So, you had to wait until the third day of the draft to hear your name called. You have already been told by those close to you, and perhaps by the team that did select you, that your draft position means nothing; it’s what you do with it that counts.
Just last year, we had Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving, Los Angeles Rams center Beau Limmer, Buffalo Bills running back Ray Davis, Seattle Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight, and Pittsburgh Steelers offensive guard Mason McCormick transform themselves from third-day afterthoughts to key cogs for their NFL teams.
Ignore the noise. Get to work, and hope that your new coaches are ready to maximize your strengths and minimize your liabilities — because no matter where or if you’re drafted, that’s what it’s really all about.
We’ve already given you the best scheme fits for the first and second days of the 2025 NFL draft; here are the eight third-day prospects with the best chances for success based on scheme fit and team needs.
Related: From Nick Emmanwori to Kyle Williams, the 8 Best Scheme Fits From Day 2 of the 2025 Draft
Shedeur Sanders, QB, Cleveland Browns: Moving Sanders into the modern age
Now that our long national nightmare is over, and we no longer have to deal with yelly talking heads yapping on and on about Shedeur Sanders’ slide in the draft, we can move along to how Sanders will fit in Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski’s offense after the Browns took Sanders with the 144th pick in the fifth round.
Let’s start with the truth — Colorado’s 2024 offense was weird. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur wasn’t able to give Sanders the benefit of pre-snap motion, designed out of pocket play-action, or advanced route concepts for designed openings. When Sanders did have those concepts in his favor, he was generally highly efficient.
If we ignore the changes that Stefanski made to the Browns’ offense last season to try and make things better for Deshaun Watson (we all know how that turned out), the Browns do have the template for success for a quarterback of Sanders’ ilk. Scheme him up with motion and route complexity, prevent him from drifting in the pocket with more boot-action, and use play-action more in general to keep defenses honest.
Sanders’ NFL entrance was pretty bumpy, but there is a path to success here.
Shedeur Sanders with route concepts beyond four verts and “Throw the screen before you get killed” is an interesting NFL proposition. pic.twitter.com/cGOb6Gy7TW
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 14, 2025
Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Giving Liam Coen his ideal running back
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers stole Oregon running back Bucky Irving with the 126th pick in the fourth round of the 2024 draft, and it didn’t take long for Irving to become the team’s primary back under offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Irving got limited reps to start his rookie campaign, but by the season’s halfway point, he had become the alpha, and he finished the season with 1,199 yards, eight touchdowns, 62 forced missed tackles, and 15 runs of 15 or more yards on 224 carries. Irving was also an asset in the passing game, which is not bad for a mid-round guy doing his thing at 5-foot-9 and 192 pounds.
Now that Coen is the Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coach, the draft marked the time for him to find a similar back to Irving, and he may well have done that with the 104th overall pick in the fourth round in the person of Virginia Tech’s Bhayshul Tuten. Last season, the 5-foot-9, 206-pound Tuten, who also lit it up at the scouting combine with a 4.32-second 40-yard dash and a 1.49-second 10-yard split, gained 1.150 yards, scored 15 touchdowns, forced 62 missed tackles, and had 21 runs of 15 or more yards on 183 carries.
Tuten can also be a plus in the passing game, but where the speed shows up in his explosive rushing ability. And we’re not just talking about straight-line speed and jump cuts — like Irving, he’s able to blast through skinny gaps when running inside more than you might expect.
Travis Hunter is obviously the big story in this draft for DUUUUUUUVAL, and justifiably so. But don’t be at all surprised if Tuten does for Coen this season what Bucky Irving did last season, and is rewarded with an equivalent workload in a hurry.
Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten ran a 4.32 40 with a 1.49 10-yard split. It all shows up on tape with his straight-line speed, and the jump cuts are ridiculous. What I also love about Tuten is how he just explodes through contact. 62 forced missed tackles on 185 attempts. pic.twitter.com/fwABemoGk9
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 3, 2025
Cam Skattebo, RB, New York Giants: Making a difference on third down
Yes, Cam Skattebo was a demon in Arizona State’s Peach Bowl appearance, beating up on the Texas Longhorns in every way possible. Skattebo ran the ball 30 times for 143 yards, two touchdowns, and a two-point try. He forced 10 missed tackles, had four runs of 10 yards or more, and two of 15 yards or more. Skattebo also caught seven passes on 10 targets for 37 yards, and had a touchdown pass to boot.
That’s nice and all, but there are reasons that Skattebo lasted until the 105th pick in the fourth round. The tape shows a lack of third-level acceleration and juice, and Skattebo’s violent running style led to a worrisome number of turnovers. That said, there’s one way in which Skattebo will help his NFL team, and that will likely happen right away.
Last season, the Giants were able to convert just 29 third downs into first downs in the run game, which ranked 17th in the NFL. Last season on his own, Skattebo converted 35 third downs to first downs, which outstripped all backs in this draft class, including Ashton Jeanty. And 12 of those conversions came against loaded boxes of eight or more defenders.
When you go off the board in the fourth round, the NFL is telling you that you’re seen as a rotational and situational piece. Maybe Skattebo can move past that at some point, but it’s easy to see why the Giants found Skattebo useful here.
Cam Skattebo vs. Texas on third down: Five attempts, five conversions. pic.twitter.com/fed27FRR2p
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Dont’e Thornton Jr., WR, Las Vegas Raiders: A vertical game that Al Davis would love
The addition of Geno Smith to the Raiders’ roster gave Pete Carroll something with which he was already quite familiar from his days in Seattle: Geno Smith is one of the NFL’s best deep passers. But for that to pay dividends in Chip Kelly’s offense, Smith would need more credible vertical receivers than he was given.
In 2024, Jakobi Myers led the team with 10 catches on throws of 20 or more air yards; receiver Tre Tucker and tight end Michael Myers tied for second with five. In 2004, Smith’s final season with the Seahawks, D.K. Metcalf had 16 deep catches all by himself.
To their credit, the Raiders have addressed this in the draft — first with TCU receiver Jack Bech with the 58th overall pick in the second round (Bech had nine deep catches last season), and second with Tennessee’s Dont’e Thornton Jr. with the 108th pick in the fourth round.
Last season, Thornton caught seven deep passes on 10 targets for 376 yards and three touchdowns. Then, Thornton blew up the scouting combine by running a 4.3-second 40-yard dash with a 1.51-second split at 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds. Thornton will need to expand his route palette, and he won’t have the spread offense advantages he had in college, but when you watch him destroy cornerbacks with speed to the narrow side of the field, it does work.
It’s tough to project air-raid receivers when they’re one-on-one against cornerbacks vs. wide coverage in cow pastures. But Tennessee’s Dont’e Thornton Jr. has transferable tools in more compressed situations. 25.5 YPA and 10.7 YACPA last season at 6-foot-5 and 214 pounds. pic.twitter.com/Hjpz33tAJK
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 17, 2025
Billy Bowman Jr., DB, Atlanta Falcons: A defense with all kinds of coverage wrinkles
Last season, Atlanta Falcons defenders lined up either in the slot or at safety allowed 108 completions on 169 attempts for 1,221 yards, 14 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 95.8, which was seventh-worst in the NFL. If you take the good work of deep safety Jessie Bates III out of the equation, it’s clear that Bates was on his own island out there.
That is no longer the case, and both head coach Raheem Morris and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich have to be more than happy about the changes. Atlanta committed grand larceny by getting Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts (one of my favorite players in this class) with the 96th overall pick in the third round, and they then doubled their efforts with Oklahoma’s Billy Bowman Jr. with the 118th pick in the fourth round.
Why does this matter? Because both Watts and Bowman can play the slot and work the deep third, and both rookies have range for days. That gives the Falcons, who lined Bates up in the deep third 922 times (seventh-most in the NFL among all defensive backs) in 2024.
Bowman, who really brings an extra element of deep-third speed, allowed 18 catches on 32 targets last season for 131 yards, 72 yards after the catch, four touchdowns, two interceptions, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 79.6. Four touchdowns allowed is disconcerting, but when you watch those negative plays, it’s either Bowman over-running in coverage, or losing tightly contested-catch battles in the end zone. Things that can be worked out at the NFL level, and Bowman will certainly have the help around him to stay put when that’s the job.
When Oklahoma safety Billy Bowman Jr. stays in phase, he can add a lot to a defense as a deep third weapon with range and a nasty playing demeanor. I’ll be fascinated to see how the Falcons chop things up with Bowman, Jessie Bates III, and Xavier Watts. pic.twitter.com/gBgeRd9G85
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Ty Robinson, DI, Philadelphia Eagles: Filling a Milton Williams-sized void
The Philadelphia Eagles selected defensive lineman Milton Williams in the third round of the 2021 draft out of Louisiana Tech, developed him into one of the NFL’s better undersized interior pressure generators, and then watched him sign a four-year, $104 million contract with $63 million guaranteed this offseason. So, that’s a need for Vic Fangio’s championship defense.
That need could be filled by Nebraska’s Ty Robinson, who had a great day at the scouting combine at 6-foot-6 and 288 pounds, which had NFL teams going back to his tape with positive vibes. Those vibes were likely accentuated further by watching and re-watching Robinson, who played closer to 300 pounds and had very few leverage issues with his height. Robinson was a demon in his sixth and final season with the Cornhuskers, amassing six sacks, 42 total pressures, 25 solo tackles, and 28 stops.
Robinson might not be 100% the athlete that Williams is, but he may also be a stronger player, which allows him to line up at nose tackle at times with no problem — two of his sacks and 13 of his pressures came from that spot last season.
Of course, the Eagles got Robinson in the fourth round with the 111th overall pick. It’s almost like they’re pretty good at this whole draft thing.
When you watch Ty Robinson (9) push the point of attack and jump multiple gaps to get to the quarterback… I wouldn’t be surprised if Vic Fangio sees him as a potential Milton Williams replacement. Some similar body style and play style stuff for sure. pic.twitter.com/gv5gsDrL51
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Jalen Royals, WR, Kansas City Chiefs: Giving Patrick Mahomes a reliable receiver
Beyond the protection issues that have brought the Chiefs’ offense to further implosion every year over the last few years, there’s the fact that general manager Brett Veach and head coach Andy Reid have recently struggled put consistent receivers on their roster. 2024 first-round pick Xavier Worthy does look like the kind of receiver who could live up to his all-time athletic profile, but outside of that? The pickings have been pretty slim.
Which is probably why the Chiefs took Utah State receiver Jalen Royals with the 133rd overall pick in the fourth round. Last season in an injury-shortened campaign, Royals caught 55 passes on 81 targets for 839 yards and six touchdowns, and he did a lot of his damage in contested catch situations, and with concepts over the middle that required him to show his toughness and catch radius. No problem in either case.
The Chiefs have flirted with all kinds of athletic marvel targets for Patrick Mahomes in recent years; what they’ve been short on are the kinds of receivers you can count on when it’s third-and-whatever and you need a guy who will bull his way to success with a true understanding of the nuances of the position. Based on what Royals did in college, I think the Chiefs finally hit a home run in that department.
Utah State’s Jalen Royals won’t blow you away with downfield explosive ability, but he’s got just about everything else. Keen sense of how to get and stay open, and he’s super-tough over the middle. NFL teams that live between the hashes in the pass game should love him. pic.twitter.com/WA74X4YJEz
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 26, 2025
Elic Ayomanor, WR, Tennessee Titans: Here’s one guy who can beat Travis Hunter!
Of course, the big news of the entire draft — besides the aforementioned Sanders slide — was the blockbuster trade the Jacksonville Jaguars made with the Cleveland Browns to go up to the second overall pick and nab Travis Hunter. The Jags have already said that they will not look to limit Hunter’s ability to play on both sides of the ball, but it’s clear that Hunter will massively upgrade Jacksonville’s secondary with whatever he does there.
The Tennessee Titans may have done something sneaky-good in this regard. As both the Titans and the Jags are in the AFC South, and as such, Tennessee will now have to deal with Hunter at least twice a year, why not go out and get the one guy who beat up on Travis Hunter the cornerback over the last two seasons?
That would be Stanford receiver Elic Ayomanor, who the Titans took with the 136th overall pick in the fourth round.
Last season, the 6-foot-2, 206-pound Ayomanor caught 63 passes on 109 targets for 831 yards and six touchdowns. But we need to go back to 2023 for the plot. In Week 7 of that season, Ayomanor completely and totally demolished Colorado’s defense with a 13-catch, 294-yard, three-touchdown performance that was the key to Stanford’s 46-43 double-overtime win. When Hunter was covering him, Ayomanor caught eight passes on 13 targets for 135 yards and two touchdowns.
So, hey — why not get the one guy who has proven to be Travis Hunter’s Kryptonite? And as a bigger receiver, Ayomanor may be able to solve the Titans’ lack in that regard ever since they traded A.J. Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022, and whiffed with the subsequent first-round selection of Treylon Burks.
Elic Ayomanor vs. Travis Hunter in 2023.
It did not go as you might expect. pic.twitter.com/uuG01mfbPt
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 23, 2025
Related: Why Shedeur Sanders Can Have the Last Laugh
So, you had to wait until the third day of the draft to hear your name called. You have already been told by those close to you, and perhaps by the team that did select you, that your draft position means nothing; it’s what you do with it that counts.
Just last year, we had Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving, Los Angeles Rams center Beau Limmer, Buffalo Bills running back Ray Davis, Seattle Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight, and Pittsburgh Steelers offensive guard Mason McCormick transform themselves from third-day afterthoughts to key cogs for their NFL teams.
Ignore the noise. Get to work, and hope that your new coaches are ready to maximize your strengths and minimize your liabilities — because no matter where or if you’re drafted, that’s what it’s really all about.
We’ve already given you the best scheme fits for the first and second days of the 2025 NFL draft; here are the eight third-day prospects with the best chances for success based on scheme fit and team needs.
Related: From Nick Emmanwori to Kyle Williams, the 8 Best Scheme Fits From Day 2 of the 2025 Draft
Shedeur Sanders, QB, Cleveland Browns: Moving Sanders into the modern age
Now that our long national nightmare is over, and we no longer have to deal with yelly talking heads yapping on and on about Shedeur Sanders’ slide in the draft, we can move along to how Sanders will fit in Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski’s offense after the Browns took Sanders with the 144th pick in the fifth round.
Let’s start with the truth — Colorado’s 2024 offense was weird. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur wasn’t able to give Sanders the benefit of pre-snap motion, designed out of pocket play-action, or advanced route concepts for designed openings. When Sanders did have those concepts in his favor, he was generally highly efficient.
If we ignore the changes that Stefanski made to the Browns’ offense last season to try and make things better for Deshaun Watson (we all know how that turned out), the Browns do have the template for success for a quarterback of Sanders’ ilk. Scheme him up with motion and route complexity, prevent him from drifting in the pocket with more boot-action, and use play-action more in general to keep defenses honest.
Sanders’ NFL entrance was pretty bumpy, but there is a path to success here.
Shedeur Sanders with route concepts beyond four verts and “Throw the screen before you get killed” is an interesting NFL proposition. pic.twitter.com/cGOb6Gy7TW
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 14, 2025
Bhayshul Tuten, RB, Jacksonville Jaguars: Giving Liam Coen his ideal running back
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers stole Oregon running back Bucky Irving with the 126th pick in the fourth round of the 2024 draft, and it didn’t take long for Irving to become the team’s primary back under offensive coordinator Liam Coen. Irving got limited reps to start his rookie campaign, but by the season’s halfway point, he had become the alpha, and he finished the season with 1,199 yards, eight touchdowns, 62 forced missed tackles, and 15 runs of 15 or more yards on 224 carries. Irving was also an asset in the passing game, which is not bad for a mid-round guy doing his thing at 5-foot-9 and 192 pounds.
Now that Coen is the Jacksonville Jaguars’ head coach, the draft marked the time for him to find a similar back to Irving, and he may well have done that with the 104th overall pick in the fourth round in the person of Virginia Tech’s Bhayshul Tuten. Last season, the 5-foot-9, 206-pound Tuten, who also lit it up at the scouting combine with a 4.32-second 40-yard dash and a 1.49-second 10-yard split, gained 1.150 yards, scored 15 touchdowns, forced 62 missed tackles, and had 21 runs of 15 or more yards on 183 carries.
Tuten can also be a plus in the passing game, but where the speed shows up in his explosive rushing ability. And we’re not just talking about straight-line speed and jump cuts — like Irving, he’s able to blast through skinny gaps when running inside more than you might expect.
Travis Hunter is obviously the big story in this draft for DUUUUUUUVAL, and justifiably so. But don’t be at all surprised if Tuten does for Coen this season what Bucky Irving did last season, and is rewarded with an equivalent workload in a hurry.
Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten ran a 4.32 40 with a 1.49 10-yard split. It all shows up on tape with his straight-line speed, and the jump cuts are ridiculous. What I also love about Tuten is how he just explodes through contact. 62 forced missed tackles on 185 attempts. pic.twitter.com/fwABemoGk9
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 3, 2025
Cam Skattebo, RB, New York Giants: Making a difference on third down
Yes, Cam Skattebo was a demon in Arizona State’s Peach Bowl appearance, beating up on the Texas Longhorns in every way possible. Skattebo ran the ball 30 times for 143 yards, two touchdowns, and a two-point try. He forced 10 missed tackles, had four runs of 10 yards or more, and two of 15 yards or more. Skattebo also caught seven passes on 10 targets for 37 yards, and had a touchdown pass to boot.
That’s nice and all, but there are reasons that Skattebo lasted until the 105th pick in the fourth round. The tape shows a lack of third-level acceleration and juice, and Skattebo’s violent running style led to a worrisome number of turnovers. That said, there’s one way in which Skattebo will help his NFL team, and that will likely happen right away.
Last season, the Giants were able to convert just 29 third downs into first downs in the run game, which ranked 17th in the NFL. Last season on his own, Skattebo converted 35 third downs to first downs, which outstripped all backs in this draft class, including Ashton Jeanty. And 12 of those conversions came against loaded boxes of eight or more defenders.
When you go off the board in the fourth round, the NFL is telling you that you’re seen as a rotational and situational piece. Maybe Skattebo can move past that at some point, but it’s easy to see why the Giants found Skattebo useful here.
Cam Skattebo vs. Texas on third down: Five attempts, five conversions. pic.twitter.com/fed27FRR2p
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Dont’e Thornton Jr., WR, Las Vegas Raiders: A vertical game that Al Davis would love
The addition of Geno Smith to the Raiders’ roster gave Pete Carroll something with which he was already quite familiar from his days in Seattle: Geno Smith is one of the NFL’s best deep passers. But for that to pay dividends in Chip Kelly’s offense, Smith would need more credible vertical receivers than he was given.
In 2024, Jakobi Myers led the team with 10 catches on throws of 20 or more air yards; receiver Tre Tucker and tight end Michael Myers tied for second with five. In 2004, Smith’s final season with the Seahawks, D.K. Metcalf had 16 deep catches all by himself.
To their credit, the Raiders have addressed this in the draft — first with TCU receiver Jack Bech with the 58th overall pick in the second round (Bech had nine deep catches last season), and second with Tennessee’s Dont’e Thornton Jr. with the 108th pick in the fourth round.
Last season, Thornton caught seven deep passes on 10 targets for 376 yards and three touchdowns. Then, Thornton blew up the scouting combine by running a 4.3-second 40-yard dash with a 1.51-second split at 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds. Thornton will need to expand his route palette, and he won’t have the spread offense advantages he had in college, but when you watch him destroy cornerbacks with speed to the narrow side of the field, it does work.
It’s tough to project air-raid receivers when they’re one-on-one against cornerbacks vs. wide coverage in cow pastures. But Tennessee’s Dont’e Thornton Jr. has transferable tools in more compressed situations. 25.5 YPA and 10.7 YACPA last season at 6-foot-5 and 214 pounds. pic.twitter.com/Hjpz33tAJK
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 17, 2025
Billy Bowman Jr., DB, Atlanta Falcons: A defense with all kinds of coverage wrinkles
Last season, Atlanta Falcons defenders lined up either in the slot or at safety allowed 108 completions on 169 attempts for 1,221 yards, 14 touchdowns, seven interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 95.8, which was seventh-worst in the NFL. If you take the good work of deep safety Jessie Bates III out of the equation, it’s clear that Bates was on his own island out there.
That is no longer the case, and both head coach Raheem Morris and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich have to be more than happy about the changes. Atlanta committed grand larceny by getting Notre Dame safety Xavier Watts (one of my favorite players in this class) with the 96th overall pick in the third round, and they then doubled their efforts with Oklahoma’s Billy Bowman Jr. with the 118th pick in the fourth round.
Why does this matter? Because both Watts and Bowman can play the slot and work the deep third, and both rookies have range for days. That gives the Falcons, who lined Bates up in the deep third 922 times (seventh-most in the NFL among all defensive backs) in 2024.
Bowman, who really brings an extra element of deep-third speed, allowed 18 catches on 32 targets last season for 131 yards, 72 yards after the catch, four touchdowns, two interceptions, two pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 79.6. Four touchdowns allowed is disconcerting, but when you watch those negative plays, it’s either Bowman over-running in coverage, or losing tightly contested-catch battles in the end zone. Things that can be worked out at the NFL level, and Bowman will certainly have the help around him to stay put when that’s the job.
When Oklahoma safety Billy Bowman Jr. stays in phase, he can add a lot to a defense as a deep third weapon with range and a nasty playing demeanor. I’ll be fascinated to see how the Falcons chop things up with Bowman, Jessie Bates III, and Xavier Watts. pic.twitter.com/gBgeRd9G85
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Ty Robinson, DI, Philadelphia Eagles: Filling a Milton Williams-sized void
The Philadelphia Eagles selected defensive lineman Milton Williams in the third round of the 2021 draft out of Louisiana Tech, developed him into one of the NFL’s better undersized interior pressure generators, and then watched him sign a four-year, $104 million contract with $63 million guaranteed this offseason. So, that’s a need for Vic Fangio’s championship defense.
That need could be filled by Nebraska’s Ty Robinson, who had a great day at the scouting combine at 6-foot-6 and 288 pounds, which had NFL teams going back to his tape with positive vibes. Those vibes were likely accentuated further by watching and re-watching Robinson, who played closer to 300 pounds and had very few leverage issues with his height. Robinson was a demon in his sixth and final season with the Cornhuskers, amassing six sacks, 42 total pressures, 25 solo tackles, and 28 stops.
Robinson might not be 100% the athlete that Williams is, but he may also be a stronger player, which allows him to line up at nose tackle at times with no problem — two of his sacks and 13 of his pressures came from that spot last season.
Of course, the Eagles got Robinson in the fourth round with the 111th overall pick. It’s almost like they’re pretty good at this whole draft thing.
When you watch Ty Robinson (9) push the point of attack and jump multiple gaps to get to the quarterback… I wouldn’t be surprised if Vic Fangio sees him as a potential Milton Williams replacement. Some similar body style and play style stuff for sure. pic.twitter.com/gv5gsDrL51
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 26, 2025
Jalen Royals, WR, Kansas City Chiefs: Giving Patrick Mahomes a reliable receiver
Beyond the protection issues that have brought the Chiefs’ offense to further implosion every year over the last few years, there’s the fact that general manager Brett Veach and head coach Andy Reid have recently struggled put consistent receivers on their roster. 2024 first-round pick Xavier Worthy does look like the kind of receiver who could live up to his all-time athletic profile, but outside of that? The pickings have been pretty slim.
Which is probably why the Chiefs took Utah State receiver Jalen Royals with the 133rd overall pick in the fourth round. Last season in an injury-shortened campaign, Royals caught 55 passes on 81 targets for 839 yards and six touchdowns, and he did a lot of his damage in contested catch situations, and with concepts over the middle that required him to show his toughness and catch radius. No problem in either case.
The Chiefs have flirted with all kinds of athletic marvel targets for Patrick Mahomes in recent years; what they’ve been short on are the kinds of receivers you can count on when it’s third-and-whatever and you need a guy who will bull his way to success with a true understanding of the nuances of the position. Based on what Royals did in college, I think the Chiefs finally hit a home run in that department.
Utah State’s Jalen Royals won’t blow you away with downfield explosive ability, but he’s got just about everything else. Keen sense of how to get and stay open, and he’s super-tough over the middle. NFL teams that live between the hashes in the pass game should love him. pic.twitter.com/WA74X4YJEz
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 26, 2025
Elic Ayomanor, WR, Tennessee Titans: Here’s one guy who can beat Travis Hunter!
Of course, the big news of the entire draft — besides the aforementioned Sanders slide — was the blockbuster trade the Jacksonville Jaguars made with the Cleveland Browns to go up to the second overall pick and nab Travis Hunter. The Jags have already said that they will not look to limit Hunter’s ability to play on both sides of the ball, but it’s clear that Hunter will massively upgrade Jacksonville’s secondary with whatever he does there.
The Tennessee Titans may have done something sneaky-good in this regard. As both the Titans and the Jags are in the AFC South, and as such, Tennessee will now have to deal with Hunter at least twice a year, why not go out and get the one guy who beat up on Travis Hunter the cornerback over the last two seasons?
That would be Stanford receiver Elic Ayomanor, who the Titans took with the 136th overall pick in the fourth round.
Last season, the 6-foot-2, 206-pound Ayomanor caught 63 passes on 109 targets for 831 yards and six touchdowns. But we need to go back to 2023 for the plot. In Week 7 of that season, Ayomanor completely and totally demolished Colorado’s defense with a 13-catch, 294-yard, three-touchdown performance that was the key to Stanford’s 46-43 double-overtime win. When Hunter was covering him, Ayomanor caught eight passes on 13 targets for 135 yards and two touchdowns.
So, hey — why not get the one guy who has proven to be Travis Hunter’s Kryptonite? And as a bigger receiver, Ayomanor may be able to solve the Titans’ lack in that regard ever since they traded A.J. Brown to the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022, and whiffed with the subsequent first-round selection of Treylon Burks.
Elic Ayomanor vs. Travis Hunter in 2023.
It did not go as you might expect. pic.twitter.com/uuG01mfbPt
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 23, 2025
Related: Why Shedeur Sanders Can Have the Last Laugh
