2025 NFL Draft: Who takes Shedeur Sanders, is Ashton Jeanty worth the hype and all the other burning questions

The time is now, NFL fans. After months of speculation and reading tea leaves and dissecting social-media posts to see if anyone tipped their hand, the 2025 NFL Draft is finally here. General managers will boldly push their chips to the center of the table to select the player they believe can drastically alter their franchise. Some risks will pay off, others will end in disaster, but at least fans will finally have some answers.

They won’t have all of them, though.

With just a few hours before the NFL’s biggest offseason event, questions abound concerning even the elite players on the board. Before all the action kicks off, here are the five biggest questions entering the 2025 NFL Draft.

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Given his tape, stats and famous father, Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders is one of the most polarizing players in the 2025 NFL Draft. While he’s considered one of the top quarterbacks available, there are questions about whether his game — and his personality — will translate to the NFL.

Early in the draft process, it looked like Sanders was a lock to be selected in the top-5, but in the days before the event, Sanders has fallen in mock drafts, with some prognosticators dropping Sanders out of the first round entirely.

Will that actually be the case Thursday night?

Multiple teams could use Sanders’ services. Both the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants, who pick No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, could use a promising youngster at the position. The New Orleans Saints, especially after Derek Carr’s injury news, are also in need of some new blood at the position. They hold the No. 9 pick, putting them squarely in Sanders territory.

If all those teams decide to go with other players early, the Pittsburgh Steelers could swoop in and snag Sanders at No. 21. Negotiations with veteran Aaron Rodgers haven’t resulted in a contract just yet, and the Steelers’ other options behind Rodgers aren’t exactly encouraging.

Shedeur Sanders is no stranger to the spotlight as one of the top QBs in this draft class and the son of Hall of Famer Deion Sanders. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack, File)

(ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Sanders would fill an immediate need for Pittsburgh. He would also land in a stable environment with a tenured head coach, strong position players and an excellent defense. Sanders to Pittsburgh could be the best-case scenario for all parties involved.

With that said, it takes only one team to blow up every single mock. Given how highly quarterbacks are valued, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a mystery team grab Sanders early or trade up to acquire his services.

No one expected the Atlanta Falcons to take Michael Penix Jr. last year at No. 8. Could Sanders be involved in a similarly shocking moment this time around?

With the draft nearly here, there is seemingly a lot more trade chatter than normal. The Denver Broncos could trade down at No. 20 if Sanders is still on the board, the Jacksonville Jaguars could trade up to No. 2 and the Saints could trade down to acquire more picks and then trade back up to get a quarterback in Round 1.

Those are just rumors for now, and it’s worth asking how much fans can trust any information that leaks ahead of the draft. The NFL executives feeding those rumors to reporters have an agenda. It’s quite the challenge to parse what’s true and what’s a smokescreen.

But at least one general manager publicly said he thinks things could get “wild” Thursday night. Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles said he expects a lot more movement than usual in the first round.

The Bears are among the teams involved in trade rumors, with some speculating the team wants to trade up to take Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Maybe Poles was dropping hints about his team’s strategy Thursday. Or maybe he’s gotten the sense that multiple teams are going to make big moves on the first night of the draft.

Ashton Jeanty should hear his name called early Thursday night. (Photo by Robin Alam/ISI Photos/Getty Images)

(Robin Alam/ISI Photos via Getty Images)

Speaking of Jeanty, the Boise State star is expected to be the crown jewel of an otherwise outstanding crop of running backs in the 2025 NFL Draft. Jeanty is considered a true difference maker at the position, and draws comparisons to LaDainian Tomlinson and Priest Holmes. No pressure, rookie.

For a position many were willing to write off, running back experienced quite the resurgence in 2024. Saquon Barkley proved to be the missing piece for the Philadelphia Eagles, leading them to a championship in his first year with the team. Derrick Henry transformed the Baltimore Ravens’ offense, turning it into an even stronger juggernaut under Lamar Jackson.

The success of Barkley and Henry could push teams toward taking running backs earlier than they’ve gone in the draft in recent years. That might not be a bad strategy, as this year’s crop of runners is among the strongest the draft has seen in quite some time.

Behind Jeanty, there are eight other running backs listed in the top-66 on Yahoo Sports’ consensus big board. Fans could see roughly nine different running backs picked in the first two rounds of the 2025 NFL Draft, all of who could make a big impact as rookies.

North Carolina star Omarion Hampton is the only running back besides Jeanty to be listed as a first-round talent on Yahoo Sports’ big board. Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson, Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins, Kansas’ Devin Neal, Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson, Miami’s Damien Martinez, Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson and Arizona State’s Cam Skattebo are the other seven runners who could be taken by the end of the second round.

Barkley and Henry may have started the running back resurgence, but if the 2025 class is as good as advertised, they’ll be the ones to ensure it’s here to stay.

Colorado’s two-way star Travis Hunter shouldn’t wait too long to hear his name called Thursday night. Hunter — who many consider the top player in the draft — is expected to be the second name off the board. The Browns, who currently hold the No. 2 pick, seem perfectly content to take Hunter once they are on the clock. But if another team makes Cleveland an offer it can’t refuse, it’s assumed that team is going to take Hunter.

There are many reasons why Hunter is so coveted this year, though two of them really stand out. Hunter not only looks like an elite wide receiver prospect, but he also might be the best cornerback available in the 2025 NFL Draft.

Hunter played both positions at Colorado and intends to continue playing both positions in the NFL. While that’s been done before, it’s a rare feat, and no player has ever tried to take on both roles the way Hunter desires.

Deion Sanders — Hunter’s head coach at Colorado — is the most recent example of a player who tried to play both ways in the NFL. While Sanders did see time on both offense and defense over his career, he really spent only one year consistently playing both. If Sanders, who was athletic enough to also play baseball during the NFL offseason, found it difficult to balance both NFL roles, can Hunter really pull it off?

No one truly knows the answer to that question, but Hunter wants to give it a shot. Given the value he could bring to a team, Hunter will likely play both ways as a rookie. If that proves too challenging, he could still carve out an NFL career as an elite one-way talent.

But if Hunter proves to be a unicorn who breaks the mold … well, that’s worked out incredibly well for Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers. That’s the ultimate upside with a player like Hunter.

(Yahoo Sports)

Aaron Rodgers and Kirk Cousins had their own draft-night experience long ago. Though they won’t hear their names called by a team during the 2025 NFL Draft, they stand to gain the most of any non-draftee over the weekend.

Rodgers and Cousins will undoubtedly be keeping an eye on where the top quarterback prospects land in the draft. It could play a major role in where Rodgers and Cousins play next season.

For Rodgers, that might come down to whether the Steelers get Sanders. Rodgers, 41, is currently a free agent, and has flirted with Pittsburgh essentially all offseason. Despite that, no deal has materialized just yet. That could change quickly if the Steelers miss out on an early quarterback. If the team suddenly finds itself looking at a rookie who needs to develop on the bench for a season, Rodgers would be the most obvious veteran quarterback available to bridge that gap. Knowing that Pittsburgh would be in a bind in that situation, Rodgers could use that scenario to pry even more money away from the Steelers in a possible deal.

Cousins, 36, should be able to map out his potential landing spots depending on how the draft shakes out. Cousins is currently under contract with the Falcons, but is seeking a trade after the team turned things over to Penix last year.

Cousins wants to be a starter, and reportedly isn’t interested in playing ahead of another rookie who will eventually take his job. Once he sees where the top quarterbacks land in the draft, he can start to dictate his next landing spot. Cousins holds a no-trade clause as part of his contract, and can veto any trade he doesn’t like, limiting the Falcons’ options.

Whatever teams miss out on Sanders or Riley Leonard or Jalen Milroe could be working the phones as early as Saturday, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Cousins land another starting role before Mr. Irrelevant goes off the board.

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2025 NFL Draft: Who takes Shedeur Sanders, is Ashton Jeanty worth the hype and all the other burning questions

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