Fantasy Football ADP Risers and Fallers (August)

With the 2025 NFL preseason mercifully behind us, all that’s left ahead are games that count and plenty of fantasy points. Many fantasy football managers still have yet to draft their redraft leagues, so analyzing current ADP is a helpful way to take a quick look at which players are rising and falling not only in drafts, but in terms of importance for our rosters.

In this piece, we will look at some of the biggest risers and fallers from the month of August. Each player will have a number corresponding to the draft position spots they have risen or fallen based on where they were being drafted at the beginning of August across a variety of fantasy sites.

Fantasy Football Risers and Fallers

Risers

Jacory Croskey-Merritt, WR, Washington Commanders (-93.2 spots in August)

The man they call “Bill” has had one of the most meteoric jumps up draft boards in recent fantasy football history. When Brian Robinson Jr. was traded to the San Francisco 49ers, that opened the door for Croskey-Merritt and Austin Ekeler to get the majority of the work in the Washington backfield.

There is also Chris Rodriguez to consider, but he seems to be a distant third among this group, and doesn’t offer the upside of Croskey-Merritt. The rookie out of Arizona is now creeping into the top 100 in some fantasy leagues despite being around pick 200 when the month started. You might have to look back to 2023 to see what he can do, but JCM had more than 1,200 yards and 18 touchdowns in 12 games for New Mexico that season.

Ollie Gordon II, RB, Miami Dolphins (-51.4 spots)

Sometimes, the last man standing is a great place to be in fantasy football. Both De’Von Achane and Jaylen Wright are dealing with injuries in the Miami backfield. Wright has already been ruled out for Week 1, and Achane hasn’t practiced in what seems like an eternity.

The Dolphins will have to provide an official injury report on Achane next week, and if he looks Questionable or Doubtful for that game, Ollie Gordon II might be in line for a big role early. That prospect (and Achane’s injury history) has managers reaching for Gordon around pick  164 right now.

Tyler Warren, TE, Indianapolis Colts (-23.9 spots)

I can not get enough of Tyler Warren on my fantasy teams this year, especially now that Daniel Jones has been named the starting quarterback in Indianapolis. He was the lesser of two evils between him and Anthony Richardson, but probably the better option for the pass-catchers on the Colts.

In case you forgot, Tyler Warren – a college tight end – caught 104 passes for 1,233 yards last season with a 75.9% catch rate. He looks like he has the potential to lead the team in receptions this season and be a top-12 tight end.

Emeka Egbuka, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (-18.9 spots)

With the news that Chris Godwin will not play until at least October, along with Jalen McMillan’s unfortunate neck injury, Emeke Egbuka’s stock has shot up in the past few weeks. He will start alongside Mike Evans to begin the year, and it’s likely he plays so well the coaches have to keep him on the field when their wide receiver room is healthy.

Egbuka has a first-round pedigree and went for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns for Ohio State last season. It’s also often overlooked, but Egbuka is still just 22 years old, so he could still be developing. A scary thought.

TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots (-16.2 spots)

Anytime a rookie takes an opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, his ADP is going to move drastically. But TreVeyon Henderson is more than just a dynamic return man. He looks to be the lightning to Rhamondre Stevenson’s thunder in the Patriots’ offense this year.

Henderson will get all the passing down work and might actually see somewhere between 30% and 50% of the rushing share. If he does that, there is a chance we are talking about Henderson as a top-12 running back heading into 2026.

Fallers

Quentin Johnston (+48 spots) and Tre Harris (+46.1 spots), WRs, LA Chargers

When Keenen Allen signed, it became almost certain that Allen would take a starting spot on the field. Accounting for Allen and Ladd McConkey, that leaves potentially one open spot for Quentin Johnston and rookie Tre Harris.

Johnston is in concussion protocol, so his availability is up in the air. Harris left practice a few days ago with an injury, leaving his status uncertain as of the time of writing. But even if they are both healthy, there may not be enough offensive share to go around for Harris or Johnston if Omarion Hampton, Allen, and McConkey are all getting fed.

Tyjae Spears, RB, Tennessee Titans (+32.2 spots)

Unfortunately, preseason injuries always account for a lot of players who end up falling in ADP before the season starts. This is certainly the case with Tyjae Spears, who suffered an ankle injury in the preseason and has been placed on IR to start the season.

He will miss at least the first four games of the season, causing his ADP to drop by more than 30 spots in less than one month. Conversely, Tony Pollard has seen his ADP rise by more than 10 spots as he looks to be in a smash spot the first month of the season.

Joe Mixon, RB, Houston Texans (+29.8 spots)

The mysterious non-football injury for Joe Mixon still hasn’t been revealed, but what we do know is that Mixon will miss at least the first month of the season with a foot injury after being placed on the NFI-IR to start the season.

In his place, the Houston Texans will deploy some combination of Dameon Pierce, Nick Chubb, and rookie pass-catcher Woody Marks. Considering the Texans have a Week 6 bye, there is a strong possibility that we will see Mixon for the first time in Week 7.

Brandon Aiyuk, WR, San Francisco 49ers (+26.6 spots)

In Week 7 of 2024, Brandon Aiyuk tore his ACL and MCL against the Kansas City Chiefs and has been trying to get back ever since. He has been told he will not play the first four weeks of the season, which means he probably doesn’t play until Week 6. The 49ers have a quick turnaround in Week 5 after Aiyuk is eligible, so it probably makes more sense to deploy him in Week 6 on October 12.

In the meantime, Ricky Pearsall, George Kittle, and Jauan Jennings seem to be the pass-catchers that you want to roster. There is no guarantee Aiyuk is fully healed when he comes back, and fantasy managers are passing on him in a very public way. He has fallen two full rounds in ADP.