Top Five Candidates To Be The No. 1 Overall Pick In The 2025 NFL Draft

January 8, 2025

Who are the top candidates to be the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft? RotoBaller's draft expert, Kyle Lindemann breaks down the top five choices in 2025.

The 2024 NFL regular season has ended, which means the first 18 picks in the 2025 NFL Draft order are now set.

Several quarterback-needy teams pick in the top three of the draft, which has led to plenty of speculation about who the first pick might be. Will the Tennessee Titans select a quarterback with the first overall pick? Is it possible that we could see a trade much like the Bears trading out of No. 1 in 2023 with the Carolina Panthers did?

This year's draft is set to take place in Green Bay, Wisconsin, for the very first time. While plenty can still happen between now and 2025 NFL Draft weekend (April 24-26), here are the top five candidates to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Cam Ward - QB, Miami

Ward has improved every year. He began his college career in Division II at Incarnate Word (Texas) before transferring to Washington State. After much of the PAC-12 disbanded this past offseason, Ward entered the transfer portal and enrolled at Miami for his final year.

He finished the 2024 season 305 of 454 passing (67.2 comp%) to go with 39 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. Ward had an impressive 9.8 ADOT and has the arm strength to consistently push the ball downfield.

He also added 204 yards on the ground with four rushing touchdowns. He isn't an amazing athlete, but he's athletic enough to be able to extend plays and make throws outside the numbers.

Cam Ward (-135) is now the favorite to go No. 1 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft at @BetMGM and @FDSportsbook

— Ben Fawkes (@BFawkes22) January 6, 2025

Ward has a ton of upside and the only big knock on him is that he's made several boneheaded throws over his college career. We've seen players like Jared Goff and Carson Wentz go No. 1 and No. 2 overall before when many of the experts had serious questions about the quarterback talent available. The need for quarterbacks always pushes their value up the board.

Travis Hunter - WR/CB, Colorado

Is he better as a wide receiver, or is he better as a cornerback? Which position will Travis Hunter play at the next level? It's going to be a hotly debated topic over the next few months, but there's no denying Hunter's incredible athleticism and playmaking ability.

Don't put limits on what Travis Hunter can do 😤

Story: https://t.co/nnHCwsnL8K pic.twitter.com/aKKyNwtJNy

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) January 6, 2025

Hunter won the Heisman Trophy after catching 96 passes for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns while also having 36 combined tackles, four interceptions, and 11 passes defended on defense. He impressively played over 100 snaps per game in 2024, seeing both sides of the ball for Colorado.

In my opinion, he's probably better suited as a cornerback at the next level and profiles as the kind of player who can be a true shutdown at the position. However, given the exploding wide receiver market, it's understandable why he might want to play wide receiver at the next level.

While most expect a quarterback to go No. 1 overall at this stage, Hunter has the potential to be a complete game-changer wherever he lines up.

Shedeur Sanders - QB, Colorado

The most polarizing player in the 2025 draft class, Sanders has a lot of diehard fans and a lot of haters. How will he be received in NFL locker rooms as a rookie? To further complicate matters, his father, Deion (an all-time NFL great in his own right), has said they would influence where Shedeur gets drafted. Will that be an issue for several front offices?

Sanders finished the 2024 season 353 of 477 passing (71.8% comp) to go with 37 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions. He also averaged 8.7 yards per attempt. Sanders doesn't do much outside of the pocket, but he had four rushing touchdowns.

He's an instinctive, smart quarterback who knows where to go with the football, but might he be limited from an athletic perspective at the NFL level? Sanders is approximately 6-foot-1 and 210 lbs. and is primarily a pocket passer. Depending on how he measures at the NFL Combine, might his size and lack of threat with his legs be an issue for some teams?

Nonetheless, five of the teams at the top of the draft order: Tennessee, Cleveland, the New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders, and the New York Jets all have serious questions at quarterback. If Tennessee decided to trade out of No. 1, it would likely be with another team wanting to come up for a quarterback.

Will Campbell - OT, LSU

Campbell is considered the top offensive tackle in the 2025 NFL Draft, but some evaluators think that he might be better fitted to play guard at the next level. He's a better mauler in the run game, and his lack of foot speed could be an issue against some of the league's top edge rushers at the next level.

He was a huge part of Jayden Daniels' Heisman Campaign in 2023, and there isn't a better litmus test for a left tackle than playing in the SEC for three seasons and looking good while doing it.

This is more of a longshot given that the Titans have drafted an offensive lineman in the first round the last two years, Peter Skoronski and JC Latham, but you just never know what might happen over the next three-plus months.

Mason Graham - DT, Michigan

A very dominant player, Graham was a huge part of why Michigan won the National Championship in the 2023 season. He's a tough, nasty, instinctive interior defender who doesn't mind getting his hands dirty and can play on all three downs.

Graham finished up his college career with 20 hurries and five sacks in 2024. Michigan's season was disappointing after former head coach Jim Harbaugh and many of their players left for the NFL, but the defense was still very good this past season.

At this juncture, it would be a surprise if Tennessee considered anyone but a quarterback at No. 1 or traded back, but there are plenty of talented and useful players in the 2025 draft class. This group probably won't live up to 2024 in terms of star power, but these are all some important names to know as we head into the offseason.

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