There are three teams that sick out as being candidates to pick first overall in the 2025 NFL Draft. You can clearly tell which teams are going to be a dumpster fire in 2024. Sure, some unsuspecting teams may be pleasant surprises, but man, there are some teams that are just several tiers below their opponents.
And most of them all have one thing in common: uncertainty at QB. There is no secret formula in the NFL; teams that have great QBs win, and teams that don't have great QBs, don't win. While the 2024 NFL Draft just concluded, could these three teams already be in line to compete for the top pick in the 2025 NFL Draft?
3 teams racing toward the first overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft
1. New England Patriots
You kind of just have to laugh at how bad the New England Patriots are. Drake Maye was the right pick with the third overall selection, but the consensus on him appears to be him needing a year to work out some inconsistencies with his game. This could mean Jacoby Brissett gets all of the starts in 2024. And while Brissett is a very good backup, the Patriots have the least-talented offense in the NFL.
And Brissett just simply is several tiers below most of the AFC starting QB. Jerod Mayo was named the head coach, which was a bad decision. It's clear that the "Patriot Way" ended up being 99% Tom Brady, so instead of bringing in some fresh blood, they decided to promote someone who has both played and coached for the Patriots this century.
It's a bad process all-round, and the Patriots will learn quickly just how bad they'll be in 2024.
2. New York Giants
I am not sure what the New York Giants plan was this offseason. They allegedly wanted to trade into the third overall slot to draft Drake Maye, but the New England Patriots did not budge. Somehow, the Giants passed up on taking a QB altogether after that and appear content with Daniel Jones and Drew Lock for 2024.
Well, that's a problem, as both Jones and Lock are terrible, so with no viable QB on the roster, the Giants have guaranteed themselves no more than a five-win season. They'll probably finish with three or four wins and could pick at the top of the 2025 NFL Draft, where the projected QB class appears quite weak.
3. Las Vegas Raiders
Another team that has had a horrible offseason, the Las Vegas Raiders are clearly punting until 2025, as they also missed out on a first-round QB. The six first-round signal-callers were gone by the 13th pick, when Las Vegas got on the clock. And they took TE Brock Bowers from Georgia with the pick, so it's not like they got a position of value.
They also hired Antonio Pierce to be the full-time head coach, even though he was a position coach in 2023. Everything that the Raiders have done thus far is preparing them for a brutal 2024 season. Las Vegas has done virtually nothing right, and it's hard to envision this team winning many games in the loaded AFC.