Year 2 Breakout Candidates: One Player From Each NFC Team Primed To Take A Leap

One need only be reminded of the fact that quarterback Sam Darnold just won the Super Bowl to understand that when it comes to the NFL, patience truly can be a virtue. 

Darnold was in his eighth NFL season and the Seattle Seahawks are the fifth team of his professional career, but the point is the same with second-year breakout candidates. It is so easy to get caught up in the excitement of the latest draft class and overlook other young players set to pop. 

With that, here are my picks for which 2025 draft picks I believe will take the biggest leaps in their sophomore season.

NFC EAST

Coming off a torn ACL, Revel didn’t see the field until Week 11 of his rookie season. Now that he’s fully healthy, I’m expecting big things from the long-armed 6-foot-2 corner. Revel is big, physical and aggressive. With he and 2026 rookie Caleb Downs leading the way, I believe the Cowboys will show massive improvement in their secondary this season, positioning the team for a postseason run. 

Given the downhill running game John Harbaugh prioritized in Baltimore, there probably wasn’t a player on the Giants’ roster more excited about the arrival of the longtime Ravens head coach. Skattebo flashed last year prior to sustaining a horrific lower leg injury that abruptly ended his rookie campaign after just eight games. He scored seven times, showing not only bruising running ability but also soft hands out of the backfield. He’ll be Harbaugh’s bell cow with a chance to at least double his production in 2026 — if he can stay healthy. 

Admittedly, listing Campbell here is pretty low-hanging fruit. He’s a former first-round pick who started 10 games as a rookie and is slated to play even more in Year 2 with his primary competition of a year ago — Nakobe Dean — now on the Raiders. But I don’t think Campbell is just going to start — I think he’s going to star. He is a remarkable athlete at 6-foot-3, 240 pounds, offering Vic Fangio all sorts of flexibility with how to use him. He has the size and burst to excel as a pass-rusher with the speed to chase down backs in the running game. His pass coverage was outstanding at Alabama and even better in his rookie season, when he ranked eighth among all NFL linebackers (with at least 200 snaps) in completion percentage allowed, per Pro Football Reference. Campbell is a blue-chip chess piece that has the talent to become one of the faces of a fierce Eagles defense. 

Scoring eight touchdowns and being named the NFL’s Rookie of the Week four times last season suggests that Croskey-Merritt has already arrived. His role should expand this year, however, with his vision and burst a nice fit for the wide zone concepts new offensive coordinator David Blough is implementing. I’m expecting a committee approach at running back, similar to what Blough used in Detroit. But I see Croskey-Merritt as the front-runner to lead the position. He runs with deceptive speed and power and is not afraid of traffic. 

NFC NORTH

I believe last year’s production (47 catches for 652 yards and two touchdowns) is only the tip of the iceberg for Burden. He caught at least three passes in each of the Bears' final 10 games (regular season and playoffs) after snaring that many in just two of his first seven games. With veteran D.J. Moore now playing in Buffalo and Rome Odunze fighting through recurring foot pain, Burden is a good bet to become Caleb Williams’ most trusted wideout in 2026. 

One could argue that after hauling in six touchdown receptions as a rookie, TeSlaa already enjoyed his breakout campaign. With four of those scores coming in the final six games of the season, however, TeSlaa may only be warming up. He’ll need to score a lot more of them before opponents will start shifting their coverages toward him rather than Detroit’s more established playmakers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. Fantasy football enthusiasts should prepare for some possible TD regression, as few receivers were more efficient in the red zone than TeSlaa, who scored six times despite catching just 16 total passes. 

Golden is the third receiver from the NFC Central listed as a breakout candidate, and because he’s the fastest (and was the first of the trio selected in the NFL Draft), he will likely enter his second NFL season with the most hype. His talent and anticipated workload warrant it. Golden’s opportunities will jump with Romeo Doubs now playing in New England, and he boasts the run-after-catch ability and breakaway speed to quickly become Jordan Love’s favorite big-play target. 

Along with first-round guard Donovan Jackson, Price was one of the few impactful rookies for the Vikings in 2025 — which speaks to why the team hired a new general manager (Nolan Teasley) during the offseason. The former undrafted free agent from Texas Tech generated a whopping 1,777 all-purpose yards as the Vikings’ starting punt and kickoff returner, finishing third among all NFL players. Minnesota has several quality candidates pushing Price for the returner job — including 2025 third-round wideout Tai Felton and 2026 sixth-round running back Demond Claiborne. But the vision, elusiveness and burst Price demonstrated as a returner could also make him a dangerous target out of the slot, though he’d need to take real strides in this area after seeing just a few snaps at receiver as a rookie. 

NFC SOUTH

It's worth noting the Falcons had only a five-man draft class in 2025, and four of those players — edge rusher Jalon Walker (ACL), edge rusher James Pearce Jr. (legal), defensive back Billy Bowman (Achilles) and offensive tackle Jack Nelson (waived) — are tracking to miss extended time this season. The lone exception is Xavier Watts, who led all NFL rookies with five interceptions last season, finishing fourth in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. So while he may, in fact, continue playing a starring role in 2026, his breakout was last year. 

Conversely, as an undrafted free agent who spent half of last season on Atlanta's practice squad, Bryant isn't a lock to even make its roster. But the trash-talking 6-foot-1, 185-pounder punches above his weight class as a tackler, offers legitimate man-to-man cover skills and is a cerebral special teams performer, giving him a solid chance to build upon last year's production (10 combined tackles, one pass breakup, one TD allowed) in seven games.

The NFL is the ultimate copycat league, so I expect we’ll see many teams utilize the three safety look that the Seahawks used so successfully in last year’s Super Bowl run. Ransom, the 122nd overall pick in 2025, moonlighted in this role as a rookie behind veterans Nick Scott and Trevon Moehrig. With Scott now 31 and never a consistent turnover producer, don’t be surprised if Ransom forces his way onto the field sooner rather than later. 

After recording 10 pass breakups over just five starts as a rookie, Riley appears ready to step into the huge vacuum left behind by departed standout Alontae Taylor. Riley is a quality athlete, but his instincts are what stood out most between his rookie season and six seasons in college. This experience has taught Riley above-average route anticipation and poise when the ball is in the air. He led all cornerbacks from the 2025 class with 15 career interceptions and I think he might top the Saints in this category this season. 

I am as excited as anyone about Rueben Bain Jr., but my enthusiasm for the Bucs’ building off of last year’s 37-sack performance doesn’t end with the club’s first-round pick in 2026. Walker missed all of his rookie season after suffering a torn ACL during training camp. He’s back healthy, and all reports suggest that his trademark twitch remains. Playing at a stumpy 6-foot-1, 263 pounds, he’ll be a bit of a pass-rush specialist this season, but I think he’ll prove to be an effective one with at least a handful of sacks. 

NFC WEST

Little went right for the Cardinals in 2025 and that included their prized first-round pick — Nolen — suffering through an injury-plagued rookie campaign that limited him to just six games. The burst and agility that warranted the No. 16 overall pick, however, was obvious. Now that he’s healthy following surgery to repair a torn meniscus, I expect Nolen to emerge as one of the NFC’s better young pass rushing defensive tackles.

Given that the Rams pulled off the biggest trade of the offseason by prying Myles Garrett away from Cleveland, suggesting another pass-rusher is about to break out for them should terrify opponents. Garrett’s mere presence will command extra attention, opening opportunities for his teammates. Stewart doesn’t need much assistance. His combination of quickness and compact strength make him a tough block. The former third-rounder likely won't start this year, but I think Stewart will prove a quality sub option who might just double last year’s production (22 tackles, three sacks). 

The 49ers were as snakebitten by injuries as any team in the NFL last year, with Martin (as well as first-round pick Mykel Williams) among the many to miss significant time. Martin was placed on injured reserve midseason following a concussion, finishing with just 11 tackles after being selected No. 75 overall. The tape suggests he’ll be a future standout. Martin is an agile and highly aggressive downhill defender with plus closing speed and power. The 49ers brought back Dre Greenlaw, but only on a one-year deal. Don’t be surprised if Martin is starting (and starring) by December. 

A remarkable rookie class led by first-round left guard Grey Zabel and Defensive Rookie of the Year finalist Nick Emmanwori played a huge role in Seattle winning the Super Bowl. Mills recorded a sack in the title game but otherwise recorded just three other tackles on the season after missing most of his rookie campaign to rehab a torn ACL suffered in college. While playing time will be a challenge given Seattle’s talent up front, coach Mike Macdonald constantly rotates his defensive linemen. A healthy Mills would’ve been drafted a couple of rounds earlier than where Seattle stole him — in the fifth, at No. 142 overall. He should prove as much this year, with 30 tackles and five sacks being realistic goals.