25 NFL storylines to keep an eye on heading into the 2025 season

After years of garnering interviews and interest as the Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator, Ben Johnson will finally get his first crack at being a head coach. He’ll do so with a young Chicago Bears team that aspires to win its first playoff game in more than a decade. 

Johnson will get a shot to work with former No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams. There's plenty of optimism around talented players like 2025 first-round pick, tight end Colston Loveland, and wide receivers D.J. Moore and Rome Odunze. All eyes will be on Johnson becoming the missing spark plug for the organization. 

It may be a new city, but the story around Aaron Rodgers remains the same: Does he have one more run in him? His unfortunate and forgettable stint in New York has led him to Pittsburgh, where he’ll look to form an instant connection with fellow newcomer D.K. Metcalf. It's been a few years since Rodgers has looked the part of a quarterback who can take a team to the playoffs, so does his reported final season before retirement end on a high note?

The Miami Dolphins’ top weapon fell short of 1,000 yards last year, marking the end of four straight such seasons. His 81 receptions were also his fewest since 2019. The Dolphins had far more issues than just Hill in 2024, but if they want to give Buffalo a run in the AFC East, they’ll need Hill to be far more explosive than he was a year ago. 

Anyone drafted in the first round enters the league with high expectations. The rookie out of Colorado comes into his first year with quite a bit more attention on him as he attempts to earn his stripes on both ends of the field. Playing cornerback and wide receiver at the collegiate level is one thing, but doing so against the best of the best will require even more. Jacksonville may not have Super Bowl aspirations, but they'll be worth watching just to see how Hunter fares. 

There have been nine instances of a player rushing for 2,000 yards in an NFL season. Saquon Barkley was one of them in 2024 during his first run with the Philadelphia Eagles. None of the prior eight players were able to rush for more than 1,500 the next season. Two of them, Derrick Henry and Terrell Davis, also dealt with injuries the season after reaching 2K. 

The Kansas City Chiefs’ title window certainly doesn't close with Patrick Mahomes under center, but it sure gets a tad smaller if Travis Kelce can't return to his All-Pro form. Last year he had a career-low three scores and failed to reach 1,000 yards for the second straight season. His 823 yards were his lowest to date. The Chiefs need Kelce to be more productive. 

No one foresaw Sam Darnold’s 2024 campaign in Minnesota going that well. Despite all of his success in the purple and gold, the Vikings didn't let that disrupt their initial plan: giving their 2024 first-round pick the keys under center. McCarthy’s official first season will begin in 2025 after a leg injury during camp sidelined him all of last year. He will begin his career with, arguably, the game’s best wide receiver and a surrounding cast that any young passer would salivate at inheriting. 

In a stacked AFC West, the Las Vegas Raiders knew they needed to make a major move. Bringing Pete Carroll out of retirement certainly fits the bill. The Super Bowl-winning coach had been out of the league since 2023. Along with Carroll, former head coach and college football whiz Chip Kelly joins the team as its playcaller. All of that, along with Heisman nominee, running back Ashton Jeanty, has the Raiders as one of the teams most likely to skyrocket past its prior win total (which was only four wins). 

Christian McCaffrey is no stranger to coming back from season-ending injuries. He’ll be doing yet again in 2025, but this time at 29, an age where most running backs begun to decline. The 49ers also have hopes of a deep playoff run, which means they have to have a healthy McCaffrey. That’s even more heightened when looking at their wide receiver room, which moved on from Deebo Samuel and will begin the season without Brandon Aiyuk for the first half. 

The QB room has plenty of names. Joe Flacco. Kenny Pickett. Shedeur Sanders. Dillon Gabriel. The problem is, though, do the Browns have the guy? Flacco gives them the best chance to be competitive, but that also sacrifices the younger options in a season that may very well see them at the bottom of the conference. This feels like a season where four or five guys could end up taking snaps before the year ends. 

Another season, another year where Buffalo enters as heavy favorites in its division. Josh Allen is at the top of his game and won't be going anywhere, which means if anyone is going to compete in the division, it's going to be a daunting task. New England has a first-year head coach and a young quarterback, while New York is, well, the New York Jets. Miami will have the best shot at competing if Tua Tagovailoa stays upright, along with a Tyreek Hill bounce-back. 

Following his historic rookie season, Washington's Jayden Daniels has a chance to insert himself as a legitimate top-five franchise-altering quarterback in the league with another strong showing. The sophomore season can trip up some young passers, such as C.J. Stroud in 2024, so Daniels will have to make adjustments this time around now that defensive coordinators have a year’s worth of film on him. 

There’s always a division or two that feels like any team could come up with the title. This year, it seems to be the NFC South where Tampa Bay and Atlanta appear to be the top two teams. That doesn't mean the young upstart Carolina Panthers and their second-year coach Dave Canales couldn't take a step forward. New Orleans could be in for a tough season, but there are enough names there that could string together wins to keep them competitive.

Dallas finally got a viable second weapon for Dak Prescott after years of bypassing the position. Now Prescott will have two Pro Bowl-like talents in CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens to sling it to as the Cowboys aim to get back to the postseason.

The Saints innocuously drafted a quarterback in the second round of this year’s draft. At the time, he was positioned behind Derek Carr, but now Tyler Shough has been thrust into a potential starting role right out of the gate as he'll compete with Spencer Rattler for the job. Unlike most rookies, Shough comes in with a bit more experience at 25 years old. His ability to quickly acclimate to the NFL will go a long way in determining how competitive the Saints will or won't be this season. 

After going to a league vote, the controversial Tush Push play will remain an option for teams in 2025. The Philadelphia Eagles mastered the sneak en route to the franchise's second Super Bowl, with an 87% success rate. There will be even more attention on the play as opposing coordinators seek a way to prevent the extra yardage. 

In an effort to bring more kickoff returns back into the game, the league will now adjust the rules regarding touchbacks. All kicks that go into the endzone will now begin at the 35-yard line, five yards more than previously. This slight tweak aims at deterring teams from booting it through the end zone, instead hoping teams will try to force a return to tackle their opponent before they hit the 35. 

Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens have been Super Bowl contenders in each of the past three seasons, even advancing as far as the AFC Conference Championship in 2023. The Louisville product, though, has been unable to get his team over the hump, leaving Ravens fans wondering whether or not this all-star caliber roster will ever be able to overtake the Kansas City Chiefs. 

It’s not often a No. 4 overall pick at quarterback is facing potentially his last shot at starting entering Year 3, but Anthony Richardson’s time in Indianapolis could be on its last leg if he can’t beat out Daniel Jones for the starting gig. Richardson has all the talent in the world with a big arm and a running ability that only a few possess. Injuries, along with some errant throws, have hampered his early career. It will be interesting to see if his third season sees him finally put it all together. 

The NFL has made tremendous progress in expanding the game of football beyond American borders. This year will see even more countries get in on the action as both Spain and Ireland will host regular-season action. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings will play the first game ever in Dublin in September, while the Miami Dolphins and Washington Commanders will head to Madrid in November.

It’s never easy for a rookie quarterback who lights it up in Year 1 to keep that same level of play in his sophomore campaign. Houston’s C.J. Stroud learned that the hard way in 2024 as his numbers dipped with higher expectations. The Texans are hoping Stroud shows more flashes of his rookie year in Year 3 as they vie for contention in the AFC.

He may not be the most flashy wide receiver of his time, but Mike Evans’ resume is as impressive as anyone’s. The Tampa Bay star reeled in his 11th straight season with 1,000 yards in 2024, tying a mark that only Jerry Rice has reached. If he can do it yet again in his 12th NFL season, Evans will be in a tier of his own. Even more impressive is that he’s reached 1,000 yards in every single season he’s played since being drafted, a feat that no one has ever achieved.

Many of Detroit’s stars are back wth Jared Goff leading the charge with Jahmyr Gibbs, David Montgomery, Amon Ra St. Brown, and Sam Laporta, but it’ll be interesting to see how the team fares with the loss of both of its coordinators. Dan Campbell has his work cut out for him following their 15-2 season as Ben Johnson heads off to Chicago and Aaron Glenn to New York to lead the Jets. 

Every season, fans are waiting for Derrick Henry to decline. Every season, the running back proves that Father Time nor the continued bludgeoning that he takes (and gives) will slow him down. Henry is coming off his first season in Baltimore, where all he did was rush for 1,921 yards, narrowly falling shy of his second 2,000-yard campaign. The 31-year-old out of Alabama has more than 2,350 carries in his career, yet he doesn’t appear to be taking a step back. 

Does any AFC team finally get over the hump in 2025? It’s a storyline that every NFL fan will be following once Week 1 gets off and running. If they do it again, it will be four straight and five of the past six seasons. The conference is no short of contenders in Baltimore, Buffalo, and Cincinnati, along with what should be a fierce AFC West.