NFL Draft grades for all 32 teams, plus winners from the draft and ranking five biggest steals

Welcome to the Monday edition of the Pick Six newsletter! 

If I sound tired today, it’s because I spent the entire weekend trying to memorize the names of all 257 picks that were made in the NFL Draft over the weekend. Speaking of the draft, that’s basically all we’re going to talk about today, so I hope you’re ready for that and if you’re not, you better start mentally preparing now. 

Not only do we have draft grades for you today, but we also have winners and losers from the draft, plus the FIVE biggest steals. 

As always, here’s your daily reminder to tell all your friends to sign up for the newsletter. To get them signed up, all you have to do is click here. 

1. NFL Draft winners and losers: Shedeur Sanders falls into both categories

Like everything in life, there were some winners and some losers during the NFL Draft, and somehow, Shedeur Sanders fell into both categories. 

Let’s check out our biggest winners and some of our losers from the weekend: 

WINNERS

• Shedeur Sanders. Although Sanders had to wait five rounds before getting drafted, it might actually end up working out because he ended what is arguably the best possible situation for him. Sanders could have a realistic chance to win the Browns starting quarterback job because he’ll be joining a QB room that includes Joe Flacco (old), Kenny Pickett (still trying to figure things out) and Deshaun Watson (injured), along with another rookie in Dillon Gabriel.
• 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh. The 49ers used their first five picks in the draft on defensive players, marking just the second time in franchise history that they’ve done that. Saleh is probably licking his chops at the idea of pairing Mykel Williams and Nick Bosa together. The 49ers lost several key defensive players this offseason, including DT Javon Hargrave, DT Maliek Collins, LB Leonard Floyd, LB Dre Greenlaw, CB Charvarius Ward and S Talanoa Hufanga, so they were almost in a spot where they had to load up on defensive players. 

LOSERS

• Shedeur Sanders. Yes, we have him listed as a winner, but he’s also a loser and that’s mainly because he lost out on roughly $13 million. If Sanders had been taken in the first round with the 21st overall pick, he would have gotten a rookie contract worth about $18 million. Instead, he was taken in the fifth round, and now, he’ll be getting a four-year deal that’s worth roughly $5 million. Also, he got drafted by a team that passed over him six times before they actually decided to take him. 
• Justin Tucker. The Ravens put Tucker on notice by drafting a kicker for the first time in franchise history with the selection of Arizona’s Tyler Loop. Not only is Tucker coming off the worst season of his career but he’s also facing multiple allegations of sexual misconduct. After 13 seasons in Baltimore, Tucker’s time with the Ravens might be finally be coming to an end.

From Tom Brady to the Bears offense to Cam Ward, we’ve got more winners (and more losers) here. 

2. 2025 NFL Draft reaction: Pete Prisco hands out grades for all 32 teams

There is no one who loves handing out grades more than Pete Prisco, so after the draft was over Saturday night, he sifted through every team’s draft class and came up with a grade for each team. 

Since I’m pretty sure Prisco was a “C” student in college, we’re going to take a look at the teams that got the worst grades. The award for the worst grade goes to the Lions, who received the only “C-” mark. 

With that in mind, here’s a look at the four worst grades: These were the only teams that were given a “C” or worse from Prisco. 

• Lions: C-. “This isn’t a draft that I loved, which is a departure from their recent drafts. Tyleik Williams is a good player, but was that really a need? Why not an edge? Third-round receiver Isaac TeSlaa is a project who didn’t do a lot in college and they traded up to get him. “
• Saints: C. “First-round offensive linemen Kelvin Banks will help solidify that unit up front and will develop into a good player. I didn’t like Tyler Shough in the second, but the rest of their draft was solid.”
• Dolphins: C. “They only had two picks in the first four rounds, which limits what you can do. Grant is good and Savaiinaea is as well, but he better be special for what they did to get him. Quinn Ewers in the seventh is an interesting pick.” 
• Bengals: C. “I didn’t love their draft. Shemar Stewart is so raw that it could take time. Second-round linebacker Demetrius Knight has some pop and will help at a need spot. I do like guard Dylan Fairchild in the third. But this is a draft that will be all about Stewart and his development.”

If you’re wondering whether Prisco actually handed out any good grades, the answer is yes. A total of three teams — the Chiefs, Jaguars and Buccaneers — all earned an “A.” If you want to check out the Prisco’s grades for every team, be sure to click here. 

3. Ranking the five biggest steals of the draft 

Every year in the NFL Draft, we see plenty of steals happen, where a player who was projected to go high falls down the board to a shocked team that can’t believe it just landed such a good player at such a low spot in the draft. 

If you’re wondering who some of the biggest steals were this year, you don’t have to wonder anymore because CBSSports.com’s Bryan DeArdo made a list of the five biggest ones of the draft: 

• 1. QB Shedeur Sanders to the Browns (Round 5, Pick 144). “This shouldn’t come as a surprise, as Sanders endured arguably the biggest slide in the history of the draft. Sanders’ wait finally came to an end when the Browns traded up to select him early in the fifth round.”
• 2. EDGE Mike Green to the Ravens (Round 2, Pick 59). “Green was undoubtedly a first-round talent but previous off-field issues led to his draft slide. Baltimore ultimately ended his wait when they drafted him late in the second round. If you just look at on-field production, Green is arguably the best pass rusher in this year’s draft.”
• 3. Shavon Revel Jr. to the Cowboys (Round 3, Pick 76). “Dallas’ biggest steal was Revel, a player some considered to be the draft’s top CB prospect. The fact that he played for a smaller school (East Carolina) and missed most of the 2024 season after tearing his ACL undoubtedly contributed to his draft slide.”
• 4. QB Will Howard to the Steelers (Round 6, Pick 185). “You don’t often get a quarterback in the sixth round with the type of bona fides that Howard has. During his final season in college, Howard led the Big Ten in completion percentage, passing yards and touchdown passes while leading the Buckeyes to the national title.”
• 5. S Nick Emmanwori to the Seahawks (Round 2, Pick 35). “One of the top-ranked safeties in the draft, Emmanwori was one of four players taller than 6-foot-3 who eclipsed 40 inches and ran a sub-4.4 time in the 40-yard dash since 2003, according to ESPN. Several mock drafts had Emmanwori going to the Seahawks with the 18th overall pick. Seattle, though, was able to get the hard-hitting safety in the second round “

For a full explanation on why each of these guys made the list, be sure to click here. 

4. NFL Draft overreactions: Did the Steelers draft their Week 1 starter? 

Everyone on the internet loves to overreact to things, and that’s especially true when we’re talking about the the NFL. With that in mind, Jeff Kerr decided to take a look at several big storylines from the draft to see if we’re all overreacting. 

Statement: Will Howard will be the Steelers’ starting QB in Week 1. 
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction. “This draft showcased the Steelers expect Aaron Rodgers to be in the building soon, and take over the reins of QB1. That gives Pittsburgh time to develop Howard.”

Statement: Browns made a mistake drafting two quarterbacks. 
Overreaction or reality: Reality. “There were no quarterbacks taken between Dillon Gabriel and Shedeur Sanders, which means the Browns were the first team since 1971 to select two straight quarterbacks who were taken by the same team in the first five rounds (Houston Oilers with Dan Pastorini and Lynn Dickey). … Cleveland is likely going to waste a pick here whether Gabriel or Sanders pan out, or two picks if both struggle. Seems like the Browns created an unnecessary problem.”

Statement: Giants made a massive mistake only drafting one offensive lineman. 
Overreaction or reality: Reality. “The Giants did have one of their better drafts. … Unfortunately for New York, the offensive line still has the same issues as it did last year. In a draft filled with good offensive linemen, the Giants didn’t take one until the fifth round (Purdue’s Marcus Mbow). The offensive line issues have hurt the Giants over the past decade and will likely be a problem in 2025.”

There are plenty more overreactions, and we’ve got the full list here. 

5. Shedeur Sanders prank: Son of Falcons defensive coordinator admits to taking part in call

At one point during the NFL Draft, Shedeur Sanders thought he was going to be selected by the Saints and that’s because someone claiming to be New Orleans general manager Mickey Loomis had called Sanders and told him he was going to be picked. As it turned out, though, the call was actually a prank. 

Sanders had a private cell phone that he got just for the draft, so no one outside the NFL had the number. Due to that fact, the league decided to investigate, but they didn’t have to look very far to find out what happend. 

• Prank was made by the son of Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich. Jax Ulbrich, the 21-year-old son of the Falcons defensive coordinator, admitted to taking part in the prank. So how did the younger Ulbrich get Sanders’ draft cell number? According to the Falcons, he “came across the draft contact phone number for Shedeur Sanders off an open iPad while visiting his parent’s home.” Jax later apologized in a post on Instagram. 
• What happened during the call. In the video of the prank call, which you can see here, Jax was sitting on a couch with a friend who actually made the call. After Sanders picked up, Jax’s friend said, “Hey this is Mickey Loomis here, the GM of the New Orleans Saints. … We’re going to take you with our next pick right here, man, but you’re going to have to wait a little bit longer, man. Sorry about that.”
• The Falcons won’t face any punishment. The NFL won’t be punishing the Falcons, which is an interesting decision. If the league wants to prevent a situation like this from happening in the future, it might be better to hit the Falcons with a small punishment, which could serve as a deterrent for other teams. Ulbrich’s son got Sander’s number through an iPad, which is something that could have been prevented. If team employees thought that they (or their team) might be punished when something like this happens, they would probably be a lot more careful about who has access to sensitive material like the list of CELL NUMBERS for draft prospects. 

Sanders wasn’t the only player who got pranked over the weekend. Tyler Warren also got a prank call before being drafted by the Colts at 14th overall. Also, Chase Lundt told reporters that he got pranked “four or five” times before the Bills made him the 206th overall pick in the draft. 

We’ve got the full story on the prank call to Sanders here. 

6. Extra points: Commanders getting a new stadium in Washington, D.C.

It’s a busy time in the NFL, and since it’s nearly impossible to keep track of everything that’s happening, I went ahead and put together a roundup for you. 

• Commanders and D.C. agree to deal for new $3 billion stadium deal. After playing the last 28 years in Maryland, the Washington Commanders are actually going to be playing in Washington in the very near future. The team has finalized a $3 billion deal with the District of Columbia to build a new stadium at the old RFK Stadium site. The deal still has to be approved by the D.C. council, but that appears to be the only big obstacle remaining. New Commanders owner Josh Harris is hoping that the new building will be ready for the start of the 2030 season. We’ve got more details on the new deal here. 
• Eagles set to visit White House. The Eagles are scheduled to visit the White House today to celebrate their Super Bowl win over the Chifs, but right now, it’s not clear if Jalen Hurts will be making the trip. The Eagles star was recently asked if he would be there and the Super Bowl-winning quarterback answered the question by making some incredulous facial expressions before walking away from the reporter who asked the question after about eight seconds of awkward silence (You can see the encounter here). Whether Hurts is there or not, most of the team is expected to attend, including Saquon Barkley, who spent some of the weekend hanging out with Donald Trump. 
• Hunter Renfrow is back in the NFL. After one year out of football, the former Raiders receiver is returning to the NFL. The 29-year-old signed a deal with the Panthers over the weekend and we’ve got the details here. 
• Shiloh Sanders signs with Bucs. Shedeur Sanders’ brother didn’t get drafted but he will have a chance to earn an NFL job this year. Defensive back Shiloh Sanders has signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent and we’ve got the full breakdown here. 
• Jaguars sign Emmanuel Ogbah. After spending the past five seasons in Miami, the veteran pass rusher is heading to Jacksonville. Ogbah averaged 5.9 sacks per year during his time with the Dolphins and if the Jaguars can get that kind of production from him in 2025, they would likely be thrilled. 
• Belichick’s awkward interview. Bill Belichick did an interview with “CBS News Sunday Morning” and things definitely got a little awkward. If you want to know what happened, we’ve got all the details here.