Ranking the 10 NFL players who have the most to prove in 2025 season

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George Pickens says he wants to “prove himself” before earning new deal Is all the pressure on Caleb Williams after Bears’ big offseason?

Ben Arthur

NFL Reporter

All NFL players face expectations. But those who enter a new season following playoff embarrassment, having disappointed as a high draft pick or coming off a big-money contract extension experience it on a heightened level.

This piece focuses on those who meet the expectation threshold. In descending order, here are our picks for the 10 players that have the most to prove in the upcoming season:

Purdy’s five-year, $265 million extension comes with pressure and the expectation that he can lead the Niners over the hump to (eventually) win a Super Bowl. And it follows a season in which he couldn’t elevate San Francisco through injuries to star players (Christian McCaffrey, Trent Williams, Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel Sr.), raising some questions about the 49ers’ long-term commitment to the former seventh-round pick.

After following his historic rookie campaign with a disappointing 2024 season, Stroud must show that he’s what he was as a first-year pro. Last season, he was more mistake-prone (16 giveaways in 2024; nine in 2023) and seemed to be affected by the Texans’ poor pass protection. His passing numbers last season dropped across the board, including completion rate, passing yards, touchdowns, interceptions, passing success rate, yards per attempt and passer rating.

Herbert is as talented as any quarterback in football, but his play in the Chargers’ wild-card loss to the Texans in January — four interceptions, more than he had during the regular season (3) — was his latest debacle on the big stage. In five seasons with Herbert, the Chargers are 0-2 in the playoffs. The first loss came against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2022 AFC wild card, when the Chargers were on the losing end of what was then the third-biggest comeback in NFL postseason history.

Finding playoff success is paramount for Herbert to be considered among the NFL’s elite at his position.

Fairly or not, the talented Pickens has become known for his slew of on-field incidents. And now out of Pittsburgh, he won’t have Mike Tomlin — who’s built a reputation for taking in problematic receivers — as his coach anymore.

In Dallas, where he’ll pair with CeeDee Lamb, Pickens will seek success in what will be a contract year. The Cowboys didn’t extend Pickens after acquiring him from the Steelers in May, adding pressure on the former second-rounder to be at his best on a new team.

George Pickens says he wants to “prove himself” before earning new deal

Williams’ massive contract (four years for $104 million, including $51 million fully guaranteed) banks on his upside, as he’s never been a full-time starter in his four-year career. As part of a deep defensive-line rotation for the Philadelphia Eagles last season, the former third-round pick played just 48% of snaps. He did, however, have five sacks, 10 quarterback hits, seven tackles for loss, a forced fumble and a pass breakup in that limited action. Williams must prove that he can sustain that level of production as a full-time player.

In Seattle, Darnold is tasked with showing the NFL world that he can be a high-level quarterback outside of Kevin O’Connell’s scheme and the Vikings’ talented offense. The former No. 3 overall pick has familiarity with new Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak — the two were in San Francisco together in 2023 — but Seattle has offensive-line concerns and returns just one of its top three receivers from a year ago (Jaxon Smith-Njigba).

Williams didn’t necessarily disappoint as a rookie, but it’s fair to say that he didn’t have the kind of season many observers expected from a No. 1 pick. That was especially the case compared to the historic season that the Washington Commanders’ Jayden Daniels — selected one pick after Williams — put together.

So expectations are sky-high for Williams in the upcoming season, particularly because of the moves the Bears have made. Their new coach is Ben Johnson, lauded as an offensive guru in his three seasons calling plays for the Detroit Lions. Chicago also revamped its supporting cast by drafting tight end Colston Loveland in the first round and wide receiver Luther Burden III in the second round. And after Williams was sacked a league-high 68 times in 2024, the Bears added offensive linemen Joe Thuney, Jonah Jackson and Drew Dalman.

Is all the pressure on Caleb Williams after Bears’ big offseason?

Playing on a two-year, $40 million contract — modest money for a non-rookie contract starting quarterback — Fields is tasked with proving to the Jets (and to the rest of the league) that he can be a long-term QB1 for an NFL franchise.

The No. 11 pick of the 2021 draft by the Bears, the former Ohio State standout started 38 games for Chicago, which traded him to Pittsburgh for a conditional sixth-round pick last year. Fields started just six games for the Steelers before he was demoted to backup when Russell Wilson returned from injury.

In limited action with Pittsburgh, Fields played clean football, registering 10 total touchdowns (five passing, five rushing) against two turnovers. He’ll need to continue that trend, plus show consistency as a passer, to be the quarterback the Jets can build around beyond 2025.

After missing his entire rookie season due to a right knee injury, McCarthy is an unproven player. But with Darnold’s departure, last year’s No. 10 overall pick is QB1 for a Vikings team that is built to go the distance in the playoffs — if he can be what Minnesota expects.

The Vikings bolstered their interior offensive line by signing veteran center Ryan Kelly and right guard Will Fries, traded for Jordan Mason to strengthen the running back room behind Aaron Jones Sr. and signed defensive starters Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave and Isaiah Rodgers in free agency. So McCarthy is the X-factor for Minnesota, which is seeking to build off a 14-win season.

Despite being the No. 4 overall pick just two years ago, Richardson’s future in Indianapolis is uncertain. He’s been incredibly inconsistent as a passer — evident by his lowly 50.6% career completion rate — and faced a two-game benching last season. He has also missed 17 games due to injury in two years. The Colts have brought in a challenger for the QB1 role in former first-round pick Daniel Jones, who signed a one-year, $14 million contract with Indianapolis ($13.15 million fully guaranteed).

Ben Arthur is an NFL reporter for FOX Sports. He previously worked for The Tennessean/USA TODAY Network, where he was the Titans beat writer for a year and a half. He covered the Seattle Seahawks for SeattlePI.com for three seasons (2018-20) prior to moving to Tennessee. You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benyarthur.

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