By Walt – @walterfootball
April 25, 2025
2025 NFL Draft Day 2 Preview – Ten Observations:
1. Draft Day was a ridiculous movie. It was entertaining, but also extremely stupid. My favorite part of the movie was when the Browns general manager, played by Kevin Costner, announced to his front office that he moved up to No. 1 for a quarterback the day of the draft. He then said, “Let’s get to work on him.” Somehow, the team did zero research on a quarterback before surrendering three first-round picks for him. Unreal.
Another strange instance in the movie was during the draft when Costner bullied Jacksonville’s young general manager into making a lopsided trade. He said something like, “You’re the new guy, so you’re going to look dumb if you don’t make this trade.” And then, the poor Jaguars general manager made the trade.
I never thought we’d see something like this in real life, but we did. It happened exactly this way in the 2025 NFL Draft. Cleveland, in an attempt to trade down, bullied the young Jaguars general manager into making a lopsided trade in which Jacksonville surrendered first- and second-round picks to move up only three spots for a non-quarterback. If this isn’t proof that we live in a simulation, I don’t know what is.
While this was all hilarious, the trade was cataclysmic for our draft props and mock draft accuracy. Here’s how things would have unfolded if the Jaguars didn’t make that asinine trade:
2. CLE – Travis Hunter
3. NYG – Abdul Carter (same)
4. NE – Will Campbell (same)
5. JAX – Ashton Jeanty
6. LV – Armand Membou
7. NYJ – Kelvin Banks, Tyler Warren, or Mason Graham
8. CAR – Mason Graham or Tetairoa McMillan
9. NO – Kelvin Banks, Tyler Warren, or Mason Graham
Unfortunately, it didn’t go this way. On the plus side, Cleveland’s general manager got to spread his dad’s ashes on a football field and then learned that his young girlfriend is pregnant.
2. The cascade of pick alterations resulting from Jacksonville’s trade could have some poor consequences for two teams in the future.
Back in February of 2018, Charlie Campbell and I were in Minnesota for the Eagles-Patriots Super Bowl. This was just ahead of the 2018 NFL Draft, when Bradley Chubb was widely expected to be chosen by the Browns. Charlie, however, knew that this was not going to happen. He told me that personnel men informed him that they don’t like to use consecutive first-round picks on the same position because it becomes incredibly problematic to re-sign both in 3-4 years. They typically don’t want to dedicate too much money to the same position in such a short time span.
The Browns ended up passing on Chubb in favor of Denzel Ward. However, two teams didn’t quite consider this dilemma, as the Jets and Saints both drafted offensive tackles in consecutive drafts, selecting Armand Membou and Kelvin Banks, respectively.
For the Jets, the true poor decision was passing on Brock Bowers in favor of Olu Fashanu. I thought ownership would have FOMO after missing out on Bowers, but Membou apparently won them over via Zoom calls, which is a bit strange. Warren fell to No. 14, so perhaps he should have sharpened his game when it comes to online chatting.
I didn’t mind the Saints pick either. I’m not as high on Banks as I am with Membou, but it makes sense to replace the retired Ramczyk. Still, re-signing both Banks and Tallies Fuaga will prove to be difficult when their contracts are nearing expiration.
3. Another questionable offensive line pick was made by the Cowboys when they selected Tyler Booker. The media gushed about this, citing that Jerry Jones was going back to his “roots” from the early Ezekiel Elliott days, completely ignoring that Jones reached for a player expected to go in the 20s.
What was bizarre about this pick was that it was the complete opposite approach from what the Colts took. The Colts, who loved Booker, acknowledged that No. 14 was too early for a guard, so they decided that they were going to draft a tight end. And yet, the top tight end in this class, Tyler Warren, fell right into the Cowboys’ lap, and they decided on Booker instead. It just goes to show that each team has their own drafting strategy.
4. Booker being off the board impacted the rest of the opening round. Two teams – the Texans and Lions – were confident that he would be available to them in the 20s. Detroit would have to trade up a bit, but both teams were shocked that Booker was chosen at No. 12.
Dallas reaching for Booker prompted different reactions from both teams. The Texans traded out of the first round with the Giants, while the Lions reached for Tyleik Williams. I said prior to the draft that because this class isn’t very good, we were going to see a weird, Cole Strange-type pick from a team in the 20s. The Lions, who usually draft very well, were that team when they panicked and drafted Williams.
5. I mentioned the Giants trading up with the Texans. At least one team was projected to move up for a quarterback, and New York ended up being that team.
While the Giants celebrated the trade and pick at the time, I have to wonder if they have buyer’s remorse, given how the rest of the first round unfolded. No one else moved up for a quarterback, so there’s a good chance the Giants could have drafted Dart at No. 34, or at the very least, surrendered less draft capital to trade up a couple of spots instead of nine.
6. Speaking of trades, there was a lack of them in the first round. On average, there are between five and six trades in the first round of the NFL Draft, but we saw just three before the Eagles moved up one spot to swap with the Chiefs. Teams really wanted to trade down. It was reported that the Seahawks were trying to do it. We know the Bengals wanted to do so. It made sense for the Vikings to trade because they only had four picks. No one did it, however, between picks two and 25.
If you’re wondering why these teams couldn’t trade down, it’s because no one wanted to trade up. This was such a weak draft class at the top end that no team had any trade-up targets in mind until we got to the mid-20s which was when the Giants and Falcons made their moves. New York trading up for a quarterback was understandable, while many were critical of Atlanta’s decision.
7. Let’s discuss what the Falcons did at length. I graded them favorably for trading up for James Pearce, though I initially thought it was a poor decision. I’ll explain why I changed my mind:
The Falcons loved Pearce. They were going to make him the pick at No. 15 before Jalon Walker fell to them. They believed that Pearce had the best tape of all the edge rushers in this class, save for Walker and Abdul Carter. So, we can acknowledge that in their opinion, they were getting great value for Pearce at No. 26.
The argument could be made that the Falcons weren’t getting great value because they surrendered a 2026 first-round pick for Pearce. However, logic dictates that Pearce would just be their 2026 pick. I expect the Falcons to be a decent team in 2025, so chances are they’ll be drafting in the high teens or early 20s, or perhaps even later than that. Could they get someone as good as Pearce with that pick, keeping in mind that they viewed him as a great option at No. 15 overall? Probably not.
Now, there’s the matter of the other compensation. In addition to trading away next year’s first-round pick – which, again, will just be Pearce – they dropped from No. 46 to 101. This doesn’t sound great, but it was the price they paid for being able to use their 2026 first-round pick in the present. Think about it like taking a loan and paying the interest. This sort of strategy wouldn’t work for bad or mediocre teams because there’s no reason to pay the interest when they can just wait, but the Falcons should be considered the favorites to win the NFC South. It’ll be a mild upset if they’re not in the playoffs next year because of how bad their division is, and if they’re in the playoffs, they certainly have a chance at a Super Bowl. One frequent guest we have on the WalterFootball.com After Dark Show (Quacky) believes that the Falcons are a viable long shot to win Super Bowl LX.
If this is correct, and the Falcons are in play for the Super Bowl, then they made the correct decision. They’ll now have two very talented edge rushers, upgrading an area that has been an issue for them since the John Abraham days. If these edge rushers thrive, and Michael Penix performs as well as he did at the end of his rookie year, then the Falcons will be contending come mid-January.
8. Two of the other teams in the NFC made very strange selections that actually deserve to be panned. I’m referring to the Panthers and Buccaneers both drafting receivers.
The Panthers had the worst defense in the NFL last year. They had a great opportunity to fix this issue with a gifted defender at No. 8. Instead, they opted for Tetairoa McMillan. While McMillan is a talented receiver, he’s far from an elite prospect – he would have gone in the teens last year at the very earliest – and he comes with some work-ethic concerns. It’d be one thing if McMillan were on the level of a Marvin Harrison Jr. or a Malik Nabers, or even a Rome Odunze, but he was well behind those three prospects. Thus, the Panthers couldn’t really justify drafting him over Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams, Kenneth Grant, or some of the other talented defenders in this class.
While I can at least understand Carolina’s thought process, I have no idea why the Buccaneers drafted Emeka Egbuka. They could have landed an excellent linebacker (Jihaad Campbell), edge rusher (James Pearce), or cornerback (Jahdae Barron), all of whom would start right away for them. Instead, they drafted their fourth receiver.
I like Egbuka, and he could end up being a good player for the Buccaneers. However, unless there are injuries at receiver, he likely won’t contribute much this year. For a team that, like the Falcons, has a good chance to win a bad division and make a run in the playoffs, the Buccaneers squandered an opportunity to strengthen their team and give themselves the best chance possible to win the Super Bowl this year. I was 50-50 on the Buccaneers versus Falcons as far as the winner of the NFC South was concerned, but in the wake of what transpired in the 2025 NFL Draft, I now have to give a decent edge to Atlanta.
9. While the Buccaneers and Panthers were obvious losers of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the obvious winners were the Ravens and Eagles. I said it prior to the draft: “Great prospects are going to drop to the Ravens and Eagles, and they’re going to draft them, and the media is going to exclaim, ‘How do these teams keep getting these great players!?'”
I’m not even bragging about predicting this because it happens all the time. All. The. Time. The Ravens and Eagles always come away with the best prospects because foolish teams – like the Buccaneers and Panthers, and some of the others we’ve discussed on this page – make asinine decisions, allowing great prospects to fall to the perennial contenders.
Interestingly enough, both the Ravens and Eagles had their eyes on the same player. I heard that the Eagles loved Malaki Starks, but didn’t expect him to fall to them. They were right, as Baltimore had the same evaluation of him.
10. We haven’t gotten to Sheduer Sanders yet. There are very dumb people like this on Twitter posting their “everything is racist” agenda:
Does anyone want to tell this bozo that Caleb Williams and Cam Ward were the top picks in the past two drafts? Or that Jayden Daniels was the No. 2 overall pick last year? As someone replied, “Yeah, I’m sure Mike Tomlin passed on a black quarterback because he was confident.”
Sanders fell because he wasn’t an elite prospect at the position. He has pocket-awareness issues as well, in that he takes lots of sacks. I’ve told this story before, but I shared my mock draft with an NFC scout back in February. He replied with seven words, “Get Shedeur out of the first round.” This was a case of draft media getting a prospect wrong in relation to how the scouting community felt about him. If you want further evidence of this, look at this graphic from ESPN last night:
As if we needed more evidence that ESPN sucks. The sportsbooks had Sanders’ over-under at over 21.5 -108! How could this draft “predictor” be so wrong?
Thanks to ESPN leading the public astray, as they usually do, we were able to collect. Though the ridiculous Jaguars trade cost us money, we were able to win 12.25 units because we were able to fade Sanders in our NFL Draft Props.
Despite fading Sanders, I actually like him and think he can be an OK starter in the NFL, though I don’t think he’ll ever be great. Still, I wish him the best, partly because he made us lots of money last night. I don’t want to be associated with this bad karma for very long, so I hope he defies everyone and becomes a perennial Pro Bowler. I also hope that he’s chosen atop the second round by the Browns. And trust me, I’m not just saying that because we have a +650 bet on Sanders to go to Cleveland!
Fantasy Football Perspective:
For a fantasy football perspective, there were 10 players chosen in the first round, compared to 14 last year. Here they are, ordered by 2025 fantasy value:
1. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Raiders
2. Travis Hunter, WR, Browns
3. Cam Ward, QB, Titans
4. Omarion Hampton, RB, Chargers
5. Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Panthers
6. Matthew Golden, WR, Packers
7. Tyler Warren, TE, Colts
8. Colston Loveland, TE, Bears
9. Emeka Egbuka, WR, Buccaneers
10. Jaxson Dart, QB, Giants
Jeanty is obviously No. 1. I think Hunter should be second, but there’s some concern with him being a part-time receiver. I assume the Browns are going to use Hunter more as a receiver than a cornerback to start, but what if they change their minds? It’s a tough evaluation, and not just because the Browns don’t have a viable starting quarterback.
Cam Ward versus Omarion Hampton is interesting. Hampton has insane potential 2025 because he’s a running back, but I don’t think he’s going to get carries over Najee Harris to start. Ward, at least, will start right away, and he’ll be productive in fantasy because of his rushing ability.
The receivers not named Hunter are underwhelming. Matthew Golden has the most potential with “No Cookie” Jordan Love, but it’s not like he’s a clean prospect. Tetairoa McMillan is safer because of where he was drafted and the lack of other talent at the position on the Panthers. However, his upside is curbed by Bryce Young. Emeka Egbuka may not even play this year.
The two tight ends are interesting. I’d prefer Tyler Warren because the Bears have more offensive weapons, but it’s close.
I’ll have updated 2025 Fantasy Football Rankings following the NFL Draft.
Best Players Available for Day 2:
The top-30 available players for the second round (with links to their scouting reports):
1. Nick Emmanwori, S, South Carolina
2. Will Johnson, WR, Michigan
3. Luther Burden, WR, Missouri
4. Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado
5. Alfred Collins, DT, Texas
6. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ohio State
7. Treyveon Henderson, RB, Ohio State
8. Elijah Arroyo, TE, Miami
9. J.T. Tuimolau, DE, Ohio State
10. Donovan Ezeiruaku, DE, Boston College
11. Carson Schwesinger, LB, UCLA
12. Trey Amos, CB, Ole Miss
13. Azareye’h Thomas, CB, Florida State
14. Shavon Revel, CB, Eat Carolina
15. Elic Ayomanor, WR, Stanford
16. Benjamin Morrison, CB, Notre Dame
17. Mason Taylor, TE, LSU
18. Jayden Higgins, WR, Iowa State
19. Danny Stutsman, LB, Oklahoma
20. Jordan Burch, DT, Oregon
21. Omar Norman-Lott, DT, Tennessee
22. T.J. Sanders, DT, South Carolina
23. Darius Alexander, DT, Toledo
24. Shemar Turner, DT, Texas A&M
25. Kaleb Johnson, RB, Iowa
26. Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
27. Jack Sawyer, DE, Ohio State
28. Darien Porter, CB, Iowa State
29. Jonah Savaiinaea, OT, Arizona
30. Emery Jones, OT, LSU
2025 NFL Draft Mailbag:
From John F.
Why isn’t there more people questioning the Abdul Carter pick? I understand it was a great value pick, and he is arguably the best player in the draft, but it was one position NYG did not need help in. I also understand Daboll/Schoen are on one of the hottest seats in NFL history right now… I feel like trading down a little bit for Warren/McMillan would have been a smarter move. I just haven’t seen any other similar perspective on it. Thanks Walt!
–> Three things. First, Carter was the best player available, and Schoen firmly believes in drafting the top talent on the board. Second, the Giants have a history of adding talented pass rushers. They drafted an edge in the first round when they had Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, for example. And the Giants need as many pass rushers as possible to beat Jalen Hurts and Jayden Daniels. And third, Kayvon Thibodeaux has an expiring contract coming up, so the Giants may just want to trade him.
From Jeff Z.
Any round 2/3 draft props?
–> I’ve asked around, but nothing so far. I will post them if I hear something that makes sense. We still have Sheduer Sanders to the Browns +650 live, so fingers crossed for that one.
From RichardJK
How soon should my Dolphins take Shedeur Sanders as Tua insurance?
–> I think the third or fourth round is the sweet spot for a quarterback. The second round would be too soon because of all the needs Miami has, while fifth round onward would be where you couldn’t land a viable quarterback.
From Tim S.
How much paid marketing happens behind the scenes to elevate prospects?
–> A ton. Some NFL agents even pay prominent NFL Draft analysts to promote their prospects. I’ll leave you to guess which ones those are because I’d like to avoid a lawsuit.
From John Junior
Call the Redskins the Commanders. That era is over and it’s offensive.
–> It’s offensive not to call them Redskins. In two separate Washington Post polls, 80 percent of Native Americans supported the Redskins name. The only people who didn’t like the name Redskins were racist white people who wanted to remove Native American imagery, just like they wanted to remove Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben.
From Greg Robinson
So, they get an A for trading 1st round picks, and the Jags get a C- for doing the same to acquire the best player in the draft?
–> It was not nearly the same. The Jaguars used an additonal first-round pick to move up three spots and then used a second first-round pick to draft a non-quarterback. They got one prospect for two first-round picks. The Falcons used one first-round pick to take Pearce and the other to draft Jalon Walker, so they got two prospects for two first-round picks.
From Johnny Drama
Your Bears draft grade is dumb. You are an imbecile. Tell ur mom I left the money under the pillow.
–> Imagine being this upset about someone’s draft grade. It would suck to have the emotional response of a 12-year-old girl.
From JP
Mock was a fucking disaster, what a crazy draft
–> Nine correct picks despite a trade at two. Charlie had 10 picks correct. I’ll take it.
We answered more questions on the WalterFootball.com After Dark Show last night. Here’s the show:
Please subscribe because we’re getting close to 5,000 subs!
And before I head out, here are more dumb Shedeur Sanders-related tweets:
2025 NFL Mock Draft - April 24
2026 NFL Mock Draft - April 24
NFL Power Rankings - March 28
NFL Picks - Feb. 9
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
April 25, 2025
2025 NFL Draft Day 2 Preview – Ten Observations:
1. Draft Day was a ridiculous movie. It was entertaining, but also extremely stupid. My favorite part of the movie was when the Browns general manager, played by Kevin Costner, announced to his front office that he moved up to No. 1 for a quarterback the day of the draft. He then said, “Let’s get to work on him.” Somehow, the team did zero research on a quarterback before surrendering three first-round picks for him. Unreal.
Another strange instance in the movie was during the draft when Costner bullied Jacksonville’s young general manager into making a lopsided trade. He said something like, “You’re the new guy, so you’re going to look dumb if you don’t make this trade.” And then, the poor Jaguars general manager made the trade.
I never thought we’d see something like this in real life, but we did. It happened exactly this way in the 2025 NFL Draft. Cleveland, in an attempt to trade down, bullied the young Jaguars general manager into making a lopsided trade in which Jacksonville surrendered first- and second-round picks to move up only three spots for a non-quarterback. If this isn’t proof that we live in a simulation, I don’t know what is.
While this was all hilarious, the trade was cataclysmic for our draft props and mock draft accuracy. Here’s how things would have unfolded if the Jaguars didn’t make that asinine trade:
2. CLE – Travis Hunter
3. NYG – Abdul Carter (same)
4. NE – Will Campbell (same)
5. JAX – Ashton Jeanty
6. LV – Armand Membou
7. NYJ – Kelvin Banks, Tyler Warren, or Mason Graham
8. CAR – Mason Graham or Tetairoa McMillan
9. NO – Kelvin Banks, Tyler Warren, or Mason Graham
Unfortunately, it didn’t go this way. On the plus side, Cleveland’s general manager got to spread his dad’s ashes on a football field and then learned that his young girlfriend is pregnant.
2. The cascade of pick alterations resulting from Jacksonville’s trade could have some poor consequences for two teams in the future.
Back in February of 2018, Charlie Campbell and I were in Minnesota for the Eagles-Patriots Super Bowl. This was just ahead of the 2018 NFL Draft, when Bradley Chubb was widely expected to be chosen by the Browns. Charlie, however, knew that this was not going to happen. He told me that personnel men informed him that they don’t like to use consecutive first-round picks on the same position because it becomes incredibly problematic to re-sign both in 3-4 years. They typically don’t want to dedicate too much money to the same position in such a short time span.
The Browns ended up passing on Chubb in favor of Denzel Ward. However, two teams didn’t quite consider this dilemma, as the Jets and Saints both drafted offensive tackles in consecutive drafts, selecting Armand Membou and Kelvin Banks, respectively.
For the Jets, the true poor decision was passing on Brock Bowers in favor of Olu Fashanu. I thought ownership would have FOMO after missing out on Bowers, but Membou apparently won them over via Zoom calls, which is a bit strange. Warren fell to No. 14, so perhaps he should have sharpened his game when it comes to online chatting.
I didn’t mind the Saints pick either. I’m not as high on Banks as I am with Membou, but it makes sense to replace the retired Ramczyk. Still, re-signing both Banks and Tallies Fuaga will prove to be difficult when their contracts are nearing expiration.
3. Another questionable offensive line pick was made by the Cowboys when they selected Tyler Booker. The media gushed about this, citing that Jerry Jones was going back to his “roots” from the early Ezekiel Elliott days, completely ignoring that Jones reached for a player expected to go in the 20s.
What was bizarre about this pick was that it was the complete opposite approach from what the Colts took. The Colts, who loved Booker, acknowledged that No. 14 was too early for a guard, so they decided that they were going to draft a tight end. And yet, the top tight end in this class, Tyler Warren, fell right into the Cowboys’ lap, and they decided on Booker instead. It just goes to show that each team has their own drafting strategy.
4. Booker being off the board impacted the rest of the opening round. Two teams – the Texans and Lions – were confident that he would be available to them in the 20s. Detroit would have to trade up a bit, but both teams were shocked that Booker was chosen at No. 12.
Dallas reaching for Booker prompted different reactions from both teams. The Texans traded out of the first round with the Giants, while the Lions reached for Tyleik Williams. I said prior to the draft that because this class isn’t very good, we were going to see a weird, Cole Strange-type pick from a team in the 20s. The Lions, who usually draft very well, were that team when they panicked and drafted Williams.
5. I mentioned the Giants trading up with the Texans. At least one team was projected to move up for a quarterback, and New York ended up being that team.
While the Giants celebrated the trade and pick at the time, I have to wonder if they have buyer’s remorse, given how the rest of the first round unfolded. No one else moved up for a quarterback, so there’s a good chance the Giants could have drafted Dart at No. 34, or at the very least, surrendered less draft capital to trade up a couple of spots instead of nine.
6. Speaking of trades, there was a lack of them in the first round. On average, there are between five and six trades in the first round of the NFL Draft, but we saw just three before the Eagles moved up one spot to swap with the Chiefs. Teams really wanted to trade down. It was reported that the Seahawks were trying to do it. We know the Bengals wanted to do so. It made sense for the Vikings to trade because they only had four picks. No one did it, however, between picks two and 25.
If you’re wondering why these teams couldn’t trade down, it’s because no one wanted to trade up. This was such a weak draft class at the top end that no team had any trade-up targets in mind until we got to the mid-20s which was when the Giants and Falcons made their moves. New York trading up for a quarterback was understandable, while many were critical of Atlanta’s decision.
7. Let’s discuss what the Falcons did at length. I graded them favorably for trading up for James Pearce, though I initially thought it was a poor decision. I’ll explain why I changed my mind:
The Falcons loved Pearce. They were going to make him the pick at No. 15 before Jalon Walker fell to them. They believed that Pearce had the best tape of all the edge rushers in this class, save for Walker and Abdul Carter. So, we can acknowledge that in their opinion, they were getting great value for Pearce at No. 26.
The argument could be made that the Falcons weren’t getting great value because they surrendered a 2026 first-round pick for Pearce. However, logic dictates that Pearce would just be their 2026 pick. I expect the Falcons to be a decent team in 2025, so chances are they’ll be drafting in the high teens or early 20s, or perhaps even later than that. Could they get someone as good as Pearce with that pick, keeping in mind that they viewed him as a great option at No. 15 overall? Probably not.
Now, there’s the matter of the other compensation. In addition to trading away next year’s first-round pick – which, again, will just be Pearce – they dropped from No. 46 to 101. This doesn’t sound great, but it was the price they paid for being able to use their 2026 first-round pick in the present. Think about it like taking a loan and paying the interest. This sort of strategy wouldn’t work for bad or mediocre teams because there’s no reason to pay the interest when they can just wait, but the Falcons should be considered the favorites to win the NFC South. It’ll be a mild upset if they’re not in the playoffs next year because of how bad their division is, and if they’re in the playoffs, they certainly have a chance at a Super Bowl. One frequent guest we have on the WalterFootball.com After Dark Show (Quacky) believes that the Falcons are a viable long shot to win Super Bowl LX.
If this is correct, and the Falcons are in play for the Super Bowl, then they made the correct decision. They’ll now have two very talented edge rushers, upgrading an area that has been an issue for them since the John Abraham days. If these edge rushers thrive, and Michael Penix performs as well as he did at the end of his rookie year, then the Falcons will be contending come mid-January.
8. Two of the other teams in the NFC made very strange selections that actually deserve to be panned. I’m referring to the Panthers and Buccaneers both drafting receivers.
The Panthers had the worst defense in the NFL last year. They had a great opportunity to fix this issue with a gifted defender at No. 8. Instead, they opted for Tetairoa McMillan. While McMillan is a talented receiver, he’s far from an elite prospect – he would have gone in the teens last year at the very earliest – and he comes with some work-ethic concerns. It’d be one thing if McMillan were on the level of a Marvin Harrison Jr. or a Malik Nabers, or even a Rome Odunze, but he was well behind those three prospects. Thus, the Panthers couldn’t really justify drafting him over Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams, Kenneth Grant, or some of the other talented defenders in this class.
While I can at least understand Carolina’s thought process, I have no idea why the Buccaneers drafted Emeka Egbuka. They could have landed an excellent linebacker (Jihaad Campbell), edge rusher (James Pearce), or cornerback (Jahdae Barron), all of whom would start right away for them. Instead, they drafted their fourth receiver.
I like Egbuka, and he could end up being a good player for the Buccaneers. However, unless there are injuries at receiver, he likely won’t contribute much this year. For a team that, like the Falcons, has a good chance to win a bad division and make a run in the playoffs, the Buccaneers squandered an opportunity to strengthen their team and give themselves the best chance possible to win the Super Bowl this year. I was 50-50 on the Buccaneers versus Falcons as far as the winner of the NFC South was concerned, but in the wake of what transpired in the 2025 NFL Draft, I now have to give a decent edge to Atlanta.
9. While the Buccaneers and Panthers were obvious losers of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the obvious winners were the Ravens and Eagles. I said it prior to the draft: “Great prospects are going to drop to the Ravens and Eagles, and they’re going to draft them, and the media is going to exclaim, ‘How do these teams keep getting these great players!?'”
I’m not even bragging about predicting this because it happens all the time. All. The. Time. The Ravens and Eagles always come away with the best prospects because foolish teams – like the Buccaneers and Panthers, and some of the others we’ve discussed on this page – make asinine decisions, allowing great prospects to fall to the perennial contenders.
Interestingly enough, both the Ravens and Eagles had their eyes on the same player. I heard that the Eagles loved Malaki Starks, but didn’t expect him to fall to them. They were right, as Baltimore had the same evaluation of him.
10. We haven’t gotten to Sheduer Sanders yet. There are very dumb people like this on Twitter posting their “everything is racist” agenda:
Does anyone want to tell this bozo that Caleb Williams and Cam Ward were the top picks in the past two drafts? Or that Jayden Daniels was the No. 2 overall pick last year? As someone replied, “Yeah, I’m sure Mike Tomlin passed on a black quarterback because he was confident.”
Sanders fell because he wasn’t an elite prospect at the position. He has pocket-awareness issues as well, in that he takes lots of sacks. I’ve told this story before, but I shared my mock draft with an NFC scout back in February. He replied with seven words, “Get Shedeur out of the first round.” This was a case of draft media getting a prospect wrong in relation to how the scouting community felt about him. If you want further evidence of this, look at this graphic from ESPN last night:
As if we needed more evidence that ESPN sucks. The sportsbooks had Sanders’ over-under at over 21.5 -108! How could this draft “predictor” be so wrong?
Thanks to ESPN leading the public astray, as they usually do, we were able to collect. Though the ridiculous Jaguars trade cost us money, we were able to win 12.25 units because we were able to fade Sanders in our NFL Draft Props.
Despite fading Sanders, I actually like him and think he can be an OK starter in the NFL, though I don’t think he’ll ever be great. Still, I wish him the best, partly because he made us lots of money last night. I don’t want to be associated with this bad karma for very long, so I hope he defies everyone and becomes a perennial Pro Bowler. I also hope that he’s chosen atop the second round by the Browns. And trust me, I’m not just saying that because we have a +650 bet on Sanders to go to Cleveland!
Fantasy Football Perspective:
For a fantasy football perspective, there were 10 players chosen in the first round, compared to 14 last year. Here they are, ordered by 2025 fantasy value:
1. Ashton Jeanty, RB, Raiders
2. Travis Hunter, WR, Browns
3. Cam Ward, QB, Titans
4. Omarion Hampton, RB, Chargers
5. Tetairoa McMillan, WR, Panthers
6. Matthew Golden, WR, Packers
7. Tyler Warren, TE, Colts
8. Colston Loveland, TE, Bears
9. Emeka Egbuka, WR, Buccaneers
10. Jaxson Dart, QB, Giants
Jeanty is obviously No. 1. I think Hunter should be second, but there’s some concern with him being a part-time receiver. I assume the Browns are going to use Hunter more as a receiver than a cornerback to start, but what if they change their minds? It’s a tough evaluation, and not just because the Browns don’t have a viable starting quarterback.
Cam Ward versus Omarion Hampton is interesting. Hampton has insane potential 2025 because he’s a running back, but I don’t think he’s going to get carries over Najee Harris to start. Ward, at least, will start right away, and he’ll be productive in fantasy because of his rushing ability.
The receivers not named Hunter are underwhelming. Matthew Golden has the most potential with “No Cookie” Jordan Love, but it’s not like he’s a clean prospect. Tetairoa McMillan is safer because of where he was drafted and the lack of other talent at the position on the Panthers. However, his upside is curbed by Bryce Young. Emeka Egbuka may not even play this year.
The two tight ends are interesting. I’d prefer Tyler Warren because the Bears have more offensive weapons, but it’s close.
I’ll have updated 2025 Fantasy Football Rankings following the NFL Draft.
Best Players Available for Day 2:
The top-30 available players for the second round (with links to their scouting reports):
1. Nick Emmanwori, S, South Carolina
2. Will Johnson, WR, Michigan
3. Luther Burden, WR, Missouri
4. Shedeur Sanders, QB, Colorado
5. Alfred Collins, DT, Texas
6. Quinshon Judkins, RB, Ohio State
7. Treyveon Henderson, RB, Ohio State
8. Elijah Arroyo, TE, Miami
9. J.T. Tuimolau, DE, Ohio State
10. Donovan Ezeiruaku, DE, Boston College
11. Carson Schwesinger, LB, UCLA
12. Trey Amos, CB, Ole Miss
13. Azareye’h Thomas, CB, Florida State
14. Shavon Revel, CB, Eat Carolina
15. Elic Ayomanor, WR, Stanford
16. Benjamin Morrison, CB, Notre Dame
17. Mason Taylor, TE, LSU
18. Jayden Higgins, WR, Iowa State
19. Danny Stutsman, LB, Oklahoma
20. Jordan Burch, DT, Oregon
21. Omar Norman-Lott, DT, Tennessee
22. T.J. Sanders, DT, South Carolina
23. Darius Alexander, DT, Toledo
24. Shemar Turner, DT, Texas A&M
25. Kaleb Johnson, RB, Iowa
26. Xavier Watts, S, Notre Dame
27. Jack Sawyer, DE, Ohio State
28. Darien Porter, CB, Iowa State
29. Jonah Savaiinaea, OT, Arizona
30. Emery Jones, OT, LSU
2025 NFL Draft Mailbag:
From John F.
Why isn’t there more people questioning the Abdul Carter pick? I understand it was a great value pick, and he is arguably the best player in the draft, but it was one position NYG did not need help in. I also understand Daboll/Schoen are on one of the hottest seats in NFL history right now… I feel like trading down a little bit for Warren/McMillan would have been a smarter move. I just haven’t seen any other similar perspective on it. Thanks Walt!
–> Three things. First, Carter was the best player available, and Schoen firmly believes in drafting the top talent on the board. Second, the Giants have a history of adding talented pass rushers. They drafted an edge in the first round when they had Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, for example. And the Giants need as many pass rushers as possible to beat Jalen Hurts and Jayden Daniels. And third, Kayvon Thibodeaux has an expiring contract coming up, so the Giants may just want to trade him.
From Jeff Z.
Any round 2/3 draft props?
–> I’ve asked around, but nothing so far. I will post them if I hear something that makes sense. We still have Sheduer Sanders to the Browns +650 live, so fingers crossed for that one.
From RichardJK
How soon should my Dolphins take Shedeur Sanders as Tua insurance?
–> I think the third or fourth round is the sweet spot for a quarterback. The second round would be too soon because of all the needs Miami has, while fifth round onward would be where you couldn’t land a viable quarterback.
From Tim S.
How much paid marketing happens behind the scenes to elevate prospects?
–> A ton. Some NFL agents even pay prominent NFL Draft analysts to promote their prospects. I’ll leave you to guess which ones those are because I’d like to avoid a lawsuit.
From John Junior
Call the Redskins the Commanders. That era is over and it’s offensive.
–> It’s offensive not to call them Redskins. In two separate Washington Post polls, 80 percent of Native Americans supported the Redskins name. The only people who didn’t like the name Redskins were racist white people who wanted to remove Native American imagery, just like they wanted to remove Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben.
From Greg Robinson
So, they get an A for trading 1st round picks, and the Jags get a C- for doing the same to acquire the best player in the draft?
–> It was not nearly the same. The Jaguars used an additonal first-round pick to move up three spots and then used a second first-round pick to draft a non-quarterback. They got one prospect for two first-round picks. The Falcons used one first-round pick to take Pearce and the other to draft Jalon Walker, so they got two prospects for two first-round picks.
From Johnny Drama
Your Bears draft grade is dumb. You are an imbecile. Tell ur mom I left the money under the pillow.
–> Imagine being this upset about someone’s draft grade. It would suck to have the emotional response of a 12-year-old girl.
From JP
Mock was a fucking disaster, what a crazy draft
–> Nine correct picks despite a trade at two. Charlie had 10 picks correct. I’ll take it.
We answered more questions on the WalterFootball.com After Dark Show last night. Here’s the show:
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And before I head out, here are more dumb Shedeur Sanders-related tweets:
2025 NFL Mock Draft - April 24
2026 NFL Mock Draft - April 24
NFL Power Rankings - March 28
NFL Picks - Feb. 9
Fantasy Football Rankings - Sept. 4
