NFL free agency is a year-round process, as teams scout opposing players in an effort to defeat them during the year and perhaps sign them in the offseason.
Now that we're at the end of the 2024-25 NFL season, the free agency picture is coming into focus, and teams are beginning to identify potential targets to improve their roster weaknesses.
Here are the top wide receivers slated to hit free agency in 2025. Click here for PFF's full list of the top 100 free agents.
1. WR Tee Higgins, Cincinnati Bengals
Higgins rarely missed playing time over his first three seasons but has, unfortunately, been bitten by the injury bug in back-to-back contract years. That said, when Higgins suited up in 2024, he consistently produced at a high level. The fourth-ranked player in PFF's Free Agency Rankings last season, Higgins figures to be one of the most sought-after players on the market again in 2025.
Top free agent comparison: Kenny Golladay, 2021
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Tee Higgins | 83.9 | 1.86 | 12.0 | 4.0 | ?** |
| Kenny Golladay | 82.2 | 2.12 | 15.81 | 4.1 | 9.8%*** |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
**2025 salary cap projection of $275 million
***2021 salary cap dropped due to pandemic
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
2. WR Chris Godwin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Godwin has consistently displayed reliable hands, dropping fewer than 6% of catchable passes in seven of his eight NFL seasons. He maintained that standard in 2024, earning an 85.7 PFF receiving grade through nearly seven weeks without a single drop on 52 catchable targets. However, Godwin sustained a season-ending left ankle dislocation. He is no stranger to entering free agency with an injury, and hopefully, the recovery will be even quicker this time around.
Top free agent comparison: Allen Robinson, 2022
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Chris Godwin | 83.9 | 1.91 | 8.9 | 5.4 | ? |
| Allen Robinson | 83.8 | 1.71 | 10.9 | 2.97 | 7.4% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
3. WR Amari Cooper, Buffalo Bills
Even at 30 years old, Cooper will be an attractive option for teams looking to improve at wide receiver, having earned a PFF receiving grade above 70.0 in every full season he has been in the league. He struggled with drops in 2024, though, failing to bring in 15.4% of the catchable passes thrown his way in the regular season.
Top free agent comparison: DeAndre Hopkins, 2023
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Amari Cooper | 77.1 | 1.88 | 13.5 | 3.3 | ? |
| DeAndre Hopkins | 80.3 | 1.88 | 11.7 | 3.0 | 5.8% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
4. WR Stefon Diggs, Houston Texans
Playing in an offense where he was no longer the top target didn't hinder Diggs' effectiveness. The star wideout was on pace to extend his streak of seasons with a PFF receiving grade above 75.0 and a drop rate below 10% on catchable passes before a season-ending ACL tear. That type of injury for an older player who wins with lateral agility will make for an interesting free-agent dance. Diggs’ situation has shades of Odell Beckham Jr.’s free agency period in 2023, when he tore his ACL in the Super Bowl in 2021 and did not play in 2022 before signing a one-year, $15 million fully guaranteed contract.
Top free agent comparison: Pierre Garcon, 2017
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Stefon Diggs | 82.4 | 1.87 | 10.0 | 3.9 | ? |
| Pierre Garcon | 83.3 | 1.75 | 10.6 | 3.6 | 5.7% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
5. WR DeAndre Hopkins, Kansas City Chiefs
Hopkins was traded at the deadline from the struggling Tennessee Titans to the perennial Super Bowl contender Kansas City Chiefs. A national spotlight through the playoffs never hurts, and Hopkins continued to play through a knee injury, which suggests he can fully heal up over the offseason in time for 2025.
Top free agent comparison: Andre Johnson, 2015
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| DeAndre Hopkins | 83.6 | 1.91 | 13.6 | 2.7 | ? |
| Andre Johnson | 86.1 | 2.14 | 10.8 | 4.1 | 4.9% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
6. WR Marquise Brown, Kansas City Chiefs
Brown was expected to be a marquee addition to a Chiefs‘ receiving corps in need of playmakers but instead missed almost the entire regular season with a shoulder injury. But there’s no better time to prove your value than during the playoffs. Brown posted a PFF receiving grade between 68.1 and 68.7 in each of the past three years, giving teams an indication of what he brings to the table.
Top free agent comparison: Markus Wheaton, 2017
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Marquise Brown | 68.8 | 1.29 | 12.4 | 3.5 | ? |
| Markus Wheaton | 66.2 | 1.42 | 14.7 | 3.7 | 3.3% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
7. WR Darius Slayton, New York Giants
Shaky quarterback and offensive line play arguably limited Slayton’s production during his time with the Giants, which is unfortunate for a player who is a threat to break off an explosive play at any moment. The former fifth-round steal nonetheless had four seasons of at least 700 receiving yards on 15 yards per reception over his first five years in the league, which is harder to do when the quarterback has little time to wait for longer-developing routes downfield. Slayton is also the Giants’ 2024 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee, showing he’d be an asset to any locker room.
Top free agent comparison: Paul Richardson, 2018
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Darius Slayton | 64.8 | 1.23 | 13.1 | 4.9 | ? |
| Paul Richardson | 68.8 | 1.39 | 14.8 | 3.4 | 4.5% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
8. WR Keenan Allen, Chicago Bears
After Allen tallied his fewest yards since 2016 during a 2022 season marred by soft-tissue injuries, he followed that up in 2023 with his most receiving yards since 2017. Nonetheless, a Chargers team going through something of a rebuild under the direction of new head coach Jim Harbaugh in 2024 decided to trade Allen to the Chicago Bears. While Allen has served as a mentor to rookie quarterback Caleb Williams and led the team with seven touchdown receptions, he looked a step slower in his age-32 season and had a handful of uncharacteristic drops/unforced errors.
Top free agent comparison: Emmanuel Sanders, 2020
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Keenan Allen | 81.2 | 1.85 | 10.0 | 3.6 | ? |
| Emmanuel Sanders | 82.4 | 1.87 | 10.7 | 3.8 | 4.0% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
9. WR Diontae Johnson, Baltimore Ravens
Johnson has been on four rosters dating back to last offseason, technically finishing the year with the Baltimore Ravens, who claimed him off waivers from the Houston Texans after previously waiving him themselves. Johnson's stints in Carolina, Baltimore and Houston ended with missed practices, limited snap counts and seemingly endless drama. Nonetheless, when Johnson is locked in, he can have performances like his 8/122/1 showing in Week 3 against the Raiders, followed by a 7/83/1 outing the following week. He notched 136 receiving yards in the 12 regular season weeks since then and was waived yet again by the Texans after being visibly upset for his lack of targets in a playoff win.
Top free agent comparison: N/A
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Diontae Johnson | 75.8 | 1.74 | 12.1 | 4.3 | ? |
| – | – | – | – | – | – |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
10. WR Mike Williams, Pittsburgh Steelers
Williams played with not one but two eventual Hall-of-Fame quarterbacks in 2024, but he had nearly identical production over 18 games recovering from his torn ACL as he did in the three games he played in 2023 before sustaining the injury. Williams is still one of the better ball-tracking, jump-ball weapons across the league, but another offseason of recovering and a better team fit should help him return to form.
Top free agent comparison: Tyrell Williams, 2021
| Player | Receiving grade | Yards per route run | Average depth of target | Yards after catch per reception | APY as % of Cap at signing |
| Mike Williams | 63.7 | 1.22 | 14.8 | 3.4 | ? |
| Tyrell Williams | 66.7 | 1.58 | 14.0 | 4.7 | 2.2% |
*All data in tables reflects two years prior to UFA contract signing
Contract projection: Available in PFF's free agency rankings
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