Quarterback chaos, shocking trades, and tons of tears—7 bold 2025 NFL Draft first-round predictions

I’ve seen about 3,065 NFL Drafts, and nary a one of them has gone entirely as expected.

In Chicago alone, back in 2017, we watched the Bears sacrifice a whole lot of draft capital just for the opportunity to take a flyer on quarterback Mitchell Trubisky. Nobody saw it coming.

Five years later, the Bears traded up to select Trubisky’s ostensible replacement, Justin Fields. Nobody saw it coming.

Backtracking to 2001, Chicago selected wide receiver (and future bust) David Terrell rather than Reggie Wayne or Chad Johnson. Nobody saw it coming.

And tonight—whether or not you’ll admit it—none of us have a clue what’s coming. None.

Sure, we’re very confident that Tennessee will scoop up Cam Ward at pick number one…but we wouldn’t be shocked if they didn’t. After all, Abdul Carter and Travis Hunter are the better prospects, so the Titans, despite their need for a quarterback, might be better off.

Being that the first-round talent level is relatively flat—there aren’t any Jayden Danielses or Brock Bowerses in the house—we might see a whole lot of minds blown tonight in Green Bay.

Here’s some of the potential freakiness…and if I hit on two or more these, each and every one of you is buying me lunch.

1) We’ll See at Least Five Deals

A deal is a deal | Kyle Terada-Imagn Images

With this class, “best player available” is a relative phrase, as Jacksonville’s BPA might differ wildly from Las Vegas’. That being the case, if, say, Seattle has its heart set on one of the higher-ranked O-linemen, a leapfrogging trade is eminently possible.

Now multiply that times five. Or six. Or ten.

(Note: I don’t have any Seattle intel. They’re just a random team with a low-to-mid pick that worked nicely in this f’r-instance.)

2) Three Teams Will Trade Out of the First Round Entirely

Trade this! | Robert Johnson / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

As alluded to above, this could be a “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” kind of night, and if a GM doesn’t behold any beauty in round one, they’d shoot for quantity over quality and rack up a heap of day two capital.

3) Six Defensive Ends Will Be Selected in the First Half of the First Round

Georgia EDGEJalon Walker doing Jalon Walker things | Ken Ruinard - Imagn Images

This is an EDGE-centric draft, so it would be entirely logical for a GM to wait until Friday to get his D-end. But about 50% of the league’s GMs are not logical, so an early EDGE run wouldn’t be at all surprising.

4) Not One, Not Two, Not Three, but Four Quarterbacks Will Be Selected

Jalen Milroe, first-round draftee? | Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Ward is a slam-dunk first-rounder, but the remainder of the QB class is a moveable feast. Shedeur Sanders, for instance, could go to the Giants at the three-spot or fall out of the first round altogether. That said, there plenty of QB-starved teams (Cleveland, New Orleans, and Pittsburgh, most notably) who might FOMO their way into a Jaxson Dart or a Jalen Milroe.

5) Nobody Will Draft a Wide Receiver Until the 20th Pick

Matthew Golden: Fast dude | Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Last year’s wide receiver class featured the likes of Marvin Harrison Jr., Malik Nabers, Rome Odunze, and Brian Thomas Jr. This one…doesn’t, so a WR might not go off the board until Denver’s on the clock at 20.

(FWIW, I’m a Matthew Golden truther, but he’s sorta-kinda one-dimensional, and he’s a tad on the slender side—we’re talking 6’0” (maybe), 194—so he could slip into the second round.)

6) An All-Pro Will Change Teams

I’m not going to hazard a guess as to which stud will be on the move, but assuming my five-plus-trades prediction comes to pass, odds are that one will include a star.

7) Over 80% of the First-Round Draftees Will Cry During Their Post-Pick Interview

It’s this kind of raw emotion that makes the NFL Draft so wonderful.