We're thrilled to announce the launch of Yahoo Fantasy guillotine-style leagues presented by Liquid Death for this season. In this killer fantasy football game, fans compete for survival every week.
We have many articles on the strategy and differences you need to be mindful of when playing in fantasy football guillotine-style leagues.
But what you really want to know is who you should be targeting to give yourself an advantage.
So, here are 14 players who are more valuable in the guillotine format for a variety of reasons.
[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy guillotine-style football league]
Quarterbacks
Brock Purdy, 49ers
Purdy might not be the most exciting name to click in typical redraft formats, but he’s an excellent option for guillotine-style leagues. The 25-year-old passer finished as the QB8 in fppg in 2023 and the QB12 last season. He also has the fourth-easiest fantasy strength of schedule in my matrix and doesn’t have a bye until Week 14.
C.J. Stroud, Texans
Stroud has a lot of things working in his favor early in the season, including an upgraded receiving corps, uncertainty in the backfield due to Joe Mixon’s health and a favorable opening stretch where the Texans face four defenses that ranked inside the top 13 for fantasy points allowed to QBs last year.
Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars
The addition of Travis Hunter and Dyami Brown to the Jags’ receiver room already makes Lawrence more appealing for fantasy in 2025. But he also gets to start the season with three straight games against opponents that were among the 10 easiest matchups for fantasy QBs a year ago.
Running Backs
Omarion Hampton, Chargers
First-round running backs tend to be used early and often in their rookie seasons and, based on the way the coaching staff is talking up Hampton, they want to get the ball in his hands. On top of that, his veteran backup, Najee Harris, is sidelined with an eye injury and, at the moment, the team doesn’t seem to know when he’ll be ready to get back on the field. Harris should eventually return, but Hampton will get all the touches he can handle until then.
James Conner, Cardinals
If you’re worried about Conner’s age (30) or his past durability concerns, the early part of the season when he’s fresh is the best time to use him. The Cardinals also get some of the friendliest matchups in September versus the Saints (5th-most fantasy points allowed to RBs in 2024), Panthers (1st), 49ers (6th), and Seahawks (14th).
Dylan Sampson, Browns
Rookie Quinshon Judkins remains unsigned as he continues to deal with his legal situation. Browns owner Jimmy Haslam recently said he’s “cautiously optimistic” Judkins will play for the team this season, which doesn’t exactly inspire a ton of confidence in his fantasy outlook. That means the team’s fourth-rounder Sampson, and veteran Jerome Ford, will likely split snaps until further notice. Both have value in this format, but Sampson offers a more appealing skill set.
Nick Chubb, Texans
Joe Mixon’s injury situation has been one of the stranger storylines to follow this offseason, with the team being almost cagey about giving updates or offering a clear timeline for his recovery. While rookie Woody Marks might be the more intriguing long-term option, it’s likely they allow the veteran Chubb to handle more touches and get goal-line work early in the season if Mixon remains sidelined.
Wide Receivers
Rome Odunze, Bears
There’s no doubt the Bears offense will be better this year with Ben Johnson running the show, a revamped line blocking for Caleb Williams and new rookie weapons at multiple skill positions. The word out of camp is that Odunze might be moving ahead of DJ Moore in the passing-game pecking order, which would be a big development for the sophomore wideout's fantasy value. He also gets the benefit of taking on the Vikings, Lions and Cowboys in the first three weeks — all of which finished among the top six in fantasy points allowed to wideouts in 2024.
Emeka Egbuka, Buccaneers
Few players have generated consistent positive buzz in OTAs and training camp like Egbuka. The Bucs’ first-rounder is clearly impressing everyone in and around the organization and with veteran Chris Godwin still healing after undergoing a second ankle surgery in the spring, it appears as though Egbuka will play a significant role right away and potentially provide fantasy WR3 stats or better.
If you’re looking for a later pick also poised to capitalize on Godwin’s injury status, consider the team’s No. 4 wideout, Jalen McMillan, who scored eight touchdowns a year ago.
Ricky Pearsall, 49ers
Brandon Aiyuk is working his way back from a torn ACL and may miss the start of the season, while Jauan Jennings is dealing with a calf injury and his recovery timeline is unknown. That puts Pearsall in position to take on a much bigger role in the 49ers’ passing attack at the start of the season. The former first-round pick had his rookie debut delayed six weeks due to a gunshot wound last year. But in the seven contests where he saw at least four targets, the 24-year-old posted 4.3 receptions, 56.4 yards and 0.4 touchdowns. Those averages would have made Pearsall the WR23 had he played a full 17-game season at that pace. San Francisco’s wideouts also have the third-easiest fantasy schedule for 2025 and don’t have to deal with a bye until Week 14.
DeMario Douglas, Patriots
Douglas represents a later-round pick at receiver who could give you reliable production as a flex or bye week fill-in. Josh McDaniels’ system has always been productive for slot receivers and Douglas has been busy in training camp. With so many new players among the Patriots’ pass-catchers, Douglas could be a safety net for Drake Maye — especially early in the season.
Tight Ends
T.J. Hockenson, Vikings
Hockenson is already one of the top-five fantasy tight ends in my rankings, so there isn’t that much room for him to rise up. However, with a potential suspension looming for Vikings wideout Jordan Addison, we could see Hockenson get off to a very hot start. Minnesota’s early-season slate helps the cause as well, with the first four matchups coming against defenses that were in the top half of the league in terms of fantasy points allowed to tight ends last year.
Mark Andrews, Ravens
Isaiah Likely suffered a foot fracture that is expected to keep him out of the lineup for around six weeks, which means he’ll likely be on the sidelines at the start of the season. Even with Likely around, Andrews was the TE7 in fppg in 2024. But his best performance of the season occurred in the one game Likely missed. In that contest, Andrews posted a 6-68-1 stat line and ended the week with the second-most fantasy points among tight ends.
Hunter Henry, Patriots
Similar to my thoughts on DeMario Douglas, Henry already has a year of experience with Drake Maye, which gives him a leg up early in the season on some of the Patriots’ newer additions. He’s also coming off a productive campaign where he finished seventh in receptions at his position and eighth in receiving yards. His outlook is also improved by his schedule in the first month, when he faces four defenses that were among the top-12 easiest fantasy matchups for tight ends in 2024.
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