University of Kwazulu-Natal

2025 Nfl Draft Updated Top 50 Big Board Rankings Tiered By Grade

Bonisiwe Shabane
-
2025 nfl draft updated top 50 big board rankings tiered by grade

With less than a month to go before the 2025 NFL Draft, the all-star circuit and NFL Combine are officially behind us, and Pro Days are nearly complete. Now comes the stretch where draft boards start to lock in — and ours is no different. In this updated Top 50 Big Board, we’re going beyond rankings. We’ve tiered each prospect based on our proprietary Football Scout 365 Grade Scale, which evaluates positional value, play style, ceiling, and NFL projection. These tiers provide clearer insight into where a player is likely to be drafted — and why. Each tier gives teams a way to prioritize traits over rankings, especially when deciding between a high-upside prospect versus a plug-and-play contributor.

It’s not just about who ranks higher — it’s about projected impact based on tier and role fit. These are rare, instant-impact prospects — high-level athletes with elite physical tools, advanced processing, and dominant tape. They’re foundational players, often viewed as future All-Pros. These are high-ceiling players who may not check every box today but project as Year 1 or Year 2 starters with Pro Bowl potential. They often dominate one or more key traits and just need polish or scheme fit. I’ve been an NFL Draft junkie for about 25 or 26 years now.

I do remember snippets from times before that, but I would say the 1999 NFL Draft is the first one I truly remember. So many great players and so many not-so-great players. Here is my 2025 NFL Draft Big Board, including rookie rankings for my top 50 prospects. There’s the debate on whether Tim Couch would be the quarterback of the future for the Browns. We had the Ricky Williams trade from the Saints with Washington. That deal included the Saints giving up eight draft picks, including two picks in the first round.

I remember thinking the Bears drafting quarterback Cade McNown could terrorize the Lions for the next decade. Fortunately, I was wrong on that last part. The second round featured the Patriots selecting running back Kevin Faulk from LSU. I had an unbelievable amount of Kevin Faulk football cards as a kid. The Bills selected wide receiver Peerless Price, and he became one of my favorite players in the league. I played far too much PlayStation 2 with the Bills on Madden 2002 and countless other players from the 1999 NFL Draft.

The list of great moments is a long one since that draft. Adding to that, this year will be the 2025 NFL Draft. This is one draft that is giving us a generational prospect in Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter. We’ve got a lackluster but yet a pretty good wide receiver class at the top of the draft — this could also include Hunter. For my liking, he’s a defensive player. The 2025 NFL Draft class is rounding into shape, and we’re getting a clearer picture of some of the top prospects and the position groups with the most depth.

The top prospect on the board is Colorado’s Travis Hunter, a rare talent with the potential to start at the NFL level as either a wide receiver or cornerback. After Hunter, Penn State stud Abdul Carter, Michigan standout Mason Graham, Arizona’s Tetairoa McMillan and Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty are some of the premier players in this draft class. The running back, tight end and offensive tackle positions seem to be the deepest and strongest on the offensive side of the ball. On defense, the edge defender group is as deep as we’ve seen in several years, dominating the projected top 50. There are also more impact defensive backs this year than a year ago, with plenty of options on all three days of the draft, specifically on Days 2 and 3. Here are PFF's top 350 draft prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft, along with some scouting notes courtesy of lead draft analyst Trevor Sikkema.

For the full ranking of draft prospects, along with their three-year player grades and position rankings, click here. Hunter is one of the most talented players I have ever scouted. As a cornerback, he brings good mirror-matching movements and truly elite ball skills. He can be a bit out of control and lacks some density, which gets exposed the most in press-man coverage. As a primary zone defender with press-man flexibility, he can be an immediate starting cornerback with an All-Pro ceiling. The last couple of weeks before the NFL draft is when things get really interesting because teams are trying to manipulate prospects, other teams and the media.

No one wants anyone else to know what they're doing. But there are clues. For example, the Tennessee Titans, who own this year's No. 1 overall pick, canceled .css-wrcrjw{margin:0;font-size:1.6rem;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:Proxima Nova,Proxima Nova Fallback Helvetica,Proxima Nova Fallback Arial;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;letter-spacing:0rem;line-height:1.92rem;color:var(--br--palette-foreground__link__secondary__default-mainChannel);font-size:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;white-space:normal;}.css-3nqh9c{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-color:rgba(var(--br--palette-primary-mainChannel) / 0.4);margin:0;font-size:1.6rem;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:Proxima Nova,Proxima Nova Fallback Helvetica,Proxima Nova Fallback Arial;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;letter-spacing:0rem;line-height:1.92rem;color:var(--br--palette-foreground__link__secondary__default-mainChannel);font-size:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;white-space:normal;}.css-3nqh9c:hover{text-decoration-color:inherit;}.css-lu48cp{margin:0;font:inherit;color:var(--br--palette-primary-main);-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-color:rgba(var(--br--palette-primary-mainChannel) / 0.4);margin:0;font-size:1.6rem;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;font-family:Proxima Nova,Proxima Nova Fallback Helvetica,Proxima Nova Fallback Arial;font-weight:700;font-style:normal;letter-spacing:0rem;line-height:1.92rem;color:var(--br--palette-foreground__link__secondary__default-mainChannel);font-size:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;white-space:normal;}.css-lu48cp:hover{text-decoration-color:inherit;}their predraft visit with Colorado... Does that mean Tennessee's front office is completely comfortable with Sanders where it doesn't need the extra interaction? Or, are the Titans already settled on the class' other top quarterback prospect, Miami's Cam Ward?

Part of the process is trying to read the tea leaves and understand what each team really wants to do. Meanwhile, the Bleacher Report Scouting Department continues to put in the work by evaluating the best available talent and providing scouting reports to help determine how the event could fall. Brandon Thorn: Brandon is the author of the Trench Warfare newsletter, which focuses exclusively on offensive and defensive line evaluation. He also contributes as an analyst to Establish the Run and serves as the scouting coordinator for OL Masterminds. It is almost time for the 2025 NFL Draft, and ClutchPoints has you covered leading up to the start of the draft on April 24th. The following NFL prospect Big Board includes the top 50 players in this year’s NFL Draft, giving a brief look at which players will likely be drafted across the first two rounds.

Physicality, technique, athleticism, hand usage, you name it – Abdul Carter is the best edge rusher in the NFL Draft. His utter dominance in college (23.5 tackles for loss in 2024) will seamlessly transition to the NFL as he is a generational defensive talent that teams should not pass up on. It remains to be seen which position Travis Hunter will play in the NFL, but whichever team selects him in the 2025 NFL Draft will be getting a superstar. His coverage skills at cornerback should very well make him the highest CB ever drafted in NFL history, while he excels at ball-tracking and route-running as a wide receiver and would immediately become one... Mason Graham was the heart and soul of the Michigan Wolverines defense last year, and is clearly the best defensive tackle in this year’s NFL Draft. Graham earns his keep stopping the run, as he succeeds at setting a solid base and stacking his blocker at the point of attack, something that defines his case for being a top 5...

The clear-cut RB1 in this year’s NFL Draft is Ashton Jeanty, who has had the top spot locked up since last draft class. The Boise State product is the real deal at running back, as his combination of strength, agility, and athleticism make him a mess to bring down. He even has a solid route-running tree under his belt too, and will be a top-10 pick in April. Copyright 2008-2025 Drafttek.com. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy

Neither Drafttek.com or www.drafttek.com are affiliated in any manner with the National Football League. Nor any National Football League Team, or any NFLPA player. The rankings we posted in August were based on the tape we’d studied at that time and expectations of growth from key players. Some players met those expectations. Others exceeded them. Some failed.

We’re always collecting as much information as possible to give you updated, accurate intel on the top draft prospects in the nation. We watch All-22 tape, we talk to scouts and agents and coaches, and we travel to see players in person. We also comb through data in an effort to gain as many points of information as possible. So yeah, we work really hard (sarcasm here) and we love sharing the info with you guys. The below Top 50 big board is updated as of January 7 and could be affected by player decisions to declare for the draft or return to school. NFL ceiling: Denzel Ward meets DeVonta Smith

People Also Search

With Less Than A Month To Go Before The 2025

With less than a month to go before the 2025 NFL Draft, the all-star circuit and NFL Combine are officially behind us, and Pro Days are nearly complete. Now comes the stretch where draft boards start to lock in — and ours is no different. In this updated Top 50 Big Board, we’re going beyond rankings. We’ve tiered each prospect based on our proprietary Football Scout 365 Grade Scale, which evaluate...

It’s Not Just About Who Ranks Higher — It’s About

It’s not just about who ranks higher — it’s about projected impact based on tier and role fit. These are rare, instant-impact prospects — high-level athletes with elite physical tools, advanced processing, and dominant tape. They’re foundational players, often viewed as future All-Pros. These are high-ceiling players who may not check every box today but project as Year 1 or Year 2 starters with P...

I Do Remember Snippets From Times Before That, But I

I do remember snippets from times before that, but I would say the 1999 NFL Draft is the first one I truly remember. So many great players and so many not-so-great players. Here is my 2025 NFL Draft Big Board, including rookie rankings for my top 50 prospects. There’s the debate on whether Tim Couch would be the quarterback of the future for the Browns. We had the Ricky Williams trade from the Sai...

I Remember Thinking The Bears Drafting Quarterback Cade McNown Could

I remember thinking the Bears drafting quarterback Cade McNown could terrorize the Lions for the next decade. Fortunately, I was wrong on that last part. The second round featured the Patriots selecting running back Kevin Faulk from LSU. I had an unbelievable amount of Kevin Faulk football cards as a kid. The Bills selected wide receiver Peerless Price, and he became one of my favorite players in ...

The List Of Great Moments Is A Long One Since

The list of great moments is a long one since that draft. Adding to that, this year will be the 2025 NFL Draft. This is one draft that is giving us a generational prospect in Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter. We’ve got a lackluster but yet a pretty good wide receiver class at the top of the draft — this could also include Hunter. For my liking, he’s a defensive player. The 2025 NFL ...