Every year in fantasy football drafts, players with big names and/or coming off a sensational season bait you into a bad selection.
Picking players is all about them returning their value properly in the scale of the draft board. Avoiding pitfalls is crucial to building a winner.
Here are five complete busts and five overvalued players for you to avoid in your fantasy drafts, with their average draft position (ADP) based on point-per-reception (PPR) league data from early August.
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Who are the biggest fantasy football busts for 2025?
NEW - Garrett Wilson, WR, New York Jets (ADP 38.0, WR15)
Wilson’s talent is un-debatable, but this doesn’t always mean production in fantasy football.
The only thing truly going for Wilson is the fact the Jets have no one else to throw the ball to. Wilson could see up to 150 targets this season which is great.
However, having no one else also provides some hardship for Wilson. Before Davante Adams arrived in New York, Wilson was shadowed in 50% of his games by some of the best cornerbacks in the NFL.
In these games, his fantasy points per game dropped by 8 points versus when Adams was there.
With a WR15 price tag, he's just too high given an entirely new coaching staff and scheme.
Xavier Worthy, WR, Kansas City Chiefs (ADP 57.4, WR25)
Last season, Worthy helped fantasy NFL players by standing out in Kansas City's depleted WR corps. The Chiefs had Rashee Rice go down in Week 4 after starting the season on fire. Hollywood Brown started 2024 with a shoulder injury, preventing him from playing a snap until Week 16.
On top of those injuries, Travis Kelce's play did not demand the usual attention from QB Patrick Mahomes. With all of this going on, Worthy had the opportunity to truly breakout -- and did little with it.
In the first 12 weeks of the 2024 season, Worthy was the WR51 in fantasy points per game. He had eight weeks with no Rice in that window and still only received 13.2% of the team's target share.
"At his cost, how can you confidently take him over all these other players?" 😬@MattHarmon_BYB and @LordReebs discuss Xavier Worthy's fantasy outlook.
— Yahoo Fantasy Sports (@YahooFantasy) July 13, 2025
(via Yahoo Fantasy Forecast) pic.twitter.com/cfu7IczUZP
Then, from Week 13 to 17, Worthy was given a 25.6% designed target rate. He performed solid in terms of fantasy, moving up to the WR21.
However, these improved numbers do not tell the full story. Without those designed targets, Worthy could not get the ball because he couldn't get open: Worthy ranked 75th in separation and 86th in win rate.
The length of Rice's likely suspension will determine how long Worthy will provide WR2 weekly value when it comes to fantasy football.
In non-PPR fantasy NFL leagues that depend on big plays and touchdowns, Worthy may have more value, but his target inconsistency should caution PPR investors from being too aggressive.
James Cook, RB, Buffalo Bills (ADP 31.4, RB13)
Cook had an unbelievable 2024 season, finishing as the overall RB8 after scoring 18 total touchdowns. This was not just a career high for Cook: It was also tied for the second-highest total among NFL RBs.
Unfortunately, Cook should be a fade in 2025 fantasy drafts simply because of the word "regression."
In Cook's prior two seasons combined, he scored a total of nine touchdowns. It's not a stretch to say that his 2025 touchdown scoring is an anomaly. Cook scored 40% of his fantasy points off of those touchdowns.
Cook's draft price is another reason to avoid the Buffalo Bills starting RB. He's generally falling off boards during the same round as TE Trey McBride, WR Ladd McConkey, and QB Jayden Daniels, players with much stronger floors and workloads.
Finally, the contract dispute cannot be ignored. With Cook's hold-in, Ray Davis has been the lead back in camp. The coaching staff and team all rave about Davis.
Cook skipped his second straight day of practice on Aug. 4, and a continued absence could jeopardize his availability and on-field readiness.
⚠️ AVOID FANTASY BUSTS. FIND SLEEPERS: QB | RB | WR | TE | DST
Cooper Kupp, WR, Seattle Seahawks (ADP 87.6, WR38)
In about a decade or so, people might think "Wait, Cooper Kupp played for the Seahawks?"
The once great receiver has had a tough go with injuries since his 2021 triple crown season in which he finished as the NFL leader in receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns.
But managers need to forget that version of Kupp as he has not played in a full season since 2021.
Kupp just turned 32 years old. Historically, just 5.57% of receivers who are 32 years old or older have been able to average 15 fantasy points per game, according to a study by Apex Fantasy Leagues.
Kupp is going ahead of exciting WR options in fantasy drafts such as Ricky Pearsall, Josh Downs, and Emeka Egbuka. You'd be much better off going with one of these choices as they offer the upside that Kupp does not in 2025.
Travis Kelce, TE, Kansas City Chiefs (ADP 62.2, TE5)
Kelce's fall from his dominance in fantasy football still feels strange to veteran fantasy managers. Kelce was the overall TE1 for seven consecutive years from 2016-2022.
After being one of the most reliable picks in fantasy football, Kelce's usage in 2024 brought that narrative to a screaming halt.
Last season, Kelce had a career low in yards per catch and yards per route run. However, he did receive the fourth-highest target share among tight ends.
Much like his teammate Xavier Worthy, this target share can be explained by the injuries that plagued the Chiefs WR room.
In the three full games that Rashee Rice played, Kelce saw a combined 12 targets. With these targets across the three games, Kelce caught 8 passes for 69 yards.
This stat line use to be a single game for Kelce, but he is not the same caliber of TE for fantasy football as he once was.
With Rice healthy (whenever he returns from an expected suspension), don't expect Kelce to pay back his Round 5 draft capital. There are much better returns on investment at TE in later rounds.
PPR RANKINGS: Top 300 Cheat Sheet | QB | RB | WR | TE | DST | PK
Joe Mixon, RB, Houston Texans (ADP 52.6, RB20)
Last season, Mixon benefited from a lackluster Texans RB room. This led him to have the fifth-highest opportunity share and sixth most red zone touches.
With the additions of Nick Chubb and rookie Woody Marks, there is higher competition among this room in 2025.
Even with those additions, Mixon would've been the lead back after an RB13 finish in 2025.
However, the foot injury he's sustained this preseason is cause for concern. It is still unknown as of early August, but the injury is being speculatively reported as serious. Mixon is expected to miss an 'extended period of time,' and his Week 1 status is in question.
Even with the foot injury, Mixon is going off the board as the RB22. This is ahead of guys like TreVeyon Henderson and Kaleb Johnson. These two exciting rookies provide much more potential for a big 2025.
Overvalued: Which big names are going too early in fantasy drafts?
These players are not necessarily bad options for fantasy football in 2025, but their ADP is being boosted based on the big name alone. If you can grab one of them past their current price, they become more valuable.
Tyreek Hill, WR, Miami Dolphins (ADP 28.6, WR12)
In 2024, Hill saw his lowest fantasy finish at the WR position since 2019. But he still offers those massive weeks because of his top-end speed. Hill had a notable wrist injury in 2024 that he claims to have bothered him all season.
However, if you can get Hill a bit past his current ADP, he's still Tyreek Hill -- just with more ideally WR2 or WR3 fantasy expectations.
Joe Burrow, QB, Cincinnati Bengals (ADP 35.8, QB4)
The sole reason that Burrow is not in the Busts category is because of the potential stack with star wideout Ja'Marr Chase, likely the most frequent No. 1 overall selection this summer.
All things equal, Burrow on average is going way too soon in 1QB leagues with close to zero rushing upside.
If you have Chase, also taking Burrow at his current ADP is a smart strategy. If not, avoid Burrow and draft a QB later who can run the football, or doesn't require the strong commitment that Burrow does.
EXPLOIT LEAGUE APPS: Yahoo, ESPN rankings can reveal sleepers, busts
Mark Andrews, TE, Baltimore Ravens (ADP 75.6, TE7)
Andrews' fantasy value improves thanks to the injury to Isaiah Likely. While the starter is utterly touchdown-dependent in fantasy, the Ravens added no new red zone threats.
Still, the more perplexing aspect is Andrews going ahead of guys like David Njoku, whose workload has been less reliant on end-zone trips. Over-investing in the Ravens' tight end could backfire, especially when emerging names with similar ceilings will not cost as much.
Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Arizona Cardinals (ADP 41.2, WR19)
It's odd being almost completely out on a Year 2 player, especially such a big prospect. It mainly has to do with where Harrison is going in 2025 fantasy football drafts.
Harrison's rookie year wasn't just a disaster; it looked like the Cardinals were uninterested in using him.
Arizona drew up zero designed targets for MHJ the entire 2024 season. The talent and potential is still off the charts, but it's not enough to take Harrison at his current price tag.