Anonymous coaches and prospect evaluators from across the league spoke to The Athletic about the 2025 draft class, and time and again, Jeanty’s pass protection was raised as a major issue for an otherwise stellar running back prospect. A running backs coach told The Athletic that Jeanty’s “contact balance, elusiveness, acceleration, competitiveness all jump out at you off the tape,” but that “his pass protection is bad. That bothers me right there.” An offensive coordinator said, “I think he’s a little liability in pass protection, and I don’t know how flat-out fast he is.” Pro Football Focus in 2024 graded Jeanty 112th out of 148 qualifying running backs in pass protection. Jeanty, who rushed for nearly 4,000 yards and 33 touchdowns over his final two seasons at Boise State, also earned PFF’s top overall grade among backs last year. He’s fully expected to go in the first five or six picks of the draft.

McShay, who has McMillan ranked 50th among 2025 prospects, said McMillan’s lack of effort showed up in his routes at Arizona even as he went for 1,319 yards and eight touchdowns in 2024. “Tet didn’t like to workout and practice hard unless a scout was in attendance,” McShay said, pushing back on the frequent McMillan comp of Drake London, who McShay described as “a dog.” “Didn’t think he showed attention to detail.” Widely considered to be the top wideout in the draft, McMillan has held pre-draft meetings with the Patriots, Saints, and Cowboys. In New England, he would instantly be the team’s No. 1 receiver.

“I think he has a lot to work with. He’s a great athlete,” the anonymous coordinator said. “Really good basketball player. Smart. Really tough.” Leonard, who began his collegiate career at Duke before transferring to Notre Dame in 2024, threw 21 touchdowns and eight interceptions last season while scoring 17 touchdowns on the ground along with 906 rushing yards. He easily led all college QBs in EPA per rush last year. An NFL scouting director told the publication, “I don’t know if Leonard gets enough credit for his toughness. I thought he did such a good job of getting his team as far as he got them, and at the combine, he looked confident and comfortable out there playing quarterback.” Leonard, who turns 23 in September, is at best a Day Three draft selection who would likely have to fight for a roster spot as a rookie.

Schefter said on SportsCenter Wednesday morning that Milroe is more likely than not to slip into the second round of the draft after gaining some late hype as a potential first round selection for a quarterback-needy team. Schefter added that Milroe — who totaled nearly 1,600 rushing yards over four seasons in college — could quickly become “the most dangerous running quarterback” in the NFL. The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo said last week that the Steelers, who have the 21st pick in the first round, are unlikely to select Milroe if he’s still on the board. That would almost guarantee that he’ll fall into the second round on Friday.

Cousins surprisingly showed up for the team’s voluntary workouts this week. Morris said he wasn’t sure if Cousins would continue attending, emphasizing that the workouts are voluntary. “I do know he would like to try to be a starter at some point,” Morris said. “That’s definitely been clearly communicated with me and whoever I see an opportunity to talk to. I do know that. The way about that, I’m not sure. But we have to figure those things out. We have to get to that process.” Morris denied a recent ESPN report saying the Falcons would ask a team acquiring Cousins to eat $20 million of the $45 million he’s owed for the 2025 season. Cousins, entering his age-37 season, has a good chance of landing with another QB-needy team during or shortly after the NFL Draft. Michael Penix is locked in as Atlanta’s 2025 starter.

Henderson’s draft stock has risen considerably over the past two weeks, and ahead of Thursday’s first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, he could go in the top-15 or 20 selections. The Broncos and Steelers have expressed interested in Henderson, and now the Chiefs are doing their due diligence in case Henderson falls to them with the 31st pick in the draft. The versatile Henderson, 22, rushed for 3,761 yards and 42 touchdowns while at Ohio State and ran for 183-1,248-15 as a true freshman in 2021. His addition to the KC backfield would be a major problem for Isiah Pacheco’s 2025 fantasy prospects. Pacheco, coming off a serious 2024 leg injury, would enter a timeshare backfield split at best.

Schrager made the statement during a SportsCenter segment Wednesday morning alongside ESPN’s Adam Schefter and Field Yates. Schrager had the Steelers taking Sanders in a recent mock draft, but said he had no confidence that Pittsburgh would use the 21st pick in the draft on the Colorado quarterback. Though Schrager said Sanders “could succeed in Pittsburgh,” he said some sources have told him the team is not all that interested in him. Schefter said the Steelers have other needs to address in the draft, including defensive tackle and running back. If Sanders doesn’t land with the Steelers, he’s likely to drop out of the first round altogether.

Richardson has worked extensively with a biometrics coach this offseason to improve his throwing motion and his footwork, which was often sloppy when Richardson was under pressure during his first two NFL seasons. “That was really one of the main things I wanted to focus on because everybody knows I can throw the ball whenever [the pocket] is smooth, but I want to find opportunities for myself to be consistent when I am off-balance, make decent throws, and even when everything is perfect, making sure my feet are intact and my base is solid,” Richardson told reporters Tuesday. Richardson said he wants to be able “to just stay calm in the pocket.” He’ll compete with Daniel Jones for the Colts’ Week 1 starting job. Head coach Shane Steichen has said whoever can be more consistent will land the QB1 job.

Dart, per Hughes, “is a name to watch for the Giants as a trade-up option on Thursday” during the first round of the 2025 draft. “Sources I touched base with said he’s someone Daboll is high on — most out of QBs other than Cam Ward. Among qualities Daboll values in QBs is toughness. Dart has that.” Hughes added that there’s “not much out there right now connecting Shedeur Sanders to Giants. That hype has cooled dramatically from where it was in December.” Dart, who earned 2024’s highest passing grade from Pro Football Focus, would challenge for a starting role against Russell Wilson in training camp. Dart is a former four-star recruit and amassed nearly 12,000 career passing yards in four seasons while throwing 81 touchdowns and 27 interceptions.

It’s still unclear whether either team is actively trying to trade out of their top-three selections. Schrager reported that teams reaching out to Cleveland and the Giants are “looking to trade up to the No. 2 or No. 3 pick are pursuing Colorado two-way star Travis Hunter, Penn State pass rusher Abdul Carter or Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty.” It’s clear, two days ahead of the draft, that very few league officials believe Hunter or Jeanty will fall outside the first five or six picks. Hunter has said he would rather retire from football than to play on one side of the ball in the NFL, and teams appear obliged to use him as a two-way player to varying extents. Look for Hunter and Jeanty to be off the board within the first five picks on Thursday night.