About NFL Draft
The NFL Draft is an annual event where the best college football players across the nation gather to be selected into the NFL. The NFL Draft is also known as the Annual Player Selection Meeting. The inaugural NFL Draft took place in 1936 and was first televised live in 1980. The Draft extended to a three-day format in 2010 and is held in a different city each year. The NFL Draft has become one of the most exciting footballing events attracting an abundance of audiences across platforms. The Draft is a way for franchises to remain in contention with each other.
The NFL Draft takes place on the last Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of April. The first round is held on Thursday, while rounds two and three are held on Friday. The remaining four rounds (Round 4- Round 7) take place on Saturday. To be eligible for the NFL Draft, a player must have done high school graduation at least three years prior, regardless of what the prospective draftee did during that time. Once you declare for the draft, a player is not allowed to go back and play college football. The 2025 NFL Draft will be held on the 24th of April 2025 and run till 26th of April 2025.
2025 NFL Draft Dates & Location
The 2025 NFL Draft will be hosted in Green Bay, Wisconsin from April 24th to April 26th, 2025. The venue for the Draft was selected on May 22, 2023.
The Draft is spread across three days as per CBS Sports:
| Day 1 | ||
| Date | Time | Round |
| 24 April 2025 | 8 p.m. ET | Round 1 |
| Day 2 | ||
| Date | Time | Round |
| 25 April 2025 | 7 p.m. ET | Round 2, Round 3 |
| Day 3 | ||
| Date | Time | Round |
| 26 April 2025 | Noon ET | Round 4, Round 5, Round 6, Round 7 |
The 2025 NFL Draft will be held at Lambeau Field, home of the Green Bay Packers and its adjacent Titletown district. The Titletown will be hosting the NFL Draft for the first time in history as reported by USA Today.
2025 NFL Draft Tickets
The tickets to the NFL Draft do not require any cost. Visitors are invited to the three-day event. They can attend the entire three-day NFL Draft for free. To be eligible for draft tickets, fans must download the NFL's OnePass app (via the NFL website).
The NFL Draft Experience features an immersive theme park featuring picture opportunities and autograph signings. These experiences will be enjoyed only by those who are fortunate enough to obtain a ticket. At the NFL Draft Theater, where all the on-stage activities take place, there will be free performances on Friday and Saturday (via the NFL website).
NFL Network, ABC, ESPN, and ESPN Deportes will be providing television coverage of all seven draft rounds. Ensure you sign up for a FuboTV subscription or a free trial if you want streaming choices (via CBS Sports).
NFL Draft Format 2025
Although the format of the NFL Draft has seen changes throughout history, the basic ideology is to allow fairness of competition so the teams who performed poorly in the last season get to pick first.
Each of the 32 NFL teams has an automatic pick in each of the seven rounds of the draft. The first round gives each team ten minutes to make their choice, the second round gives them seven minutes, the third to sixth rounds give them five, and the seventh round gives them four minutes. The team may still choose if they haven't decided in their allotted time; however, this would allow the following team(s) to submit their picks before them.
The number one pick belongs to the team that had the worst regular season record and the number 18th pick belongs to the team that had the best regular season record in which they missed the playoffs. Picks 19-24 are given to teams eliminated in the first round, i.e., the Wild Card round of the playoffs. Picks 25-28 are given to teams eliminated in the second round, i.e., the Divisional round of the playoffs.
The 29th and 30th picks are given to the teams that were eliminated in the Conference Championship round of the playoffs. Finally, the 31st pick is given to the team which lost the Super Bowl while the 32nd pick is given to the team who won the Super Bowl.
| Status | Draft picks |
|---|---|
| Non-playoff teams | 1–18 |
| Eliminated in the wild-card round | 19–24 |
| Eliminated in the divisional round | 25–28 |
| Conference runners-up | 29–30 |
| Super Bowl runner-up | 31 |
| Super Bowl champion | 32 |
Teams are allowed to make trades and acquire extra picks. Some teams receive compensatory picks. The teams that end up with more qualifying free agents lost than gained in a particular year are qualified for the compensatory picks. A team is also rewarded two third-round selections (one each year) whose minority coach or executive is hired as head coach or general manager by another NFL franchise (via the NFL website).
NFL Draft Order 2025
The NFL Draft order is assigned based on the performances of teams in the previous season. Since the Tennessee Titans had the least impressive NFL season out of all teams in the 2024 NFL season, they received the Number 1 pick. On the other hand, the 2024-25 Super Bowl champions Philadelphia Eagles will be picking 2nd overall as of March 7, 2025.
Here is the first-round order for the 2025 NFL Draft.
| Pick | Team |
| 1 | Tennessee Titans |
| 2 | Cleveland Browns |
| 3 | New York Giants |
| 4 | New England Patriots |
| 5 | Jacksonville Jaguars |
| 6 | Las Vegas Raiders |
| 7 | New York Jets |
| 8 | Carolina Panthers |
| 9 | New Orleans Saints |
| 10 | Chicago Bears |
| 11 | San Francisco 49ers |
| 12 | Dallas Cowboys |
| 13 | Miami Dolphins |
| 14 | Indianapolis Colts |
| 15 | Atlanta Falcons |
| 16 | Arizona Cardinals |
| 17 | Cincinnati Bengals |
| 18 | Seattle Seahawks |
| 19 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
| 20 | Denver Broncos |
| 21 | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| 22 | Los Angeles Chargers |
| 23 | Green Bay Packers |
| 24 | Minnesota Vikings |
| 25 | Houston Texans |
| 26 | Los Angeles Rams |
| 27 | Baltimore Ravens |
| 28 | Detroit Lions |
| 29 | Washington Commanders |
| 30 | Buffalo Bills |
| 31 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| 32 | Philadelphia Eagles |
As of March 7th, 2025, all 32 teams have their 1-round picks.
NFL Draft Prospects
The 2025 NFL Draft class is not as strong as its last two predecessors. The upcoming draft does not have a slam-dunk franchise alternating quarterback according to many experts. While Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders have separated themselves in the 2025 quarterback class, neither of them is put in the same tier as Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, C.J. Stroud, or Bryce Young by experts. Jaxson Dart of Ole Miss is also considered by many to go into the first round.
While there may not be any blue-chip prospects at the QB position like in previous years, there are a few exceptional prospects at other positions which include two-way star - Travis Hunter, Edge - Abdul Carter, defensive lineman - Mason Graham, running back - Ashton Jeanty, and many more.
FAQs about 2025 NFL Draft
A. Tennessee Titans is picking 1st overall in the 2025 NFL draft as of March 7th, 2025.
A. The 2025 NFL Draft is being held at Lambeau Field, Green Bay, Wisconsin.
A. As of March 7th, 2025, no NFL team has more than one pick in first round.
A. The NFL Draft order is determined by the standings at the end of the regular season: The franchise with the worst record will pick first, and the one who wins Super Bowl will be picking 32nd.
