The first pick of the 2025 NFL draft went much as expected as the Tennessee Titans selected the talented Miami quarterback Cam Ward No 1 overall. It was at No 2 – and who wasn’t picked later – where things got a little more interesting on Thursday night in Green Bay.
Jacksonville, who had been sitting at No 5, traded up to take the Cleveland Browns’ spot at No 2, where the Jaguars selected Travis Hunter. Hunter is one of the most fascinating players to enter the NFL in years: a superbly talented athlete who can play both offense, at wide receiver, and defense, at cornerback. In return, the Browns received four picks, including the Jags’ second- and fourth-rounders this year and their 2026 first-rounder. Jacksonville also received a fourth-rounder and a sixth-rounder in return from the Browns.
But one man whose name wouldn’t be called all night was Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders. Some scouts believe Sanders, who was coached at Colorado by his father and Pro Football Hall of Famer Deion Sanders, is a better prospect than Ward. Others had raised questions about his arm strength and readiness for the NFL.
Pittsburgh were seen as a possible landing spot for Sanders but they opted for Oregon defensive tackle Derrick Harmon with the 21st pick. The New York Giants then traded for the Texans’ pick at No 25. They did go for a quarterback, but instead chose Jaxson Dart of Ole Miss. Sanders will now have to wait until at least the second round, which starts on Friday, to learn his future.
“We all didn’t expect this, of course, but I feel like with God, anything possible, everything possible,” Sanders said after falling out the first round. “I don’t feel like this happened for no reason. All of this is, of course, fuel to the fire. Under no circumstances did we all know this was going to happen, but we understand we on to bigger and better things. Tomorrow’s the day. We going to be happy regardless.”
Ward had to endure no such wait. Titans fans cheered inside the draft theater after hearing his name called. An overlooked high school player out of Texas, Ward began his college career at Incarnate Word, an FCS school in San Antonio. He played two seasons at Washington State after transferring there in 2022 and then set school records in his only season at Miami, finishing fourth in Heisman Trophy voting.
The Titans are coming off a three-win season and have missed the playoffs for three straight years. Ward is the fourth quarterback Tennessee have drafted in the first round over the past two decades, joining Marcus Mariota (No 2, 2015), Jake Locker (No 8, 2011) and Vince Young (No 3, 2006). Mariota is the only QB drafted by Tennessee in that span who led the team to a playoff win, and that was back in 2017.
Will Levis, the 33rd overall pick in 2023, is 5-16 as a starter in his two seasons with the Titans. Ward, who is expected to be QB1 next season in Nashville, led the country with 39 touchdown passes and finished second with 4,313 yards passing while leading the Hurricanes to a 10-3 record. Ward also had only seven interceptions and completed 67.2% of his passes.
The top three was rounded out by the Giants, who went for Penn State defensive end Abdul Carter. Carter, who led the country with 23.5 tackles for loss and also had 12 sacks last season, bolsters a Giants defense that already has solid pass rushers in Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns, plus a strong D-line that includes Pro Bowler Dexter Lawrence.
The New England Patriots decided to add protection for Drake Maye, the promising quarterback they took in the first round last year, by selecting LSU offensive tackle Will Campbell. At 6ft 6in and 320lb, Campbell was a three-year starter for the Tigers and a first-team All-America selection as a junior last season. Campbell played 37 of his 38 college games at left tackle and logged 2,451 snaps. He allowed just two sacks over the past two seasons, and now his job will be to protect the blind side of Maye.
The Browns, picking at No 5 after their trade with the Jaguars, chose Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham, the defensive MVP in the Rose Bowl during the Wolves’ national championship season in 2023.
“We felt like it was a fantastic opportunity for our organization to go down three spots and add a player in the trenches,” the Browns GM, Andrew Berry, said of the trade with the Jags after selecting Graham.
The first running back off the board arrived when the Las Vegas Raiders selected Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty with the sixth overall pick. Las Vegas averaged just 79.8 yards rushing per game last season – the worst rushing offense in the NFL – and Jeanty may remind Raiders coach Pete Carroll of Marshawn Lynch, whom he coached in Seattle. Jeanty often went his own version of “Beast Mode” at Boise State and was the only player, according to Pro Football Focus, to rush for more than 1,000 yards last season on plays that included a broken tackle.
In a first round short of quarterbacks, the New York Jets selected Missouri offensive tackle Armand Membou with the seventh pick. Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan went to the Carolina Panthers with the No 8 pick. At No 9, the New Orleans Saints chose Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr.
Michigan’s Colston Loveland became the first tight end off the board when the Chicago Bears selected him at No 10. Loveland set a school record for a tight end with 56 receptions for 582 yards and five touchdowns as a junior last season. Loveland gives the Bears a potentially potent tight-end tandem with Cole Kmet. New coach Ben Johnson liked to use two tight ends when he was Detroit’s offensive coordinator.
There was a roar from the home crowd in Green Bay when they took the talented Texas wide receiver, Matthew Golden, at No 23. It broke a long trend for the Packers: they had not picked a wide receiver in the first round since 2002.
NFL 2025 first-round picks
1) Tennessee Titans, Cam Ward, QB, Miami
2) Jacksonville Jaguars, Travis Hunter, WR/CB, Colorado (from Browns)
3) New York Giants, Abdul Carter, Edge, Penn State
4) New England Patriots, Will Campbell, OT, LSU
5) Cleveland Browns, Mason Graham, DT, Michigan (from Jaguars)
6) Las Vegas Raiders, Ashton Jeanty, RB, Boise State
7) New York Jets, Armand Membou, OT, Missouri
8) Carolina Panthers, Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Arizona
9) New Orleans Saints, Kelvin Banks Jr, OT, Texas
10) Chicago Bears, Colston Loveland, TE, Michigan
11) San Francisco 49ers, Mykel Williams, Edge, Georgia
12) Dallas Cowboys, Tyler Booker, OG, Alabama
13) Miami Dolphins, Kenneth Grant, DT, Michigan
14) Indianapolis Colts, Tyler Warren, TE, Penn State
15) Atlanta Falcons, Jalon Walker, LB, Alabama
16) Arizona Cardinals, Walter Nolen, DT, Mississippi
17) Cincinnati Bengals, Shemar Stewart, edge, Texas A&M
18) Seattle Seahawks, Grey Zabel, OG, North Dakota State
19) Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
20) Denver Broncos, Jahdae Barron, CB, Texas
21) Pittsburgh Steelers, Derrick Harmon, DT, Oregon
22) Los Angeles Chargers, Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
23) Green Bay Packers, Matthew Golden, WR, Texas
24) Minnesota Vikings, Donovan Jackson, OG, Ohio State
25) New York Giants, Jaxson Dart, QB, Ole Miss (from Texans)
26) Atlanta Falcons, James Pearce Jr, edge, Tennessee (from Rams)
27) Baltimore Ravens, Malaki Starks, S, Georgia
28) Detroit Lions, Tyleik Williams, DT, Ohio State
29) Washington Commanders, Josh Conerly Jr, Oregon
30) Buffalo Bills, Maxwell Hairston, CB, Kentucky
31) Philadelphia Eagles, Jihaad Campbell, LB, Alabama (from Chiefs)
32) Kansas City Chiefs, Josh Simmons, OT, Ohio State (from Eagles)
