One as-yet-undiscussed benefit of making deep runs in the fantasy playoffs — aside from the glory, prizes and financial incentives — is the interest in standout individual performances in recent weeks.
We can pretty much guarantee that the last-placed three-win head coach in the league wasn’t too focused on using Marvin Mims Jr. for December.
For the benefit of anyone who didn’t fully commit over Weeks 16-18 (most of whom aren’t consuming content right now either), let’s review the players who significantly boosted their fantasy appeal for 2025 heading into the year’s binging…
Bryce Young, QB, Carolina Panthers
Back in September, there was no chance — zilch, zilch, zilch — that Young was willing to give us a moment like this:
Young’s transformation from the season opener to the season finale was outrageous. He began his year by making two interceptions against the Saints, a game in which he completed just 13 of 30 passes; It ended in an overtime win over Atlanta in which he tallied five combined touchdowns and no turnovers. Young has been the overall QB5 in his last five games, passing nine and rushing for four.
Again: outrageous.
Carolina finished the season with two wins in the last three weeks, so it’s not like Young was racking up stats in non-competitive situations. He may not have reached the same level as CJ Stroud yet, but he’s certainly not far from it. Young will merit fantasy consideration in almost all formats in 2025. The Panthers’ receiving room is a lock for improvement as well.
Michael Penix Jr., QB, Atlanta Falcons
It hasn’t always been a clinic with Penix in recent weeks — he’s completed less than 60% of his throws and thrown as many snaps as TD passes — but there’s no doubt about the quality of his arm. His best throws were absolutely sloppy:
Penix has been sacked just three times in his three starts while passing for three scores and scrambling to get another. He also relentlessly fed Drake London, which is a welcome development. London finished the season with 22 catches for 352 yards and two touchdowns over the final three weeks, drawing 39 targets. The Penix-London group appears to have a decently bright future.
It’s worth noting that Penix is an older prospect who played his first collegiate snap in 2018 — he and Trevor Lawrence will be 25 years old when the 2025 season begins. This is a player who has progressed a lot more in his development than your typical rookie QB. It’s reasonable to expect big things early in his NFL career.
Tyjay Spears, RB, Tennessee Titans
The Spurs faced a bunch of user-friendly defenses during the fantasy playoffs, and performed at exactly the level you’d expect from a talented, all-purpose linebacker.
In Weeks 15-17, the Spears averaged 87.0 scrimmage yards per game, caught a dozen passes and made four takedown calls. He was sidelined with a concussion at the end of the regular season, but has made an emphatic statement in his past three games. Tony Pollard remains in the squad for next season, so there is no clear path to a featured role for Spurs, barring injury. But if he can simply stay healthy while playing 45-50% of his weekly snaps, he will be a flex with serious upside.
Jalen McMillan, WR, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Even if you haven’t been paying particular attention to the NFC South title chase in the final weeks of the regular season, you’ve probably still heard McMillan’s name a time or two. He finished his season with five straight games in which he visited the end zone seven times. McMillan eventually emerged as one of fantasy’s defining players, appearing on 23.2% of Yahoo’s G-League rosters. The newbie was a few Unfortunate moments along the waybut he was reliably drawing six goals per game in the most crucial weeks of Tampa Bay’s season.
With Chris Godwin recovering from injury and heading to free agency, it’s clear there’s a real chance McMillan can continue to serve as an elite receiver for the Bucs, attracting consistent volume. It’s very likely he enters the draft season as a top-35 receiver.
Marvin Mims Jr., WR, Denver Broncos
Mims accounted for a career-high eight receptions on as many targets in Week 17, delivering 103 receiving yards with a pair of highlight reel scores. Late in the season, the second-year receiver has emerged as more than just a big-play specialist — though he can certainly still fill that role spectacularly:
Sean Payton deployed him in a variety of interesting and effective ways down the stretch, using him out of the backfield and in the slot and splitting wide. Mims topped 50 receiving yards in four of his last five regular-season games, including a pair of triple-digit yardage performances. He was quiet in the wild card round, but it’s worth noting that he actually played a career-high 69% of Denver’s offensive snaps.
Mims was essentially an afterthought early in the season, but he will enter 2025 as a rising playmaker attached to a quality offense, fully cleared for use as a flex player/WR4.
