Tue Jan 6th 2026

2025 Year-End Awards

Breakout of the Year

• Candidates: Drake Maye, Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and Tucker Kraft
• JSN’s breakout started last year, but I’ve included him here because he completely broke out this season, scoring the second most fantasy points by a receiver, just .5 half-PPR points behind Puka Nacua. His consistency is what made him so valuable this season.  He only had one game with single-digit points. He had 10 games with 15 or more points and 5 with more than 20. Tucker Kraft’s season is not top of mind since he was injured and lost for the season early in the Packers’ week nine game. Still, he was the third-highest scoring tight end in average points per game, just .2 points per game behind George Kittle and .6 points ahead of Brock Bowers, who both battled injuries this season, too. Kraft was establishing himself as the top target and biggest playmaker in the Packers’ passing game, and moved into the top tier of dynasty rankings before he was injured. Hopefully, his injury midway through the season means he will be healed and ready to go for the start of next season. I’m giving the breakout of the year award to Drake Maye, who had a stellar sophomore season, finishing second in  quarterback scoring behind only Josh Allen. Maye had one of the most efficient quarterback seasons of all time, completing 71.7% of his passes even while taking multiple deep shots per game. Best of all for his dynasty managers, he saved his best game for last, scoring five touchdown passes in the fantasy Super Bowl before he was pulled from the game in the third quarter. Imagine how awesome Maye would be if he had better weapons in the passing game! His future is incredibly bright, and his dynasty managers have a decade of fantasy goodness to look forward to. He was the star of my championship team in my longest-standing Freek League, as he was one of many other championship rosters.

Surprise of the Year

• Candidates: Trevor Lawrence,  George Pickens, and Wan'Dale Robinson
• Trevor Lawrence took about half the season to get going, but he finished on an incredible pace, making him the fifth-highest scoring quarterback of the season. He scored almost 200 more fantasy points than he did last season! Liam Coen has brought out the best in Lawrence, as he did with Baker Mayfield last season. Wan’Dale Robinson somehow finished as the 13th-highest-scoring wide receiver. He was no doubt helped by Malik Nabers' injury, which thrust him into the leading role, though he was led by a rookie quarterback. He was a surprise depth piece for dynasty managers who never expected him to be a reliable fantasy starter. I’m pleased to have traded for him in two dynasty leagues, and I sure hope he re-signs with the Giants rather than another team, since he’s established rapport with Jaxson Dart. My surprise of the year award, though, goes to George Pickens, who, while he disappointed dynasty managers the last few weeks of the season, carried teams into the fantasy playoffs with his career-best 15.2 fantasy points per game, making him the 4th highest scoring wide receiver this season. He even outproduced his teammate, CeeDee Lamb, in points per game, scoring 2.9 more points per game than Lamb. Dynasty managers were excited when Pickens signed with Dallas, but they never expected him to do as well as he did this season. He scored nearly 100 more points with the Cowboys than his career average in Pittsburgh. Now, all of his dynasty managers are praying that he signs a long-term contract with Dallas, and his past attitude issues do not prevent him from playing like this again for years to come.

Rookie of the Year

• Candidates: Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo, and Harold Fannin
• Jaxson Dart finished the season 15th in average points per game by a quarterback. His big plays and consistent running gave his dynasty managers a safe floor every week. He played without his top target, Malik Nabers, without fellow rookie standout Cam Skattebo, with a terrible coaching staff that was fired midseason, and against seven teams that made the NFL playoffs. Still, he performed well at the most difficult position in sports. His future is bright, and he will continue to get even better when the Giants have better coaches and he gets his top wide receiver and rusher back. I’m including Skattebo as a candidate because none of the rookie running backs or receivers had standout seasons, and Skattebo outproduced them all in points per game. Only Dart nd Tyler Shough had more points per game in this rookie class. I have three shares of Skattebo, so I was devastated when he was injured. I was, however, so happy to learn that the injury was not as severe as it looked and that he should be on pace to start next season. I can’t wait to have him back. I’m giving the rookie of the year award to Harold Fannin, a player I have to admit missing out on in all nine of my leagues. He was a superstar from the first game of the year and had one of the best rookie tight-end seasons of all time. He scored the fifth-most points by a tight end in his very first year in the NFL. What an accomplishment! He’ll serve as a reminder from now on not to discount small-school prospects when they have historic production in their small school and against top-tier schools when they played them. Managers who were wiser than I and drafted Fannin are stoked about their future with him on their team.

Veteran of the Year

• Candidates: Brock Purdy, Jonathan Taylor, and Courtland Sutton
• Brock Purdy was injured for so much of the season, so I considered not adding him as a candidate, but his incredible game-winning performances at the end of the season allowed me to include him here.  I wonder what a full season of Purdy could have done for dynasty teams? He finished just behind Josh Allen in average points per game by quarterbacks, with 24.1 points per game. He is the perfect quarterback for the Shanahan system and has the offense humming even with mediocre receivers. His sneaky ability to run the ball was on display this season, too, making him even safer to start in dynasty lineups. Courtland Sutton quietly finished the season as the ninth-highest scoring receiver. His best two seasons of his career have been the last two with Bo Nix as his quarterback and Sean Peyton as his coach. They re-signed him this year because they see him as their WR-1 and all the other many other receivers they’ve drafted as role players. He got almost eight targets per game this season, and he’s their most reliable red-zone target, too. While he didn’t finish as well as he started, my veteran of the year award goes to Jonathan Taylor. His fiery hot start still enabled him to finish the season as the second-highest scoring running back behind Christian McCaffrey and ahead of Bijan Robinson. He scored 100 more points than last season and fell 18 points shy of his career-best season. He propelled dynasty managers into the playoffs and did just enough to win their leagues. I know because I won a championship in my only league with Taylor on my roster.  

Bounce-Back of the Year

• Candidates: Chris Olave, Travis Etienne, and Kyle Pitts
• Kyle Pitts bounced back in a huge way, finishing the season as the second-highest scoring tight end in fantasy. He scored 50 more fantasy points than last season and had a career-best year. He stayed healthy all season, too, which certainly benefited him since many injured tight ends scored far more points per game than Pitts. Still, it was a great bounce-back season. Etienne bounced back from a terrible season last year to a ninth-highest-scoring running back season this year. He faught off rookie Bhayshul Tuten, securing the leading role and scoring 220 more points than he did last season. Dynasty managers are hopeful that he will re-sign with the Jaguars and keep producing in the vastly improved Jaguars offense. As well as Pitts and Etienne played, my bounce-back player of the year goes to Chris Olave, who helped dynasty managers win championships with his stellar play in the final two weeks of the fantasy season but racked up incredible stats all season and finished as the sixth-highest scoring receiver overall. Olave’s biggest flaws were his injuries and his inability to score touchdowns. He defied them both this season, scoring a career-best nine touchdowns and not missing a single game with an injury. Managers who thought they had a fringe WR-3 or flex position player in Olave for the season ended up with a viable starter who likely became their WR-1. He and rookie Tyler Shough have chemistry, and the Saints’ new coach, Kellan Moore, has unlocked Olave’s talent. Their futures together are bright, much to the excitement of their dynasty managers.

Waiver Wire Player of the Year

• Candidates: Jacoby Brissett, Kimani Vidal, and Tez Johnson
• Tez Johnson was one of the more fun short-lived waiver additions in dynasty leagues. His comical thinking “MVP” chants were for him, and his big-play ability when the Buccaneers were hot made him a fun player to root for. Unfortunately, much of his production came when Mike Evans and Chris Godwin were not playing, so his relevance disappeared after their return and Jalen McMillan's return. Kimani Vidal, on the other hand, was very helpful for dynasty managers for a sustained stretch when Najee Harris, Omarian Hampton, and Hasaan Haskins were injured. Vidal earned a role with the Chargers and the right to be the backup of the future behind Hampton. Managers who were patient enough to hold Vidal after he was a dud in his rookie season last year were greatly rewarded, as were dynasty managers savvy enough to pick him up off waivers this season. Still, the waiver wire player of the year award goes to Jacoby Brissett, who scored 20 points per week after taking over for Kyler Murray this season. While the Cardinals continued to lose, Brissett made the offense productive and revived the dynasty value of Michael Wilson. Brissett and Wilson were the surprise combo of the year, and every week started in the back half of the season. Briseett helped many superflex teams reach the playoffs and even started many games in one-quarterback leagues. He’s worth holding onto beyond this season, too. He could serve as a bridge quarterback with the Cardinals if they trade Murray, or he could sign with another team needing a quarterback if the Cardinals exercise the potential out in his contract. What a surprise find Brissett was this season!

Most Valuable Player

• Candidates: Christian McCaffrey, Puka Nacua, and Trey McBride
• This award should rightly go to Trey McBride, especially given his position. He scored 84 more points than the second-highest scoring tight end this season, and he never missed a game. His consistency brought dynasty managers a huge advantage every week of the season at the tight end position. His record-breaking season with the most receptions by a tight end in NFL history makes him a great candidate for the MVP award. If he were a receiver, he would have finished as the fifth-highest scoring player just behind George Pickens and ahead of Ja’Marr Chase. That’s ridiculous. Still, he scored 46 fewer points than my man, Puka Nacua. Nacua stayed healthy this season, missing just one full game, and finished the season as the top-scoring wide receiver. His season-high scoring game in the semi-final weeks of the playoff propelled most of his dynasty teams to the Super Bowl, where he played well but was ruined by the Rams’ penalties each time he made an incredible play for the team on Monday night. His toughness, incredible hands, and run-after-the-catch ability make him a monster in the Rams’ passing game and a perfect weapon in Sean McVay’s offense. What an incredible player and season. Even so, this year’s MVP award deserves to go to the fantasy legend and one of the best of all time, Christian McCaffrey. When McCaffrey stays healthy, he’s arguably the most fantasy-producing player of all time, joining the likes of LaDainian Tomlinson and Jerry Rice. His 29- and 26-point games in the semifinals and championship games propelled dynasty managers to many championships. It’s wild that a player many dynasty managers have thought it wise to sell when McCaffrey was injured has been proven wrong again. He’s been one of the most traded players in my leagues over the last few years, as contenders either buy him for a playoff push or believers buy low when he is injured. He’s worth buying every time, and all dynasty managers who traded him have to be regretting it. What a monster fantasy player he is when healthy. It was a joy to watch him bounce back this season, yet again.

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