• Shedeur Sanders‘ range of outcomes is big: If Sanders falls out of the top eight picks, then teams could begin working the phones to trade up for the draft’s consensus QB2.
• James Pearce Jr. could boost several teams’ pass-rush rooms: The Tennessee product has witnessed his stock drop, but teams like the Titans and Patriots could maneuver for him.
• 2025 NFL Draft season is here: Try PFF’s best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2025’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.

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This year’s NFL Draft presents a unique situation, as every team possesses its own first-round pick as things stand. If each of the 32 teams makes its own selection, it would be the first occurrence in the history of the draft.

However, the more likely scenario is that we see at least one trade that will upend the current draft order. There is a set of players who could be targets in those deals, including some of the biggest names in this year’s class.

Sanders’ looming selection is arguably the most suspenseful in the draft. Whether he goes in the top 10 or beyond will be a major inflection point for how the rest of the first round plays out. Sanders is one of the more polarizing players in this class. Despite a lack of elite physical tools, he recorded an outstanding 91.4 PFF passing grade during his two years at Colorado.

In all likelihood, the chance of a trade involving a team targeting Sanders is contingent upon the New York Giants not selecting him third overall. The free-for-all may begin closer to the New Orleans Saints’ ninth overall pick. The Saints are currently the favorite to select him, so a team looking to jump ahead of them would need to navigate their way into a top-eight selection.

If the Saints pass on Sanders, all eyes will be on the Pittsburgh Steelers, who own the 21st overall pick. At that point, the scenario remains the same as it was for New Orleans, with a team needing to trade into the top 20 in order to beat the Steelers to the punch. There is also a possibility that Pittsburgh could move up a few spots to more safely secure its franchise quarterback.

QBs Jaxson Dart, Jalen Milroe and Tyler Shough

Dart, Milroe and Shough are grouped together because it seems likely that one of them will be the third quarterback selected. Dart led the FBS with a 91.9 PFF passing grade in 2024. Milroe’s dynamic athleticism helped him lead all Power Four quarterbacks with 65 explosive runs over the past two years. Shough finally stayed healthy for an entire season in 2024 and posted an 87.7 PFF passing grade, fifth best in the FBS.

The suspense with these three could start around the time of the Steelers’ 21st overall pick. Assuming Shedeur Sanders is off the board, then Pittsburgh could be eyeing one of these three players as their next starting quarterback. If the Steelers choose to wait until later in the draft to find a viable passer, things could still get interesting soon thereafter.

The Cleveland Browns and New York Giants own the first two picks of the second round and seem increasingly likely to take non-quarterbacks in the first round. Perhaps they are interested in this group of players to the point that they would move back into the first round to make a second selection.

RB Ashton Jeanty

Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty is an elite running back prospect who finished his career with a perfect 99.9 PFF rushing grade and a combined 325 missed tackles forced as a runner and receiver. He is a true workhorse who could instantly balance an offense. As players like Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley and Josh Jacobs showed last year, there is still plenty of value in having an elite player in the backfield.

Barring any major surprises, it seems that the current teams selecting within the top five will not be selecting Jeanty. The Las Vegas Raiders, who ranked dead last in team PFF rushing grade last season, are selecting sixth and seem to be the first contender for Jeanty’s services. In spite of a deep running back class, it’s possible that teams like the Chicago Bears or Dallas Cowboys still feel the urgency to acquire a player with Jeanty’s level of talent.

Perhaps a trade up to fifth overall doesn’t happen, and the Raiders pass on Jeanty. That likely puts the Bears in the spotlight with the 10th pick. Jeanty would surely be an excellent fit behind their rebuilt offensive line, so it is possible that a team would still have to trade into the top 10 to wrestle him away from Chicago.

WR Tetairoa McMillan

Arizona’s Tetairoa McMillan is the third-ranked player on the PFF Big Board and a consensus top-12 prospect. His 2,724 receiving yards and 90.9 PFF receiving grade over the past two seasons only summarize the impact he can have on an offense. Strangely, there have been a high number of mock drafts that project a slide into the depths of the first round.

If that drop were to occur, there could be receiver-needy teams like the Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Chargers or Green Bay Packers who could maneuver into higher positions in order to select McMillan.

The biggest inflection point is likely the Dallas Cowboys, who PFF Mock Draft Simulator users are most often projecting to take a wide receiver with the 12th overall pick. If the Cowboys go in a different direction, the jockeying could begin for McMillan, whose size and ball skills could change the dynamic of a team’s passing game.

TE Colston Loveland

It’s very likely that we will see two tight ends selected in the first round of this year’s draft, which has not happened since 2019. Michigan’s Colston Loveland will be one of them after placing third in the FBS this past season with a 90.6 PFF receiving grade. He’s an incredibly fluid route runner who can win from any alignment.

Similar to the above scenario with Tetairoa McMillan, there are several teams in the back half of the first round who are somewhat starved for offensive weaponry. Many mock drafts are projecting the Indianapolis Colts to select Loveland with the 14th pick, but if they pass, multiple teams could be waiting in the wings to trade up.

Perhaps the Denver Broncos would ascend further into the top 20 to pair Loveland with Evan Engram. Loveland could also be reunited with his former Michigan head coach, Jim Harbaugh, and join the Los Angeles Chargers. On the other side of Los Angeles, it was known last year that Sean McVay and the Rams were seeking a first-round trade to select Brock Bowers. We could see an arms race for Loveland’s talents before the first night is over.

T Armand Membou

There has been much debate about who the best offensive tackle in this year’s class is. One player at the center of that discourse is Missouri’s former right tackle Armand Membou, whose 90.6 overall PFF grade was the third-highest among qualified FBS tackles in 2024.

Membou has been rumored to be an option as high as fourth overall to the New England Patriots. The New York Jets are another popular landing spot for him with the seventh pick. If he gets beyond the Jets, there could be a sprint for Membou’s talent.

The New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins and Arizona Cardinals all own top-16 selections and have needs on the offensive line. Any one of them would be thrilled to select a top talent like Membou, but they may need to trade up in order to do so.

EDGE Abdul Carter

A trade scenario involving Carter is likely limited to maneuvering up to the third overall pick in a deal with the Giants. Assuming Cam Ward and Travis Hunter are the first two picks ahead of them, the New York could view a selection of Carter as overkill for an edge unit that already possesses Brian Burns and Kayvon Thibodeaux.

If Carter, who earned an elite 92.4 PFF pass-rushing grade in 2024, gets to New England at 4, the Patriots will likely select him. Teams such as the Carolina Panthers or San Francisco 49ers could at least make the call to New York if they want to improve their incredibly thin pass-rush units.

EDGE James Pearce Jr.

Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr. racked up 107 pressures and 21 sacks over the past two seasons, but his draft projection seems to be slipping into the latter half of the first round. He is the type of player, though, that a pass-rush needy team picking high in the second round could move up for.

Examples of such teams include the Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints. Each of them pick within the first nine picks in Round 2, twice in Chicago’s case, and ranked in the bottom half of the NFL PFF pass-rush grade. Pearce is a proven pass rusher and improved as a run defender this past season. He would be a valuable addition to any of these teams, and any of them could move into the first round to select him.