Ranking Week 3 fantasy football winners and losers and injury impacts from Sunday
Week 3 of the 2025 fantasy football season featured a little bit of everything, from big scores by rookies to surprisingly quiet games from some of the top players in the NFL.
Matt Bowen and Tristan H. Cockcroft offer their analyses.
1. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Indianapolis Colts: He’s benefiting in a huge way from the Colts’ offensive rebirth, as he followed up his 29.5 PPR fantasy points in Week 2 with 32.8 points Sunday, and he’s now averaging 20 carries and 22.7 touches through three games. Taylor has had multiple explosive runs (10-plus yard carries) in each of his three contests for seven on the season, tied for the league’s lead, and he has 61 more rushing yards than expected per Next Gen Stats. He’s shaping up as a clear fantasy RB1, which he should be again in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Rams. — Cockcroft
2. Tre Tucker, WR, Las Vegas Raiders: What a breakthrough by the third-year receiver, who became the first player to break the 40-point barrier in PPR scoring this season (career-best 40.9), carving up the Washington Commanders‘ zone-heavy defense. Tucker’s nine targets easily paced Raiders receivers, and coming on the heels of the eight he had in Week 2, it seems he’s becoming a larger part of their game plan. Expect huge jumps in his roster (1.95%) and start rates (0.18%) in ESPN leagues next week against the Chicago Bears, though he’s best regarded a risk/reward fantasy WR3 for that matchup. — Cockcroft
3. Jordan Mason, RB, Minnesota Vikings: With Aaron Jones Sr. on IR because of a hamstring injury, Mason had 23.6 points in the Vikings’ blowout win over the Bengals. In a game in which Minnesota absolutely controlled tempo (more on their defense later), Mason finished with 116 yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. Though Mason isn’t going to rack up big numbers as a receiver (three receptions on the season), he will remain the Vikings No. 1 runner heading into the Week 4 at the Steelers. And that means more run game volume. Mason will be an RB2 for me next week. — Bowen
4. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Cleveland Browns: Judkins had 95 total yards and a touchdown on 19 touches (16.5 points) in the Browns’ Week 3 win over the Packers. Judkins paced the Browns’ backfield with 18 of the team’s 19 rushing attempts, plus he has the traits of a lead runner in Kevin Stefanski’s offense. With the short-area speed to hit creases of daylight, plus the contact balance and pad level to break tackles, Judkins should continue to play a volume role in Cleveland. With a Week 4 game at Detroit, Judkins will be in my flex ranks. — Bowen
5. Hunter Henry, TE, New England Patriots: His 29.0 PPR fantasy points were the second-best single game score of his 10-year NFL career (30.0, Week 9 of 2019), and they came in a game in which he had more than twice as many targets (11) as any other Patriots receiver. Henry has had his moments as a go-to target for Drake Maye, with seven games of a 25%-plus target share and nine end zone targets since the beginning of 2024. Even if Henry can be maddeningly tough to predict — he was a bust facing a favorable matchup last week — he brings the necessary upside to be worth a go for those who went the cheap route at the position. — Cockcroft
6. Jalen Hurts, QB, Philadelphia Eagles: In the Eagles’ comeback win over the Rams, Hurts’ 29.04 points led all quarterbacks in the early window, and the pass game numbers jumped for the first time this season. Trailing 26-7, we saw a much more aggressive play script from Philly, with Hurts completing 21 of his 32 throws for 226 yards and three touchdowns. Hurts also added 40 yards rushing and a score on nine carries, plus, his top targets, A.J. Brown (22.9 points) and DeVonta Smith (20 points), posted their best numbers of the season. Hurts will remain a top-five play in Week 4 against the Bucs. – Bowen
7. Minnesota Vikings ST/D: Brian Flores’ unit went to work on the Bengals’ offense in the Week 3 win, scoring 32 points, the most points by a fantasy defense since the Cowboys dropped 35 on the Giants in Week 1 of the 2023 season. The Vikings created consistent chaos for the Bengals, racking up four sacks, two interceptions, three fumble recoveries and two defensive scores. Ridiculous. With Pittsburgh (Week 4) and Cleveland (Week 5) up next, the Vikings’ defense will remain a top-five unit in the rankings. — Bowen
8. Caleb Williams, QB, Chicago Bears: After Russell Wilson tore up the Dallas Cowboys‘ secondary in Week 2, Williams enjoyed a career-best 29.12 fantasy point performance against the same opponent Sunday. Williams was money when throwing it deep, completing seven of his 13 attempts of at least 10 yards downfield for all four of his touchdowns, after he had struggled in that regard up to that point in his career (39.8% completion and 4.2% touchdown rates). It’s probably more of a statement on the Cowboys’ defensive issues than the quarterback’s own talent, but this is a good step forward for him to take in his development. If it leads to another aggressive approach against the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 4, it can only help Williams’ chances at a another top-10 point total. — Cockcroft
9. Courtland Sutton, WR, Denver Broncos: What a difference a week makes. After Bo Nix targeted him only four times, resulting in a 1.6 PPR fantasy point Week 2, Sutton had eight targets Sunday and turned them into 23.8 points. That he did it against a competitive Los Angeles Chargers‘ defense only further underscored the performance, which included a pair of 20-plus yard catches. Sutton gets one of his softest matchups all season in the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 4, making him a locked-in fantasy WR2. — Cockcroft
10. Omarion Hampton, RB, Los Angeles Chargers: Hampton had a season-high 24.9 points in the Week 3 win over the Broncos. With Najee Harris leaving the game in the first half because of a lower leg injury, Hampton had an increase in volume, finishing with 129 total yards and a touchdown on 25 touches. Hampton was held to 3.7 yards per carry against Denver’ defense, but he produced as a receiver, catching six passes for 59 yards. If Harris is out for an extended period of time, and Hampton continues to get No. 1 usage as a dual-threat back, he could climb into the RB1 ranks soon. — Bowen
Ranking fantasy losers of Week 3
1. Bengals passing offense: The Bengals’ offense was a bust with backup quarterback Jake Browning making his first start for injured Joe Burrow. Browning completed 19 passes for 140 yards, and he threw two interceptions. Too much pressure from the Vikings here. Ja’Marr Chase? He caught five of six targets for 50 yards, added one carry for nine yards, but also lost a fumble (8.9 points). And Tee Higgins caught only one pass (on two targets) for 15 yards (2.5 points). Sure, the Vikings’ defense dictated the flow of this football game, but that does create some concern for managers of Chase and Higgins. And with a tough Week 5 matchup against the Broncos up next, I’ll move Chase down as a lower-tier WR1, with Higgins dropping to the WR3 range. — Bowen
2. Brock Bowers, TE, Las Vegas Raiders: He has now been quiet in back-to-back weeks, following up Week 2’s 8.8 PPR fantasy points with 9.8 on Sunday, the latter coming on a mere five targets. He couldn’t seem to find any open space against the Commanders’ zone-heavy defense, catching only two passes on 26 routes run in those situations per Next Gen Stats. Bowers’ fantasy managers should bear in mind that he had a similarly so-so start to 2024, his 37.7 points at this point of the year not far off the 33.9 he has currently. Stick with him and hope that he can break through in Week 4 against the Bears. — Cockcroft
3. Saquon Barkley, RB, Philadelphia Eagles: The volume wasn’t an issue for Barkley as he had 22 touches in the Eagles’ Week 3 win over the Rams. Barkley got his looks, which included carries in the low red zone, plus he had four receptions. But without the explosive plays or touchdowns, Barkley finished with 55 total yards and a season-low 9.4 points. I thought the Rams’ defensive front really limited Barkley’s ability to get to the second level Sunday, closing running lanes and squeezing the edges. Barkley will look to rebound in Week 4 against the Bucs. — Bowen
4. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Las Vegas Raiders: His fantasy managers, who selected him No. 10 on average, can’t be happy with his lackluster play thus far. Jeanty managed only 6.3 PPR fantasy points in Week 3, stuffed at or before the line of scrimmage on five of his 17 rushing attempts, and he has now averaged fewer than four yards per carry in each of his first three NFL games. But in his defense, he did have three explosive runs Sunday after two in Week 2, and if the Raiders can pave him more running lanes, he might well take off statistically. Jeanty is a buy-low target with rebound potential for a Week 4 matchup against the injury-riddled Bears defense. — Cockcroft
5. Michael Penix Jr., QB, Atlanta Falcons: He saw his start rate in ESPN leagues leap by 7.5%, to 12.7%, in Week 3, but could not capitalize upon a favorable matchup against the Carolina Panthers, scoring only 3.78 fantasy points before being relieved by Kirk Cousins with his team down 27-0 in the fourth quarter. Penix was extremely erratic with his throws, completing a career-low 50% of his pass attempts while being intercepted twice. He’s unlikely to generate anywhere near as much interest over any of the next four weeks (WSH, bye, BUF, @SF). — Cockcroft
6. Breece Hall, RB, New York Jets: Hall posted his second straight game with fewer than 10 points in the Jets’ Week 3 loss to the Bucs. Hall did have four receptions for 31 yards, but he was limited to only 21 yards rushing on nine carries (9.2 points). Hall, who is averaging 2.6 YPC over his past two games, gets a much better matchup in Week 4 against the Miami defense, which should keep him in the RB2 mix. But his lack of run game efficiency is concerning. Let’s see if Hall can back on track next Monday night. — Bowen
Injury impact
CeeDee Lamb, WR, Dallas Cowboys
What we know: Lamb suffered an ankle injury in the first quarter of the Week 3 loss to the Bears. He attempted to return on the first play of the second quarter but showed clear signs of discomfort and left for the rest of the game. He did not have a target Sunday.
What’s next: If Lamb is down for the Week 4 matchup against the Packers, George Pickens would move into the WR2 range, and both KaVontae Turpin and Jalen Tolbert could be played as deeper league WR3s. — Bowen
Mike Evans, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
What we know: He came up limping while running a fourth-quarter route, was forced to leave the game and was visibly frustrated upon exit. Initial reports indicated a hamstring injury.
What’s next: Evans probably will be a questionable listing for Week 4, and if he’s unable to play, Emeka Egbuka will serve as Baker Mayfield‘s clear No. 1 target in a big game against the Philadelphia Eagles, while Sterling Shepard, Ryan Miller and Tez Johnson probably will get more targets behind Egbuka. — Cockcroft
Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Commanders
What we know: He left Sunday’s game shortly after having a 57-yard touchdown reception reversed to a 56-yard catch downed at the 1-yard line during the third quarter, and was unable to return because of a quadriceps injury.
What’s next: Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane saw a boost in routes and targets following McLaurin’s exit, with the former catching a touchdown pass. McCaffrey could have deep-league sleeper value if McLaurin misses further time. — Cockcroft
Najee Harris, RB, Los Angeles Chargers
What we know: He suffered an Achilles’ injury on a noncontact play in the second quarter, was helped to the sidelines and was ruled out for the game. Early indications are that Harris has a torn Achilles’, which would be a season-ending injury, though further tests are forthcoming to determine the severity.
What’s next: If Harris is indeed out for an extended period, rookie Omarion Hampton will have the backfield mostly to himself, making him an instant high-end fantasy RB2. Kimani Vidal could have an uptick in work as Harris’ backup. — Cockcroft
Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants
What we know: He suffered a right shoulder injury near the end of the first quarter after colliding with Kansas City Chiefs CB Jaylen Watson, and was quickly ruled out for the rest of the contest.
What’s next: Rookie Cam Skattebo took over as the Giants’ starter and scored a touchdown in the second quarter, and he’d most stand to benefit from an expanded workload should Tracy need to miss additional time. — Cockcroft
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