2 big 2025 NFL Draft questions as we hurtle toward the 1st round

This is our last week before NFL Draft week, which means that things are about to really fall and lock into place or take a twisted turn into chaos and anarchy. Let’s hope for the latter.

Honestly any sort of draft-related chaos may not come until next week as someone could be looking to pull a fast one with little time to spare. Everything is about gamesmanship when it comes to this overall process.

With questions all over the place and soon-to-be-found answers to them, we here at The Skinny Post, Michael Peterson and RJ Ochoa, are doing our very best to lock in and not get got by anything.

We will happy bring you aboard with us.

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What is your biggest question about the 2025 NFL draft?

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RJ:

My answer is a bit more expansive and has less to do with the draft itself since we are close enough that things are starting to feel predictable. That being said, I really do wonder how this is all going to go for the Tennessee Titans.

A year ago we all had questions about Matt Eberflus, but we understood Caleb Williams and all of the talent that the Chicago Bears were putting together should eventually work out. That still remains to be seen, but adding Ben Johnson at head coach helps. We don’t have to squint too hard to see Chicago arriving is my overall point.

With regards to Tennessee… alright, so we know Cam Ward is going to be their quarterback. Does that really make them contenders, even in a down division? The AFC South is begging someone to challenge the Houston Texans, but I just do not really believe that Ward and Brian Callahan are the right answer as far as critical cornerstones go. So much of that honestly has less to do with them and the lack of playmakers around them… this franchise just feels kind of lost at sea to me.

Michael:

My biggest question also runs along a similar path to yours.

Ever since the Pittsburgh Steelers entered their post-Big Ben era, they’ve remained a winning team in general but that winning seems to halt fairly quick when/if they make the postseason. It’s coming up on nine years since their last win in January which was a victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2016 Divisional Round.

They’re coming off yet another winning season in 2024 where Justin Fields and Russell Wilson split the season’s starts at quarterback. However, neither player is still on the Steelers roster and as things stand, Mason Rudolph is currently their penciled-in starter.

How long until the Steelers finally do something to get their quarterback position stable? It truly seems like this is the one area that’s kept them from returning back to the prominence they enjoyed during Big Ben’s career. No more bridge quarterbacks. No more relying on a strong defense to carry the majority of the load for 17+ games. Will the Steelers finally make a move to draft a quarterback of the future?

Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders visited the Steelers in recent days but it’s hard to see him slipping all the way to the 21st pick. Maybe the Steelers make a move upwards should he slip at all. Maybe they find themselves feeling good about a Jaxson Dart or Jalen Milroe. Aaron Rodgers cannot be the answer, in my opinion, because it’s just kicking the can further down the road. If Rodgers is successful in Pittsburgh, then they’re once again not in a position to land one of the top quarterbacks in next year’s draft.

Something has to give sooner rather than later.

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What is the best position to take dart throws on during the final day of the draft?

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Michael:

Most of the time when a team is picking on Day 3 of the draft, they’re doing their best to balance upside with a position of need that wasn’t quite hurting enough to warrant a pick in the first three rounds. And when it comes to teams with an excess of late-round picks, such as teams who successfully used the compensatory pick formula, they almost have so many selections they could pick just about every position they want.

Usually those are teams like the Ravens, Eagles, etc.: You know, the good ones. They’re usually coming off a pretty good season and are not wanting for any one position too heavily. So when they’ve got upwards of six to seven picks across the final three rounds, they can take shots at guys without feeling much pressure to hit on them, if at all.

If you were a general manager, what positions do you think you’d prioritize in those later rounds with a haul of picks? Would you try and find those late-round gem running backs since they #Don’tMatter or do you try and find draft diamonds at premium positions like offensive tackle, cornerback, and edge rusher? And heck, if you’re the 49ers, you may just find a franchise quarterback.

I think I’d go with the latter approach. Being able to find starters and impact players late into the draft separates the good teams from the great ones. Having more good starters on rookie contracts is one heck of an advantage. If I had to name one, I’d honestly go with cornerbacks. As the resident Chargers guy around here, I’m stoked that the Chargers essentially found two current/future starting cornerbacks with a pair of fifth-round picks last year with Tarheeb Still and Cam Hart. The other starting safety next to Derwin James, Alohi Gilman, was a sixth-rounder. The flexibility those spots have given the Chargers can be see in this year’s approach as they currently aren’t wanting for anything too badly in the early rounds which means they can take the BPA approach like other teams who have set themselves up for future success.

RJ:

My answer is very chalk, but I would absolutely stick with quarterbacks.

To take things further… while I recognize that there is a lot to the scouting process, if I were in charge I would be throwing darts at quarterbacks who played big-time college football.

Sticking with the Chargers theme, an example of this was them drafting Max Duggan out of TCU a few years ago. It didn’t work out which is unfortunate, but throwing a dart on a quarterback who helped lead a team to a National Championship (even if they got smoked in it) is the right kind of dart throw in my opinion.

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What is the greatest individual achievement in football?

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RJ:

We are coming off of The Masters which is always a great treat for me personally. On a personal level there is no question that winning it is the greatest achievement that an individual can reach in the sport of golf.

Setting aside team-related goals and objectives… I think the greatest individual achievement that an NFL player can reach is a spot in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It is always unfortunate when a player gets in without success in the playoffs or without a Super Bowl to their name, but as noted those are team things.

Think about some recent players who have received bronze busts in Canton like Calvin Johnson and Joe Thomas. They were undoubtedly all-time players and thankfully the HOF exists to celebrate that since they were on teams that were unable to capitalize on their talents.

Michael:

I normally want to zag somewhat from your zig but this is simply too good of a position not to agree with. In team games, there’s always the chance that a really, really good player is stuck on a collectively bad team and no matter how much of an elite level they play at consistently, it could have little to no affect on the overall outcome of their career win percentage. Joe Thomas, whom you noted on above, is a prime example of that during his career with the Cleveland Browns.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame helps individuals who give it their all in the name of a Lombardi Trophy some semblance of acknowledgement that people see the work they’ve put in over years and years, even if a season never ends in holding up a trophy.

Imagine someone like Khalil Mack — a guy who was named an All-Pro at TWO DIFFERENT POSITIONS — who still has yet to win a playoff game. There’s a chance he never does despite being one of the best to ever do it. He could come nowhere close to a Super Bowl but at least the Hall of Fame is there to remind him he belongs amongst the elite of the elite.

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What is the NFL version of Rory McIlroy winning his first Masters Championship?

Michael:

Sunday was awesome. It was incredibly dramatic and McIlroy won it in such a fitting fashion that it made the whole event one of the coolest things I’ve seen in recent sports history. I don’t watch golf religiously by any means, but I love watching the big events that seem to bring the whole country together. The Masters is one of those events.

I think this is a really tough question. Results of games in the NFL can still mean a whole lot to fans and players without it having to be a Super Bowl. But when the Super Bowl is on a crash course with an emotionally gripping backstory, well you’ve got a winner.

I’m going with Drew Brees and the Saints winning the Super Bowl over Peyton Manning and the Colts in Super Bowl XLIV. It was just a handful of years after the events of Hurricane Katrina and I mean, we all know what that did to that community. For them to rally around their hometown team and watch them win it all over one of the best quarterbacks of that generation? That’s movie script stuff.

RJ:

If we are sticking with things that have actually happened then this is a good answer. Honestly I think a better one though is Manning winning his first Super Bowl, the one he won with the Indianapolis Colts. As a devout golf fan myself the big deal about Rory was that this particular thing had eluded him for so long. That was true with Peyton and a title in the worst way.

If we change the discussion to be hypothetical things then forgive me here for saying that it would be Dak Prescott winning the Super Bowl for the Dallas Cowboys. Rory has always been the proverbial prince that was promised and Dak has had to carry a similar burden while playing for the most visible team in professional sports. Getting it done like Rory would be delivering the ring to Mordor with regards to his own sport.