NFL Pretenders That Should Be Focused on Trading for More Picks in 2025 Draft
Many NFL teams may be pinning their hopes on the 2024 draft and the influx of talented young prospects it will bring to help with a Super Bowl push, but this class may not hold the answers to every club's roster problems.
Some organizations are still at least another year away from being able to realistically contend. Whether they are lacking a franchise quarterback, have more holes than they could hope to fill with a single draft class, are dealing with salary-cap constraints or some combination of these issues, there are several squads that stand out as candidates to focus more on the 2025 draft than this year's edition.
With that in mind, let's highlight five pretenders that need to prioritize trading out of the 2024 draft and stockpiling future picks.
Carolina Panthers
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The Carolina Panthers were a mess last year and things aren't looking too bright for 2024 either.
After finishing with a league-worst 2-15 record, the Panthers will have to watch as the Chicago Bears utilize the No. 1 overall pick they "earned" later this month. The franchise dealt away that selection as part of its blockbuster trade up the board to acquire Bryce Young last year, a move that thus far looks to be a mistake.
With Young's career off to a rough start—he finished his rookie season having completed just 59.8 percent of his throws for 2,877 yards and 11 touchdowns against 10 interceptions and a whopping 62 sacks—Carolina's brass has its work cut out crafting a contender around him.
The franchise began taking some drastic steps last season by firing head coach Frank Reich a mere 11 games into his tenure and replacing him Dave Canales this offseason, but there is plenty of roster tinkering left to do for this organization can be seen as competitive.
Carolina's recent veteran acquisitions didn't move the needle much. While the free-agent signings of guards Damien Lewis and Robert Hunt and edge Jadeveon Clowney were nice and a trade for wideout Diontae Johnson should be helpful, the team also lost one of its top young talents by dealing Brian Burns to the New York Giants. The club clearly needs to place a heavy focus on not only the 2024 draft, but also the 2025 edition to fill out the bulk of its roster with high-upside talent.
Unfortunately for the Panthers, they won't be on the clock this year until No. 33 overall on the start of Day 2 and hold just three total selections in the top 100. They will be busier during the early portions of Day 3 due to the trio of picks the team possesses between Nos. 101 and 142, but ultimately Carolina doesn't have enough here to stake a quick turnaround on.
The Panthers should instead exercise patience and leverage the first pick in Round 2 to acquire premium picks in next year's draft.
Teams always seem to be eager to go after coveted prospects who slipped past the first round and have historically shown a willingness to aggressively trade up to land them as soon as the event resumes. For example, the Tennessee Titans moved to secure Will Levis at No. 33 overall last year and also received No. 81 overall by dealing away the Nos. 41 and 72 selections in addition to a 2024 third-rounder.
Considering the Panthers already lack their 2025 second-rounder—it's heading to Chicago to complete the Young deal—this type of move could better position the team for future success.
Chicago Bears
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Armed with the No. 1 overall pick and the opportunity to land a blue-chip prospect like Caleb Williams or Drake Maye—the top quarterbacks on the Bleacher Report Scouting Department's big board—the Chicago Bears are ready to forge into a new era. The team has cleared the path for a rookie to shine by trading away Justin Fields but still has a long way to go before it can be considered a playoff contender.
It's unlikely the Bears will emerge as a Super Bowl threat in 2024 after going 7-10 last year with Fields at the helm. The team's veteran acquisitions this offseason are unlikely to have a major impact.
Chicago's most notable moves to bolster the offense were signing running back D'Andre Swift and tight end Gerald Everett, but neither is a game-changer. However, the team did also acquire Keenan Allen to provide a major upgrade at wide receiver. The defense should remain decent after retaining rising star corner Jaylon Johnson and acquiring veteran safety Kevin Byard, but there weren't any major superstars brought in this spring.
While the Bears will get better via the quarterback they are going to take at No. 1 overall and whichever elite prospect the club secures later that night with its second first-round pick, the team has a stark lack of premium draft capital outside of these picks.
Chicago holds by far the fewest number of selections in the 2024 draft, possessing a meager four selections in total. While two of these are their first-round picks, the others slot in at No. 75 overall in Round 3 and No. 122 overall in Round 4.
That isn't going to be enough incoming talent to transform the Bears into a team capable of competing with the Green Bay Packers or Detroit Lions for the NFC North title, let alone the conference's other heavyweights come playoff time. Due to this, Chicago will want to start looking ahead to 2025 and the opportunity to bring in a much more impactful rookie class.
The Bears not only hold each of their own picks in the first six rounds next year, but also have an additional second-rounder and a conditional fourth-rounder should Fields play 51 percent or more of the offensive snaps in 2024 (or a sixth-rounder if he fails to meet that mark). The franchise should consider trading down from the ninth pick to secure more premium draft capital in 2024 and 2025.
Denver Broncos
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The Denver Broncos put a merciful end to the Russell Wilson era this offseason, an admittance that their pricy trade for the star quarterback wasn't working out after Wilson led the team to a paltry 11-19 record over the 30 starts he made during his two years in the Mile High City.
The costs of severing the relationship were exorbitant. The team was forced to incur $85 million in dead-cap charges after releasing Wilson with three seasons left on a five-year, $242.6 million contract. The fallout from the cut has been felt in subsequent moves such as the release of Pro Bowl safety Justin Simmons, which was necessary to save $14.5 million against the salary cap.
Given their difficult cap constraints, the Broncos have little hope of contending in a stacked AFC West this coming season. The team has a major question mark under center to deal with as well given it is currently projected to start veteran journeyman Jarrett Stidham as a bridge quarterback.
While there is a chance that Denver comes away from the 2024 draft with a long-term solution under center, it's rather unlikely given the squad won't be on the clock until No. 12 overall. The Bleacher Report Scouting Department has each of its top four quarterbacks coming off the board within the first five selections in its latest mock, leaving flawed prospects like Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix as Denver's best options without executing a costly trade-up.
After giving up multiple early-round picks to acquire Wilson, the Broncos should be hesitant to mortgage their future again for a quarterback who isn't guaranteed to pan out. They must avoid giving up a slew of valuable draft capital in future years and also not waste No. 12 reaching for one of the less valued prospects still available.
Instead, the team could look ahead and try to position itself to acquire one of the top passers in next year's class. Denver has a litany of mid-to-late selections in 2024 to include in trade packages, including four picks between Nos. 121 and 147.
Using their current picks to bolster the 2025 coffers will set the Broncos up for success in a year when it will still be dealing with the cap ramifications of Wilson's release. Denver needs all the help it can get as it tries to rise from the ashes following what is likely to be a trying 2024 campaign.
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Minnesota Vikings
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The Minnesota Vikings are forging ahead without Kirk Cousins as their starting quarterback for the first time since the 2017 campaign. While Minnesota was willing to let the veteran signal-caller walk after he failed to deliver a Super Bowl during his tenure, it has left the organization bereft of a proven passer.
Minnesota will now have some tough decisions to make with its first-round picks later this month. With nearly all of the first-round-caliber quarterback talent likely to be gone long before they are on the clock at No. 11 overall, the Vikings can do one of the following:
- significantly reach to fill the hole
- stand pat and take the best prospect available at a different position and wait until No. 23 to take a less regarded passer
- pull off a stunning trade up the board
The Bleacher Report Scouting Department believes the team will choose the latter path. In their latest mock draft, the scouts have the Vikings dealing away a package headlined by both of their first-round picks (Nos. 11 and 23) to the Los Angeles Chargers in exchange for the No. 5 overall selection. That move allows Minnesota to land J.J. McCarthy, the Michigan quarterback who has been one of the biggest risers during the pre-draft process.
If the Vikings do pull off a blockbuster trade into the top five, they may want to work the phones during the remainder of the draft to convert their 2024 capital into 2025 picks.
Minnesota is flush with Day 3 selections right now. All of seven of their non-first rounders fall in this range, including a pair of fourth- (Nos. 108 and 129) and fifth-rounders (Nos. 157 and 167). While these selections could be used to bring in some auxiliary talent for the upcoming campaign, the Vikings likely won't be ready to make a run in 2024 and would be better served pushing some of these picks back a year.
Doing so will help Minnesota recoup some of the 2025 capital it has already parted with. The team included its second-rounder in next year's draft as part of a package it sent to the Houston Texans for a first-rounder this year, leaving the team down an important pick in a year that could see the team rise back to contention if all goes to plan.
The Vikings might be a plucky squad in 2024 with Sam Darnold under center, but the journeyman is ultimately a stopgap for whichever quarterback Minnesota ends up with in the upcoming draft. Adding more prospects in 2025—lining up with a crucial sophomore season for the team's potential incoming franchise quarterback—would be the best move for sustained success in the Twin Cities.
New Orleans Saints
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The New Orleans Saints have been stuck in NFL purgatory since the retirement of Drew Brees following the 2020 season. The team has gone 25-26 in that span, never finishing worse than 7-10 and never better than 9-8—including last year when it posted that record and earned the No. 14 overall pick in the upcoming draft.
That draft position isn't ideal for a team that is becoming desperate to find a proper heir to Brees' throne. After striking out with the likes of Jameis Winston and Taysom Hill, the front office attempted to take another veteran shortcut by signing Derek Carr last year.
Carr is a four-time Pro Bowler, but he isn't the right man to lead the Saints back to relevance. Even after a bounce-back 2023 season that saw him throw for 3,878 yards and 25 touchdowns with only eight interceptions, Carr still failed to take New Orleans to the playoffs. After a decade in the NFL, the 33-year-old has played in only two postseason games.
The Saints have to find a way to acquire a high-upside rookie who can eventually take over under center. It's likely too pricy for the club to maneuver up the board this year—teams have been seeking a "historic haul" to trade out from the top spots—but it's possible the Saints could put themselves in a better position to land the right prospect by trading back.
New Orleans' brass shouldn't shy away from a move down into the latter portion of the first round this year, a spot where it could try rolling the dice on Bo Nix or Michael Penix Jr. at a spot that makes more sense than No. 14.
The Saints would be wise to accept a package including 2025 picks as part of any trade back, giving the team a bigger influx of talent for a season in which their 2024 rookie prospect should be ready to usurp Carr as the starter.
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