The countdown is on for the 2025 NFL draft. It’s time for my one and only mock draft, where I project Round 1. As always, this isn’t what I would do if I were the general manager for every team — it’s how I’d sort through the top 32 picks based on what I’m hearing from my sources around the league.
Round 1 begins Thursday (8 p.m. ET on ESPN, ABC, ESPN App), and you can catch me throughout the weekend from Green Bay. Let’s get to the picks, where I’m projecting two trades — one in the top 10 and one in the mid-20s. Here we go:
Jump to a team’s first-round pick:
ARI | ATL | BAL | BUF | CAR | CHI | CIN
CLE | DAL | DEN | DET | GB | HOU | IND
JAX | KC | LAC | LAR | LV | MIA | MIN
NE | NO | NYG | NYJ | PHI | PIT | SF
SEA | TB | TEN | WSH
Cam Ward, QB, Miami
Ward has aced this process, and the Titans’ brass is quite excited about not only the player but the person and leader they’re getting. It’s a new day in Tennessee.
Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado
This is a fun one. I’m hearing there are a few teams that have been making calls to get to No. 2. We might hear more of this in the next 24 hours.
Hunter can be an elite defensive back from the get-go, but he also has the potential to be a top wide receiver. He’s perhaps the rarest prospect we’ve seen in years. The Browns can — and will — consider using him on both sides of the ball. Coach Kevin Stefanski & Co. will get the very best out of him on offense.
Abdul Carter, Edge, Penn State
A few days ago, it sounded as if it was Carter or Hunter, but the Giants are having fluid conversations all week. I could imagine a host of teams calling if Carter is not a slam dunk.
In the end, the Giants passed on Micah Parsons in 2021, instead trading down and taking wide receiver Kadarius Toney. I can’t see them passing on another star pass rusher from Penn State.
Will Campbell, OT, LSU
Campbell is smart, tough, dependable and a leader in a position of great need. He might not be built like Hall of Famer Orlando Pace, but the Patriots would be getting a day one starter and a culture guy on their offensive line.
Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State
General manager James Gladstone won’t be timid in his debut draft, and new coach Liam Coen is an offensive mastermind, looking for playmakers. Jeanty is everything they could ever want in a first pick.
Armand Membou, OT, Missouri
Membou has the best physical traits of any tackle in this class. The Raiders can keep building from the trenches. New general manager John Spytek was in the Tampa Bay front office when the Bucs struck gold with Tristan Wirfs in 2020. Membou at No. 6 isn’t too early.
Tyler Warren, TE, Penn State
I’ve been hearing Warren to the Jets for a few weeks. This might seem early for a tight end, but in this draft — teams should just take their guy where they can get him. In Warren’s case, the new regime can turn to its owner, fans and locker room, and say, “This is what we are about.”
Jalon Walker, LB, Georgia
The Panthers could trade back. If they stay, Walker makes sense. Play him inside, play him on the edge, play him wherever. A coach’s son, Walker has won over every coach I’ve spoken to and would be a day one starter in Carolina.
Mykel Williams, Edge, Georgia
I don’t see quarterback Shedeur Sanders as the pick here, despite all the assumptions when the Derek Carr injury news trickled out earlier this month. (Does anyone actually know what the story is there?)
Instead, I see the Saints with one of the early “wow” picks of Round 1, grabbing an elite defender who’ll carry the torch from Cameron Jordan for the next decade.
Projected trade: IND moves up for a playmaker
My first trade is a fun one. The Colts give up Nos. 14 and 80 to move up four spots in a deal with the Bears.
Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard needs to do something to help his offense, no matter if Anthony Richardson or Daniel Jones is the starting quarterback. So who does he pick?
Colston Loveland, TE, Michigan
Ballard & Co. get a 6-foot-6 tight end who has many teams enchanted ahead of Round 1. This pick would be about instant offense for a team that needs it.
Walter Nolen, DT, Ole Miss
I’d be shocked if Nolen fell out of the top 15 at this point — he might be the fastest riser in this draft. He’s quick, is a people mover and has had a great predraft process. Everyone is focused on Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart, but Nolen is the Rebels’ prospect I hear about more. Don’t be shocked if he goes before Mason Graham, the more heralded defensive tackle.
The defensive line was once a real strength of the 49ers. It’s time to return to that era.
Tyler Booker, G, Alabama
Booker, a bully of a guard, could help add some much-needed beef to the Cowboys’ line. Having had Zack Martin retire this offseason, there’s going to be a desire to fill the interior with a plug-and-play lineman.
Everyone will be clamoring for the Cowboys to take a running back or receiver. Let’s go guard, though. That’s how I see it.
Mason Graham, DT, Michigan
Graham has been viewed as a likely top-five pick for the past few months, and he could still go there. If he falls to No. 11, this is a nice win for Miami, who would be getting a Day 1 culture-changer and a can’t-miss prospect at No. 13.
Kelvin Banks Jr., OT, Texas
Banks could end up going before Membou as the top tackle in this class. He has the better tape and is more consistent. If the Bears trade back and still get him, that’s a major win.
Jihaad Campbell, LB, Alabama
For the first time in four years, the Falcons will go defense in Round 1. Campbell is a do-everything linebacker who’ll make an immediate impact. His 117 tackles were the most in a season for an Alabama player since DeMeco Ryans.
Jahdae Barron, CB, Texas
The Thorpe Award winner is the top corner in this class not named Travis Hunter. The Cardinals have been quietly adding premier talent through the draft the past few years. Remember: Head coach Jonathan Gannon is a defensive backs coach by trade. This one makes a lot of sense.
Mike Green, Edge, Marshall
The pass rusher who led the FBS with 17 sacks last season could go even higher than this. The unfortunate truth is that whichever defender Cincinnati takes here will be pitted against veteran Trey Hendrickson, who hasn’t been happy with contract negotiations and has requested a trade. It wouldn’t be fair to Green, who is a great prospect and fit for the Bengals.
Grey Zabel, C/G, North Dakota State
I’ve heard some buzz that Zabel could go as high as No. 12. That’s a little too rich, but I do think top 20 could happen. The Senior Bowl star turned heads and has been as consistent through the draft process as anyone.
Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Arizona
The all-world athlete would be the perfect addition to a wide receiver room with a mix of veterans and young players. The Bucs love Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, and Jalen McMillan is coming off a solid rookie year. McMillan would be the perfect student for the veterans to teach.
Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
Bar none, Egbuka is the most universally well-liked prospect in this draft. He is smart, reliable and sure-handed. He could be a 10-year captain somewhere and is most often compared to fellow Buckeyes legend Terry McLaurin.
Coach Sean Payton and general manager George Paton hit a home run with Bo Nix a year ago. This could be another no-brainer.
Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado
I know Sanders had a good meeting in Pittsburgh when he visited a few weeks back. I also know the Steelers still don’t have a QB1 on their roster. This might be viewed as a “slip” down the board for Sanders. He could go anywhere from No. 3 to the Giants to the second round.
Going to Pittsburgh here as the second quarterback in the class wouldn’t be so bad.
Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan
Coach Jim Harbaugh and general manager Joe Hortiz went big-school prospect with their first four picks a year ago and ended up with an outstanding class.
Harbaugh and defensive coordinator Jesse Minter know Grant well from their time at Michigan. They’ll be able to get the best out of the 331-pounder inside.
Matthew Golden, WR, Texas
I know it’s out of character for Green Bay to take a receiver in Round 1 — they haven’t done it since 2002 — but in this scenario, Golden could slide right to them. And I can’t see him sliding much more.
Green Bay could go in several directions. I doubt anyone thought the Packers could get the consensus top wideout on many boards, though.
Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
The Vikings have needs elsewhere and wouldn’t list running back as a clear hole on their roster. But if Hampton is on the board, he’d be a wonderful addition to a young core that the organization hopes can grow old together.
Donovan Jackson, G, Ohio State
The Texans could look to their offensive line and add a guard who has the potential to kick outside to tackle. They’re rebuilding their protection in front of quarterback C.J. Stroud. This isn’t an attention-grabbing pick, but it’s a sensible one in this draft.
Projected trade: NYG makes a move up
It’s time for another trade, this one with the third quarterback coming off the board.
In this deal, the Giants would send pick Nos. 34 and 99 to the Rams to move up to No. 26. And crucially, New York would keep its original third-round pick — No. 65 — to continue to add talent to its roster.
Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss
If the draft falls this way, I think the Rams would be OK with this. They don’t currently have a second-round pick, but if they agreed to this deal, they’d have four picks on Day 2.
I think the Giants would pounce on Dart. I just am not 100% certain.
Josh Simmons, OT, Ohio State
Simmons could slip because of an injury — he sustained a torn patellar tendon in October — but he might be the best of the bunch in the offensive linemen class. The Ravens could add another potential star, and watch — he’ll be a difference-maker in no time
Will Johnson, CB, Michigan
Johnson’s stock has slipped a bit. He had a foot injury last season and was inconsistent for the Wolverines. He also sat out Michigan’s pro day because of a hamstring injury.
He’s a top-level talent, though, and he’d be the perfect corner to complement Terrion Arnold.
Shemar Stewart, Edge, Texas A&M
Stewart slipping this far? It could happen. He’d make a lot of sense for the Commanders given how their run defense performed in the NFC Championship Game.
Malaki Starks, S, Georgia
Starks played safety and nickel corner for the Bulldogs, and he’d make an immediate impact for Buffalo. Starks is all-ball and one of the safest prospects in this draft.
James Pearce Jr., Edge, Tennessee
The Chiefs could add another player with stellar physical traits to their defense. Pearce has double-digit sack potential and a ton of upside, though most have him sliding to the second round.
Maxwell Hairston, CB, Kentucky
The Eagles took cornerbacks with their first- and second-round picks a year ago, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t add to the defensive backfield considering the turnover this offseason.
Hairston is a speedster — he ran a 4.28-second 40-yard dash at the combine — who is just scratching the surface of his talent.
