The Tennessee Titans appear content to hold on to the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. After that, though, mock drafts could start to get messy. The Cleveland Browns and New York Giants are reportedly listening to offers for the No. 2 and No. 3 overall picks in the draft, according to ESPN’s Pete Schrager.
Both teams have reportedly received trade calls over the past 48 hours and “neither team is outwardly rejecting those overtures,” per ESPN. That doesn’t mean a trade is going to happen, though there’s at least a small possibility the Browns or Giants trade down in the 2025 NFL Draft.
That does not appear to be the case with the Titans, who have not entertained offers for the No. 1 overall pick. It’s expected the team will select Miami quarterback Cam Ward to kick off the draft. It’s a move that would make Ward pretty happy.
Days ago, it appeared the Browns were in a similar spot. After team general manager Andrew Berry spoke glowingly about Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, it looked like the team made up its mind at No. 2. Tuesday’s report suggests that’s not a sure thing anymore.
It doesn’t sound like the Browns could trade the No. 2 overall pick and still come out of the draft with Hunter. The teams calling the Browns and Giants are reportedly trying to move up to draft one of Hunter, Penn State edge rusher Abdul Carter or Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, per ESPN. All three players are expected to be taken in the top-10 picks and could all go in the top-5.
Carter to the Giants has been a popular prediction in mock drafts at No. 3. While Carter seemed to hint at the possibility, the Giants have kept things close to the vest. Could the team trade down to acquire more picks?
The benefit of the Browns or Giants trading down are obvious. Both teams have multiple needs, and would presumably get a bevy of picks in exchange for one of the top choices in the 2025 NFL Draft. Those teams could use those picks in 2025 and in the future to speed up their rebuilds. The Chicago Bears employed a similar strategy in 2023, when they traded the No. 1 overall pick to the Carolina Panthers. The Bears haven’t seen the wins pile up just yet from that trade, but the picks the team acquired — as well as wide receiver DJ Moore — have the Bears on the upswing.
The downside of a trade, of course, is that the Browns and Giants miss out on two of the elite prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft. While there’s no such thing as a sure thing in the draft, Carter and Hunter are pretty close to can’t-miss players. Could they bust in the NFL? Sure. Anything can happen. But analysts don’t foresee it. Both Carter and Hunter have been listed at the top of big boards for months now. Five years from now, it wouldn’t be a shock if Carter and Hunter were the best two players taken in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Neither team has to make a move. The benefits of drafting Carter and Hunter are immense, and the Browns and Giants know that. But if there’s another team out there that really, really wants to pay for those players — presumably giving up multiple first-round picks in the process — maybe Cleveland and New York would reconsider.
It would probably take a ton for either team to actually make a deal, but crazier things have happened at the NFL Draft.