The 6’5, 242-pound pass rusher finished his sophomore season in 2023 with 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss. After loading up on offense in the 2024 NFL draft, it’s time to give Jerod Mayo premium pieces on defense in 2025.

The Panthers gave Bryce Young a couple new weapons in Xavier Legette and Diontae Johnson. But Burden could round out the group and crank the Carolina offense into overdrive.

Allar isn’t considered QB1 by many, due mostly to his horrible performances against Ohio State and Michigan. But he’s as prototypical as they come at 6’5, 241 pounds and he finished his sophomore season with 25 touchdowns and two interceptions. If he takes a step forward as a junior, he could quickly become a coveted NFL prospect. And if the Titans are picking top five, that could be enough evidence that Will Levis isn’t the guy.

Jerry Jeudy was traded away and Courtland Sutton’s future in Denver is murky, for now. It’s very possible Troy Franklin proves to be a steal for the Broncos, but giving Bo Nix a weapon as dangerous as Egbuka is a good idea, regardless.

The Giants opted against adding a quarterback and will have “Janiel Dones” throwing to Malik Nabers in 2024. If that doesn’t work out (and not a ton of people think it will), Sanders is a smooth operator in the pocket with tremendous accuracy who could succeed early in his career.

It’s hard to imagine a two-way NFL player, but if anyone could do it, it’d be Hunter. He may prove more valuable at cornerback, which would make him a perfect fit in Arizona where they need to keep stacking talent at premium spots.

The 6’2 All-American corner allowed a 29.1 passer rating when quarterbacks threw his direction in 2023.

After missing out on the quarterback class in 2024, the team is set to enter the season with Gardner Minshew II and Aidan O’Connell competing for the starting job. Taking Georgia’s 6’4, 220-pound quarterback would be a no-brainer if he’s on the board.

The Commanders got their quarterback of the future in Jayden Daniels, who already has veteran weapons in Terry McLaurin, Jahan Dotson, and Austin Ekeler. The priority needs to be keeping him upright for the long-term.

Williams is the latest in a terrifying run of Georgia defensive line who destroy anything and everything in front of them. The 6’5, 265-pounder could easily see a Travon Walker-esque rise to the top of draft boards.

The Seahawks have invested in the middle of their defensive line by signing Leonard Williams and drafting Byron Murphy II. Now it’s time to look for some speed off the edge.

The Saints addressed a significant need by drafting Taliese Fuaga, who could immediately be their left tackle in 2024. But with Ryan Ramczyk’s career in jeopardy due to a knee injury, New Orleans might be in the market for another tackle soon.

Off-ball linebackers are always hard to project ahead of time, but Perkins seems tailor-made to be a hell-raiser in the middle of an NFL defense. The Bucs could use one of those with Lavonte David’s career nearing its end.

The 6’7, 282-pound Razorbacks lineman earned First Team All-SEC honors last year with 6.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss, but decided to return for his senior season despite a strong chance he’d go early in the 2024 NFL draft.

The Colts looked to other needs and still have issues at cornerback. Burke earned All-Big Ten honors last season and should be one of the top players at the position next year.

“The Godfather” has been a destroyer since he was a freshman at Cincinnati and could help fill the massive hole left by Aaron Donald’s retirement.

The Jaguars seem to have a stalwart right tackle in Anton Harrison, but there are more questions than answers on the left side. With Cam Robinson and Walker Little both entering contract years, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Jacksonville is looking for someone new to protect Trevor Lawrence’s blindside next offseason.

The Bears opted to give Caleb Williams a weapon in Rome Odunze rather than address their pass rush concerns. They do that here with a 6’5, 258-pound edge rusher who is well-positioned for a breakout season in 2023.

The Chargers chose offensive line over wide receiver in the top 10 of the 2024 draft, but a 6’5 pass catcher could be too much to pass up for an offense that is suddenly lacking in playmakers.

The Jets drafted FSU’s Jordan Travis in the fifth round of the 2024 NFL draft. But Aaron Rodgers’ career in New York can’t possibly be very long (right?) and Ewers would give the team a more promising succession plan.

The Texans are suddenly loaded on offense and need to start stacking pieces on defense. Morrison is a ballhawking cornerback with nine interceptions in his first two seasons at Notre Dame.

Marshall hasn’t quite lived up to the lofty expectations heaped on his shoulders as a five-star recruit. But he hasn’t been terrible either. The incredibly talented cornerback could make a sharp rise if experience yields better results in 2024.

While the Dolphins added a bunch of defensive tackles in 2024 and decided that was good enough to ignore the position in the draft, all of those players were signed to cheap, one-year contracts. Finding long-term fixtures on the defensive line needs to be a priority next offseason and Williams, a 6’3, 327-pound load in the middle of the Buckeyes’ defensive line, could present the chance at a significant upgrade for Miami.

Jessie Bates has proven to be a stellar safety in the Falcons secondary, but the team hasn’t found another defensive back to pair with him. Starks could be the hard-hitting complement that rounds out the Atlanta defensive backfield.

The Eagles will probably pick whichever incredibly talented player inexplicably falls into their lap, because that’s what always happens. In this projection they add a behemoth, 352-pound guard to make their Brotherly Shove even scarier.

It’s hard to find needs for the Cowboys, who have an absolutely stacked roster but find ways to do nothing with it on an annual basis. Carter seems like the type of rangy and fast linebacker that could help take their defense to another level.

The Lions still haven’t found the rusher to bookend with Aidan Hutchinson. In Turner, they could get a scheme diverse, 290-pound defensive lineman capable of playing five-technique and kicking inside to play three-technique.

Carter is a bit of an interesting puzzle piece, because he’ll be at his best if he’s allowed to move all over. The Bengals could use that kind of player in their defense, especially if they can’t resolve the sudden drama with Trey Hendrickson.

Keon Coleman is a start, but it’s going to take a lot more than that to rebuild the Bills’ receiving corps. Harris has steadily improved throughout his collegiate career and should be a top option next year.

Trent Williams won’t be there to save the 49ers forever and the rest of the team’s offensive line needs work anyway. Conerly allowed only one sack as a full-time starter at left tackle during his sophomore season in 2023.

The former five-star recruit with track speed transferred to Oregon earlier this year. If he can translate that athleticism into big numbers, he could quickly put himself in the first-round conversation.

Even if Travis Kelce doesn’t retire any time soon, Loveland is a matchup nightmare who could give Patrick Mahomes another much-needed target.