March is one of my favorite times of year in the NFL world with all of the action that takes place. Via operations.nfl.com –
March 10-12: During the above two-day negotiating period, a prospective UFA who is not represented by an NFLPA Certified Contract Advisor (“Unrepresented Player”) is permitted to communicate directly with a new club’s front office officials (excluding the Head Coach and other members of the club’s coaching staff) regarding contract negotiations. The club is responsible for confirming the player’s status as an Unrepresented Player. No prospective Unrestricted Free Agent is permitted to execute a contract with a new club until 4:00 p.m., New York time, on March 12.
March 12: The 2025 League Year and Free Agency signing period begins at 4:00 p.m., New York time. Trading period for 2025. Trading begins at 4:00 p.m., New York time, after the expiration of all 2024 contracts. The first day of the 2025 League Year will end at 11:59:59 p.m., New York time, on March 12. Clubs will receive a Personnel Notice that will include all transactions submitted to the league office during the period between 4:00 p.m., New York time, and 11:59:59 p.m., New York time, on March 12.
These dates are when NFL action picks up, but we already have had a series of important transactions, including contract extensions, releases, and trades, that will have direct impacts on the Fantasy Football world. Below is a running list of recent moves along with details and impacts surrounding them:
NFL Transactions – Fantasy Football Impacts
Saquon Barkley, RB
Following a Super Bowl win, the Eagles extended Saquon Barkley by two years on a deal worth $41.2 million. Year one with the Eagles in 2024 meant Barkley leading the NFL in rushing yards with 2,005, which was 84 more yards than any other player and 549 yards more than any other player not named Derrick Henry. Barkley scored 15 total touchdowns, the second-most total Fantasy Points, and averaged the most points per game (PPG) at 22.2. In the NFL playoffs, Barkley rushed for 119, 205, 118, and 57 yards which truly uplifted the Eagles to their championship. You can expect Barkley to be a top-three running back for the next two seasons with a clear RB1 overall upside in this offense he thrived in.
Khalil Shakir, WR
The Buffalo Bills extended Khalil Shakir four years on a deal worth $53 million. Shakir’s team-leading 100 targets was 25 more than any other Bill, his team-leading 76 catches were 32 more than any other Bill, and his 821 receiving yards was 265 more than any other Bill in 2024. Shakir scored the 37th most total Fantasy Points in 2024 through 15 games and averaged 12.2 PPG on the year. Shakir is a monster after the catch, ranking second behind only Ja’Marr Chase in the category with 630. The connection with Josh Allen is very evident, and with question marks attached to the other pass-catchers in Buffalo Shakir is the most trustworthy Fantasy option that should deliver FLEX value in 2025.
Deebo Samuel, WR
The 49ers shipped off Deebo Samuel to the Commanders for a 2025 fifth-round draft pick. Samuel had a down year, regressing across the board in all categories from what he did in 2023 while playing the same amount of games. Back in 2023, Samuel was targeted 89 times, caught 60 of those targets for 892 yards, caught seven touchdowns, led wide receivers with 225 rushing yards paired with five rushing touchdowns, and averaged 16.3 Fantasy PPG (#12). Following a stellar rookie season, Jayden Daniels gets a new weapon which should elevate his ceiling due to being limited on options his rookie season. Terry McLaurin had a great season with Daniels, but likely takes a bit of a role hit due to his target ceiling potentially being lowered. Deebo if utilized as a gadget weapon, should bounce back for Fantasy Football in a good Commanders offense in 2025.
Christian Kirk, WR
The Jaguars sent Christian Kirk to Houston for a 2026 seventh-round draft pick. Kirk has played just eight and 12 games the last two seasons, but back in his last full season, he proved to be productive. That season Kirk was targeted 133 times, caught 84 of them for 1,108 receiving yards, scored eight touchdowns, and averaged 14.2 (#18) Fantasy PPG. Tank Dell, the expected WR2 for CJ Stroud in Houston, suffered multiple torn ligaments and ended up dislocating his knee back in Week 16. Stroud’s 532 passing attempts in 2024 were top-12 for the position, so with that sort of volume and a vacant role behind Nico Collins, Kirk could again be a solid FLEX option moving forward in Fantasy Football.
Geno Smith, QB
The Seahawks traded away veteran Geno Smith to the Raiders for a 2025 third-round draft pick. After spending all of 2015-2021 as a backup quarterback, Smith played 17 games back in 2022 and ended up throwing for 4,282 passing yards and 30 touchdowns. Smith the next two seasons threw for 3,621 / 4,320 passing yards and 20 / 21 passing touchdowns. Las Vegas had a mixture of Gardner Minshew, Aidan O’Connell, and Desmond Ridder in 2024 who are all lesser quarterbacks than Smith. I am not sure Smith is the best quarterback that the Raiders could have gone out and pushed to bring in, but the likes of Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers will get a bump for Fantasy Football. Smith should be an occasional quarterback streaming option for Fantasy Football.
Marquise Brown, WR
The Chiefs have extended Marquise “Hollywood” Brown for another year worth $6.85 million. Unfortunately, Brown played in just two regular season games in 2024 due to injury. Hollywood did appear in all three playoff games for the Chiefs, and while it was encouraging for him to earn five then six targets the final two games we did not see much. Hollywood was a first-round selection by the Chiefs back in 2019, playing three seasons in Baltimore then three seasons in Arizona. Brown ranged from 100-145 targets for four straight seasons from 2020-2023, with 1,008 yards back in 2021. In 2022/2021 Brown ranked 27th and 21st in Fantasy PPG. With the potential for off-field ioncidents for both Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy could come an even bigger emphasis on Brown from Patrick Mahomes. A healthy Hollywood has FLEX potential, as a player who consistently has earned targets through time.
Mike Gesicki, TE
The Bengals are re-signing Mike Gesicki to a three-year $25.5 million deal after his one-year “prove it” deal. Gesicki was targeted 83 times,. caught 65 of those targets for 665 receiving yards, and scored two touchdowns in 2024. Gesicki had some spike weeks with Joe Burrow, with Fantasy score examples of 16.1 (Week 2), 27.0 (Week 9), 18.6 (Week 17), and 14.8 (Week 18). There is upside from Burrow to Gesicki, but it is not super consistent and more to a streaming level. The future of Tee Higgins could be an indicator of what Gesicki’s ceiling is.
Aaron Jones, RB
Aaron Jones re-signed with the Vikings on a two-year $20 million deal. Jones had a solid first season with Minnesota, rushing for 1,138 yards, catching 51 passes for 408 yards, and scoring seven total touchdowns. 1,138 yards was a career-high, and the fourth time Jones eclipsed 1,000 yards. 51 catches was the third time Jones caught 50+ balls. 14.2 Fantasy PPG ranked 20th, but Jones was a serviceable RB2. There is a high chance we have a switch from Sam Darnold to JJ McCarthy in 2025, but the role for Jones should remain even at 30 years old.
DK Metcalf, WR
The Seahawks sent DK Metcalf to the Steelers for a 2025 second-round pick. Metcalf started 2024 on fire with three games over 100 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns through the first seven games prior to injury. Metcalf missed two games, hit the BYE, and had a mediocre rest of the season. DK has three seasons of over 1,000 receiving yards, with a high of 1,303 back in 2020. DK also has two seasons (2020/2021) with double-digit touchdowns. As a target earner, DK has ranged from 100-141 targets through each of his six NFL seasons. The Steelers attempted the fourth-fewest passing attempts (499) in 2024, which is not completely encouraging now that DK and George Pickens will compete with each other for targets but the Steelers have yet to completely sort out their quarterback situation for 2025. Both Metcalf and Pickens have big-play upside, but their ceilings will be attached to how Pittsburgh addresses who throws them the ball. Although DK has been inconsistent at times, I would still gladly roster him and toss him into my FLEX spot
Josh Allen, QB
The Bills extended Josh Allen another six years in a deal worth $330 million, with $250 guaranteed. Allen breaks a record for the largest guaranteed total given to an NFL player. In 2024, Allen threw the ball 483 times for 3,731 yards and 28 touchdowns. Allen also rushed for 531 yards and another 12 touchdowns, earning the NFL MVP Award. Allen has finished as a top-three quarterback in Fantasy PPG for five straight seasons and as the #1 quarterback in Fantasy PPG three times.
Davante Adams, WR
The Jets released Davante Adams, and the Rams signed him on a two-year $46 million deal. Adams earned 141 targets, caught 85 of them for 1,063 yards, and scored eight touchdowns through 14 games on two different teams in 2024. Adams’ 17.2 Fantasy PPG ranked ninth for the position in 2024, which shows the man still has juice at age 32. Adams has finished six seasons with over 1,000 receiving yards, scored double-digit touchdowns six times, and has finished as a top-12 Fantasy Football wide receiver in PPG eight times. The Rams have been looking to trade Cooper Kupp this off-season, which likely makes Adams the new Puka Nacua partner in crime. Even if Adams is the WR2 to Puka Nacua, Matthew Stafford averaged 32.3 passing attempts per game which is plenty of volume for that duo.
Chris Godwin, WR
Tampa Bay has extended Chris Godwin three years on a deal worth $66 million. Prior to injury in 2024, in Weeks 1-7 Godwin ranked: T#3 in targets, #1 in receptions, #2 in receiving yards, T#3 in receiving touchdowns, and #2 in total Fantasy Points. Godwin fractured his ankle in 2024, which cut his season short from the pace of a record year for him. Pending health, the Baker Mayfield to Chris Godwin connection can still be an extremely relevant connection.
Sam Darnold, QB
The Seahawks signed Sam Darnold to a three-year, $110.5 million contract. Darnold pulled a Geno Smith career turnaround in 2024 and is now the Geno Smith 2025 replacement. Darnold played all 17 games for the Vikings in 2024, throwing 545 times for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns. Darnold’s 18.8 Fantasy PPG ranked ninth for the position, making him a weekly starter vs. streamer for Fantasy Football. Darnold supported both Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison to successful 2024 seasons, which is encouraging to Jaxon Smith-Njigba after his big 2024 breakout. Following the DK Metcalf departure, Seattle will look to replace him with another field-stretching wide receiver. Darnold in Seattle will have streaming value for Fantasy Football in 2025.
Justin Fields, QB
After moving on from Aaron Rodgers, the Jets have signed Justin Fields to a two-year deal worth $30 million. Fields started the first six games for the Steelers last season in which the team went 4-2. Fields flashed well during this span with examples of 312 passing yards in Week 4, two passing touchdowns in Week 5, three weeks of 55+ rushing yards, five total rushing touchdowns, and three top-12 Fantasy finishes. Fields’ 32 points in Week 4 was the best for the position that week. Fields’ two previous seasons in Chicago for 2023 and 2022 resulted in 18.4 and 20.5 Fantasy PPG, which ranked ninth and fifth. Fields rushed for 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns back in 2022. Justin Fields, when on the field, is a major Fantasy factor. The Jets will focus on their trio of Fields, Garrett Wilson, and Breece Hall as the primary playmakers in this offense for 2025. Do not forget as well that Justin Fields and Garrett Wilson are former college teammates back at Ohio State.
Javonte Williams, RB
The Cowboys signed Javonte Williams to a one-year deal worth $3.5 million. Javonte was a former second-round selection from the Broncos in 2021, and he flashed his rookie season with 903 rushing yards, 43 catches for 316 yards, seven total touchdowns, and 12.1 Fantasy PPG (#22). Unfortunately, Williams suffered a major knee injury the following year, had a recovery season the next year getting back to full strength, and then fell into a running back carousel in 2024. 47 catches in 2023 was a positive sign that after his 43-catch rookie year, he had that sort of upside in his bag. Rico Dowdle inconsistently rushed 239 times for 1,079 in 2024 for the Cowboys, but I feel Williams is the superior talent with workhorse potential, so pending Dallas does not draft a running back, Williams’ fantasy value could shoot up in 2025.
Najee Harris, RB
The Chargers signed Najee Harris to a one-year “prove it deal”. The Chargers were a top-12 team in rushing attempts with 463 in 2024, already released Gus Edwards and likely will let JK Dobbins walk in Free Agency as well. Najee Harris has not lived up to his rookie season for Fantasy Football, where he rushed for 1,200 yards, caught 74 balls for 467 yards, and scored 10 touchdowns. What Najee has done though, that always feels overlooked, is rushed for 1,000 yards in all four of his NFL seasons. Najee has also ranged from 255-307 rushing attempts in each of his seasons, as a guy used to getting the touches. JK Dobbins found success in LA last season coming off the injuries he has, and I expect Harris to follow suit and deliver solid RB2 outings in 2025.
