With the first round of the NFL draft mere hours away, we, as sports video game enthusiasts, find ourselves in a new position. This is the first draft where we have an actually licensed video game simulation of the prospects. We know the guys who are going to hear their names called over the next three days; we’ve been playing as them all year in EA CFB 25!
Thanks to the game, more people around the country will know more of the players than ever before. Usually, by day three, most fans can only recognize a handful of players that they watched in college, but now you’re going to see the stars of the game throughout all three days of the festivities.
I want to take a look at these stars (the top five players at each position in the game that are entering the draft) and prepare you guys for when they’ll likely get picked. You might be thinking that they should all go in the first few rounds, but in reality, EA made the ratings based on college performance, not NFL potential.
Operation Sports App
Your ultimate companion for sports gaming. Access in-depth coverage, thoughtful discussion, and a community built around the games—and sports—you love.
Your ultimate sports gaming companion.
There are several reasons why a standout college player may fall down or off draft boards. Usually, it’s because their size, speed, or strength are not NFL caliber, or their technique is easy to exploit for seasoned veterans. Some players can thrive in college even with huge flaws in their game, but they would be eaten alive in the pros, and NFL scouts can see that, and teams factor that into their decision-making.
Here are the top five draftable players in each position based on their overall rating and player ranking in the game, with my educated guess based off of years of draft obsession and many hours of scouting (and many expert mock drafts studied) on where they’ll get picked. You can never expect what will happen in the NFL draft, so there’s no way these will be 100% accurate, but it should give you a general idea of where your favorite players will end up.
Top 5 Quarterbacks
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Shedeur Sanders | 95 | 5 | Early to Mid first round. 2nd QB off board |
| Cam Ward | 93 | 26 | First overall pick. 1st QB off board |
| Dillon Gabriel | 93 | 27 | fifth or sixth round. 8th QB off board |
| Jalen Milroe | 92 | 44 | Second round. 5th QB off board |
| Quinn Ewers | 92 | 51 | Third Round. 6th QB off board |
Takeaways: Ward and Sanders are first-round locks who’ll start early in the league. Milroe and Ewers are developmental/backup guys with eventual starter potential. Gabriel is seen as too old (24 is old now?!?!), too small, and not strong enough for the NFL. (Scouts are freaking brutal, man).
Top 5 Running Backs
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Ashton Jeanty | 97 | 2 | Top ten picks. 1st RB off board |
| Omarion Hampton | 95 | 17 | First round. 2nd RB off board |
| Quinshon Judkins | 95 | 19 | Second round. 4th RB off board |
| Kaleb Johnson | 93 | 28 | Second or Third. 5th RB off board |
| Dylan Sampson | 93 | 33 | Third round. 6th RB off board |
Takeaways: We should see all of these guys go in the first two days. The only running back missing from the top six is Tre’Veyon Henderson, who could see his name called as early as tonight.
Top 5 Wide Receivers
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Travis Hunter | 99 | 1 | Top three picks. 1st WR off board |
| Tetairoa McMillan | 95 | 13 | Early to mid first round. 2nd WR off board |
| Luther Burden | 94 | 21 | Late first to early second round. 5th WR off board |
| Tre Harris | 93 | 32 | Second or third round. 10th WR off board |
| Emeka Egbuka | 93 | 34 | Late first to early second round. 4th WR off board |
Takeaways: Tre Harris is one of my favorite receivers in the draft, but he doesn’t have the elite traits of someone like Matthew Golden, who’ll probably be the third receiver taken.
Top 5 Tight Ends
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Tyler Warren | 95 | 14 | Top ten picks. 1st TE off board |
| Harold Fannin Jr. | 95 | 15 | Third round. 5th TE off board |
| Colston Loveland | 93 | 42 | Mid first round. 2nd TE off board |
| Mason Taylor | 92 | 52 | Second round. 3rd TE off board |
| Oronde Gadsden II | 91 | 80 | Fourth or fifth round. 8th TE off board |
Takeaways: I didn’t realize Gadsden II was even in the draft until the combine because he’s rated so poorly compared to his incredible athleticism and skill in the game. With his traits, I figured he would at least be a second-round pick, but apparently, he’s not big or strong enough to be a consistent blocker, and he’s not fast enough to create consistent separation at the next level. I think he may prove the doubters wrong, but what do I know?
Top 5 Offensive Linemen
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Kelvin Banks Jr. | 96 | 4 | Mid first round. 4th OL off board |
| Will Campbell | 95 | 7 | Top ten picks. 1st OL off board |
| Tate Ratledge | 95 | 20 | Second or third round. 12th OL off board |
| Wyatt Milum | 94 | 25 | Third round. 15th OL off board |
| Aireonte Ersery | 93 | 40 | Second or third round. 10th OL off board |
Takeaways: Now that we are out of the skill positions, the ratings get a little crazier. We have the third, fourth, and fifth-best O-linemen in the game fall out of the top ten O-linemen who’ll get selected in the draft. The game is missing studs like Armand Membou, Josh Simmons, and Tyler Booker.
Top 5 Defensive Tackles
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Mason Graham | 95 | 8 | Top ten picks. 1st DT off board |
| Walter Nolen | 93 | 30 | First round. 2nd DT off board |
| Kenneth Grant | 91 | 78 | Late first to early second round. 4th DT off board |
| Tyleik Williams | 91 | 84 | Second round. 5th DT off board |
| Derrick Harmon | 91 | 86 | Late first round to early second round. 4th DT off board |
Takeaways: This is the only position group in which all five top in-game players are the same as the top five prospects. It’s crazy that it’s the DTs, too, because there are so many stud defensive tackles in this draft that it’s hard to narrow it down to just five. These five will all almost certainly be gone within the first 50 picks; that’s essentially guaranteed.
Top 5 EDGE rushers
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Abdul Carter | 95 | 6 | Top three picks. 1st EDGE off board |
| James Pearce Jr. | 95 | 11 | Late first to early second round. 6th EDGE off board |
| Jack Sawyer | 94 | 22 | Second or third round. 10th EDGE off board |
| Nic Scourton | 94 | 24 | Second round. 7th EDGE off board |
| Landon Jackson | 93 | 31 | Second round. 8th EDGE off board |
Takeaways: I’m surprised Mike Green isn’t a top-five edge rusher in the game after his 17-sack season last year. The same goes for Donovan Ezeiruaku, who had 16.5 sacks last season. Instead of those smaller school guys (who are now likely first-round picks), the game rewarded big school guys like Jack Sawyer (Ohio State) and Nic Scourton (Texas A&M), who had less production and not as much scouting hype.
Top 5 Linebackers
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Jay Higgins | 95 | 18 | Seventh round or undrafted. 20th LB off board |
| Barrett Carter | 94 | 23 | Fourth round. 7th LB off board |
| Shaun Dolac | 92 | 46 | Seventh round or undrafted. 19th LB off board |
| Jalon Walker | 91 | 75 | Early to mid first round. 1st LB off board |
| Jamon Johnson | 91 | 97 | Seventh round. 18th LB off board |
Takeaways: I don’t know what it is about this linebacker class, but EA was really bad at evaluating them. Higgins, Dolac, and Johnson (who goes by Dumas-Johnson now) are not seen as guys who can make a 53-man roster without major development and improvement, and Barrett Carter will probably be a backup/special teamer to start the year. The only guy whose overall potential actually matches their potential is Jalon Walker, who is a beast and should be an early impact player in the league.
Top 5 Cornerbacks
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Will Johnson | 96 | 3 | Mid first round. 1st CB off board |
| Nohl Williams | 93 | 29 | Third or fourth round. 13th CB off board |
| Benjamin Morrison | 93 | 43 | Second round. 8th CB off board |
| Jahdae Barron | 92 | 45 | Mid first round. 2nd CB off board |
| Jabbar Muhammad | 92 | 55 | Undrafted. N/A |
Takeaways: Will Johnson and Jahdae Barron are the only two CB “locks” for the first round, so it makes sense that they are on the list, but Nohl Williams’ lack of run support and tackling ability will push him down, potentially out of the first two days. Jabbar Muhammad, meanwhile, is apparently lacking NFL size and coverage ability to make a team. I get he’s only 5’8″, but he had 28 PBUs over the last two seasons, so he can’t be that bad? Right?
Top 5 Safeties
| Player Name | Overall | Rank | Likely Draft Position |
| Xavier Watts | 95 | 10 | Second or third round. 3rd S off board |
| Malaki Starks | 95 | 12 | First round. 1st S off board |
| Malachi Moore | 95 | 16 | Fifth or sixth round. 15th S off board |
| Nick Emmanwori | 93 | 35 | Late first or early second round. 2nd S off board |
| Jonas Sanker | 92 | 66 | Third or fourth round. 7th S off board |
Takeaways: Malachi Moore probably would have done himself well if he had gone into the draft last year or even the year before because the longer he played at Alabama, the more concerns scouts started to have about him, regardless of his stellar play. He matched up against near-NFL level competition each week, and every time he got beat, scouts would mark him down, even though he was solid 85% of the time. He’s one of those guys who could end up being a late-round all-pro eventually; he has just been so good at such a high level for so long, it’s weird to think that he would struggle in the NFL. I think scouts are wrong here.
Published: Apr 24, 2025 04:40 pm