The Tennessee Titans’ reward for being the worst team in football last season is the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. The Titans will have three options with this pick: They can select the potential franchise quarterback they both need, they can trade the pick and collect additional picks or they can draft the best player in the class, who may not be a quarterback. That third option seems more realistic after this week.
During a press conference Wednesday, Titans president of football operations Chad Brinker told reporters that they will not pass along a “generational talent” with the first pick in the draft. They will do their homework on all prospects, including quarterbacks.
The best prospect in the draft may be wide receiver/cornerback Travis Hunter of Colorado. The 2024 Heisman Trophy winner was also a unanimous All-American, Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and winner of the Fred Biletnikoff Award. You read that correctly, the Big 12’s best defensive player was also the best receiver in the country. In 2024, Hunter caught 96 passes for 1,258 yards and 15 touchdowns. He also recorded 35 total tackles, 11 passes defensed, one forced fumble and four interceptions. It remains to be seen what position Hunter will play at the next level, but either way, he appears to be the best player in the draft.
After Brinker made his comments, Hunter’s odds of becoming the No. 1 pick skyrocketed. They went from +1400 on Wednesday morning to +140, according to DraftKings Sportsbook.
Here are the top odds for the No. 1 pick (per DraftKings Sportsbook):
|
chamber room |
-200 |
+100 |
|
Shedeur Sanders |
+140 |
+140 |
|
travis hunter |
+1400 |
+350 |
|
Abdul Carter |
+2000 |
+1400 |
The interesting thing about the Titans’ situation is that free agency could reveal its preliminary plan. We may be able to figure out Tennessee’s plans at the top of the draft board depending on who the Titans sign before April. If the Titans swing for the fences by signing a top quarterback, perhaps they will trade or draft Hunter. If Tennessee doesn’t address the quarterback position in free agency, perhaps the Titans are looking at Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward. On the other hand, the Atlanta Falcons showed us last year that it is impossible to predict what will happen in the first round.
