NFL Draft 2025 Rumors: True or False

The 2025 NFL Draft is still weeks away, but the rumor mill is already in overdrive. Every year, scouts, agents, and anonymous league sources flood the pre-draft process with whispers—some carrying real weight, others meant to mislead. Is a quarterback truly rocketing up draft boards or is it just a smokescreen? Is that top prospect really slipping, or is it a team hoping to drive down his value?

Below, I’ll break down the latest buzz, deciphering which rumors have real momentum and which are just noise. From rising stars to slipping names, let's separate the smoke from the fire. 

Quinn Ewers’ Draft Stock

2024 wasn’t the year Quinn Ewers expected to have. Sure, Texas made the CFP and awards were plenty for the Longhorns last fall, but expectations were that Ewers was going to elevate himself into the discussion as the top overall pick in 2025. It didn’t happen. 

While much of the attention this pre-draft process has centered around Miami QB Cam Ward and Colorado signal-caller Shedeur Sanders, the tier of QBs behind those two has become a fluid ranking for teams across the league. Away from the Titans, Browns, and Giants at the top of the board who need fresh legs under center, there’s a long list of teams around football that will be interested in adding fresh talent to their offense, as well. While opinions vary depending on who you talk to about Ewers—some teams have him as far down as a mid-to-late day-three talent—don’t be too shocked if you see Ewers’ name come off the board in the top 65 when it’s all set and done.

First-Round Surprises

The beauty of this class is that there is absolutely no consensus on where teams have players ranked, or where guys will hear their names called. If someone tells you otherwise, it’s just a straight-up fallacy. Some clubs have day-one grades on players that others have as fringe top-100—boards are truly all over the place. That’ll make for excellent theater and outstanding drama on draft weekend. It’s going to be a whole lot of fun—that I can promise. 

However, there have been a few names that consistently have stood out in day-one conversations as players you may have thought were locks for day two or beyond. One is UCLA LB Carson Schwesinger. A dynamic downhill defender that can range sideline to sideline, he recently popped into my most recent first-round mock a few weeks back. The other is LSU TE Mason Taylor, who teams absolutely love. Whether it’s the size (6-foot-5, 251 lbs), hands, fluid movement ability, production (LSU’s all-time leader among TEs in receptions (129) and yards (1,308), Taylor is one of the biggest ‘risers’ of the pre-draft process.

Don’t be shocked if…

Alabama ED/LB Jihaad Campbell goes in the top 10 picks, and both Missouri WR Luther Burden III and Ohio State OT Josh Simmons take a bit of a tumble down boards and into day two. 

For Campbell, his potential as a pure pass-rusher has teams salivating at the opportunity to align him up and down a front seven. Considering how teams have used the likes of Micah Parsons, Nik Bonnitto, and Frankie Luvu over the last few years, Campbell is a hybrid blend of dynamic explosiveness as a pass rusher along with the trigger, coverage ability, and football IQ to live as a green-dot off the ball, as well. More on Campbell:

For Burden and Simmons, each has had their name come up on multiple occasions regarding concerns away from the game of football.

Jets, Raiders, and the QB class

While the Jets added Justin Fields and the Raiders will enter 2025 with Geno Smith as their starter, the expectation is for both teams to add young talent via the draft next month. Whether it’s a day-two headliner like Louisville’s Tyler Shough or Ohio State’s Will Howard, or signal-callers further down the board in Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard, Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel, Syracuse’s Kyle McCordm or Missouri’s Brady Cook, expect both GMs in Darren Mougey (Jets) and John Spytek (Raiders) to be aggressive in adding a young talent to compete with the veteran in place.