believe someone like Martinez has as a prospect over the likes of Gordon or Allen is the ability to not just be explosive, but utilize that explosiveness. On the very first play of the video, you see Martinez use both hesitation and then burst out of that hesitation to create the big, explosive play. We see something similar at 0:30: hesitation, truck, burst, outrun, and finally TD. While plays like those at 1:00 can seem largely flukey, as Martinez seems dead-to-rights deep within a pile, but then breaks out for an explosive gain, part of what can make this play so effective is that Martinez can so easily accelerate to a significantly high speed. The defender that chases him initially definitely starts this play flat footed, but he would likely have done better with his recovery speed comparatively if Martinez was significantly less explosive. And while maybe it does look a little clunky with how much weight Martinez needs to carry, the play at 0:15 showcases both his ability to be a check down RB, as well as his ability to move in a sudden, lateral way that causes a whiff from the defender. At his size, this is an impressive little shake that we don’t see too much from RBs this size.
Martinez is a player I struggle to grade quite a bit. As someone who has been very lukewarm on big RBs like Ollie Gordon II and Braelon Allen dating back to the year before they declared for the NFL Draft, Martinez is much closer to what I am personally looking for in a large RB. While sometimes a bit linear, Martinez’s explosive ability and more-instant contact balance are traits that translate well to the next level. However, I’ve had my share of misses in picking successful larger RBs as well. In the previous Deeper Dive, I mentioned how Jordan James was the one player on the 3rd Round fringe that I was most confident would be a 3rd Round Grade. Damien Martinez is the player that I toss back and forth the most. The explosive upside is tantalizing, but some of the downsides both in pass catching and in consistency seen early this season can be reasons to doubt Damien Martinez. As of today, he is one of my favorite RBs in the Late 3rd Round, Early 4th Round tier.
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DEEPER DIVE #24:
Tez Johnson, WR, Oregon
Age: 23.03
Height: 5’ 10”
Weight: 165 lbs
There are very few players where just on Age, Height, and Weight, we can make some kind of determination about their draft grade. Tez Johnson is one of those players. As one of the oldest players in the class and weighing in at only 165 lbs on his listed size by Oregon, there are some immediate objective drawbacks with Tez Johnson. There are times where it helps to avoid starting so negatively, but a good chunk of the negative for Tez Johnson will come from these profiling areas. The adopted brother of his former Oregon QB, Bo Nix, Johnson spent three years at Troy before transferring to Oregon for his final two seasons. Even when he transferred, Johnson did not have a particularly high grade, which is what you would typically assume given his size. That said, Johnson has been a dynamic player for Oregon the past two seasons, and is definitely someone worth keeping an eye on in this draft class, particularly as a player who can help a QB.
Tez Johnson was a very successful WR throughout his career, but to get the rest of the negatives out of the way, Johnson’s biggest production concern comes from his types of targets. Out of the 261 NCAA WRs to have at least 50 Targets in 2024, Johnson had the second lowest ADOT. The biggest argument surrounding Johnson may be towards his volume projection. Johnson is one of a few players in this class where, despite being a bit lukewarm for fantasy, I would not actually be against my favorite NFL team drafting in or around the 3rd Round, but this limited usage combined with his size gives some concern for his high-volume ability at the next level. One statistic that helps illustrate this is Johnson’s complete lack of contested opportunities. In the last two seasons, despite having almost 170 Receptions, Tez Johnson was only targeted in a contested situation 7 times. An unwillingness to use a player when they’re remotely covered is going to greatly affect their target volume. Maybe this changes at the next level, but it is certainly a concern at this point. Johnson’s statistics are solid overall, though it is important to mention in terms of 2023 that his output in that season came with huge output from Bo Nix. In fact, while his overall statistics slipped from 2023 to 2024, Johnson’s proportional numbers improved. He had 27.6% of Receiving Yards and 38.5% of Receiving TDs in the games that he was healthy and active. That last number in particular is a strong number analytically, as is Tez Johnson’s ability to force missed tackles. In the last two years, Johnson has forced an impressive 39 missed tackles according to PFF.
The Tez Johnson video I’ve selected for this part of the analysis comes against UCLA from this season.
For Johnson, the focus is not just on the traits, but also the alignment and the type of target. For example, the very first play sees Tez Johnson running around the backfield in motion, and then being thrown a simple pass out in the flat. He also has screen receptions at 0:23 and 0:33, as well as plays like quick outs against soft coverage (0:13). The play at 0:33 in particular showcases some of Johnson’s explosive ability, though it does come with a fumble at the end. While Johnson is open deep at the 0:56 mark, there is a limit to how much this kind of deep target can encourage us as it is more of a coverage bust. As Johnson pulls through the second level, no one picks him and he becomes completely wide open. The play that probably creates some optimism for some of the concepts that Johnson may need at the next level comes at 0:50. It isn’t a very long route, but it is the kind of 1-on-1 win we need to see just a bit more. Throughout the video, I did find myself remarking that Johnson was letting the ball into his body too often, and so I do have some concerns about Johnson being more of a body catcher. Finally, while it is not too important for our game, we do see Johnson showcase a different utility in his game as a Punt Returner at 1:35.
If you’re reading through the Deeper Dives one at a time, this was already referenced in the Xavier Restrepo Deeper Dive, but these are the two players who in this class I see as having a clear potential utility for a QB, but I do worry about their ultimate fantasy upside. Johnson does have plenty of positives in his favor including dynamic quickness that helps him as a ball carrier in the open field. However, most of my traits-based opinions on WRs come down to a mesh between point of attack and separation abilities. At 165 lbs and without much film with contested targets, I have significant concerns about Tez Johnson’s point of attack ability and how it will translate to the next level. While I said I would be comfortable taking Johnson as a fan in the 3rd round, the actual point the value gets really good for me is the late 3rd / early 4th, and so that is likely where Johnson’s ultimate grade will be. There are not many WRs in this class with better than a 3rd Round Grade on my board, so Johnson will likely be a fringe top 10 WR on my board in this class.
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DEEPER DIVE #25:
Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Bowling Green
Age: 21.01
Height: 6’ 4”
Weight: 230 lbs
A player who has a chance to be the most polarizing player in the NFL Draft, if there was ever a player to break out the “Curious Case Of…” title, it would be Harold Fannin Jr. A former 0-Star recruit with one FBS offer, Fannin Jr. has been the most productive TE in CFB over the last 1.5 years. According to his listed age, Fannin is also very young. At 21.01, only Dylan Sampson is a younger player among the ~40 Deeper Dives. The biggest and most evident concern with Fannin is clearly his size. If he is truly 6’ 4” and can maybe even add a few lbs beyond that 230, Fannin might still be in play for the NFL 1st Round. David Njoku is an easy example of a player listed precisely at 6’ 4”, 230 lbs by Miami (FL) who then tested better and ultimately went in the NFL First Round. However, I’d be significantly shocked if Fannin did that. Harold Fannin to my eye looks closer to 6’ 2” 225 than 6’ 4” 230. This is where the concerns will begin with Fannin, as he is not a prototype in any sense of the word. One of the most difficult aspects of projection is fit. This is a bit of an odd comparison, but one of the reasons Isaiah Bond is so commonly graded more highly than his production is that game-breaking, field-stretching, horizontal-running elite speed is something that translates to every system in the NFL. But Fannin Jr. is likely not going to be a 1:1 replacement for anyone you have on your team or in your playbook. I’ve already heard draft analysts say things like “the team that drafts Fannin will need to have a plan for him,” and those are statements that can both raise eyebrows in general, and cause players to potentially fall in the NFL Draft.
Digging into those statistics of Fannin’s that are so extremely impressive, in his last 18 Games, Fannin Jr. has 144 Receptions, 1,977 Yards, and 14 TDs. While most of this comes against inferior MAC competition, as Fannin played in a lower conference, he did have two games this season against high-end B10 and SEC defenses between Penn State and Texas A&M. In these two games, Fannin combined for 19 Receptions, 282 Yards, and 2 TDs, or 141 Rec YPG. There are a few aspects of Fannin’s game that we can doubt, but the reliability in the hands is not one of those. Fannin Jr. arguably has the best hands in this class in terms of reliability regardless of position. Fannin has 4 Career Drops over the course of 232 Targets. Fannin was also absolutely elite in forcing missed tackles, with 33 in 2024. The top 2 WRs in this class, Tetairoa McMillan and Luther Burden III, led WRs in this category with 29. Fannin is getting a high dose of receptions and many of those broken tackles are coming against lesser competition, but it is still an impressive number overall. Finally, this number is more of the same and potentially double counting as we’ve already discussed all the amazing yardage numbers, but just to put it in terms of efficiency, Harold Fannin Jr. had a whopping 3.76 Yard per Route Run in his final season in College.
It was obvious that given the competition level, we would need to see Fannin against either Penn State or A&M, and today’s Deeper Dive will be using the Penn State film.
The biggest question for Fannin will be aspects of translation, and considering how impressive the number is, his missed tackles forced statistic may be one of the most important to find the translation. We see positive signs of this at 1:15 and 2:40. At 1:15 in particular, we see Fannin being a tough tackle who can drag defenders for extra yardage. Fannin may not be the most explosive player, but he does show a vertical ability to run the seam right away in this video at 0:00. There are not too many routes or breaks to be seen on this video, but we can at least get a taste of the consistent route running of Fannin at 0:40, 2:10, and 2:50. 2:10 is also an excellent example of the Missed Tackles Forced ability discussed earlier. While this can be said about most players, Fannin in particular is a player whose real evaluation probably takes more than just one simple video considering how unique he is. The biggest concern I have on the All-22 is that he lacks a bit of sudden explosiveness. It is hard to completely put your finger on, but there are simply times where his movements seem awkward, sluggish, and imbalanced. Considering that it does not always look this way, perhaps it is that last issue: balance and coordination. But regardless, while there are definitely a few plays on Fannin’s tape where I am very impressed, there are also a few plays where I find myself wondering if this will work at the next level.
Perhaps I am underrating how the NFL will perceive Fannin, but I would be willing to bet that Fannin will not be every team’s “cup-of-tea.” If the team who drafts Fannin has fallen in love with what they believe they can do with him, he may still be drafted very highly. But it would not shock me at all if Fannin was one of those players who was just left off a number of teams' boards, or at least pushed down considerably. It is unlikely he has much utility in line, and there are significant questions about his general athletic ability. That said, Fannin is also a player who has shown skill, trait, and nuance as a receiver, as well as production that can often translate as a positive sign for the next level. And while all the concerns for Fannin’s floor are very valid, among all the fringe TEs, none should be drafted more highly for fantasy. When you consider that there are 32 starting TEs, but only 5-10 are relevant in any given year, this is a position where we should be shooting for the moon. In a lesser class, even with these concerns, Fannin could be arguably a TE1 candidate. In my eyes, Warren & Loveland are very strong prospects, and so they will likely be above Fannin throughout the process, and Fannin may at least have a similar grade to a few other TEs in this class, but among those similarly graded TEs, Fannin will likely be the clear choice unless he slips too far in the NFL Draft. Right now, I have him closer to a 3rd Round Grade than a 2nd Round Grade, with the combine being more important than usual for Harold Fannin Jr.
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DEEPER DIVE #26:
Mason Taylor, TE, LSU
Age: 21.04
Height: 6’ 5”
Weight: 255 lbs
While never reaching the single season heights of the top 3 TEs in this class, Mason Taylor is a young, early declare TE who has been productive from the very first season he came to LSU. Physically, Taylor has excellent size and soft hands which make him a reliable target, and someone who translates far more easily into most NFL systems compared to someone like Harold Fannin Jr. However, Taylor was only a 3-Star recruit, and it is hard to imagine that profile & exposure were an issue considering that he is the son of Hall of Famer Jason Taylor. Most likely, and based on my own viewing as well, that indicates a perception of a lack of elite physical upside in his explosion and/or overall speed. This is a concern, but Taylor is also someone who could feasibly do more physical maturing; he is another one of these players who has not yet played live football at 21 Years Old, as he turns 21 in a few months. Stylistically, Taylor is far more likely to be the “security blanket” TE than someone who is truly being used in dynamic roles, but again at such a young age, it may be too soon to put him in such a strict box.
The previous section mentions that Taylor has never been a huge proportion of his offense, but in fairness this was really the only year he had potential to make that happen. Taylor’s 2023 season was his worst, but he was sharing targets/reps with Malik Nabers, Brian Thomas Jr., and Jayden Daniels’ legs. That lack of priority does show the concern of him being more of a “safety blanket,” but in fairness those are three extremely explosive play options to have to compete against every single game. Still, with just Kyren Lacy, Aaron Anderson, and a few other WRs of a much smaller profile in 2024, this would have been the year for Taylor to take the big step forward. He did have his best year, but with 55 Receptions, 546 Yards, and 2 TDs, Taylor’s proportional production is only 14.4% of Yards and 8.7% of TDs, as QB Nussmeier did have fairly strong volume. The TD number is a bit of a concern with Taylor, as he has only 3, 1, and 2 TDs the last three years. This was also the first year where he saw contested opportunities, as he was not targeted in contested situations in either 2022 or 2023 much at all. He converted a solid percentage of these opportunities with a very low Drop%. In terms of YAC ability, this class in general at TE is a massive case of “haves and have-nots,” and unfortunately Taylor is much closer to the “have-nots.” He has 5, 4, and 5 missed tackles forced in the last three years, which even considering competition compares very unfavorably to something like Fannin’s 33 MTF in 2024 alone.
Unfortunately I could not find a good single game for Mason Taylor, and that likely says a bit about the proportional statistics mentioned above, but in order to showcase some of Taylor’s traits, we will use this highlight video from throughout his career:
Although strictly breaking tackles has not been a strength of Mason Taylor thus far in his career, LSU has not been afraid of putting Taylor in situations where he can utilize his legs to create yards after catch. We see several plays where the QB flips it to Taylor in the flat, such as 0:00, 0:44, 1:06, 2:08, and 3:10. Taylor also has a massive play at 3:00, though it is my judgment that the defender really does whiff on this one pretty badly. Aside from that, there were a few plays on this video that made the case for why Taylor may struggle at breaking tackles: at 1:52, Taylor reverses field, but his feet come out from under him as he loses his balance. There are a few times where it seems that Taylor is fighting to regain balance, and so this is very likely the reason he struggles with missed tackles forced. There are a number of good adjustments to the football on this video, such as 0:15 and 0:57 with a good high point at 1:35. We also get to see Taylor running a corner at 0:30. Most of Taylor’s success at the next level will likely come down to how well he can transition into that safety blanket, and so the routes at 3:30 (which gets a great angle for the viewer) are important for his translation to the next level.
Mason Taylor seems like a very solid TE prospect with a potential long-term future as a starter in the NFL. As a fantasy analyst chasing upside at the position that only has 5-10 relevant players, Taylor definitely has significant concerns towards reaching those lofty goals. Among the top 3 TEs in this class, Warren and Fannin have produced at a far greater level, and Loveland’s proportional numbers are excellent in context of his offense. Even in a vacuum left behind by Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr., Taylor struggled to be a high volume player. Going back to the Fannin Jr. piece though, Taylor likely does have a bit more universal utility; he may be easier to slip into a good number of offensive systems, and would be far more likely to play in-line. Given his age and the fact that we can build up a solid floor for Taylor, there are definitely reasons to be optimistic that perhaps we just simply haven’t seen his best yet. At this point, I do have a 3rd Round Grade on Mason Taylor, though for Fantasy he would be clearly ranked below the similarly graded Harold Fannin Jr., with a chance of slipping towards the Day 2 Fringe (Late 3rd / Early 4th).
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C.J.
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