Highs and lows from the 2025 NFL Draft

HIGHS:

New York Giants:

The New York Giants drafted Abdul Carter and Jaxson Dart. Carter was named the 2024 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, recording 23.0 sacks in the 2024 season. Adding Carter to this Giants defensive line will undoubtedly help them have one of the best defensive lines in the NFL.

He will be alongside Kayvon Thibodeaux, Dexter Lawrence, and Brian Burns. Adding Jaxson Dart to the QB room on the other side of the ball is necessary.

NYG could have opted for Shedeur Sanders, but instead, they chose Dart, who fits well in this Giants offense. Jaxson Dart had the most wins in the Ole Miss program's history.

Dart will not be a Day 1 starter for the Giants; Russell Wilson will be starting Week 1. We could see Dart take the field midseason.

Carolina Panthers Giving Bryce Young Weapons:

The Carolina Panthers selected Tetairoa McMillan with the 18th pick in the NFL Draft. Bryce Young has improved significantly over the last few weeks. They kept games close against the best teams in the league, such as the Kansas City Chiefs, Arizona Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Atlanta Falcons.

Providing more weapons for Bryce will only help him develop as a player, and during the draft, the Panthers revamped both the offense and the defense.

The Panthers will be a team to watch in the 2025 season. McMillan is an excellent pick for this Carolina offense, and he will be paired with Legette and Coker. Bryce Young and the Panthers will have a lot of depth in the wide receiver room.

Atlanta Falcons:

Atlanta proved themselves this year, after getting a lot of hate from their fans last year after drafting Washington’s QB Michael Penix Jr. at eighth overall. This year, they mainly revamped their defense, adding CB Cobee Bryant, a UDFA from Kansas University.

He has been very productive on the field and set multiple school records in his final year at Kansas. He is one of the steals of the NFL weekend. They also added standout edge rusher James Pearce Jr. from Tennessee. Coming out of high school, he was a top 15 prospect. In his last year as a Volunteer, he recorded 13 TFLs, 7.5 sacks, and was a First Team All-SEC.

LOWS:

Shedeur Sanders QB, Colorado

Shedeur Sanders' draft stock fell to the fifth round during the draft. This was the story of the draft. It is not often seen that a top 10 QB prospect falls to the 144th pick. Sanders was projected to be a top 10 pick in multiple mock drafts.

Reports around the NFL said he had bad interviews during meetings with coaches before the draft. Reports from NYG head coach Brian Daboll stated that Sanders was unprepared for a private meeting.

Daboll also called him out on it, which could have damaged his draft stock, and that's why the Giants picked Dart over Sander.

Various teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Cleveland Browns, and the Saints needed a quarterback earlier in the draft. The Saints would seem the perfect fit for Sanders. His hopes were let up when he received a prank call from Falcon’s HC Jeff Ulbrich’s son Jaxson Ulbrich, impersonating Mickey Loomis.

Saints then took Louisville QB Tyler Shough. At the 144th pick, he received a real call from the Browns and took Sanders.

Will Johnson, CB, Michigan

CB Will Johnson (UMICH) went undrafted until the fourth round. He was selected 47th overall by the Arizona Cardinals. Will Johnson is a talented CB from Michigan. He slid to the 47th Pick because of his pre-draft and injury concerns.

Scouts were also concerned about his 40-yard time due to his Pro Day at Michigan, as he had a knee injury.

Seahawks and Sam Darnold:

Sam Darnold signed a massive contract with the Seattle Seahawks early in the offseason. Darnold was a free agent after leading the Minnesota Vikings to the playoffs with a 14-3 record. Seattle signed Darnold to a three-year, $100 million contract. During the draft, the Seahawks selected Alabama’s quarterback Jalen Milroe with the 92nd overall pick.

This was a bad pick by Seattle since they already paid a lot of money for Darnold. Milroe will probably not see the field until the end of the season. Darnold does need weapons around him since both DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett departed, and the only reliable WRs would be Cooper Kupp and JSN.

Adding another weapon to their offense would be more beneficial than adding another Quarterback. There is no doubt that Jalen Milroe is a pretty good QB from Alabama.

If Darnold does not perform the way he did with the Vikings, they will have a decent backup to put in. They would be using Milroe for insurance if that does happen.

Rehan Karnani is a first-year majoring in telecommunications and media industries. To contact him, email rrk5317@psu.edu.