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.

Coming off a torn ACL, Revel didnt see the field until Week 11 of his rookie season. Now that hes fully healthy, Im 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 wasnt 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. Hell be Harbaughs 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. Hes 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 dont think Campbell is just going to start — I think hes 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 NFLs 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. Im 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. 

I believe last years 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. Hell need to score a lot more of them before opponents will start shifting their coverages toward him rather than Detroits 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