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00:00Just over two weeks away from the 2025 NFL Draft, the opening night, the first round
00:05on Thursday, April 24th, live from Titletown, that is Green Bay, Wisconsin, and DRS.
00:12In this time of speculation and smokescreens, we are starting to see some shifting markets
00:18around the 2025 NFL Draft odds, not necessarily for number one overall, more so a solidification
00:25of who is going first, that would be Miami's quarterback in Cam Ward at a minus 20,000
00:32number on the week of the NFL scouting combine in late February, just over a month ago in
00:38Indianapolis, that was about a minus 120, minus 135, minus 150 price on Cam Ward.
00:45It is now minus 20,000.
00:48It is basically not confirmed necessarily, but we await for it to be official for Cam
00:54Ward to be that first overall selection made by the Tennessee Titans.
00:57Yeah, all along, all systems ago, coming from the regular season, Shadour Sanders is a very
01:02good quarterback, will be a fine quarterback in the NFL, and drafted in round number one,
01:06but it was apparent to me early on in the season that Cam Ward really has the goods.
01:09You talk about maturity from the pocket, delivering from the pocket, making plays outside the pocket,
01:13athletic ability, and arm strength, and also the willingness to throw into tight coverage.
01:18He did it all season long with the Miami Hurricanes.
01:20I look forward to him.
01:20Like, if you are a team in need of a quarterback, and the Tennessee Titans sort of fell into
01:24that number one seed due to some unforeseen circumstances by other teams that played bad
01:29football, wanted to win an extra game down the stretch, bad move here.
01:32Cam Ward's your number one overall pick.
01:34Tennessee's got a good one here for me.
01:35Tennessee played it pretty fair, I thought, early with a new general manager in Nashville,
01:40Mike Borgonzi, saying, we're going to listen to calls.
01:42We're not necessarily sold.
01:44It became pretty apparent early on in the draft process that Cam Ward was their guy.
01:49Of course, the Titans in desperate need of a quarterback, despite selecting Will Levis
01:53early in the second round just two years ago.
01:56But that was a different regime, different head coach, different general manager.
02:00Now it's Brian Callahan in year number two.
02:02You got to see if you can unlock his offensive scheme led by Cam Ward.
02:06I think it is a surefire pick to go number one overall.
02:09Donnie, I just wish I lived in a state where you could bet the NFL draft at the time, because
02:13I felt like Cam Ward was the best quarterback for a team that was drafting first overall.
02:18That desperately needed a QB.
02:21Now minus 20,000 for that to be the case.
02:25I will say this, though, and something that is really standing out in this draft process
02:29is almost how quiet it has been.
02:32It's taken a while to get some more draft markets available.
02:35We are starting to get that just about 16 days away from that first round on Thursday,
02:40April 24th in Green Bay.
02:42And on top of that, outside of some market movement we're about to discuss, we haven't
02:47seen any movement between NFL clubs.
02:50The NFL expanded to 32 NFL organizations with the addition of the Houston Texans back in
02:552002.
02:56The modern draft era became seven rounds each and every season back in 1994.
03:01In either of those fans, Donnie, 20 plus or 30 plus years now, this is the only time in
03:08NFL league history that the league year has begun, and then some now into early April,
03:14that all NFL clubs still hold on to their original first round pick.
03:20Nobody has traded a pick, either in a previous trade package or in this draft process.
03:24Yeah, we'll see when that comes down the stretch here, too, because there are some tradable spots
03:28here within the top two and three, which we probably should be dialed into at that point.
03:32But you're right about it.
03:32It's good to see everybody participating also.
03:34That's the way the NFL likes it.
03:35All 32 teams hopefully will participate in round number one, which is now prime time.
03:39As you talk about the changes to the NFL draft itself, it was squeezed into a Saturday,
03:43a long Saturday, and then a Sunday.
03:45Now I love the fact that they do it three straight nights here, prime time action, so you
03:49can watch it play out and fold in round number one, which we should have some fireworks.
03:52But I don't think we have any more fireworks on Cam Ward.
03:54And by the way, it wasn't as if you were tanking for Cam Ward, which so many times you see
03:59whenever Arch Manning comes out, like, hey, he's going to be the number one overall pick.
04:03He was plus 100, minus 110, minus 130, minus 300 for a long time before it was apparent
04:09that Shredor Sanders was not going to be the top quarterback selected.
04:13And when you're drafting number one, you need a quarterback, the number one overall quarterback,
04:16Cam Ward.
04:17That's why you put the pieces of the puzzle together.
04:19We've seen odds like this in various drafts, whether in the National Football League or otherwise,
04:24in the last few years, Caleb Williams last year closed as a minus 100,000 favorite
04:29to go first overall to Chicago.
04:32Victor Wembenyama was minus 100,000 to go first overall to San Antonio.
04:37Conor Bedard, same story for the Chicago Blackhawks a few years ago.
04:41But all those guys we knew about years in advance.
04:43To your point, DRS, not the same for Cam Ward that has now been solidified.
04:48Here is where things get very interesting.
04:51Because all 32 NFL franchises still hold on to their originally slated first round pick,
04:57you would think the teams that draft second and third overall still need a face of the
05:02franchise for the future.
05:05And yet, it does not seem they are going to go the quarterback route.
05:08Cleveland has the number two overall pick.
05:11The Giants have the number three overall pick.
05:14And Donnie, it doesn't appear that either team is going to go quarterback.
05:18That's interesting to note in one, because maybe there is a team that is in desperate
05:22need of a QB that could trade their way up the draft board.
05:26We haven't seen it yet.
05:27Maybe the next two plus weeks we will.
05:29But also the change in who is the favorite.
05:32It goes second overall and third overall since late last week.
05:36Late last week, it was the edge rusher out of Penn State.
05:39The game wrecker in Abdul Carter.
05:41That was a minus 270 favorite to be that second overall selection.
05:45He is now no longer the favorite.
05:47It's Travis Hunter at a minus 250 price.
05:50Hunter was minus 185 to go third overall.
05:53That's now Abdul Carter in the reverse at minus 170.
05:57And there have been some reports in the last 24 to 36 hours that Abdul Carter had dinner
06:03in State College with the New York Giants brass earlier over the weekend that the Cleveland
06:08Browns have started to become infatuated with the reigning Heisman winner in Travis Hunter.
06:12These are all good football players.
06:13But understand this.
06:14The best overall football player, and I don't think it's close, is Abdul Carter.
06:17From what you talk about, like a Micah Parsons type game-changing speed rusher on the edge
06:23is unbelievable that he might be there too.
06:26And then we found this week at the FanDuel Sportsbook, Ben, that Travis Hunter is minus
06:28250.
06:29There's no knock on Travis Hunter.
06:31Legitimate.
06:31Unbelievable defensive back.
06:32Great wide receiver.
06:33He'll be a fantastic draft pick.
06:34But as I was starting to line this draft up, and I said to myself yesterday, boy, this
06:38might be looking bad on the New York Giants.
06:39You know, I've been knocking all offseason with what they've been doing.
06:42But I actually saw a game plan.
06:43I was like, OK, if we're going to pass on quarterback this year, number three is going
06:46to be Travis Hunter.
06:47We can plug him in a defense.
06:48We can try him on offense.
06:49Swiss Army knife.
06:50We can't lose with this player.
06:51Now you're saying that player might go number two overall, and let's just say Cleveland
06:54doesn't trade out, which then leaves Abdul Carter at three.
06:57I go, well, the Giants would take Abdul Carter, who's unbelievable.
07:00But you signed Brian Burns to a massive contract and traded a lot of draft capital for, and
07:05just a year previous or two years previous, Kayvon Thibodeau in the first round as a defensive
07:09end.
07:09So where does he fit in?
07:10But now I start to see, like, if you're the Giants, there might be that silver lining
07:13out here at this point.
07:14Because if I'm saying to the Giants, we sit at three with Abdul Carter, our phones are
07:19going to explode from other teams out there.
07:21It's like, we want this guy.
07:22Can't believe he's at three.
07:23And you go, well, we might be looking for a quarterback.
07:26How about we trade the number three overall, pick up an extra first rounder, dip down later in
07:29the first round, and then if we have to use maybe a third rounder to trade up to get Shador
07:32Sanders, it could all work out for the Giants at this point.
07:35So there's so many intricate moves that could happen.
07:37But to start with your dimensional premise here, I'm shocked that Abdul Carter would
07:41be available at number three.
07:42I completely agree, DRS.
07:44Maybe the most important position in football, not named a quarterback, is a game-wrecking
07:49defensive lineman, certainly an edge rusher.
07:52Frankly, based on roster, neither Cleveland or New York desperately need one.
07:56Of course, Miles Garrett locked up this offseason to the tune of $40 million per year.
08:02Cleveland still desperately needs a quarterback.
08:04Right now, the injured Deshaun Watson, who is probably not going to play another game for
08:09the Browns in the National Football League.
08:11And Kenny Pickett are the guys on the roster, at least for the Giants, who still probably
08:16need that future quarterback for 2026 and beyond.
08:19They have Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston as placeholders, seemingly because of those offseason
08:25acquisitions, not going to go after a QB with the third overall selection.
08:29But because Abdul Carter could be available, DRS, at number three overall, they could get
08:34a lot of calls for a guy that could instantly change your franchise on the defensive side
08:39of the ball.
08:40We hosted Final Four Saturday together here on Bracket Central.
08:44I got to New Jersey.
08:45I wanted to bet a few things in the 2025 NFL Draft that we'll discuss on the other side of
08:50the break.
08:51One of them, if the market was available, was the exact order of the top three, because
08:55if he asked me 48 hours ago, it would have been Cam Ward one, Abdul Carter two, Travis
09:00Hunter three.
09:01Yeah.
09:01And it still could be that, because we don't know if Cleveland's going to hold that pick
09:04and or the New York Giants.
09:05So we do think there's not much argument.
09:07Ward's going to go number one because he's a quarterback.
09:09That's what happens in the NFL Draft.
09:11And I do think Travis Hunter and or Abdul Carter would be very good picks there to have,
09:14but it's going to be fun to watch it play out.
09:16So if not in the top three, where does Shador Sanders go next?
09:21Just over two weeks away from the 2025 NFL Draft.
09:25And although we haven't seen any trades or movement between NFL clubs, we have seen those
09:31shifting odds.
09:32Again, just late last week, Abdul Carter, the edge rusher out of Penn State, was the hefty
09:37odds on favorite around a minus 270 number to go second overall.
09:41He is now no longer the favorite for that second overall pick.
09:46It is the Heisman winner in Travis Hunter at minus 250, Abdul Carter minus 170 to be that
09:51odds on favorite to go third overall.
09:54Donnie said something before the break that I do just want to highlight.
09:57If you are betting these NFL Draft markets, if Travis Hunter goes second overall, but it's
10:02not the Cleveland Browns making the pick, you still win that bet.
10:05So it just needs to be made that distinction.
10:08It's not Travis Hunter second overall to the Browns.
10:11It's just Travis Hunter hearing his name called before anybody else in Green Bay over two
10:16weeks from now outside of Camel.
10:19Exactly.
10:19And that's one of the premises because you're trying to figure out who's the best player
10:23in this draft.
10:24It doesn't matter.
10:24It's what team actually decides that's the player that we want and we'll trade up for
10:28because you are looking at two teams right now.
10:30Most teams want quarterbacks.
10:31That's why you're bad.
10:32Top three in the draft.
10:33And quite frankly, all three teams are bad.
10:35New York Giants seemingly have a veteran quarterback.
10:37Kenny Pickett, as you talked about there for the Browns, that's not your future quarterback.
10:40And Cam Ward's probably going to do that.
10:42So if you're the Cleveland Browns at number two spot and you say to yourself like, okay,
10:45we're not going to draft quarterback at this point or reach for a quarterback, but we still
10:48like Shredor Sanders.
10:49That's what I talked about with the Giants.
10:51The opportunity for a team to come up and say, we'll give you two ones for that spot to
10:55get Travis Hunter.
10:56And then you trade us, you know, flip-flop those first round picks.
10:59We'll move back here.
11:00And if Shredor Sanders is around, hey, we get an extra one for next year.
11:03And we got a quarterback at the same time.
11:05They would love that equation.
11:06So it is interesting to point that out where nobody settled.
11:09And the smokescreen season, it's begin, it's already underway, and it's now Abdul Carter.
11:14We don't know about his foot at this point.
11:16And maybe it's Travis Hunter.
11:17So teams will be posturing all the way through, which includes the Browns in that number two
11:20spot.
11:21Again, I'm not entirely sure what the Browns' offseason plan has been.
11:24I don't think you nor I have agreed with any move that Andrew Berry or Jimmy Haslam, front
11:30office or ownership, has made for Cleveland this offseason.
11:34I'm not entirely sure why the Browns would have selected Abdul Carter as an edge rusher
11:39to pair alongside Miles Garrett because they don't really have much offensively.
11:43But I would have thought at this stage we would be talking two quarterbacks, pretty solidified,
11:48going one and two.
11:49It is not an overly deep quarterback class.
11:52But at the end of both the college football and NFL season, if you would have asked me,
11:56I would have said, yeah, it's going to be Cam Ward, who I like a little bit better than
11:59Shador Sanders, but not thinking Sanders is a bust.
12:02He goes second overall to a Browns team or a Giants team sitting there at three that are
12:07in desperate need of a face of a franchise future quarterback.
12:12Doesn't seem to be the case, DRS, on Shador Sanders.
12:15So if not in the top three, where might Shador go?
12:19The teams that are most likely to pick Shador Sanders.
12:22The New Orleans Saints now have the shortest price at plus 270.
12:27Notice these numbers.
12:29None of them are close to a favored number, not even even money.
12:33The Saints, who currently hold the ninth overall pick at plus 270, do make some sense.
12:38The Giants at plus 420 still could elect that quarterback beyond 2026.
12:44I'm still not sure they make that selection.
12:47And Donnie, the team that I bet, as I mentioned, when I got here on Saturday to the Garden State
12:51and could bet these draft odds, the Pittsburgh Steelers, I bet it at a 9-1 number.
12:56It opened at a 17-1 price and quickly, in the span of about five, six days, has become
13:026-1, third best price that Shador Sanders could end up in the Steel City.
13:07No, and you're right.
13:07You take a look at the top three teams, let's just say, on the leaderboard here at FanDuel,
13:11you know, the New Orleans Saints.
13:12You say, oh, the rebuilding team makes a lot of sense.
13:14That's a new head coach coming in, offensive guy.
13:17You saw what he did last year, you know, with the Philadelphia Eagles and pretty much
13:20throughout his career, Dak Prescott, he was very good with talking about Kellen Moore.
13:23He got to the West Coast, a little bit of a charger year where a lot of players were
13:26injured, but certainly rehabbed his image as a play caller last year, which got him the
13:29job in New Orleans.
13:30And also, if you're Shador Sanders, if people start to say, well, he doesn't throw the
13:34crispest deep ball because of his arm strength here.
13:36Did you see what Drew Brees did in the dome there for New Orleans?
13:38Absolutely phenomenal.
13:39You're not worried about any windy conditions like you would have in the Meadowlands and or
13:42in Cleveland.
13:43Then you take a look at the New York Giants, who it does make sense.
13:46They need a quarterback, but where do they take him at?
13:47And then the Pittsburgh Steelers, maybe the most intriguing one where you're sitting back
13:51and the arguments that come through was, who wants to be their quarterback?
13:55Like they're saying, Aaron, here's a lot of money.
13:57Come for our team.
13:58You have nowhere to go.
13:59And Aaron's like, ah, maybe there's a better spot around the league.
14:01Like, no, there's no other spot around the league for you.
14:03So if now you're saying Jalen Milrose on the outside, why not Shador Sanders?
14:07If he's falling down, let's just say that a fifth or the sixth pick, you come up and grab
14:11him, is anybody going to be like, oh, why did the Steelers do that?
14:13Be a great pick for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
14:15Because then you finally would have that off the treadmill, post Ben Roethlisberger, here's
14:19our guy.
14:20You need a future quarterback.
14:22You need somebody, not just these plug-in-place fill-ins that we have seen on a year-to-year
14:28basis for the Steelers.
14:30Mason Rudolph, the only guy in the quarterback room right now for Pittsburgh.
14:34I also bet the Steelers to select a quarterback as their first position drafted at plus 340,
14:40the lineman at plus 220 has that short price.
14:43And Donnie, I think you can use a variety of different categories of draft odds to paint
14:47a picture.
14:48Again, you would have asked me, at the end of the football season, Nor Sanders probably
14:52going second overall.
14:53A minus 500 price to be a top five pick at bare minimum.
14:57He's plus 175 to be a top five selection now.
15:00Again, not favored to hear his name called, and here is why.
15:04After the top three we have highlighted, Titans, Browns, Giants.
15:08It's the Patriots at four.
15:10They've got Drake May.
15:11It's the Jags at five.
15:12They've got Trevor Lawrence.
15:13Yeah, but here's the, and again, you bring up a very good point because we don't know
15:16who's going to trade up for what.
15:17When a quarterback is there that you like, and no longer the price point is we have to
15:21climb up to number one, there's going to be a feeding frenzy if Shadour Sanders gets
15:24past three or nobody makes any trades and they just stick to the playbook of, okay, Travis
15:28Hunter's going two or three.
15:29You know, Abdul Carter's going two or three.
15:31And of course, Cam Ward, number one.
15:32You talk about that fifth spot and you say, well, they don't need to, they know exactly well
15:35because the Patriots are saying we are so talent deficient on our football team.
15:39Yeah.
15:40You want to come up and grab a quarterback here.
15:41We don't need one.
15:42I'm going to take your next first rounder for next year.
15:44We'll swap first rounders this year.
15:45And I want two number twos on top of it.
15:47And they get that.
15:47That's a slam dunk home run.
15:49So just because Shadour Sanders with the teams at four and five don't need a quarterback,
15:52that's where you start to say like, you know what?
15:54Teams are going to trade up and say, we know you don't need a quarterback.
15:56We need one.
15:57Let's make this happen.
15:58You trade up for a quarterback and if Shadour Sanders starts to see his stock slide, that
16:04could be where we get some final movement between these NFL clubs.
16:08Sometimes NFL organizations look to the collegiate ranks, but not just in the NFL draft.
16:14You know, how about this story yesterday?
16:15The Carolina Panthers have signed former D1 basketball player.
16:19Love it.
16:19Colin Granger as a tight end.
16:226'9", 225, five years at Ohio, Western and Coastal Carolina.
16:27I love it.
16:28Like, you're taking flyers on these guys.
16:30Look, the Philadelphia Eagles did it with a rugby player named Jordan Malata.
16:32How did that work out?
16:33You're taking a flyer for free.
16:35Do it.
16:35Do it in Charlotte.
16:37Some optimism, perhaps, for Bryce Young entering his third year.
16:40We're on Sports Grid next.