Five under-the-radar NFL players in contract year primed for breakout seasons in 2025

This group of impending free agents is in line to have success in the coming season

You know what motivates a player unlike anything else? Just being in a contract year. It's the one season upon which financial futures hinge for hundreds across the NFL. With a down contract year, you could be looking at the vested veteran minimum or a cheap one-year "prove-it" contract the following season.

Erupt in your contract year, and you're fielding a variety of multi-year deal offers with signing bonuses that eclipse all the money you've made to date in the NFL.  

Which players are bound to ascend in their contract years this season in the NFL? Below I've listed my five favorites.

You won't find players who've already experienced a breakout. Anyone franchise-tagged wasn't included, either. 

This is the fourth year I've written this article. And while all of my past predictions haven't been correct, of course, Jordan Mailata, D.J. Reed, Josh Sweat, Bryce Huff, John Franklin-Myers, Dre'Mont Jones and Tony Pollard have all been "hits" before last year, and I pinpointed Rashid Shaheed and Osa Odighizuwa before the 2024 campaign. Odighizuwa is a very rich man now. 

After being surprisingly selected by the Rams at No. 57 overall in the 2021 draft, which immediately was followed by an injury-plagued rookie season, the tiny speedster from Louisville has quietly improved his efficiency as a receiver the past two seasons. 

Atwell's catch rate has gone from 51.4% (2022) to 59.1% (2023) to 68.9% (2024). As a rookie he posted a yards-per-route-run figure of 1.67 (including the postseason). Last year, it was a hefty 2.24 on 259 routes. 

Every coach on the Kyle Shanahan coaching tree wants a small burner to threaten vertically -- and even on jet sweeps -- within the offense -- the Rams didn't make Atwell a top 60 pick four years ago for no reason. The overwhelming majority of attention will be paid to Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, and rightfully so. 

That'll leave Atwell as a beneficiary of minimal over-the-top safety help, which is bad news for defenses given his 4.39 speed. In his final year of his rookie deal, Atwell will move into more of a prominent role in the Rams' 11 personnel-heavy attack and continue his upward trajectory as a niche asset who'll perfectly complement Los Angeles' uber-efficient superstar receivers not known for their pure speed. 

I like to feature an offensive linemen in this piece, when I can, because blockers still don't get enough love in the media. And Parham is on the verge of becoming a household name outside of the greater Las Vegas area. 

The former third-round pick from Memphis has steadily honed his protection talents in each of his first three seasons in Sin City. I vividly remember scouting him, and his anchoring strength and pure power stood at the top of his draft resume. In watching his film in 2024, he appears more nimble than ever, and he can really go toe-to-toe with the strongest interior rushers in the game in genuine one-on-one situations. 

While he allowed 10 more pressures in 2024 than he did the previous season on fewer pass-blocking snaps, his wins were more dominant, and he made considerable strides in the run game, where his climbs to the second level were more dynamic and accurate finding linebackers. And now he'll be blocking in Chip Kelly's spread-based system with a quarterback in Geno Smith who'll get the ball out in a hurry. 

Oh, and Ashton Jeanty is one of the most dynamic running back prospects we've seen enter the NFL in the past decade. Parham will find himself in a spotlight more frequently, and as his ascension continues, he'll earn a large 2026 extension. 

Uche has been trying to rekindle the magic from 2022 for two seasons now. That year, the former Michigan star generated a pressure on more than 19% of his 285 pass-rushing snaps. Used as a pure edge-rushing specialist, Uche had hit his stride. 

He wasn't as effective the next season, but a pressure rate of over 16% is nothing of which to be ashamed. But he wasn't getting as many opportunities, and was traded during the 2024 season to the Chiefs. While the move felt like Kansas City prudently buying low on a talented specimen, Uche registered a mere one pressure on his new team on 40 pass-rushing snaps. 

If any club can accentuate pass-rushing skill, it's the Eagles. And after losing Josh Sweat and Milton Williams in free agency -- along with now being two years removed from Haason Reddick's presence along the defensive line, the Eagles have some job openings in their second and third waves. 

That's precisely where Uche will step in. I believe in his burst, bend and surprising speed-to-power conversion. He won't need to do a variety of things for Vic Fangio -- just rush the passer. By the end of the 2025 campaign, Uche will be in line for a decently lucrative extension. 

Cisco was featured in this article a year ago, and he's getting the spotlight again. The breakout never fully materialized on a bad Jaguars team in 2024, which led to him signing a one-year deal with the Jets. And I love his fit with former defensive back Aaron Glenn on a defense in dire need of safety reinforcement. 

New York's still-stellar defensive front is a luxury for a ball-hawking safety like Cisco. He still had an interception and seven pass breakups to go along with 68 tackles in 2024, and now he's part of a defense with former All-Pros like Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams and Quincy Williams. 

The Jaguars defensive pressure rate was 29.6% last year, 27th in football. The Jets were fourth at 37.5% -- Cisco will see more opportunities to track a football thrown by a hurried quarterback. That's when the turnovers typically materialize. I expect Cisco to parlay this one-year, prove-it deal to a two- or three-year contract with Gang Green after what is a productive 2025. He's always been a highly instinctive, ultra-rangy safety. Cisco had 12 interceptions in his first 24 games at Syracuse and seven picks in his first two seasons with the Jaguars. 

Forrest wasn't a marquee free-agent signing for the Bills. And in the Sean McDermott era, those have been the types of acquisitions that have thrived on this Buffalo squad. Think Micah Hyde, Jordan Poyer, Cole Beasley, etc. 

Speaking of Hyde and Poyer, this Bills defensive staff, which has mostly stayed intact over the past five to seven years, has done a marvelous job developing safeties. They're asked to do so much for McDermott's defense. 

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Forrest is a big-time athlete -- 9.69 Relative Athletic Score -- who flashed early in his career in Washington with four interceptions, nine pass breakups and a whopping 88 tackles when thrust into a starting role in his second season. A coaching change after that year didn't help Forrest's job security, and he started just six games afterward. 

He just turned 26 years old and has the range and ball skills to outproduce his relatively cheap one-year deal. The Bills are no longer boasting All-Pros at the safety spot, and don't be surprised if Forrest earns legitimate playing time en route to a breakout 2026 in Buffalo.