HEADLINES

Saints Select T Kelvin Banks Jr. At No. 9

April 24th, 2025 at 8:09pm CST by Ely Allen

As expected, the Saints have not used the No. 9 pick to select a quarterback. Instead, help up front is coming. New Orleans has drafted Texas left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. While Banks was often projected as a potential interior offensive lineman, the team announced him as a tackle during their selection.

Despite the inside projections, Banks was a mainstay at left tackle throughout his time in Austin. He’s actually fairly new to the position, though, as he didn’t play offensive line until he was in high school. He can struggle to hold blocks or find his targets in the run game, but he has natural pass blocking abilities, utilizing skilled feet and hand placement to establish leverage against his pass rusher.

The Saints return both starting tackles from last year in left tackle Taliese Fuaga and right tackle Trevor Penning. Neither player was stellar in their roles last year, so it would not be out of the question for Banks to supplant one of them in a starting role. Fuaga stands the best chance at retaining a starting job as he was only a rookie as last year’s first-round pick. Penning was also a first-round pick, but he was selected back in 2022 and has not truly established himself in his three years of play.

Even though the team made a point to call him a tackle in Green Bay, the Saints have a much bigger need at guard. They need to replace their starting left guard and don’t really have many doable options at the moment. Unless they plan on shifting Fuaga in to guard, Banks may need to start his NFL career on the interior.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Panthers Draft Tetairoa McMillan At No. 8

April 24th, 2025 at 8:04pm CST by Ben Levine

The Panthers were a candidate to trade down, and ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports Carolina fielded calls about doing so. Instead, Carolina has retained the selection.

Many felt Jalon Walker would be the team’s top choice, and he was on the board at No. 8. Surprisingly, neither Walker nor another defender is headed to Carolina. Receiver Tetairoa McMillan has been selected.

Tet is certainly worthy of an early-first-round selection following his standout career at Arizona. His numbers took a slight step back in 2024, but he still finished the campaign with 84 catches for 1,319 yards, a performance that definitively established him as one of the draft’s top wide receivers.

The Panthers have clearly been motivated to provide former first-overall pick Bryce Young with as many young targets as possible. The team used the No. 32 pick in last year’s draft on Xavier Legette, and the rookie finished the year with 521 yards from scrimmage.

While Young was mostly responsible for his benching last year, the team’s lack of dynamic receiver depth certainly didn’t help. Now, the signal-caller will be armed with a pair of highly-touted WRs, making this a crucial year for both Young and the Panthers offense.

McMillan will likely be penciled in atop the depth chart next to Legette heading into next season. Adam Thielen is still kicking around, and the Panthers are hanging on to the likes of David Moore and Jalen Coker. Those veterans shouldn’t provide the rookie with many threats for playing time, and there’s a chance Tet ends up emerging as the team’s top offensive weapon.

While WR was certainly a need for the organization, there was a belief that they’d ultimately settle for Walker. Although Carolina did not send a large contingent to Walker’s Athens pro day earlier this month, sources believed Dan Morgan and Dave Canales remained high on the intriguing front-seven piece, especially after the team failed to replace Brian Burns in 2024.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Jets Draft Armand Membou Seventh Overall

April 24th, 2025 at 7:56pm CST by Ely Allen

Addressing right tackle has long been seen as a logical draft target for the Jets. To no surprise, then, Missouri tackle Armand Membou has been selected seventh overall.

While LSU’s Will Campbell was widely seen as the most NFL-ready offensive tackle in the draft, Membou was seen as the tackle prospect with the highest potential ceiling. Membou came to the game of football late but still found his way into Missouri’s starting lineup as a freshman. He would keep the job for the rest of his collegiate career, improving with each start.

Membou is a strong run blocker, serving as a lead battering ram for the Tigers throughout his career. He’s an equally menacing pass blocker with impressive balance and quickness off of the line of scrimmage. What he lacks in ideal size, he makes up for with effort and attitude.

Some teams saw Membou as a guard leading up to the draft, but based on the Jets’ O-line configuration, it is fairly clear they view the Mizzou product as a tackle. The team has now chosen tackles in back-to-back first rounds, having added Olu Fashanu to start last year’s draft. New York has also gone O-line in four of the past six first rounds, dating back to its Mekhi Becton and Alijah Vera-Tucker choices. The latter remains on the team at guard.

After working with two extremely experienced veterans, Morgan Moses and Tyron Smith, for most of the year as their bookend starters in 2024, a youth movement will now take over in New York. Last year’s first-round pick, Fashanu, should man the left tackle role. Membou should certainly challenge to start immediately at right tackle, but if he isn’t quite ready for the job, Chukwuma Okorafor should be able to fill in until he is.

Adam La Rose contributed to this post.

Raiders Select RB Ashton Jeanty At No. 6

April 24th, 2025 at 7:48pm CST by Adam La Rose

Ashton Jeanty‘s name was floated as a potential top-five pick, but he remained on the board through to the sixth overall selection. To no surprise, the Boise State running back has been selected by the Raiders.

This selection doesn’t come as a big surprise. The Raiders were one of the first teams to be definitively connected to Jeanty, although the star RB’s draft stock has picked up major steam in recent days. We heard just this afternoon that the Bears were interested in trading up for the Boise State product, and there was a belief that the Jaguars could even add to their RB depth at No. 5.

Instead, the Jaguars traded up to No. 2, paving the way for Jeanty to fall to the Raiders at No. 6. Jeanty is one of the most hyped RB prospects in several years following his run at Barry Sanders‘ hallowed single-season Division I-FBS rushing record. The RB ultimately finished last season with 2,739 yards from scrimmage and 30 touchdowns while guiding Boise State to the College Football Playoff.

The Raiders struggled to replace Josh Jacobs in 2024. The team shuffled through a handful of solutions, with veterans Alexander Mattison, Ameer Abdullah, and Zamir White all garnering at least 60 carries. White, shockingly, is the only one of those three still on the roster, and the Raiders brought in Raheem Mostert as some veteran depth.

Still, Jeanty should dominate the backfield touches in Las Vegas. With a decent O-line and a lack of elite wide receivers in the class, the new brain trust of general manager John Spytek, head coach Pete Carroll, and minority owner Tom Brady are clearly counting on the rookie to be a major weapon for new quarterback Geno Smith. Despite entering his first NFL season, Jeanty is now undoubtedly the team’s most dynamic offensive talent, and he should be a major contender for Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2025.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.

Browns Draft DT Mason Graham At No. 5

April 24th, 2025 at 7:43pm CST by Adam La Rose

After trading down from No. 2, the Browns loomed as a team capable of moving down the board once again. Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports that Cleveland took calls and was willing to execute another trade. Instead, the Browns have stayed pat and selected Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham at No. 5 overall.

In many respects, Graham is considered the best interior defensive line prospect in this year’s draft class. A two-year starter in Ann Arbor with a National Championship victory under his belt, Graham may not have stuffed the stat sheet in the offensive backfield, only notching nine sacks and 17 tackles for loss in three years, but his presence was felt and appreciated all over the defense.

Coming from a wrestling background, Graham wins with low body position and leverage. He sheds blocks with ease and works extremely hard to keep the ball in front of him. He strength, effort, and quick twitch off the line of scrimmage will be extremely valuable in Cleveland.

Graham immediately upgrades a defensive tackles group headed by Shelby Harris and Maliek Collins. Graham should immediately factor in for starting snaps, giving Cleveland much more quality depth across a defensive line led by annual Defensive Player of the Year candidate Myles Garrett.

The last time the Browns traded out of a first-round pick that became a wide receiver and selected a defensive tackle instead was in 2011, when they traded out of a No. 6 overall pick that became Julio Jones and selected Phil Taylor at No. 21 overall. They’ll hope that this year’s trade yields much more positive results, and Graham sets them up well for this possibility.

Ely Allen contributed to this post.

Patriots Select Will Campbell Fourth Overall

April 24th, 2025 at 7:38pm CST by Adam La Rose

The long-running expectation has been that the Patriots would draft Will Campbell fourth overall. The LSU offensive tackle is indeed headed to New England.

The fourth-overall selection did provide a bit of intrigue heading into the draft. Cam Ward was the expected top-overall pick, while the draft’s two blue chip prospects (Travis Hunter, Abdul Carter) were always penciled in at second and third.

There was considered a relative drop off at No. 4 (depending on your feelings about selecting RB Ashton Jeanty that early), and as a result, Campbell was often mentioned as a potential option for New England. We heard earlier today that the LSU product was the expected choice of the Patriots, especially considering the team’s need for OL depth.

The Patriots invested much of the free agency budget on the defensive side of the ball, with right tackle Morgan Moses and center Garrett Bradbury representing their major additions. With Cole Strange and Michael Onwenu at the two guard spots, the Patriots still had a hole at LT. The team will be hoping their new rookie will be capable of blocking for franchise QB Drake Maye, both now and in the future.

The consensus All-American certainly performed like an elite LT in college, but he still had plenty of question marks heading into the draft. Specifically, scouts often criticized his lack of length, making Campbell one of the more divisive prospects atop the draft board. While some believed the lineman’s poor wingspan wouldn’t impact his ability to perform in the NFL, others believed it’d ultimately lead to a position change.

The Patriots will surely be counting on Campbell to take over that LT spot for the foreseeable future. The team has struggled to find a solution at the position in recent years, and the team doesn’t really have many fallback options should Campbell fail (or need more time). The likes of Vederian Lowe and Caedan Wallace are the team’s current depth options, so the Patriots will need their rookie to succeed if they hope to take a step forward in 2025.

Ben Levine contributed to this post.

Giants Select Abdul Carter At No. 3

April 24th, 2025 at 7:30pm CST by Adam La Rose

While a surprise took place with the second overall pick, things have gone according to plan with the Giants. New York has retained the No. 3 pick and used it on Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter. Carter becomes the second pass rusher taken in the top five picks by New York in the past four drafts, joining Kayvon Thibodeaux, who was drafted No. 5 overall by in 2022.

For a while, it was unclear whether or not Carter was truly destined for New York. We continued to see calls from the Giants as they attempted to land the No. 1 overall pick from Tennessee as well as calls into New York as teams considered trading up to get Carter. There were even rumors that Carter was still in play to land in Cleveland at No. 2 overall. Ultimately, everything stayed as planned, and the Giants walk away with a player many considered the best prospect in the draft class.

Carter graded out as college football’s second-best edge rusher in 2024, per Pro Football Focus. His 12.0 sacks this season were good for seventh in the nations, and he led the NCAA with 23.5 tackles for loss. He finished his collegiate career as the Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year and a unanimous All-American.

Carter joins a pass rushing group that is currently led by Thibodeaux and Brian Burns. Thibodeaux is headed into the final guaranteed year of his rookie contract, but the Giants are expected to exercise his fifth-year option. Burns, on the other hand, is under contract through the 2028 season and should be around for Carter’s first few years in the league.

Carter should immediately push Thibodeaux for starting reps opposite Burns. At the very least, the Giants now have three starting caliber pass rushers that they can employ in any combination. Regardless of their needs, Big Blue walks away with one of the draft’s top prospects at No. 3 overall.

Ely Allen contributed to this post.

Titans Select QB Cam Ward First Overall

April 24th, 2025 at 7:16pm CST by Adam La Rose

To no surprise, the Titans have used the top pick in tonight’s draft to add their projected franchise quarterback. Cam Ward has come off the board first overall.

Early in the pre-draft process, the possibility of Tennessee trading down was raised. As usual, calls came in for the top selection, with efforts on that front continuing until hours before the start of the draft. New general manager Mike Borgonzi made it clear last month he would not pass up the opportunity to draft a ‘generational talent,’ something many took as a reference to two-way star Travis Hunter. Instead of taking the 2024 Heisman winner, though, selecting Ward has long been viewed as the likely outcome.

Tennessee lined up pre-draft visits with a number of top prospects (including fellow quarterback Shedeur Sanders), but the team did plenty of homework on Ward – including a private workout in late March. The Titans did not go to those lengths in Sanders’ case, and they canceled a workout which had been scheduled with Hunter. Since that point, the expectation has remained that Ward would come off the board first. The consensus All-American will be tasked with handling QB1 duties upon arrival in Nashville.

A zero-star recruit, Ward’s college career began at Incarnate Word before he spent a pair of seasons at Washington State. In 2024, he played at Miami and enjoyed his most accurate campaign to date. Completing 67.2% of his passes, Ward amassed over 4,300 passing yards and a 39:7 touchdown-to-interception ratio. Those figures earned him ACC Player of the Year honors (among others) and – coupled with his athletic upside – made him a logical target for the top pick in a QB class not held in the same regard as those of the recent past.

Ward, 23 next month, represents the first quarterback selected No. 1 overall in Titans/Oilers history (the franchise used the top pick on defensive end John Matuszak in 1973 and running back Earl Campbell in 1978). The post-Ryan Tannehill era under center saw Will Levis take over starting duties, but he has not developed as hoped. The 33rd overall pick in the 2023 draft has two seasons left on his rookie contract and could be dealt this weekend. Ward, meanwhile, joins an offense which saw two free agent investments along the O-line this spring and, yesterday, the addition of veteran wideout Tyler Lockett.

Head coach Brian Callahan was hired last offseason in no small part based on his track record with developing quarterbacks. Moving on from Levis (or at least relegating him to backup duties) would confirm Ward’s position as Tennessee’s investment under center for 2025 and beyond. If the team is to find stability on the sidelines and in the front office moving forward, success on the field will be key. Ward will no doubt be a central figure in that effort.

Broncos Pushing To Acquire Top-10 Pick

April 24th, 2025 at 7:14pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos have been linked to moving up or down in the first round of tonight’s draft. It is clear a trade closer to the top of the board is the team’s goal at this point.

Denver is making an “aggressive push” to acquire a top-10 pick, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports. This runs counter to what came out — from both Russini and ESPN’s Adam Schefter over the past 24 hours — but the Broncos had been tied to potentially moving up earlier this week. As Denver plans appear fluid (or the messaging, or both), the team may well become the second tonight to trade up inside the top 10 — foll0wing Jacksonville’s blockbuster move.

The team has been tied to adding skill-position help. George Paton confirmed the Broncos will draft a running back, but it is worth wondering if the team would be ready to pull the trigger early. The Browns now sit at No. 5, having bailed on the Travis Hunter draft slot for a major haul. While Cleveland could use RB help post-Nick Chubb, Denver would make sense as an Ashton Jeanty suitor. Though, it would take a monster trade package to climb from No. 20 to Jeanty real estate.

Russini’s Wednesday offering indicated the Broncos were content at No. 20 and were not inclined to pay a trade-up price to climb up for a running back. ESPN.com’s Matt Miller also noted the Broncos viewed a wide receiver or tight end as a first-round priority over the much-mocked RB move. It might take a climb into the top 10 to land either Tyler Warren or Colston Loveland, and the Broncos lessened their need to upgrade there by giving Evan Engram a two-year, $23MM deal.

It would be interesting if the Broncos, who focused otherwise on defense during free agency, opted for a non-skill-position pick via a trade-up maneuver. The team re-signed D.J. Jones and added Talanoa Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw in March, fortifying a defense that ranked in the top five last season. Denver also has its five O-line starters returning, with all but center Luke Wattenberg signed beyond 2025. It will be interesting to see how this shakes out, as the Broncos could also use their No. 20 pick as a destination for clubs eyeing a vault in front of the QB-needy Steelers (No. 21). Rumored earlier today, this scenario might be Plan B for the AFC West team.

Bears Attempting To Trade Up; RB Ashton Jeanty Seen As Target

April 24th, 2025 at 7:04pm CST by Adam La Rose

7:04pm: In the event the Browns reach agreement on a trade for the No. 2 pick, they could move further down the order. Russini’s colleague Jeff Howe reports the Bears could see the fifth overall selection as a target to move up for Jeanty. Plenty of moving parts are still in play, but Chicago could become a team to watch soon.

4:25pm: As the countdown to the draft continues, movement near the top of the board remains something to watch for. The Bears could find themselves higher up the order than No. 10 shortly.

Chicago is among the teams attempting to pull of a trade-up maneuver, Dianna Russini of The Athletic reports. The Browns and Giants have fielded calls for the second and third overall selections, but teams such as the Panthers (at No. 8) have made it clear they would be a willing trade partner. To little surprise, Russini adds the Bears’ ongoing efforts are aimed at putting them in range to draft Ashton Jeanty.

On more than one occasion, the Boise State running back has been named as a prospect Chicago is highly interested in. A trade up the board has long been considered necessary given Jeanty’s projected landing spots, though. The Raiders at No. 6 were reported as a logical destination, something general manager John Spytek has done nothing to dispel in the lead-in to the draft. More recently, however, the Jaguars have seen their links to Mason Graham fade in favor of Jeanty connections. As a result, the possibility of the latter being selected fifth overall is one to monitor.

Jeanty finished second in Heisman voting in 2024 off the back of his stellar campaign. The junior posted massive production during his time in college, establishing himself as the top prospect in what is considered a very strong running back class. He is expected to deliver an immediate impact in whichever backfield he finds himself in at the NFL level.

In the case of the Bears, that would consist of splitting time with D’Andre Swift. The 2024 free agent addition has two years remaining on his deal, including guarantees for the coming campaign. Swift’s security for the immediate future has led some to question the idea of Chicago pursuing a running back early in the draft, especially after Swift posted a new career high in scrimmage yards (1,345) in 2024. Other roster holes – such as left tackle, edge rush and defensive line – represent other likely priorities with respect to rookie additions.

Targeting a prospect at one of those spots could of course remain in play in the event the Bears are unable to work out a trade agreement. If teams like the Jags or Raiders are amenable to sliding to the back of the top-10 order, though, Jeanty could very well wind up in the Windy City to begin his pro career.

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