Fantasy Football 2025 Week 1 Preseason Reactions

Nathan Jahnke breaks down the top fantasy football takeaways from Week 1 preseason games across the NFL.

Fantasy Football 2025 Week 1 Preseason Reactions

RJ Harvey started for the Denver Broncos with the starters, handling early-down work while J.K. Dobbins took the third-down role. Travis Hunter played every snap in 11 personnel with the first-team offense, a sign that Jacksonville plans to use him on offense as well as defense. The Jets employed a three-back rotation with Breece Hall, Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis sharing early downs, and Hall led the field early. Washington’s Jacory Croskey-Merritt started ahead of veterans and saw most early-down work. TreVeyon Henderson played with the Patriots' starters, showing he has moved ahead of Gibson on the depth chart. Marvin Mims Jr. kept a normal starter workload for Denver, pairing with Sutton in 11 personnel. Arizona split snaps between Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michael Wilson, with Zay Jones broadening his role and pushing for more first-team work. Dont’e Thornton Jr. started for the Raiders while Bech and Tucker rotated in, signaling a tight race for WR snaps. Chig Okonkwo saw all of the Titans’ first-two drives, indicating a rise in his role at tight end. Seattle used a three-man tight end rotation, with Barner at the top and Saubert and Arroyo sharing duties on passing downs, underscoring a potential new path for the position.

Week 1 of the preseason offers a clear picture of where teams want to go this season, but it also cautions that early signals can shift. Several players looked ready to claim larger roles, especially at running back and tight end, while others benefited from new coaching plans that emphasize multiple sets and deeper depth charts. The intercepting theme is depth: clubs are testing combinations, not locking lineups. For fantasy players, the emphasis on early-down workload, 11 personnel versus 12 personnel, and the ability to play multiple roles will matter more than a single standout stat. The caution is that preseason trickle-down can mislead if teams rapidly pivot in September.

Highlights

Preseason usage maps a direction, not a destination. The real season will lay the concrete.