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Matt Miller
For months, the 2025 NFL draft class has been billed as weak relative to recent years by scouts and media analysts. It has been labeled thin and void of blue-chip talent. And sometimes, it has been called flat-out bad.
But as NFL analysts, scouts and executives dive further into the class ahead of Round 1 on April 24, that narrative is shifting. Thanks to underclassman declarations and a closer look at Day 2 and 3 prospects, this class could be stronger than previously predicted.
How did we get here? After talking to more than a dozen scouts and general managers over the past few weeks, a clear pattern emerged. What started as a quest for historical perspective on the inferiority of the 2025 class became a deep dive into positional value, team-building philosophies and the idea that good players are out there — scouts just need to find them.
“The people saying this is a bad class just haven’t watched enough players yet,” an AFC college scouting director said.
Jump to:
Overall thoughts | Question marks
Positions of strength | Best comp
What are scouts saying about this class?
“There are four, maybe five, blue-chip players,” one NFL general manager said. “After that, it’s 40 guys with a late-first-round or second-round grade.”
Scouts view the 2025 class as light on future All-Pros but strong on starters. “You’re going to see a ton of rookie starters from this class because it’s such an experienced group,” an AFC South area scout said.
Though the class appears to lack high-end, can’t-miss prospects seen as future stars — such as Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison Jr. last year — it has fewer players ranked high based purely on potential. As an AFC East area scout put it: “Player No. 15 on your board might have the same grade as No. 50.”
That’s great for teams selecting in the middle of the first round or later. It also benefits teams with three or more picks in the first two rounds, such as the Chicago Bears, who have three selections between pick Nos. 10 and 41, and the Buffalo Bills, with three selections between Nos. 30 and 62.
This could also mean more trades starting in the middle of Round 1 through Round 2 due to a lack of leaguewide consensus regarding the top players in the draft’s strong middle class. The reverse seems unlikely, as there could be fewer trades into the top 10 because of the lack of blue-chippers and elite quarterback talent.
The narrative change for this draft class was supported by the Philadelphia Eagles‘ dominant Super Bowl LIX win over the Kansas City Chiefs. The position groups that fueled Philly’s win — defensive end, defensive tackle and versatile defensive backs — are the strengths of the 2025 draft.
“This is a meat-and-potatoes draft,” one NFL area scout said.
Which position groups have the biggest questions?
The lack of buzz surrounding the class reflects the number of quarterbacks at the top of the board. Miami quarterback Cam Ward is seen by most as the class’ top passer, followed closely by Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. But scouts wouldn’t have ranked them in the top passers drafted in 2024.
“There isn’t a single guy this year you’d take over the six drafted [in the first round] last year,” an AFC scouting director said.
Though scouts are down on the expected first-round quarterbacks, they like the depth at the position. One scout said he likes this group better than 2021, a surprise given there were five QBs selected in the first round that year, including each of the top three picks (Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson and Trey Lance).
This is also a down year for elite wide receivers after a run of great classes that featured game-changers such as Harrison, Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase.
Travis Hunter (Colorado) will likely be a top-three pick, but teams are divided on his primary NFL position after he played wide receiver and cornerback in college. Many evaluators prefer him at cornerback, with receiver being a secondary position, and Hunter is listed as a corner at the combine. If he’s classified as a defensive player, it would greatly diminish the top-end strength of the receiver class.
Scouts are also torn on Tetairoa McMillan (Arizona) and Luther Burden III (Missouri) because of questions about their deep speed. There could be five receivers drafted in Round 1, but none are seen as better prospects than last year’s top three of Harrison, Malik Nabers and Rome Odunze.
Which position groups have scouts excited?
The running back class has a chance to be special, as six backs have at least a second-round grade in my pre-combine rankings. There is also depth.
“If you can’t find a starting running back this year, you’re really just not trying,” an NFC West area scout said. “There will be starters coming out of Rounds 5, 6 and 7.”
Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty leads the way and has a first-round grade, but teams will find starters in Round 2 in Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson, Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson, North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton and Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson. There’s a good chance this year’s draft will feature the most running backs picked since the draft was reduced to seven rounds in 1994 (30 were drafted in 1998 and 2017).
It’s also another strong year for tight ends. Tyler Warren (Penn State) and Colston Loveland (Michigan) are seen as top-15 players, according to NFL scouts. The depth is strong behind them, with seven more tight ends having a good shot of being selected by the end of Day 2.
“It’s not 2023 good, but this tight end class is stronger than last year’s or 2022,” an AFC South area scout said.
And finally, the defensive line group must be lauded. Penn State edge Abdul Carter anchors the class, followed by Michigan defensive tackle Mason Graham and Georgia edge Jalon Walker. There are 31 defensive linemen in my top 100 — the most I’ve had at that group.
One NFL general manager said that “a third of the first round might be edge rushers and defensive tackles.”
Is there a recent class comp for the 2025 group?
“It reminds me of the 2015 first round with two quarterbacks at the top and then just a bunch of really solid players,” said an AFC North scout with more than 20 years of experience.
The 2015 draft featured Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota as the first two picks, but five future Pro Bowlers were drafted in the top 10. That comparison might be too pessimistic, however.
The 2016 draft might be the best comp. Quarterbacks Jared Goff and Carson Wentz came off the board at the top, but the rest of the top 10 was dominated by the trenches with Joey Bosa (No. 3), Ronnie Stanley (No. 6), DeForest Buckner (No. 7), Jack Conklin (No. 8) and Leonard Floyd (No. 9). The 2016 class also featured a star running back drafted high (Ezekiel Elliott at No. 4), which could be mirrored in this draft if Jeanty goes in the top 10.
“This class might not have a superstar quarterback, but at the end of the day, it’ll have more [long-term] starters than 2021 or 2022 [one each],” an NFC scouting director said.