Rivals Rankings Week: Which position group is the strongest in the 2025 class?

There are plenty of impressive players in this recruiting class of 2025, but each year there’s usually a position or two that looks stronger than the rest. Rivals National Analysts – Clint Cosgrove, Adam Friedman, Adam Gorney, Nick Harris And Ryan Wright – give their opinion on which position will be the best in this class.

The quarterback, linebacker and defensive end all look solid early on and the offensive line tends to be a positional group that warms up a bit later. That being said, I’m going to go with the position that seems to have already emerged as the strongest and that’s the wide receiver group. There’s so much talent up and down and we already have 44 receivers in the Rivals250 compared to 36 such rookies in the 2023 class and 31 currently in the 2024 class.

There are so many receivers who could compete for the top spot, which will also make the positional group interesting to follow. Alabama commit Ryan Williams, Colorado commit Winston Watkins Jr., Dakorien Moore, Caleb Cunningham, talyn taylor And Cameron Sparks are just a few of the many prospects who could be pushing for the top spot overall when all is said and done.

Defensive backs and receivers have the most players in the top 100 right now, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see the defensive line overtake the other two positions and become the strongest group in this class. There are so many high-potential prospects, especially high up on the defensive line, that it’s hard to ignore just how dominant these players could be at the next level. Elijah Griffin to No. 1 overall followed by impressive talents like Zahir Mathis, Andrew Madox, Iose Epenesa, Armondo Blount, Zion Grady, Jerod Smith And DJ Sanders are all in the top 25 right now. I don’t know how many more five stars will emerge in this class, but it wouldn’t be shocking to see five or six defensive linemen end up with a five star rating.

I love this class of quarterback and it will continue to evolve with a deeper group after we see more of it in person, and I also love the defensive end, especially among strong players, but this collection of receivers wide could really be special and deep. Alabama commitment Ryan Williams showed he was super special at Under Armor camp in Atlanta and Colorado commitment Winston Watkins could also easily become the best receiver in the class. Not only is there high-end talent at the top, but it’s a deep group of playmakers of all sizes, whether outside or in slots.

Of all the players in the Rivals250 top 50, nine are wide receivers, making them easily the best of any positional group. Granted, catcher prospects typically surface earlier in their career based on early athletic traits or early production, while other position groups can sometimes be more processual. However, this group of receivers in 2025 at the top is really strong. He starts in the lead with three in the top 10: Ryan Williams, Winston Watkins Jr. and Dakorien Moore. Each has the potential to finish five stars and each has already added a massive offer sheet to their name. Further down the top 50, talents such as André Marais And Jaime FFrench have been social media mainstays with stunning takes during the fall season or on the 7-on-7 circuit. Marsh and Ffrench faced off last summer in a USL camp where the two players torched opponents in the 2023 and 2024 classes en route to picking up offers from the Tigers. There are also some incredibly athletic players in this group of receivers such as Caleb Cunningham who has already recorded huge numbers in show jumping events in athletics. Overall, this group of receivers are showing early signs of backing up early rankings with longevity as the cycle continues with multiple talents with multiple skills across the country.

The 2025 class is loaded at receiver with 45 players already recognized as four-star talent. Any of the top five, Ryan Williams, Winston Watkins Jr., Dakorien Moore, Caleb Cunningham or Talyn Taylor could find themselves with a fifth star at the end of the summer camp circuit.

Outside of the top five, the class is overflowing with next-level game changers. Jamie Ffrench, Cameron Sparks, Josiah Abdullah, Jacorey Watson, Hardley Gilmore, Quanell X Farrakhan Jr.And Mills of Cortez are just a few of the names that will be known at the college level.