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The order for the 2025 NFL draft is getting closer to being finalized.
Saturday’s doubleheader featured two teams jockeying for playoff positioning (Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers), one fighting to keep its playoff hopes alive (Cincinnati Bengals) and one still in the mix for the No. 1 overall pick (Cleveland Browns).
In the first game, the Ravens crushed the Browns 35-10, temporarily knocking Cleveland up to No. 1 in the 2025 NFL draft for at least a few hours. In the second game, the Bengals outlasted the Steelers, 19-17 and stayed in the playoff picture.
And with that, here is the updated order of first-round picks through Saturday.
The top of the draft is a mess right now with four teams having three wins. The Browns now need wins by the New England Patriots (home, Buffalo Bills) and Tennessee Titans (home, Houston Texans) to secure the top pick in the draft for the first time since 2018.
The New York Giants, meanwhile, have been eliminated from contention for the No. 1 pick following Cleveland’s loss to Baltimore.
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The first pick in the 2025 NFL Draft will be made by one of these three teams:
Patriots
Titans
Browns
The Giants no longer have a shot at the first pick. https://t.co/DIPD49A5ke
Getting the No. 1 pick would certainly be a fascinating result for a Cleveland team that clearly needs to make a change at quarterback going into next season. Even though Deshaun Watson recently restructured his contract, there’s no way the front office can justify giving the starting job to him in 2025 given how he played this season before suffering a ruptured Achilles in a Week 7 loss to the Bengals.
The top pick would allow the Browns to select whichever quarterback they viewed as the best in the class. They would fall to No. 2 if the Patriots or Titans lose and No. 3 if both lose.
If the Browns land at No. 3, they would either have to trade up or be at the mercy of other teams not to make a move up for one of the top signal-callers because the Titans at No. 2 feel like a lock to take a quarterback.
It will also be interesting to see how aggressive teams are with the 2025 quarterback class. There isn’t a clear No. 1 option, nor is there as much depth at the position as there was last year when Caleb Williams was the top pick and six quarterbacks went in the first 12 picks.
B/R’s NFL scouting department currently has Miami’s Cam Ward (No. 6 overall) and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders (No. 16 overall) as the only quarterbacks with a first-round grade.