2025 NFL Draft: First Round Results

The 2025 NFL Draft has come and gone: the NFL’s 32 teams rolled the dice on the next additions to their rosters for the coming 2025-26 NFL football season at the annual NFL Draft, and it was one fun, chaotic night. 

There were plenty of surprises mixed in with some predictable picks this year. The top available quarterback, Cam Ward, went first overall to Tennessee, but Jaxson Dart, the third-ranked signal caller, was surprising taken by the Giants in a round 1 trade.

Meanwhile, Shedeur Sanders, son of legend Deion Sanders, was considered the second-ranked QB, but he slipped all the way to the fifth round, where he was taken by Cleveland. With the second overall pick, Cleveland could have taken him there, but still wound up with a respectable pick at the sports’ most important position, despite Sanders’ shocking freefall.

Jacksonville pulled off a shocking trade with Cleveland to take top prospect and Heisman winner Travis Hunter second overall.

Here’s your guide to how the NFL draft works, plus a breakdown of the complete list of all-important first rounders.

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When was the 2025 NFL Draft?

The 2025 NFL Draft was held on Thursday, April 24, 2025, until Saturday, April 26, 2025.

How Can I Watch the 2025 NFL Draft?

The 2025 NFL Draft will be broadcast on:

• ESPN (DIRECTV Channel 206)
• ESPN Deportes (DIRECTV Channel 466)
• ABC (Check local listings)
• NFL Network (DIRECTV Channel 212)
• NFL+ (Streaming)

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How Does the NFL Draft Work?

The NFL draft is one of the biggest non-game events of the year in professional football. But how does it work? How does the order get determined, and why does it shift around so much? Let’s break it down:

Eligibility

To be draft-eligible, players must have been out of high school for at least three years.

Draft Order

The draft is set up in a way that gives the worst-performing teams from the prior season a chance at drafting the best players to balance out team strength across the league. Teams are allowed to trade their draft picks to each other in exchange for players or other draft picks. Teams can also call each other up and trade picks during the draft.

After the teams that did not make the playoffs are assigned their spots, the teams that did make the post-season are placed in the order of the round they were eliminated in during the prior season’s playoffs, then ordered by win-loss record.

Teams are also given compensatory picks based on how many players they gained or lost during free agency, when players whose contracts expire or otherwise become available to other teams are allowed to explore opportunities.

Teams that engage in illegal behavior or otherwise violate the league’s rules will occasionally be required to forfeit their draft picks as a penalty.

2025 NFL Draft Order & Round 1 Results

Now, let’s take a look at the official draft order from the NFL:

1. Tennessee Titans (3-14) – Cam Ward
2. Cleveland Browns (3-14)– Traded to 5th, took Mason Graham
3. New York Giants (3-14) – Abdul Carter
4. New England Patriots (4-13) – Will Campbell
5. Jacksonville Jaguars (4-13) – Traded up to 2nd, took Travis Hunter
6. Las Vegas Raiders (4-13) – Ashton Jeanty
7. New York Jets (5-12) – Armand Membou
8. Carolina Panthers (5-12) – Tetairoa McMillan
9. New Orleans Saints (5-12) – Kelvin Banks Jr. 
10. Chicago Bears (5-12) – Colston Loveland
11. San Francisco 49ers (6-11) – Mykel Williams
12. Dallas Cowboys (7-10) – Tyler Booker
13. Miami Dolphins (8-9) – Kenneth Grant
14. Indianapolis Colts (8-9) – Tyler Warren
15. Atlanta Falcons (8-9) – Jalon Walker
16. Arizona Cardinals (8-9) – Walter Nolen
17. Cincinnati Bengals (9-8)– Shemar Stewart
18. Seattle Seahawks (10-7) – Grey Zabel
19. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (10-7) – Emeka Egbuka
20. Denver Broncos (10-7) – Jahdae Barron
21. Pittsburgh Steelers (10-7) – Derrick Harmon
22. Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) – Omarion Hampton
23. Green Bay Packers (11-6) – Matthew Golden
24. Minnesota Vikings (14-3) – Donovan Jackson
25. Houston Texans (10-7) – Traded with NYG, Giants took Jaxson Dart
26. Los Angeles Rams (10-7) – Traded with Atlanta, Atlanta took James Pearce Jr.
27. Baltimore Ravens (12-5) – Malaki Starks
28. Detroit Lions (15-2) – Tyleik Williams
29. Washington Commanders (12-5) – Josh Conerly Jr.
30. Buffalo Bills (13-4) – Maxwell Hairston
31. Kansas City Chiefs (15-2) – Traded with Eagles, Eagles took Jihaad Campbell
32. Philadelphia Eagles (14-3) – Traded with KC, Chiefs took Josh Simmons

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How Did Our NFL Draft Top 10 Predictions Hold Up?

And here’s a look at the most likely picks for each of the first 10 selections, based on most analyst projections:

1. Tennessee Titans – Cam Ward, QB – Correct!
2. Cleveland Browns – Travis Hunter, WR/CB – Incorrect: Jacksonville traded up to get him.
3. New York Giants – Abdul Carter, DE/OLB – Correct!
4. New England Patriots – Will Campbell, OT – Correct!
5. Jacksonville Jaguars – Ashton Jeanty, RB – Incorrect: Jax traded up with the Browns, who took Mason Graham here.
6. Las Vegas Raiders – Armand Membou, OT – Incorrect: Las Vegas took Ashton Jeanty at the six.
7. New York Jets – Tyler Warren, TE – Incorrect: New York opted for Armand Membou.
8. Carolina Panthers – Jalon Walker, LB – Incorrect: The Panthers took OT Tetairoa McMillan eighth overall.
9. New Orleans Saints – Mykel Williams, DE or Mason Graham, DT – Incorrect: with Mason Graham off the board, the Saints too Kelvin Banks Jr.
10. Chicago Bears – Colston Loveland, TE or Kelvin Banks Jr., OT – Correct! The Bears selected Loveland in 10th place.

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