One of the biggest events in 2025 just went down this past the weekend: The NFL Draft.
With 257 picks over three days, the NFL draft is one of the most anticipated days in football, besides the Super Bowl. Each team got to pick players for a low cost that can impact their team now and the future.
With the number one pick in the draft, the Tennessee Titans selected Cameron Ward, a quarterback from the University of Miami. This pick was not surprising, as the majority of footballs fans knew he was going to the Titans.
The second pick that occurred involved the Cleveland Browns trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jacksonville Jaguars traded their fifth overall pick, their second and fourth picks, and next year’s first round pick I exchange for a 2025 second overall, a 2025 fourth round pick, and a 2025 sixth round pick. With the second pick, the Jacksonville Jaguars selected Travis Hunter, wide receiver and cornerback from University of Colorado Boulder. A lot of people didn’t see this coming. Also, with Myles Garett signing a major contract recently, people thought that the Browns were going to take Abdul Carter to pair with Garett on their defensive line.
The third pick involved the New York Giants. The Giants selected Abdul Carter, an edge rusher from Pennsylvania State University. Arguably, this was one of the best picks in the draft. With a defensive line including Dexter Lawrence and Kayvon Thibideau, Abdul Carter coming in solidifies the Giants defensive line and linebackers to where they are going to dare you to throw the ball on third down. It’s tremendous pick by the Giants as they will become a force next year, especially defensively.
The New England Patriots held the fourth overall pick, and they selected Will Campbell the offensive tackle from Louisiana State University. This was a great pickup by the Patriots with Mike Vrabel as their new Head Coach. He is a Vrabel type player with his physicality and toughness; this could be a great pick by the Patriots to protect new QB Drake Maye’s blind side.
Ashton Genty, the running back from Boise State University, was selected by the Las Vegas Raiders as the sixth overall draft pick. With him, they got a great pick. They maybe could have gotten a QB with Shedeur Sanders to secure their franchise for the next ten years, but it was a good pickup overall.
The New York Jets had the seventh overall pick, and they selected Armand Membou, the offensive lineman from the University of Missouri. The Jets have had major injuries to their offensive line in recent history. Rookie coach Aaron Glenn, from the Detroit Lions, wants to build his team exactly on how he left Detroit with big players up front. This is a move that will protect potentially starting Quarterback Justin Field’s blind side.
In the ninth overall pick, the New Orleans Saints selected Kelvin Banks Jr., the offensive lineman from University of Texas at Austin. Again, the offensive line depth shows in this draft with teams trying to build around their QB.
The tenth overall pick, done by the Chicago Bears, saw Colston Loveland get drafted, the tight end from the University of Michigan. This was a little bit of a surprising pick since a lot of people thought that the other tight end from Penn State would go earlier. Also, people thought the other tight end would have been a better pick for the Bears. However, this is a solid pickup from the Bears trying to build a team around Caleb Williams and rookie coach Ben Johnson.
The San Francisco 49ers held the eleventh overall pick, and they chose Mykel Williams, an edge rusher from the University of Georgia. This was a solid pickup from them. With this pick, they are trying to rebuild a defense that was the cornerstone to their Super Bowl appearances in recent seasons. This is the first step in the right direction for the 49ers.
Three more trades went down in the first round.
One happened at the 25th spot, which originally belonged to the Houston Texans. The Texans sent the 25th pick to the New York Giants in exchange for the 34th and 99th pick as well as a 2026 third round pick. The Giants then used their second first round pick on QB Jaxon Dart. Some Giants fans felt revealed because they did not want Shedeur Sanders to be their franchise since they didn’t rate him highly and no one else in the league wanted him.
The Second trade involved the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Rams. The Falcons received the 26th overall pick this year and this year’s third round pick and the Rams got a 2025 2nd round pick, a late 2025 pick, and next year’s first round pick. The Atlanta Falcons selected Edge Rusher James Pearce Jr. from the University of Tennessee. In the aftermath of Grady Jarett and Matthew Judon moving on, they are trying to build up their defense.
The final trade in the first round involved the Philadelphia Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs swapping picks.
The Philadelphia Eagles selected linebacker Jihaad Campbell from the University of Alabama. He is a great pickup and a good replacement for Josh Sweat, who is leaving in free agency for the Cardinals.
The Kansas City Chiefs selected offensive tackle Josh Simmons from Ohio State University. He is a tough, physical guy that can protect Mahome’s blind side. They can use this piece to help them as they struggled at the left tackle last season.
