This projection was published on the 23rd April
#1 Tennessee — Cam Ward (QB, Miami)
The consensus top pick for some time but I know one talent evaluator in the league who only gave him a third round grade.
#2 Cleveland — Travis Hunter (WR/CB, Colorado)
All the talk in the last 24 hours has been about a team (maybe Dallas?) trying to trade up for a shot at Hunter. I doubt anything happens.
#3 NY Giants — Abdul Carter (EDGE, Penn State)
The Giants don’t take a quarterback here and will need a plan for their second pick to address the need.
#4 New England — Will Campbell (T, LSU)
I don’t like this pick. Campbell’s tape wasn’t very good in 2024 and he will struggle at tackle in the NFL. But this is where the buzz is.
#5 Jacksonville — Ashton Jeanty (RB, Boise State)
In my stream on Sunday I put Jeanty with the Jaguars and it has now become the betting favourite pairing. It makes sense, he’s the pound-for-pound best player in the draft.
#6 Las Vegas — Jalon Walker (LB, Georgia)
The Raiders need a culture-setter. That’s Jalon Walker. He’ll come in, contribute to the pass-rush, play linebacker and set the tone for Pete Carroll.
#7 NY Jets — Mason Graham (DT, Michigan)
There’s plenty of chatter that the Jets plan to give their defensive-minded Head Coach the opportunity to add a top defender here. Graham had dinner with the Jets, an official visit and they’ve shown a lot of interest.
#8 Carolina — Mykel Williams (DE, Georgia)
With Walker unavailable, the Panthers pivot to his Georgia team-mate to fill a need.
#9 New Orleans — Armand Membou (T, Missouri)
Ryan Ramczyk is retiring and they’re not taking up the fifth-year option on Trevor Penning.
#10 Chicago — Tyler Warren (TE, Penn State)
Warren or Colston Loveland will be tremendous in Ben Johnson’s offense.
#11 San Francisco — Walter Nolen (DT, Ole Miss)
I know a talent evaluator who loves Nolen. Without the character concerns he would’ve been a top-10 pick.
#12 Dallas — Tetairoa McMillan (WR, Arizona)
I’m not a McMillan fan but I was told by a good source he’ll be the first receiver taken and I’m sticking with it.
#13 Miami — Kelvin Banks Jr (T/G, Texas)
Jahdae Barron makes a lot of sense but there’s a lot of smoke around the Dolphins wanting Banks Jr.
#14 Indianapolis — Colston Loveland (TE, Michigan)
One of the legit top-10 players in the draft, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Loveland goes higher than this — leaving the Colts to go O-line instead.
#15 Atlanta — Mike Green (EDGE, Marshall)
They need sacks and Green had 17 last season.
#16 Arizona — Jahdae Barron (CB, Texas)
It feels like O-line and cornerback are the likely options here.
#17 Cincinnati — James Pearce Jr (EDGE, Tennessee)
The Bengals rarely worry about character concerns. If they make this pick, could they trade Trey Hendrickson shortly after?
#18 Seattle — Grey Zabel (G, North Dakota State)
The Seahawks have a gaping void at left guard and need to fill it. Zabel’s testing profile being comparable to Creed Humphrey, Frank Ragnow and Zach Tom makes him a justifiable top-20 pick. The key question is — will someone else take him before #18?
#19 Tampa Bay — Donovan Ezeiruaku (EDGE, Boston College)
They like to add pass rushers and Ezeiruaku can provide real burst and agility off the edge.
#20 Denver — TreVeyon Henderson (RB, Ohio State)
Sean Payton apparently wants a ‘joker’ weapon on offense and he showed last year he’ll take the guys he wants and isn’t bothered what anyone thinks.
#21 Pittsburgh — Shedeur Sanders (QB, Colorado)
It’s difficult to work out whether Pittsburgh’s interest is legit but at the moment they only have Mason Rudolph on the roster and Aaron Rodgers seems to be waiting for the Vikings.
#22 LA Chargers — Kenneth Grant (DT, Michigan)
The Michigan coaches and staff seem to have a real belief in Grant, so expect him to land in Seattle, LA or Baltimore.
#23 Green Bay — Matthew Golden (WR, Texas)
The Packers finally draft a receiver in the first round.
#24 Minnesota — Donovan Jackson (G, Ohio State)
He has explosive traits, strong character and he feels like a needed plug-in starter at left guard.
#25 Houston — Emeka Egbuka (WR, Ohio State)
‘The guy’ at Ohio State will go earlier than people realise. Character, production, athleticism, reliability and talent. He has it all. He’d reunite with CJ Stroud here.
#26 LA Rams — Omarion Hampton (RB, North Carolina)
The talk is they’ll go O-line (most of the options are gone) or an offensive skill player (the receivers are gone). Hampton could be a demon in this offense.
#27 Baltimore — Malaki Starks (S, Georgia)
I’m a huge fan of Starks and this could be an ideal home.
#28 Detroit — Tyler Booker (G, Alabama)
They replace Kevin Zeitler with a player who fits the Lions like a glove.
#29 Washington — Shemar Stewart (DE, Texas A&M)
Aside from the lack of production, there’s talk he could fall due to poor representation and the way he’s handled the draft process — including a shoddy and quite unprofessional exit from the Senior Bowl, which included telling Field Yates (so he can tweet it out) and not Jim Nagy, who reportedly had no idea until he saw it on social media.
#30 Buffalo — Will Johnson (CB, Michigan)
The injury flags are supposedly legit so we’ll see if this sinks Johnson down the board. His testing results won’t help.
#31 Kansas City — Josh Simmons (T, Ohio State)
He’s incredibly talented but lasts this far due to the patellar tendon injury and some maturity concerns. The Chiefs can take their time with him.
#32 Philadelphia — Maxwell Hairston (CB, Kentucky)
Hairston’s tape shows a fluid, exciting talent. He might go earlier than this.
