The Tennessee Titans earned the No. 1 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft following their Week 18 defeat to the Houston Texans. The Titans now find themselves in an interesting position.
General manager Ran Carthon and head coach Brian Callahan will clearly enter the quarterback market this offseason. They'll assess quarterback prospects Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders closely throughout the process and determine their long-term outlook. If the Titans don't see them as franchise signal-callers, trading the pick to someone who does becomes their next best option.
The Titans traded away the No. 1 overall selection in 2016 and immediately set themselves up for success, acquiring players like Derrick Henry in the process. With that possibility in mind, we've identified three potential teams that may possess interest in trading up.
Cleveland Browns
The Cleveland Browns own the No. 2 overall selection. They'll undeniably possess interest in drafting a quarterback. Current starter Deshaun Watson has miserably failed to meet the expectations of his $230 million fully guaranteed contract. A rookie replacement is required while they continue absorbing the financial fallout.
Watson suffered a season-ending Achilles injury and reportedly experienced a setback in his recovery earlier this week. That only increases Cleveland's already pressing need to draft a quarterback. Trade-ups from No. 2 are fairly rare, but if the Browns want to secure their specific target, they may need to ensure another QB-needy team doesn't leapfrog them.
New York Giants
The New York Giants were scheduled to possess the first overall selection, but a meaningless late-season victory over the Indianapolis Colts proved to be costly. The Giants now own the third pick. That complicates matters for general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll, who president John Mara announced will be retained.
Schoen and Daboll are undoubtedly entering a make-or-break campaign in 2025. They lack more grade periods to be patient with the quarterback position. Plus, every quarterback on the Giants' roster is on an expiring contract. The Giants will be tasked with making an aggressive statement at the position.
Ward or Sanders must be Daboll’s opening-day starter, and that could require a trade-up to No. 1. There’s a better nucleus in place for a rookie quarterback than given credit for, with ascending weapons like Malik Nabers, Theo Johnson, and Tyrone Tracy Jr. in the fold.
Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders are victims of the strength of schedule tiebreaker. Owning the No. 6 overall selection, the Raiders earned the lowest pick among the teams with 4-13 records. That's unfortunate for a franchise that desperately needs to upgrade the quarterback position by moving on from Aidan O'Connell and Gardner Minshew.
General manager Tom Telesco decided to retain head coach Antonio Pierce, who concluded his first full-time season in charge on the hot seat. Telesco and Pierce must deliver a mapped-out plan for a quarterback to owner Mark Davis this offseason. The Raiders can't enter the 2025 campaign with a similar situation under center.
