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Grading Every First Round Pick In The 2025 Nfl Draft After Week 1

Bonisiwe Shabane
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grading every first round pick in the 2025 nfl draft after week 1

November 6, 2025, 9:49am EST 479 • By Alex Hoegler The 2025 NFL first round was packed with quarterback drama, surprise risers, and blue-chip defenders expected to become instant cornerstones. Now that we’re halfway through the season, the early returns are finally clear. Some rookies have exceeded expectations and become immediate impact players, while others are still struggling to adjust to the league’s speed and physicality. From breakout stars reshaping their franchises to first-round gambles that haven’t paid off yet, we break down how every 2025 first-round pick has performed so far — and what their trajectory looks like heading... It’s unfair to fully blame Ward for the Tennessee Titans’ struggles.

But like, Caleb Williams and Robert Griffin III had excellent rookie years on horrible teams with textbook coaching malpractice. Ward is barely completing over half his pass attempts, is in danger of finishing with more interceptions than passing touchdowns, and, oh yeah, has his Titans in a spot to potentially pick first overall... Week 1 in the NFL was as exciting as it needed to be with unreal finishes and even more exciting matchups. The end of Week 1 led by a J.J. McCarthy comeback, couldn’t have been scripted any better. With all the good things that happened during kickoff weekend, let’s take a look at the rookies.

Cam Ward as the No. 1 overall pick had a rough outing, but that’s not completely on him as he faced one of the best defenses in the NFL in his NFL debut. As for Travis Hunter, well he seems to be fitting in well as a two-way role with Jacksonville. For most of the first round draft picks, they had a solid debut, but not all was great for all 32 picks. Here’s grades for every first round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Considering he’s a rookie quarterback on a team that needs a lot of help, the fact that he was actually in a position for an NFL debut win, that’s not bad at all.

The Denver Broncos didn’t look great by any means, but they proved their defense is as good as it gets. Ward hasn’t thrown a first career touchdown pass yet and he had just over 100 passing yards. The most alarming thing in his debut was that he was sacked six times too. He has a lot of growth, but the foundation is there. Hunter did make appearances on both sides of the ball and it went about as you would expect. He wasn’t prolific on both sides, but proved that can appear on both sides and after some time, will carve out his role.

He had six catches for 33 yards on offense and just one assisted tackle on defense. Abdul Carter, while not overly destructive, he recorded three tackles, including two assisted tackles and half a sack in the Giants otherwise frustrating Week 1 loss to the Washington Commanders. On a team that’s full of solid EDGE rushers in Kayvon Thibodeaux and Brian Burns, Carter is already proving why he was worth the top pick. The first term is pretty much complete, and it's time to issue report cards to the NFL's 32 first-round freshmen as we say goodbye to September. Obviously, a lot can and will change here, but first impressions are important. Here's a grade for each first-rounder at the four-week mark.

.css-1582m2i{margin:0;font:inherit;font-weight:700;}1. Tennessee Titans QB Cam Ward: C Support has been an issue, as Ward has taken a league-high 17 sacks while dropped passes have also been a factor. And to his credit, he's limited his mistakes. All of that said, his pocket awareness is a problem and his .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... It's time for the 2025 NFL draft, where all 32 teams will be looking to improve their rosters with some of the best collegiate talent from around the nation.

Things kick off tonight in Green Bay with the first round followed by the second and third rounds on Friday, April 25, and concluding with the fourth through seventh rounds on Saturday, April 26. For the first time since the common draft era began in 1970, every NFL team enters the draft with its original first-round pick But that could certainly change once things get underway should a... The Titans needed to fulfill their quarterback position, and there' was no better option for them than Cam Ward. Ward will get the opportunity to play for offensive minded head coach Brian Callahan and Tennessee hopes they have found their franchise savior at quarterback. They get a high grade because they addressed a need, but there are still questions Ward will have to answer at the next level. TRADE: Jaguars send #5 overall (2025), 36th overall pick (2025), 126th overall (2025), 2026 first-round pick to Cleveland for 2nd overall (2025), 104th (2025), 200th pick (2025)

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in. Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes, and get the latest updates. How did your favorite team’s first round pick grade out? The 2025 NFL Draft is upon us, with Round 1 being underway from Lambeau Field. This draft has the least amount of consensus at any spot in recent memory, with multiple reports coming out that this could be the wildest first round in a long time. We’ve already had reports about a trade up into the top five, teams trading back out of the top five and a surprise QB crashing the first round party.

Read our final top-100 player rankings for the 2025 draft class, and check out our latest first round mock published on draft day. Find a full thread of our NFL Draft coverage this year here. No matter what happens, I’ll be here to grade every single pick that happens tonight. Refresh this page frequently to see instant grades as the picks come in. So let’s strap in and get ready for what looks to be an eventful night. Ward at 1 feels a little pricey, but that’s the going rate of picking a QB these days.

I have some questions about Ward’s consistency with his mechanics and penchant for brainfart plays, but his explosiveness with his arm and feel for big plays should work in the Titans’ offense. Welcome to The Athletic’s pick-by-pick grades for Round 1 of the 2025 NFL Draft. Which teams filled a need with a potential star? Which GMs might wind up regretting their decisions down the line? Because we won’t know those full answers until the incoming rookie class has been in the league for a few seasons, our immediate grades take into account a number of factors: pick value, trade... (Note: Scott Dochterman provided grades for odd-numbered picks, Nick Baumgardner for even-numbered picks.)

Tennessee needed a quarterback and Ward is the best one in this draft. He has both talent and grit, which will endear him to his teammates and the fan base. Although hypothetical and irrelevant, it’s fair to ask where Ward would have landed in last year’s draft, or if Tennessee would have selected one of the 2024 draft’s six first-round quarterbacks ahead of him. Regardless, Ward has the skill set to become a successful NFL quarterback. Whether he becomes a Pro Bowler — and, thus, ultimately worth the No. 1 pick — remains to be seen.

Ward played at Incarnate Word and Washington State before transferring to Miami last year. There, he became one of college football’s best quarterbacks. Ward set an NCAA record with 158 career touchdown passes, plus threw for 18,184 yards with a 65.1 completion percentage. Last year alone, Ward threw for 4,313 yards, 39 touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 67.2 percent of his passes. The 2025 NFL Draft is underway, and Round 1 is officially in the books. The PFF Live Draft Tracker has been grading and analyzing every pick in real time, and now it’s time to break down the results with full evaluations for all 32 first-round selections.

For more on each prospect, check out the PFF Draft Guide and PFF Big Board, and you can get a head start on Day 2 by heading over to the PFF Mock Draft Simulator... Stay tuned for Day 2 and 3 coverage on the PFF Draft Show, streaming live on YouTube, X and FuboTV all weekend. NFL Draft Big Board | Mock Draft Simulator | NCAA Premium Stats2025 PFF Draft Guide | Mock Draft Hub | Prospect Data ProfilesDraft Position Rankings TEN | JAX | NYG | NE | CLE | LV | NYJ | CAR | NO | CHI | SF | DAL | MIA | IND | ATL | ARZ | CIN |... The 2025 NFL draft officially started when the Tennessee Titans predictably made Cam Ward the No. 1 pick and their new franchise quarterback.

The move has been evident for weeks, but it’s still worth asking whether the Titans made a mistake passing on Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter, the consensus top two prospects in this draft class. That’s the first of many questions we’ll be asking ourselves Thursday night, when The MMQB will be grading every first-round pick, starting with Ward. MORE. SI NFL Draft. NFL Draft News, Mocks, Betting and Analysis. dark

We’ll have continuous coverage of everything happening in Green Bay through Saturday, including when Mr. Irrelevant comes off the board with the final pick at No. 257. This post will be updated throughout the draft in real-time as each of the picks are selected. The most predictable pick in the NFL draft came to fruition after the Titans announced Ward as their next franchise quarterback.

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