Andy's Top-5 by Position for the 2025 NFL Draft 1.0
Draft season is in full-swing with Pro Days here, and every day marks another day down until the 2025 NFL Draft. With that, my rankings are coming together and here is my Top-5 at every position for the 2025 NFL Draft 1.0:
QBs:
Cam Ward - Miami
Shedeur Sanders - Colorado
Jaxson Dart - Ole Miss
Jalen Milroe - Alabama
Will Howard - Ohio State
The QB class this year is interesting, Cam Ward headlines the group as my QB1 by a pretty significant margin, with me falling in love with the great traits he’s put on tape. Shedeur Sanders is solidified as my QB2, as I love his confidence and composure in the pocket mixed with his plus accuracy. Then QB3-5, we get into guys who are likely backups right now but have upside to develop into starters. Jaxson Dart is a low-mediocre floor QB with a relatively high ceiling, Jalen Milroe’s athletic traits in itself make him have an extremely high ceiling but he’s raw currently, but I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Dart/Milroe become solid starters in the future. Will Howard at my QB5 is a perfect system QB if he can land in the correct system, he showcased a lot of nice tape this year at OSU and if he can find himself in said correct system, he’ll be solid.
RBs:
Ashton Jeanty - Boise State
Omarion Hampton - North Carolina
TreVeyon Henderson - Ohio State
Kaleb Johnson - Iowa
Quinshon Judkins - Ohio State
This is a very solid RB class, the best I’ve ever studied. Headlined by the Heisman runner-up Ashton Jeanty, who had outstanding production at Boise State and solidified himself as #3 on my big board, he has the instincts, balance, and physical tools to one day be the best RB in the NFL if he pans out. Omarion Hampton is a player who should 100% be a 1st round pick in April, he’s a bell-cow power runner with balance and great technique. TreVeyon Henderson comes in as my RB3, the definition of a home-run hitting RB with fantastic explosiveness on tape, as well as the best pass protecting RB in the draft. Kaleb Johnson is another RB I really like who’s displayed impressive vision and great patience, as well as exceptional contact balance, and my RB5 Quinshon Judkins has also displayed solid contact balance with nice vision, who combines that all with a violent essence in his running.
WRs:
Rankings have Travis Hunter specifically at CB, but would be WR1 if he was on the sheet for both.
Matthew Golden - Texas
Emeka Egbuka - Ohio State
Luther Burden III - Missouri
Tetairoa McMillan - Arizona
Jayden Higgins - Iowa State
This WR class doesn’t feature any major blue chip prospects as the 2024 class did, but it has a lot of quality which I like. Matthew Golden has true superstar potential in my eyes, he’s an explosive and fluid athlete who is a natural separator, and consistently showcases very good catch radius/ball tracking ability. Emeka Egbuka could very well be the safest pick in the entire draft, a super reliable WR with an ideal power slot build. Luther Burden is a dynamic playmaker with gadget type abilities who consistently showcases great explosiveness on tape. Tetairoa McMillan is a jump-ball specialist X receiver with great hand-eye coordination to come down with big-time catches, but ultimately I have concerns about his separation ability. Jayden Higgins embodies the title ‘big bodied receiver’, with a wingspan over 6’7 he runs smooth routes and has very good hands. Overall, it’s a WR class that’s very close skill-wise among the Top-4 and the board will play out based on team need.
TEs:
Tyler Warren - Penn State
Colston Loveland - Michigan
Mason Taylor - LSU
Elijah Arroyo - Miami
Harold Fannin Jr. - Bowling Green
This is a TE class I like quite a bit, and headlining the group is Tyler Warren the super versatile, jack of all trades, weapon. He’s taken snaps from every alignment, and he’s an absolute monster when he has the ball. Colston Loveland is a versatile, flex TE who stands out in the passing game, a guy who truly has 100-catch upside in the NFL. Mason Taylor is a natural Y TE with natural polish for the game. Has the receiving and blocking skills to make him a starting TE for a very long time. Elijah Arroyo is an athletic freak at the TE position who, when healthy, is an absolute chain-mover who displays excellent stop-start quickness. Harold Fannin Jr. is a dynamic TE with elite college production, shining at Bowling Green. I’ve had questions about his pure athleticism but at the end of the day he mirrors Jonnu Smith, who was objectively a Top-5 TE this past season, Fannin could absolutely have a similar career as Smith. Overall it’s a TE class highlighted by Tyler Warren and Colston Loveland, in which I think TE1 vs. TE2 is a lot closer than many think, and it’s also a class with solid starter/depth along the board.
OTs:
Armand Membou - Missouri
Josh Simmons - Ohio State
Kelvin Banks Jr. - Texas
Josh Conerly Jr. - Oregon
Marcus Mbow - Purdue
The OT group in general features a lot of guys who I think could make a move to the interior in the NFL, and some made my list as IOLs, but overall some key contributors will come from this OT class, and one I’m extremely high on is Armand Membou, a huge blocker with good footwork who had outstanding tape this past season at Missouri, and is just scratching the surface of his ability at 20-years old. Josh Simmons battled injuries for Ohio State, but when he was on the field he was a beast. He has a great blend of length and agility to dominate the corner and not give an inch. Kelvin Banks is an interesting prospect, I’m not as high on Banks as the general consensus is, but I like his balance and body control, if he cleans up some rough patches and calculates angles better he’ll be a good starter. Josh Conerly Jr. has great size and athleticism, he’s a natural pass protector who took a big jump in 2024, but needs to take a big jump in the run game. Marcus Mbow skyrocketed up my board lately due to his athleticism as he’s an amazing mover at 303 lbs. He rockets out of his stances and slams his target with force.
IOLs:
Will Campbell - LSU
Tyler Booker - Alabama
Grey Zabel - North Dakota State
Donovan Jackson - Ohio State
Jonah Savaiinaea - Arizona
This is an IOL group I really like, with the Top-4 all having potential to be 1st round picks. Will Campbell is a career LT, but a guy I fully expect to naturally make the move to the interior. He has quality size, tools, and leadership to be a very quality Guard. Tyler Booker is a rock. Not an effective mover, but a big bodied menacing presence at the line of scrimmage built for a power scheme. Grey Zabel is the next in a long list of very quality FCS OTs to make the move to IOL in the pros. He has a very good mix of power/agility and could very well be a Day-1 starter wherever he lands. Donovan Jackson is a versatile well-rounded lineman with good experience. He’s displayed very solid strength and on-field awareness to be effective in whatever position he plays. Jonah Savaiinaea was a 3-year starter at RT, but has expressed interest to move to Guard in the NFL with his RG-like frame. He has fantastic core strength to lock opponents down and control them through a rep. This IOL class is going to produce some long-time starters.
DTs:
Mason Graham - Michigan
Derrick Harmon - Oregon
Kenneth Grant - Michigan
Walter Nolen - Ole Miss
Alfred Collins - Texas
The IDL portion of this class is one of the stronger parts in my opinion. Headlined by Mason Graham, a true blue chip prospect who’s blend of technique, size, and power gives him superstar upside. Derrick Harmon has been a huge riser for me lately, he’s a natural disrupter who turns it into major production. Kenneth Grant who is a massive human-being and uses it to his strength by eating double teams and letting Michigan stars around him feast, and he can disrupt run lanes better than anyone in the class. Walter Nolen has a lot of raw traits, but a ton of upside. He explodes out of his stance and has versatility to play all over the D-Line. Alfred Collins might just be the best run defender in the entire draft. He has great timing at the LOS and deconstructs blocks at a very high rate. There are many IDLs in this class who will be very productive in the NFL, and these 5 can all be stars.
DEs:
(EDGE rushers are split into DEs and OLBs for these rankings)
Shemar Stewart - Texas A&M
Nic Scourton - Texas A&M
JT Tuimoloau - Ohio State
Princely Umanmielen - Ole Miss
Landon Jackson - Arkansas
In a DE group headlined by Texas A&M, I think overall it’s a class with a very high floor, guys who will contribute relatively early, with the big ceiling guy being the 2025 combine winner Shemar Stewart. Stewart is a pressure machine due to his athletic ability and can overpower opposing O-Lines, his upside is unmatched in this class. Nic Scourton is very disruptive off the EDGE, he showcases a nice first-step and I loved that he was able to lose weight before the combine as it’ll help his explosiveness a ton. JT Tuimoloau has the highest floor of the group in my opinion, he has great power in his game, overall is very reliable and productive. Princely Umanmielen is a long, rangy pass rusher with big presence as a pass rusher due to his overall explosiveness and athletic ability. Landon Jackson is a huge DE with a monster-like frame. He has powerful hands and is able to mix his vision, patience and discipline together with his athletic abilities to be very productive.
OLBs:
Abdul Carter - Penn State
Mike Green - Marshall
Donovan Ezeiruaku - Boston College
Mykel Williams - Georgia
James Pearce Jr. - Tennessee
This is a VERY good OLB class in the Top-5, with incredibly high upside players throughout. The list of course headlined by the blue-chip Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter, who has such natural talent to rush the passer with ease and usually get his way, he explodes off the line of scrimmage and has very advanced bend/pass-rush tools. Mike Green is another incredibly explosive pass rusher who is the bendiest EDGE in the class, he has a very high motor and great instincts. Donovan Ezeiruaku is super productive, he has outstanding quickness and burst, and is relentless to give QBs nightmares. I am very confident we’ll see Ezeiruaku be a double-digit sack artist in the NFL. Mykel Williams was seemingly built in a lab, a freak-like frame and he has powerful hands, a well-developed run stopper and a solid pass rusher with a ton of upside. James Pearce Jr. is an athletic freak. Overall I have some concerns with his power rusher like play with a speed rusher profile, but he can get to the QB at a very high rate and showed it at Tennessee.
LBs:
Jalon Walker - Georgia
Jihaad Campbell - Alabama
Carson Schwesinger - UCLA
Demetrius Knight Jr. - South Carolina
Chris Paul Jr. - Ole Miss
Overall I like this LB class, and I’m very confident it will produce a lot of starting-level talent, produced by 2 legitimate Top-10 talents of the class. Jalon Walker headlines the group for me, his explosiveness and overall game IQ make him a force to be reckoned with whether he’s rushing the QB, or sitting back and reading the play, he does it all at a very high level. Jihaad Campbell is another very complete LB. Campbell has great size for the position at 6’3, 244, he’s an explosive athlete, and really has no weaknesses as a whole, he’s pretty exceptional at everything. Carson Schwesinger is a great tackler who utilizes his athletic abilities to quickly make plays on the ball and shut down opposing runners/receivers play. Demetrius Knight Jr. is another LB in this class with great overall instincts. He’s a fluid athlete who’s also a skilled tackler and doesn’t have many weaknesses. Chris Paul Jr. is one of the most consistent players in the class. Tape never lies and his never has, week in and week out he’ll give you maximum effort with good athleticism and playmaking abilities. This LB class has a lot of future starters in the mold headlined by these 5 studs.
CBs:
Travis Hunter - Colorado
Will Johnson - Michigan
Jahdae Barron - Texas
Azareye’h Thomas - Florida State
Trey Amos - Ole Miss
This CB class is loaded with ball-hawks and guys who can make plays. Headlined by the Unicorn Travis Hunter who would’ve been WR1 and CB1 if I ranked both ways, he’s extremely effective in any & every alignment of defense making multiple game-changing and game-winning plays in his time at Colorado, he’s an absolute superstar. Will Johnson is a well-rounded CB with great fluidity and experience in man-to-man defenses to be able to fit in any NFL defense. His instincts are the best in the class and it’s a big reason why he’s such an effective ball-hawk. Jahdae Barron is by far the best Nickel-back in this class with his zone abilities and great spatial awareness, making plays on the ball as often as he did. After all, he won the Jim Thorpe award for a reason. Azareye’h Thomas is a physical CB with prototype size, length, and fluidity. He reminds me a lot of AJ Terrell and I think he can be able to pave out a career similar, big time CB1 material from Thomas. Trey Amos is a fantastic press/man-to-man CB who was lockdown. There were multiple times I turned on Trey Amos tape and he rarely got targeted due to his true shutdown abilities, he could lock near anyone down. I could see him get a lot of 1st round looks in April.
SAF:
Malaki Starks - Georgia
Nick Emmanwori - South Carolina
Xavier Watts - Notre Dame
Kevin Winston Jr. - Penn State
Andrew Mukuba - Texas
I think this Safety class will produce some stars at the top, I have very high hopes for Malaki Starks and Nick Emmanwori, and I think #3-#5 on this list will also be very quality starting safeties throughout their careers. Malaki Starks plays with exceptional range and has great versatility to play across multiple alignments. He’s an absolute playmaker anywhere you put him and I do see blue-chip value in his game. Nick Emmanwori is a freak of nature, he has a very rare combination of tools as well as an insane athletic profile which when he puts it all together, can make him an absolute superstar in the right system. Xavier Watts has a superb combination of instincts and awareness which all together should garner him more 1st round buzz than he’s actually getting with safety-needy teams down the board. He displays great range and coverage skills with a solid tackling prowess. Kevin Winston Jr. is battling an ACL injury, but he’s wired perfectly for NFL ball. He attacks blocks well and has solid coverage skills to make him a solid Safety prospect all around. Andrew Mukuba is a 4-year starter with good instincts and awareness who has a great IQ for the game and checks all of the boxes. He knows when it’s time to attack a route and does so with ease. Overall, this class has some Stars, and some Starters.
That wraps it up for the Top-5 at every position 1.0 for the 2025 NFL Draft! Stay tuned for more!