Derek Brown · Aug 30, 2025
Derek Brown ("Debro") laid out a slate of wide receiver breakouts — Ricky Pearsall, Jalen Coker, Egbuka, Jalen Waddle, Joshua Palmer, George Pickens, DeVonta Smith and Travis Hunter — while fading Xavier Worthy, Tyreek Hill and the cheap Cleveland/late-round types, and gave his own rankings well ahead of ADP for several of them.
“Second year of breakout is here, boys.”
said on air or in an interview · The Herd with Colin Cowherd (podcast) · read the original →
21 checkable claims from this
Each one is scored on its own against the published methodology. A pundit naming several outcomes is graded on each, not on all-or-nothing.
“I have my wide receiver twenty five. I have him at fifty second overall.”
Scored 0a naive guess scored 0+0 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Travis Hunter
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- CB
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- no prior season — the startable tier at CB
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 24
- actual finish:
- 1
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 25
- Positional FinishesGeorge PickensDallas CowboysAug 30, 2025
“I have George Pickens ranked as a top fifteen wide receiver.”
Scored 8.33a naive guess scored 0+16.67 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- 16.67
- player:
- George Pickens
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 8.33
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- WR
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 41
- actual finish:
- 4
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 15
“I have moved him up to wide receiver twenty six.”
Scored 0a naive guess scored 75-150 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- -150
- player:
- Ricky Pearsall
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 75
- position:
- WR
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 81
- actual finish:
- 78
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 26
- Player Season NumbersJaylen WaddleMiami DolphinsAug 30, 2025
“I think we could see him revisit the role that he had in his rookie season and he catches a hundred passes”
Scored 28a naive guess scored 33.83-11.66 skillHow this was scored
- naive:
- 42.83
- skill:
- -11.66
- what happened:
- 64
- player:
- Jaylen Waddle
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 28
- baseline:
- 33.83
- predicted:
- 100
- statistic:
- receptions
- difficulty:
- 2
- last season:
- 58
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- position average:
- 27.65
- zero at percent out:
- 50
“Will you have him at thirty six... that's why I bumped him up into the wide receiver three range.”
Scored 0a naive guess scored 0+0 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Xavier Worthy
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- WR
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 32
- actual finish:
- 59
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 36
- Positional FinishesJalen CokerCarolina PanthersAug 30, 2025
“So I moved him up. He is my wide receiver fifty two right now.”
Scored 0a naive guess scored 0+0 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Jalen Coker
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 0
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- WR
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 83
- actual finish:
- 71
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 52
- Depth Chart CallsJalen CokerCarolina PanthersAug 30, 2025
“he is going to be from the word go, and I'm not being hyperbolic about this, he is the Carolina Panthers wide receiver two”
Scored 91.67a naive guess scored 91.67+0 skillHow this was scored
- club:
- CAR
- skill:
- 0
- player:
- Jalen Coker
- season:
- 2025
- accuracy:
- 91.67
- baseline:
- 91.67
- position:
- WR
- naive slot:
- 4
- actual slot:
- 3
- difficulty:
- 2
- measured by:
- receptions
- naive basis:
- where he sat last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- predicted slot:
- 2
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- Positional FinishesJaylen WaddleMiami DolphinsAug 30, 2025
“I have Waddle ranked ahead of Tyreek Hill. I have Wattle at wide receiver twenty”
Scored 91.67a naive guess scored 0+183.33 skillHow this was scored
- skill:
- 183.33
- player:
- Jaylen Waddle
- season:
- 2025
- zero at:
- 12
- accuracy:
- 91.67
- baseline:
- 0
- position:
- WR
- ranked by:
- fantasy points
- difficulty:
- 2
- naive basis:
- where he finished last season
- weeks in the season:
- 18
- naive finish:
- 48
- actual finish:
- 19
- weeks left when called:
- 18
- predicted finish:
- 20
- Fantasy Bust CallsTyreek HillMiami DolphinsAug 30, 2025
“I am out on Tyreek Hill. You cannot force me to draft him. I'm not doing it.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Fantasy Bust CallsKeon ColemanBuffalo BillsAug 30, 2025
“when I was writing up the top two fifty players like Kean Coleman fully out”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsGeorge PickensDallas CowboysAug 30, 2025
“I think Pickens is going to be awesome this year... he's playing in a contract year”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsDeVonta SmithPhiladelphia EaglesAug 30, 2025
“In some places his ADP is a wide receiver three. Okay, that's ridiculous. So he's gonna pay off even if AJ Brown stays healthy”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Fantasy Bust CallsCedric TillmanCleveland BrownsAug 30, 2025
“I'm out on Cedric Tillman. I am so far out on Cedric Tillman.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Fantasy Bust CallsZay FlowersBaltimore RavensAug 30, 2025
“will you find say Flowers and my players to avoid article Yes, because he was priced as a wide receiver two. I don't want to pay a wide receiver two price tag for him”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
“Marque's Hollywood Brown Again, all of these guys that are like back of the you know, final round picks for people, count me out on all of them”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsEmeka EgbukaTampa Bay BuccaneersAug 30, 2025
“real time ADP he's wide receiver thirty three... I just keep moving him up, Just keep moving them up.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsTravis HunterJacksonville JaguarsAug 30, 2025
“I have my wide receiver twenty five. I have him at fifty second overall. Right now in real time ADP, he is wide receiver thirty one and seventy fourth overall. I am aggressively ahead”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsJalen CokerCarolina PanthersAug 30, 2025
“Jalen Cocher is the one where you're making that bet for basically free... he's wide receiver seventy six, one hundred and sixty third overall”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsRicky PearsallSan Francisco 49ersAug 30, 2025
“The guy that I want to make sure I'm leaving almost every single draft with... is Ricky Pearsall... His real time ADP... is wide receiver thirty five.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
“So in real time ADP, he's around wide receiver twenty four. I just to me, I don't see any meat on the bone where you're drafting him there.”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.
- Sleeper CallsJosh PalmerBuffalo BillsAug 30, 2025
“I think there's a really big lane an opportunity for Joshua Palmer this year”
Not settled yet. This is graded once the season it describes has finished.