John Norton ("The Guru") and Gary Davenport ("The Godfather of IDP") are two of the most experienced and knowledgeable IDP analysts in the fantasy football industry.
The 2025 NFL Draft is in the books, and now we know where this year's rookie class of defensive players will begin their professional careers. Now that we know who landed where, the Guru and the Godfather have come together to discuss the IDP impact of the festivities in Green Bay.
Travis Hunter is a Golden God
The first defender drafted in 2025 isn't exactly a defensive player—the Jacksonville Jaguars traded up to No. 2 overall to select Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter.
Should Hunter be afforded positional eligibility in fantasy leagues at both spots? What's his fantasy outlook if classified as a wide receiver? As a cornerback?
Guru: The Hunter dilemma has a lot of heads spinning right now. The Jaguars say they plan to use him primarily on offense, but he is almost certain to see at least some sub-package snaps on defense. This is where the onus is on managers to know how their league's host site and/or scoring is set up. Many IDP leagues award points for virtually everything a player does. If a receiver makes a tackle, he gets points. If a corner catches a pass, etc., if he is the WR30 but gets 8-10 bonus points per week for defensive stats, Hunter becomes a top 12 receiver. If he is CB30 and gets bonus points of a starting receiver, it likely makes him CB1.
I doubt his defensive production will be all that significant on its own and anticipate that he'll be a part-time player who, once established, will likely be avoided by offenses. That said, recent history gives us plenty of examples of nickel safeties getting value boosts from lining up as linebackers in nickel base schemes. This is sort of like that, but on steroids. Simply put, it could create a huge loophole. Use it until it's closed because if you don't, your competition will.
Godfather: As the Guru said, the Jaguars have stated that, at least to start, Hunter will primarily play wide receiver. But a number of IDP providers have already declared that he will have positional eligibility as a cornerback (or defensive back) as well. That makes Hunter arguably the biggest "loophole" player ever.
Hunter all but certainly isn't going to play both ways at anywhere near the level he did at Colorado—with all due respect to his talent, I don't think it can be done in the NFL. There's too much preparation involved with just one position, and playing well over 100 snaps every week is going to get him dead.
Let's say that Hunter plays 75-80 percent of his snaps at wide receiver, which isn't an unreasonable estimation. Being able to slot a fantasy WR3 who also gets a boost from defensive stats in a cornerback slot in IDP leagues that require them is a league-breaker. I'll have more on this subject (quite a bit more) in the coming days, but know where Hunter's eligible (and if your league awards points on both sides of the ball) ahead of any upcoming drafts.
Living on the Edge
Okay, enough talk about quasi-offense. Enough to make you quasi-queasy.
As expected, Abdul Carter was drafted third overall by the New York Giants—one of four edge rushers drafted on Day 1. Which defensive end (not named Abdul Carter) landed in the best spot for IDP production in the short term? Who got the proverbial shaft?
Guru: I'll roll with a little Bengals home cooking on this one. Sam Hubbard retired, and Trey Hendrickson's situation remains a big question mark. I have a feeling they will find a way to get it done, but it is far from certain. Joseph Ossai played and produced well over the second half of last season. He's a good player, but Shemar Stewart has a chance to be special.
Stewart's numbers at Texas A&M were not good. That concerns me a bit, but there is a lot of speculation that it had much to do with the scheme he was in. What we know is that Stewart's selection at 1.17 shocked no one, as nearly everyone had him as a first-rounder. He has the physical tools and is deceptively quick, with a huge wingspan of 34 1/8". For reference, Maxx Crosby's wingspan is 32 7/8".
Stewart is all but certain to have a significant role with a shot at the starting job right out of the gate. I'll leave you with this: watching him on the field reminds me a little of a guy named Jason Taylor II.
My shaft award goes to James Pearce Jr. He has the talent to be a highly productive pro, but the Atlanta Falcons are cursed when it comes to a pass rush. Despite throwing tons of capital at their edge positions in recent years, they have exceeded 31 sacks once in the last six seasons and are perennially at or near the bottom of the league in that category.
Godfather: The Guru isn't wrong about Atlanta being a wasteland for edge rushers, but I think Jalon Walker (who the Falcons also drafted in Round 1) won't get shafted as much as Pearce. Walker is a hybrid edge rusher/linebacker ala Micah Parsons of the Dallas Cowboys, and his tackle numbers should be significantly better than Pearce's as a result.
Walker actually wasn't the first Georgia edge rusher who was drafted—the San Francisco 49ers drafted Mykel Williams at No. 11 overall. The 6-5, 260-pounder has everything an NFL team could want from an edge rusher, whether it's size, bend, or athleticism. He's also going to be playing opposite Nick Bosa, which isn't going to hurt his Year 1 prospects any.
Nic Scourton was drafted in Round 2 by the Carolina Panthers, and Scourton showed with 10 sacks at Purdue in 2023 that he can be productive off the edge. I actually listed Scourton as a "Winner" on the defensive line, given that he could see significant snaps off the jump with the Panthers. But unlike many of the other edge rushers drafted in the first two rounds, Scourton doesn't have an elite EDGE opposite him to draw offensive attention away.
Campbell and Company
Alabama's Jihaad Campbell was the consensus No. 1 off-ball linebacker and the only one selected in Round 1. What do you make of his landing with the Philadelphia Eagles at No. 31? Is he the top rookie linebacker of 2025, and if Campbell isn't, who is?
Guru: I had high hopes for Campbell and was disappointed when the Eagles called his name. There is a chance he could beat out either Dean or Baun for a starting spot, but those guys played well last year. I fear that Campbell will end up in IDP no-mans-land for at least a year. I can see them using him as a third linebacker, playing both off-ball and edge. Just enough to kill his tackle numbers while keeping him from making up for it with splash plays.
Carson Schwesinger is the low-hanging fruit here. He would be the next target based purely on talent and potential. However, the Browns have an uncanny ability to destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet when it comes to their linebacker position. I simply don't trust that they will put him in a role that will take full advantage of his ability. With that consideration, I'll go back to the Bengals one more time.
After some good years with the team, Germaine Pratt's play dropped off significantly last season. There is heavy speculation that Demetrius Knight Jr. was drafted to immediately assume that role. Following a six-year college career that included the last two as a starter, Knight is more mature and experienced than most rookies. He totaled 178 tackles over his last 25 games with solid contributions in the splash play columns. Cincinnati's defense featured two full-time linebackers last year, with Pratt seeing over 90% of the snaps in 15 games. If Knight does indeed come out of training camp as a starter, I see him as at least a solid third starter for us this year.
Godfather: Ermagerd. I'm not the only IDP pundit who didn't like Campbell landing with the Eagles.
It's got nothing to do with the player. And if Dean's knee injury sidelines him well into the regular season, it could be a different story. But Campbell has played just one year as an off-ball linebacker. The Eagles love edge rushers like I love medium-rare filet mignon. And the Philly coaching staff has already repeatedly talked up Campbell's skills as a pass-rusher. If Campbell plays a "hybrid" (there's that word again) role for the Eagles, he could have a major NFL impact. Win Defensive Rookie of the Year. But it's going to hurt his tackle numbers, and assuming he's classified as a linebacker, that's going to be a hit to his fantasy value.
How dare you bag on my beloved Browns! That's my job! Yes, the Clowns are a crapcake of a franchise (I'd have used a word that rhymes with "hitflow," but the last time I swore in a column Joe sent three robot ninja monkeys to my house and I landed in the emergency room), but Schwesinger was the best true off-ball linebacker prospect in the class—a 242-pounder who has excellent range and instincts.
The Browns didn't use the first pick of Round 2 on Schwesinger so could sit, especially with a linebacker corps that features an injured Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Jerome Baker's corpse. Schwesinger is going to be a three-down player as a rookie. Call the defensive plays. And be the first rookie linebacker in a while to crack the top-10 in fantasy points.
That's right. I said it.
The Safety Dance
There was just one safety drafted in Round 1, when Georgia's Malaki Starks fell into the lap of the Baltimore Ravens. Most draftniks had either Starks or Nick Emmanwori of South Carolina (drafted in Round 2 by Seattle) as the No. 1 safety prospect. Who you got in IDP leagues?
Guru: This is a tough one to call at this early stage. Both players are loaded with upside, but they also come with a dose of uncertainty. Will Starks see most of his time in the centerfield role or in the box? He and Kyle Hamilton have a similar skill set, making them interchangeable pieces. That said, we know the Ravens like to have Hamilton in the thick of the action. For that reason, I'll ride with Emmanwori for now.
Julian Love and Coby Bryant racked up strong numbers for much of last season. Both players slipped down the stretch. Not surprisingly, the skid coincided with the team's acquisition of linebacker Ernest Jones IV and the rise of then-rookie linebacker Tyrice Knight. While that is somewhat of a concern, Seattle safeties have a history of quality production even with good linebackers in front of them. The college numbers tip the scale for me with Emmanwori having a significant edge in the tackle and big-play columns.
Godfather: I wouldn't be shocked if Starks winds up the No. 1 rookie safety—as Norton said, given the versatility that both he and Hamilton possess, it's more likely they are interchangeable than that one is Baltimore's deep safety and one is the box guy. This is what NFL teams want at safety now—players capable of filling both roles well. But I had Emmanwori ranked higher before the draft because he profiles more as a player who will be around the line of scrimmage a lot. Nothing that happened in Green Bay has changed my mind.
In the interest of affording our readers some added value (or in my case, any value at all ever), I'll throw in an additional name. Keep an eye on Kevin Winston Jr. as a potential IDP sleeper. Winston was taken on Day 2 by the Titans, and the team's current starters at the position are a pair of "meh" veterans in Xavier Woods and Amani "TJ" Hooker.
Sleeper Alert
There will be no shortage of things written and said about this year's top defensive prospects, where they landed, and what that means in IDP leagues. But which Day 3 pick are you most willing to beat the drum for as a potential fantasy sleeper in 2025?
Guru: Drafting against Gary in several leagues every year, we often snipe one another on players we like. Much of that comes down to our approach being so similar. When we do these collaborative pieces, The Godfather is respectful of the old guy and lets me go first. Knowing we are both from Ohio and are OSU fans, I'll apologize ahead of time if I steal his thunder on Cody Simon. In 15 games with the Buckeyes last year, Simon racked up 112 tackles, 7 sacks, 7 passes defended, and a pair of turnovers. He's a stout run defender with enough cover skills to handle a three-down role and strong intangibles.
Opportunity is king when it comes to young players. Arizona has no proven starters at the linebacker positions. Akeem Davis-Gaither is a good player with a strong chance to land one of the spots. The rest of the competition consists of Owen Pappoe, who has done little in two seasons, and Mack Wilson Sr., who was unable to take advantage of his opportunity last year. Simon could get his shot early.
Godfather: I'll confess to some concerns about Simon's range. But it's worth pointing out that Simon wore the "Block O" Number 0 for the 2024 National Champions. That is not a jersey number that the Buckeyes give out lightly.
I'll go with another Day 3 linebacker—given the relative lack of high-end talent in this year's class, any sleeper (there's that word again) at the position IDP managers can get their hands on is valuable. I was a little surprised to see Chris Paul Jr. fall all the way to Round 5, where the Los Angeles Rams took him.
The 6-1, 221-pound Paul has the range and coverage chops to play in subpackages, and the Rams aren't exactly loaded at linebacker with the likes of Nate Landman, Omar Speights, and Troy Reeder on the roster. This isn't to say that Paul's a lock to start as a rookie, but that who's who of "Who?" isn't that tall a mountain to climb.
John Norton (The Guru) and Gary Davenport (The Godfather of IDP) have over 45 combined years of IDP experience. Follow John on Twitter (still not calling it X, so there) at @JohnPNorton and Gary at @IDPGodfather.
