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The league promised to surprise on the first night of the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Mere minutes into Thursday’s festivities, it absolutely didn’t disappoint.
What started with every team holding its original pick in the first round quickly changed, as the Jacksonville Jaguars traded up from No. 5 to No. 2 to grab cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter, returning the Heisman winner to his home state of Florida and throwing into question if he can really become the league’s first two-way starter — he’s good enough to start at both positions on Jacksonville’s roster, but will he?
The surprises didn’t stop there, either. The Chicago Bears made Michigan’s Colston Loveland the first tight end off the board at No. 10. The hosting Green Bay Packers shocked their own crowd by taking a wide receiver in the first round. The Atlanta Falcons doubled up on edge rushers, though maybe overcompensating for needs should now come to be expected from Atlanta.
Oh, and the New York Giants traded back into the first round at pick No. 25 and selected Ole Miss‘ Jaxson Dart.
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Shedeur Sanders‘ fall continued as the cameras kept cutting back to a lavish party being held at Sanders’ Texas home. The Colorado Buffaloes QB was all smiles despite the slide, even when he ultimately fell out of the first round entirely.
So, how far does Sanders fall on Day 2? Well, the Cleveland Browns, who traded out of the No. 2 overall spot with Jacksonville and took defensive tackle Mason Graham with the fifth pick, own Friday’s first pick.
Without further ado, here’s my mock of Round 2.
RELATED: 2025 NFL Draft: Shedeur Sanders among best players available on Day 2
Cleveland currently doesn’t have an answer at quarterback, but taking one here isn’t a certainty since there are still other options (cough, Kirk Cousins, should he waive his no-trade clause). The QB void is also made more interesting by the fact that the Browns have two picks close together at the top of the second round and didn’t use their flexibility. Why not trade back into the first round using one of these picks and a later-round pick to ensure the future fifth-round option if they are ultimately going to draft a quarterback? Sanders would also have to be the guy in Cleveland, but if he’s fallen this far, does the league trust he can do that right away?
For the purposes of this exercise, Cleveland doesn’t keep Sanders in suspense any longer, but I think his selection here is far from a sure thing.
34. Houston Texans (from Giants): Will Johnson, CB, Michigan
Johnson fell out of the first round due to injury concerns, but he’s got plenty of talent and Houston needs help in the secondary opposite Derek Stingley Jr.
Though he’s the product of a small school, Green is a starter that can instantly help the Titans’ defense now that they have the quarterback question answered.
Now that they have a quarterback, the Browns use their next pick to help Sanders as much as possible right away.
Ezeiruaku is a high football IQ guy, and he’s got size that can make the Raiders’ defensive line downright scary.
The Patriots still need help all over the roster despite their free agency spending spree. Emmanwori is the best player on the board.
The Bears sneakily need safety help and are probably sad to see Emmanwori off the board. Instead, they get another weapon for Ben Johnson’s new offense in the form of a national champion.
The Saints have a huge question mark at quarterback now with Derek Carr’s mysterious shoulder injury, but their defense is also not getting any younger. They take best player available at this point in the draft.
Ersery creates competition at the left tackle position, which is the biggest question mark on Chicago’s line. At worst, he becomes a swing tackle.
42. New York Jets: Mason Taylor, TE, LSU
The Jets have needed a tight end for a couple of years, and they finally get it with the most physical one in this draft. Taylor has been nothing but solid and reliable throughout his college career and is everything you want in a tight end.
The 49ers probably wanted a crack at Mason Taylor with George Kittle’s contract in question, but they instead continue to get younger defensively. They’re going to need it if they’re planning on paying Brock Purdy.
They didn’t do it in the first round, but the Cowboys finally get someone to run opposite CeeDee Lamb and split opposing defenses’ attention.
Fortifying a defense to make things easier on your quarterback is never a bad idea.
The UCLA kid stays in L.A. and gets to work behind one of the best defensive lines in the league.
The Cardinals still need reinforcements on defense, so they do what many thought they would in the first round by taking an edge rusher.
The value for offensive linemen at this point isn’t there, which is why it was so surprising seeing Miami pass on one in the first round. Here, the Dolphins try to make up for the loss of Jevon Holland.
The Bengals got an edge rusher in the first round as insurance against Trey Hendrickson potentially departing, but they still need plenty of help on defense. Amos is the best available corner.
Mike Macdonald is itching to take a defensive player after selecting Grey Zabel in the first round (which was an excellent decision after Geno Smith was sacked as many times as he was last year).
The Broncos elected to pass on a defensive tackle with their first pick, but they don’t let Alexander fall too far. Despite coming from a Group of Five program, there’s a lot to like about the Toledo product — and there is no better place for him to learn than as part of Denver’s already dominant defense.
Back to offense for Seattle to make up for losing multiple wide receivers this offseason.
The Bucs prioritized their next generation of wide receivers with their first pick, but they still need pass rushing help. Swinson is from an SEC program and has size on his side as the best edge rusher left on the board.
54. Green Bay Packers: Shavon Revel, CB, East Carolina
The Packers need insurance against Jaire Alexander missing time, whether for injury or otherwise.
Jim Harbaugh did his Jim Harbaugh thing and took a running back with the Chargers’ first pick, but there’s work to be done on the defensive side of the ball given some of L.A.’s departures this offseason.
Just give Josh Allen all the weapons.
The Panthers have done a lot of work offensively and now need to focus their attention on the defense to play complementary football.
The entire Texans offense regressed because of how poorly the offensive line played last year. Houston needs to do something about that.
Another really solid defender goes to the Ravens — what else is new?
Sure, the Lions took two corners with their first two picks last year ,but did you see all those injuries last season?
The Commanders let Jonathan Allen walk, and though they picked up Javon Kinlaw and Deatrich Wise, they could absolutely still use some help along the defensive interior.
Skattebo in Buffalo is a problem for so many reasons, both on the field and off.
Andy Reid’s offense is better with a reliable run game. Sampson becomes insurance.
The Eagles love the trenches, and they have some aging players along what’s known as one of the best offensive lines in the league. Continuing to add to it ensures it stays that way.
Carmen Vitali is an NFL Reporter for FOX Sports. Carmen had previous stops with The Draft Network and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. She spent six seasons with the Bucs, including 2020, which added the title of Super Bowl Champion (and boat-parade participant) to her résumé. You can follow Carmen on Twitter at @CarmieV.
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