The first round of the 2025 NFL Draft was as unpredictable as anyone could have possibly expected with a lot of players falling further than anyone thought they would, teams going in completely different directions than any mock drafts predicted, and one of the biggest names in the class going from projected top-three pick to out of the first round completely.
Shedeur Sanders had a bit of a rough night on Thursday, but at least it looks like he expected it to happen. Only two quarterbacks ended up coming off the board with Cam Ward and Jaxson Dart going to the Titans and Giants, respectively, but there were a lot of teams who shocked in a big (and bad) way during the first round.
Which teams and players were the biggest losers of the 1st round of the 2025 NFL Draft?
Shedeur Sanders, Falcons major losers in 2025 NFL Draft (so far)
1. Shedeur Sanders, quarterback
For a good chunk of the offseason, we've been projecting Colorado quarterback prospect Shedeur Sanders as a top-10 overall pick. It was shocking to think he could fall out of the top 10 and slide into the Pittsburgh Steelers' laps, but for him to fall out of the first round?
That was a wild idea just a couple of weeks ago. People would have probably called you crazy. But here we are and Sanders is going to get picked (he hopes) on Day 2 of the 2025 NFL Draft. What a time to be alive, right?
Sanders took too many sacks at Colorado and might have been a bit overhyped as a prospect, but teams have taken worse guys in round one. His football bloodlines didn't translate into a first-round NFL Draft grade from any quarterback-needy team, but with a pro comp of Geno Smith from some folks, isn't it interesting that Sanders could now be facing a strikingly similar career path?
2. Atlanta Falcons
After getting what many believed to be a major steal with the 15th overall pick and Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker, the Atlanta Falcons did the unthinkable. They traded a future 1st-round pick to move back into the first round with the Los Angeles Rams and snag pass rusher James Pearce.
What are they doing here?
The Falcons are about to go into a year in which they are giving Michael Penix Jr. the reins from the very start of the offseason program. They at least have clarity in direction at the quarterback position, but to trade away that future first-round pick is borderline roster malpractice. They obviously felt like they couldn't live without James Pearce.
In exchange for the 26th overall pick, the Rams got the 46th overall pick on top of the Falcons' 1st-rounder in next year's draft. That's a hefty price to pay and while the Falcons needed the pieces defensively, you can't help but wonder how much they're going to regret that down the line.
3. Mike Green, EDGE
One of the players that was generally considered to be the top pass rusher in the 2025 NFL Draft class, Mike Green fell out of the first round entirely due to character concerns.
Green has had some very serious allegations against him in the past, which led to his transfer away from Virginia to Marshall. It's clear that teams just didn't want to deal with that in a first-round investment, and can you blame them?
Green was one of the most productive pass rushers in all of college football this past season and likely has a very bright NFL future if this kind of stuff never comes up again, but teams weren't willing to attach their names to a player with serious off-field allegations in his past and you can't help but wonder how much further he might end up sliding as a result.