3. New Orleans Saints
Key Players – Tyler Shough, Kelvin Banks, Jonas Sanker
Total AV – 27
Despite Spencer Rattler’s best efforts, Shough won the job and looks to be the starter heading into 2026. If they found a franchise quarterback here, the rest of the draft doesn’t matter. But they also found a franchise tackle in Banks, and a very impressive safety in Jonas Sanker in the third round. This draft was a homerun for the Saints, but they’ll spend the next ten years flirting with the salary cap and paying for the sins of years past.
2. Cleveland Browns
Key Players – Carson Schwesinger, Mason Graham, Harold Fannin Jr.
Total AV – 31
While most of the talk will be around the Cleveland Browns quarterback situation, the rest of their draft was full of contributors. Both of their running backs complement each other well. Fannin Jr. just had the ninth-most receiving yards by a rookie tight end in history, and Schwesinger is a one-man tackling machine on defense. All eyes are on Cleveland in the 2026 NFL draft, but they had one of the best draft classes in the 2025 bunch.
1. New England Patriots
Key Players – Will Campbell, TreVeyon Henderson, Jared Wilson
14 wins don’t happen by accident. The Patriots were already set up for tremendous success with Drake Maye at quarterback, but they needed people to protect him. Will Campbell and Jared Wilson have both stepped up in that role, with Campbell’s post-draft press conference being one of the all-time great sports clips. Henderson is the 1b in the backfield with moments where he takes over the 1a role, but his ten touchdowns led all rookie running backs. Even their fourth-round rookie safety Craig Woodson made an impact this year, showcasing just how deep the best draft class of 2025 was.
Main Photo Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
