
Happy midweek, everyone! John Breech is busy handwriting a letter to Mike Brown requesting that the Cincinnati Bengals seriously prioritize defense in the 2025 NFL Draft. Or so we think. So today’s Pick Six newsletter is brought to you by Cody Benjamin, with tidbits on all the latest from around the NFL.
Be sure to subscribe right here, to ensure you never miss a daily dose of NFL updates. And keep on reading for everything from the latest buzz on potential draft-day trades to our staff’s live mock draft results:
1. Live mock draft: Steelers take a surprise QB swing
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In celebration of the upcoming draft, we pooled together 10 of our NFL analysts to conduct a live mock draft, assigning each writer several NFL teams. And boy did we get some dramatic results. While the first few picks were relatively predictable, with Cam Ward, Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter coming off the board in that order, Jordan Dajani’s Jacksonville Jaguars shook things up at No. 5 by adding wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan, while Bryan DeArdo’s Pittsburgh Steelers really stunned the room by addressing quarterback at No. 21 … with Alabama’s Jalen Milroe. Check out the results of the entire 32-team live mock draft right here.
2. Trade watch: Candidates to move, plus possible targets
A few Round 1 picks might be virtual locks (i.e. Cam Ward to the Tennessee Titans), but a slew of teams are actively exploring potential Day 1 trades. Fortunately, we’re keeping tabs on all the latest reports and rumors with a roundup of trade-up and trade-down candidates, plus potential first-round targets for each team. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the clubs looking to move up or down on Thursday:
- Bills (trade up): There is some “realistic buzz” around the possibility of Buffalo moving up from No. 30 overall, per Yahoo! Sports, especially as Sean McDermott looks to replenish the Bills’ secondary.
- Broncos (trade up): The Broncos have made “inquiries” about a move up from No. 20 overall, per ESPN, one year after selecting quarterback Bo Nix with the No. 12 overall pick. They figure to be eyeing help for Nix.
- Dolphins (trade down): The Dolphins already own 10 total picks, but they’re open to moving down from No. 13 overall as they look to address clear needs on both sides of the ball, according to The Athletic.
- Rams (trade up): One year after trying and failing to move up for Brock Bowers, the Rams are brainstorming a potential leap from No. 26 overall for one of this year’s top tight end prospects, per The Athletic.
- Vikings (trade down): With just four total picks thanks to previous draft-day trades, Minnesota is actively interested in moving back from No. 24 overall to recoup additional picks, per ESPN and The Athletic.
3. Edwards mock: Jaguars make a splash at No. 5
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The Jaguars hold the No. 5 overall pick in the draft, and there’s little consensus regarding what Jacksonville intends to do. Some believe the club is eyeing a new backfield complement for Trevor Lawrence. Others believe the Jaguars are eager to move down and collect additional picks. And then there’s Josh Edwards, who released his final mock draft of the 2025 season, forecasting a surprise choice by new general manager James Gladstone: Penn State tight end Tyler Warren. The Los Angeles Rams tried moving up for Brock Bowers while Gladstone was in the front office in 2024, Edwards notes, and mock drafts might be underselling Warren’s upside.
4. Jerry Jones hints Cowboys have trades in the works
Speaking of draft-day trades, Jones isn’t shy about teasing drama in Dallas. Two days ahead of the start of the first round, the Cowboys owner told reporters he’s in the midst of ironing out “two pretty substantive trades.” Jones didn’t elaborate on what kind of deals are in the works, but the Cowboys aren’t expected to move up from the No. 12 overall pick in the draft. So it’s possible the trades could be for veteran additions.
5. Top draft do-overs: Aaron Rodgers to the Bills?
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Aaron Rodgers remains publicly undecided on his NFL future, weeks after the Pittsburgh Steelers suggested he was on track to join the team. What if, instead of playing for the Green Bay Packers to start his prestigious career, and later enduring two years with the New York Jets, the four-time MVP had thrown passes for another AFC East squad? Bryan DeArdo reviewed NFL history to identify each team’s top draft “do-over,” and he believes the Buffalo Bills’ biggest regret might be “solving” their quarterback issues in the 2004 draft:
After missing out on Eli Manning, Ben Roethlisberger and Philip Rivers, Buffalo … traded its second- and fourth-round picks, as well as the next year’s first-round pick, to select J.P. Losman at No. 22 overall. It goes without saying that the Bills would have been better served saving those picks. Had the Bills not traded their 2005 first-round pick, they would have had the 20th overall pick, which would have put them in position to select Rodgers.
6. Jay Feely, ex-NFL kicker, to run for U.S. Congress
In a bit of non-draft news, one of the league’s most accomplished special teamers of his time is now set to kick off a career in government. Jay Feely, who converted more than 330 field goals over 14 NFL seasons from 2001-2014, announced this week he will run for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives out of Arizona’s 5th Congressional District. Perhaps best known for his time with the Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons and New York Giants, Feely spent the last decade working as an NFL analyst for CBS Sports.
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