With the 2025 NFL season gradually approaching, it’s a good time to settle the debate on the game’s best at every position.
While the selections for certain positions are more clear-cut than others, you can make a case for multiple guys at quarterback, offensive tackle, and cornerback. Let’s settle the arguments ahead of training camp by choosing the best player at every NFL position heading into 2025.
Who are the best players at every NFL position?
OFFENSE – Quarterback: Patrick Mahomes
Mahomes may not ALWAYS put up the eye-popping stats we saw in his MVP-winning seasons in 2018 and 2022. But that doesn’t matter. You think Tom Brady was upset about winning “only” three MVP awards?
The Chiefs have played in seven straight AFC Championship Games since Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018. They’ve won five of those games and three Super Bowls – including back-to-back in 2022 and 2023.
The ugly blowout loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 59 doesn’t take away Mahomes’ status as the best in the game. Remember how he bounced back after his first Super Bowl loss to Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers? We ain’t worried.
Josh Allen, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson may post better stats for your fantasy football teams, but Mahomes is this era’s golden standard of NFL QBs. The three rings back it all up.
Wide Receiver: Ja’Marr Chase
This was virtually a coin flip between Chase and Justin Jefferson. But we have to go with the guy who just won the triple crown of receiving.
Chase caught 127 passes for 1,708 yards and 17 touchdowns last season. For those keeping score, Jefferson’s career-high in TD receptions is 10. Just to let you know how special Chase’s season was.
The other reason Chase gets the nod here? Joe Burrow only really has him and Tee Higgins to throw to. Jefferson has to share the ball with Jordan Addison, TJ Hockenson, and Aaron Jones, so logic suggests Chase will post the better numbers in 2025.
You can’t go wrong with either. It’s 1A and 1 B. But we’re going with Chase for 2025 by a HAIR.
Tight End: Brock Bowers
Feels weird not putting Travis Kelce on here for once, but Taylor Swift’s man is clearly past his prime years. That means the title of the game’s top tight end, for now at least, belongs to another star in the AFC West.
Despite being stuck on a lousy Las Vegas Raiders team, Brock Bowers racked up 112 receptions for 1,194 yards — both single-season rookie records – and five touchdowns. Those first two marks were also tops among all tight ends. The only other TEs to cross 1K receiving were Trey McBridge and George Kittle, too.
The arrivals of Pro Bowl QB Geno Smith and can’t-miss rookie running back Ashton Jeanty mean opposing defenses can’t focus solely on shutting down Bowers again. As great as his rookie year was, Bowers is in a good spot to post even better numbers in the 2025 NFL season.
Running Back: Saquon Barkley
Make no mistake, we’re seeing a beautiful renaissance of NFL running backs. They’re getting more love and the money they deserve again. It’s not just Barkley, but guys like Derrick Henry, Josh Jacobs, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Bijan Robinson who have put a giant emphasis on the value of a game-changing RB.
That said, this spot shouldn’t be up for debate. Barkley just had, arguably, the best running back season in NFL history: 2,005 rushing yards, 13 touchdowns, Offensive Player of the Year honors, and, oh, 499 rushing yards and five touchdowns in the playoffs en route to a Super Bowl 59 championship.
Remember, Barkley could have smashed Eric Dickerson’s 40-year-old single-season rushing record if the Eagles didn’t sit him for Week 18. And by the way, Barkley and Terrell Davis are the only running backs to rush for 2K yards and win a Super Bowl in the same year.
Fullback: Kyle Juszczyk
The fullback position hardly exists anymore, so Juszczyk gets this spot by default. He’s been named to the Pro Bowl in nine straight years now and earned his lone First-Team All-Pro nod in 2023.
The San Francisco 49ers love using him in the short passing game, so Juszczyk is good for 200 or so receiving yards a season. His superb run blocking makes Juszczyk especially valuable in Kyle Shanahan’s offense, too.
Offensive Tackle: Tristan Wirfs Jr.
With Trent Williams missing seven games last season, Wirfs Jr. cemented himself as the best offensive tackle of 2024… and the best heading into 2025.
It feels like Wirfs Jr. hasn’t gotten as much love or attention since Tom Brady’s retirement, but he’s been equally elite for Baker Mayfield.
Wirfs didn’t allow a single sack in 638 pass-blocking snaps last year, per Pro Football Focus. His 93.7 run-blocking grade was tops among NFL offensive tackles, too. Need more? How about Wirfs finishing with ESPN’s top pass-blocking win rate among OTs last year at 96 percent.
Center: Creed Humphrey
With Detroit Lions star Frank Ragnow unexpectedly retiring this offseason, this isn’t a debate. These guys were 1A and 1B, but Humphrey is now in sole possession of Number One.
The three-time Pro Bowler was named a First-Team All-Pro in 2024, surprisingly, the first time in his career. He didn’t allow a single sack last year, per PFF, and was their No. 1-ranked pass-blocking and No. 2-ranked run-blocking center.
There’s a small list of centers who are in the Pro Bowl-caliber tier, but Humphrey is in a class of his own. Don’t be surprised if he occupies this spot for the next five years-plus. Still can’t believe the Chiefs got away with taking him late in round two four years ago.
Guard: Chris Lindstrom
We could make a case that Lindstrom is the most underrated player in all of football right now. Offensive linemen are usually overlooked in general, but he’s been on another level for an Atlanta Falcons team mired in mediocrity for a while now.
Named to three straight Pro Bowls, Lindstrom was PFF’s top-graded overall guard in 2024 at 93.5. His ridiculous 94.6 run-blocking grade was also tops at the position. He also allowed just a single on 627 pass-blocking snaps.
With Zack Martin retired, the path is right there for Lindstrom to cement himself as the best guard of the 2020s decade.
DEFENSE – Defensive End: Myles Garrett
Garrett requested a trade early in the NFL offseason, only to turn back and agree to a $160 million extension that makes him the highest-paid defensive player in football. And trust us, he’s worth every penny.
Garrett’s numbers are off-the-charts: 102.5 sacks in 117 career games. He’s recorded 14 or more in four consecutive seasons, and it’s shocking to think he only has one Defensive Player of the Year award on his resume.
Now, if the Browns could just find a way to build a contender around Garrett and stop wasting his prime for crying out loud.
Defensive Tackle: Chris Jones
Jones finished with just five sacks last season, his lowest since his rookie year. But sacks don’t tell the whole story for a guy who finished as PFF’s top-graded pass-rushing interior defensive lineman at 91.0. By ESPN’s metrics, Jones’ 16 percent pass-rush win rate was also tops among defensive tackles.
Anyway, three Super Bowl rings, 80.5 sacks, 37 pass breakups, 13 forced fumbles, and three straight First-team All-Pro selections prove one thing: Jones is in his own class of interior defensive linemen.
Off-Ball Linebacker: Fred Warner
Worth noting that Garrett, Jones and Warner ALL occupied the spots on this list last year. Congrats to the big three on holding down their titles once again, not that there was much debate about either.
Warner just signed a three-year contract extension worth $63 million, rightfully making him the game’s highest-paid off-ball linebacker. That’s what happens when you’ve been named a First-team All-Pro and Pro Bowler in four of the last five seasons!
Warner is the complete package who does it all in San Francisco’s defense: 10 interceptions, as many sacks, 53 pass breakups, and 15 forced fumbles over his first seven seasons. He’s an elite run-defender and consistently ranks among PFF’s highest-graded linebackers in coverage, posting an 88.4 grade just last year.
He’s on a Hall of Fame trajectory and has put himself in a different stratosphere for off-ball linebackers. Warner has helped the 49ers to four NFC title game appearances and two conference championships. All that’s missing now is that elusive Super Bowl ring.
Outside Linebacker: T.J. Watt
You know you’re a special player when 11.5 sacks, four pass breakups, and a league-leading six forced fumbles are considered a bit of a “down” year for you. But such is life for the Pittsburgh Steelers superstar when you’ve led the league in sacks three times.
Watt is still at the top of his game and is just as valuable as newcomer Aaron Rodgers in Pittsburgh’s Super Bowl quest. Watt has posted 13 or more sacks in each of his last six healthy seasons, including 22.5 in 2021 that matched Michael Strahan’s single-season NFL record.
Cornerback: Sauce Gardner
We know, we know. Denver Broncos superstar Patrick Surtain II just won Defensive Player of the Year honors. But 2024 aside, Gardner has been the NFL’s best pure lockdown corner since entering the league as a rookie in 2022.
PFF has graded Gardner in coverage at a ridiculous 91.9 over his first three seasons.. He has 40 pass breakups in 48 games and has yielded just a 74.6 passer rating when targeted, per Pro Football Reference.
Again, you can make a case for Patrick Surtain here. He was the best a year ago, but Gardner’s first two seasons set him apart from all the other corners. Expect him to reassert himself as the NFL’s best corner in 2025.
Strong Safety: Kyle Hamilton
The Notre Dame product has proven to be what everyone expected: A coach’s dream.
It’s still hard to understand how he fell to the Baltimore Ravens of all teams at No. 14 overall back in the weak 2022 draft. But the Ravens aren’t complaining, with Hamilton developing as the game’s premier all-around safety since his arrival.
He was PFF’s third-highest graded safety in 2024 at 90.1. Third highest-graded in pass-rushing, third in run defense, and fifth in coverage. LOL. Does anyone else wanna try telling us there’s a better strong safety in the game?
Didn’t think so!
Free Safety: Xavier McKinney
The Green Bay Packers signed the ex-New York Giants safety to a lucrative four-year contract worth $68 million. It felt like an overpay at the time, but it turns out the savvy Packers’ front office and coaches saw something in McKinney that the other teams didn’t.
McKinney earned First-Team All-Pro and Pro Bowl nods in his first season as a Packer, racking up eight interceptions and 11 pass breakups. His 90.0 coverage grade was the third-best among all safeties at PFF. Not bad for a guy familiarizing himself with a new defensive scheme.
Between McKinney and Saquon Barkley, Giants fans can only hope that one day, their team will stop letting elite players walk for nothing in NFL free agency.
SPECIAL TEAMS – Kicker: Harrison Butker
Justin Tucker’s disastrous season and subsequent release from the Ravens after multiple misconduct allegations marked the end of his decade-long run as the best kicker in football.
Butker is the second-most accurate kicker in NFL history at 88.618, narrowly behind Tucker’s 89.103 percent mark. He’s never missed a clutch kick with the game on the line in his career, either. He’s Mr. Automatic when the lights shine brightest.
Punter: Jack Fox
Fox has averaged 48.8 yards per punt, the highest mark in NFL history for a player who’s performed at least 250 punts. He led the NFL with an average of 51.0 yards per punt in 2024 en route to a First-Team All-Pro selection.
Fox has only kicked 12 touchbacks over the last three seasons, too.
Returner: KaVontae Turpin
The two-time Pro Bowler has been a special weapon for the Dallas Cowboys since making the jump form the USFL to the NFL in 2022. He led the NFL in kickoff return yards by a giant margin in 2024 with 904 yards, and had 187 punt return yards to go with it.
Turpin is the league’s best kick return man and does punt return yards as a side gig. You really can’t ask for more from the two-time Pro Bowler as a special-teams return man.