My Week 17 mock draft had the New England Patriots making the first overall pick. Whoops.
The Patriots chose hard mode for their continued rebuild, beating the Buffalo Bills’ backups behind rookie seventh-round draft pick Joe Milton to slide from first to fourth in the 2025 NFL Draft pecking order. That may not ultimately influence who they select, but what was once a cushy place to trade back from in order to amass draft assets for a talent-deficient roster is much more precarious.
In New England’s place rose the Tennessee Titans, who can now select 2025’s first quarterback without the pressure of having to make a trade up the draft board. Behind them are the Cleveland Browns, who can begin crafting a Deshaun Watson exit strategy in hopes of separating themselves from the league’s 38th-best quarterback — the same man who left the Houston Texans after more than 20 accusations of sexual misconduct and what the NFL described as “predatory behavior.”
So what does the top of the 2025 NFL Draft look like now, and who could be each team’s target? Let’s make some educated guesses across the top five:
