Mock Draft Monday 4/14 '25
Diamonds Dancing
Diamonds Dancing
- ‘25 NFL Mock Draft Rounds 1 & 2
- YouTube Rabbithole
Alright @YouTheReader,
Today’s tune is Drake and Future’s Diamonds Dancing. It’s the 4th track off of What A Time To Be Alive.
The NFL Draft tends to have plenty of players rocking diamond chains. One of the first players to make such a fashion statement was Deion Sanders during his interview at the 1989 NFL Draft.
On to the NFL Mock…
With the NFL Draft just a couple of Thursdays away, here is a 2nd to last 1st Round NFL Mock Draft for the ‘25 Class…
Round 1
- Reports out of the front offices of Cleveland and New York are working under the assumption that Cam Ward will be the 1st Pick in the NFL Draft. The JUCO to Heisman finalist has an elite arm that can make every sort of throw regardless of the angle and plays the position with pocket mobility like many of the best QBs in the NFL.
- The Browns gave Myles Garrett a monster contract extension this offseason, so another pass rusher isn’t a need, but the idea they could pair Abdul Carter with their 6-time All-Pro is too good to pass up.
- The idea that the Giants would place Shedeur Sanders in a QB room with Russell Wilson and Jameis Winson is too funny to pass up. While Sanders has plenty of detractors, Deion’s son does have some positive traits. He’s tough as nails, never coming off the field or missing games at Colorado despite playing behind an inferior offensive line. Sanders has NFL connections and grew up with Tom Brady’s contact in his cell phone, so the NFL or New York shouldn’t necessarily be too big for him.
- Travis Hunter landing with the Patriots would suck, so let’s hope that doesn’t happen. While I doubt Hunter ends up playing every snap on both sides of the ball, I think New England would start him at CB and create an offensive package of 10 to 15 plays for the Heisman as a WR.
- The Jaguars may be a year removed from taking Brian Thomas Jr. in the 1st Round, but their WR depth is lacking, with Gabe Davis and Dyami Brown behind BTJ. Tet McMillan and Thomas Jr. would give Trevor Lawrence a dynamic young WR duo, plus it would at least make Jacksonville a bit more exciting.
- Jalon Walker didn’t produce eye-popping stats during his time at Georgia, with a combined 11.5 sacks the past 2 seasons, but the 3rd Team All-American wasn’t really just asked to solely rush the passer for the Bulldogs. Entering the ‘24 College Football season, Will Campbell was in consideration as the top offensive lineman of the class.
- The LSU Left Tackle did nothing to make those claims look incorrect as Campbell was named a 1st Team All-American in ‘24. While there were some concerns about his “arm length and hand size,” these reports were likely from NFL Scouts hoping he would fall to their team. With 3 years of starting experience at LT, the Jets would need to decide if they prefer Campbell or Olu Fashanu as their blindside tackle, but having two young blockers with high-upside potential is a nice problem to have.
- Much like his teammate Jalon Walker, Mykel Williams lacks eye-popping sack stats like others in this draft. That said, he has the prototypical NFL Defensive End on a 4-3, and would effectively be the Panthers Brian Burns replacement a year after he was traded.
- The Saints are a bit of a mess. While Mason Graham won’t fix their QB problem, drafting a sure-thing above-average starter with Aaron Donald-Lite upside can’t hurt.
- Chicago tried giving Caleb Williams a plethora of WR talent last offseason. It didn’t work out in part because Keenan Allen showed up looking like a TE. This offseason, Da Bears decide to draft an actual Tight End in Tyler Warren. Chicago has only ever drafted 2 TEs in the 1st Round in their franchise history, the late-great Mike Ditka and Greg Olsen, who ended up having a much better career with Carolina. Maybe Warren can fall somewhere in between their previous TEs.
- The San Francisco 49ers have been playing a game of Russian Roulette with the possibility of Trent Williams retiring for a handful of years now. Williams already missed all of training camp and pre-season last year, so it wouldn’t be a complete shocker if he held out once more. Kelvin Banks at the very least provides SF a long-term option at LT for when Trent Williams hangs up his cleats for good.
- The Cowboys were notoriously awful at running the football for the majority of the ‘24 season. Dallas has tried to address this problem by signing veteran RBs Javonte Williams and Miles Saunders to 1-year deals. While I like their thinking because Williams and Saunders may still have plenty left in the tank, both backs have been underwhelming as starters when given the opportunity. Ashton Jenty has Rookie Contract Ezekiel Elliot upside.
- Some of the quotes surrounding James Pearce Jr. are rough, such as, “Pearce was seen as undeniably uncoachable and as a player with one foot out the door” and “I was told by one scout that Pearce Jr. is seen as the player with the worst character report of any player in this draft class.” Pearce entered the ‘24 season as a lock to be a Top-10 pick thanks to his 13-sack sophomore season. He likely took some plays off last season to avoid injury but proved he could still play at a high level in The Volunteers’ victory over ‘Bama. Pearce collected 2 sacks while adding 10 QB Pressures, 7 QB Hurries, and 1 QB Hit. Miami may not be able to resist.
- Jihaad Campbell has jumped up draft boards after he ran a 4.52 40-time. His sideline-to-sideline athleticism will make 1st Team All-SEC linebacker the first off-ball backer in the draft. Indy could use a linebacker.
- The 2 Michiganders going back to back in the mid-1st are needs-based. Atlanta needs to replace Grady Jarrett on their defensive line after he left for Chicago. Kenneth Grant may never be an elite pass rusher from the interior defense, but he was an excellent run-defender in his 2 seasons as a starter for the Wolverines. The Cardinals haven’t drafted a 1st Round CB since Patrick Peterson in 2011. While Will Johnson may not have been as great as Peterson was in his LSU days, the Wolverine CB was no slouch with 9 career INTs and 7 Pass Breakups. Johnson has the size, speed, and man-to-man coverage skills to defend elite NFL WRs.
- With Cincinnati placing Trey Hendrickson on the trade block, a defensive end like Nic Scourton fills a need. Scourton combined for 78 QB Pressures, 56 QB Hurries, and 12 sacks in his last 2 seasons (w/ Texas A&M & Purdue). He also has a similar body type as a bigger edge pass rusher with sneaky finesse like Hendrickson.
- The Seattle Seahawks decided to invest in Sam Darnold as their QB of the future. With that investment, they’ll also have to protect him up front. Armand Membou could kick inside to provide an upgrade at their Guard position or compete with Abraham Lucas for the starting RT role.
- Malaki Starks is a 2-time AP All-American and twice a finalist for the Jim Thorpe as the nation’s top defensive back. Playing Starks next to Antoine Winfield Jr. gives Tampa Bay 2 versatile safeties that can play in the box, slot, and deep. Todd Bowles was with the Jets when they drafted Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye, so he values the position that he used to play.
- Bo Nix has a cannon for an arm and Matthew Golden is primarily a vertical deep-threat WR. Golden could be an upgrade over Marvin Mims Jr. this season and a long-term WR1 for Nix as Cortland Sutton turns 30 this fall.
- Nobody knows if Aaron Rodgers is actually going to play for the Steelers or take the year off to visit Bangkok, but in the meantime, Pittsburgh could add to their defense in Walter Nolen. The Ole Miss defensive lineman has the size to play defensive end in a 3-4 and can probably even play inside in pass-rushing situations. The Steelers last invested in a 1st Round defensive lineman in 2011 with Cameron Heyward. Nolen would be Heyward’s long-term replacement.
- Shemar Stewart has dazzling athleticism traits as a pass rusher but may need hard coaching to fulfill his potential. If any team in the NFL has the coaching staff to get the most out of Stewart, it would be Jim Harbaugh & Co. He’s a boom or bust-prospect that replaces Joey Bosa’s departure.
- The Packers go with Jahdae Barron at #23. The Texas Longhorn CB would become the team’s nickel corner as a rookie and replace Jaire Alexander long-term. Alexander is only under contract until ‘26. Barron, at 5’11”, has been labeled a bigger nickelback but has experience playing both in and out for Texas. He’s also technically an inch taller than Alexander, so Green Bay isn’t a stranger to shorter outside CBs.
- Kaleb Johnson may have only 1 year of elite production at Iowa (1,535 rushing yards and 21 TDs in ‘24), but he was previously effective as a splitting carries as an underclassman. Over 1,060 of his 1,500+ rushing yards came after contact. At 6’ and 225 lbs., Johnson has NFL workhorse size with breakaway speed. Johnson’s runs are smoove and he didn’t fumble the ball once last season. Vikings draft their long-term answer at RB with Aaron Jones turning 30.
- Emeka Egbuka caught 74 passes for 1,151 yards and 10 scores while playing with CJ Stroud at Ohio State in ‘22. The Buckeye WR already has chemistry with the Texans franchise QB and replaces Stefan Diggs with a very similar skillset.
- The Rams got very little production out of their TEs last season, with Tyler Higbee out for most of the year and Colby Parkinson’s limitations as a pass catcher. Michigan TE Colston Loveland would bring a jolt to the position group and could allow Sean McVay to run more 2 TE sets with Cooper Kupp no longer a Ram.
- The Ravens see that the Steelers drafted a tough defensive lineman and counter with one of their own in Derrick Harmon. After playing 3 seasons at Michigan State, where he lined up primarily over the center, Oregon decided to use Harmon over the tackle more often than in years past, and he proved he had some pass rush potential (5 sacks & 43 QB Hurries). Harmon would help Nnamdi Madubuike see fewer double teams.
- Detroit’s defense could use an additional pass rusher after they lost both of their starting edge rushers to injury in ‘24. While Aiden Hutchinson and Marcus Davenport are expected to be fully healthy, Mike Green would bring some extra juice. The 2nd Team AP All-American out of Marshall led College Football in sacks last season with 17 while also forcing 3 fumbles.
- Now that the Washington Commanders have a promising young franchise QB, their next order of business is protecting him at all costs. They already traded for Laremy Tunsil this offseason to be his blindside blocker. OT Josh Simmons has collegiate experience playing both the Left and Right Tackle positions. Start him at Right Tackle and move him over to Left once Tunsil is finished.
- Thanks to the brilliance of Josh Allen, it flew under the radar that the Bills pass defense was pretty bad in ‘24. While they may have found a solid starter in Christian Benford, the Bills could use another dynamic outside CB in Shavon Revel Jr. At 6’2”, Revel Jr. can run a 4.4 40-time and has excellent ball skills. Had Revel Jr. not torn his ACL in ‘24, he likely could’ve been a mid-1st Rounder.
- After getting bullied by the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl, Kansas City decides to beef up their offensive line with Josh Conerly Jr. The 3rd Team AP All-American was the Oregon Ducks blindside LT the past 2 seasons. Conerly Jr. could be plugged into the Chiefs’ LG position while also providing some Left Tackle insurance in the event that Jaylon Moore’s contract doesn’t work out. KC signed Moore from the 49ers after he’s spent a handful of seasons as San Francisco’s backup tackle. Moore is a bit unproven but has learned under Trent Williams, so it’s a gamble they were willing to take.
- Philadelphia wraps up Round 1 with an upgrade to their defensive secondary. The Super Bowl champs add Nick Emmanwori to replace C.J. Gardner-Johnson as the starting strong safety opposite of Reed Blankenship. The ‘24 1st Team All-American out of South Carolina led the Gamecocks in tackles with 88 while picking off 4 passes and returning 2 of them for scores.
