2025 NFL Draft: Updated Scouting Notes and Pro Player Comparisons After CFB Week 6
As the college football campaign progresses, the 2025 NFL draft becomes increasingly intriguing.
Week 6 provided a few standout performances, offering NFL organizations insight into how top prospects are developing in real time.
Players who entered the season with hype have begun to confirm preseason evaluations, while under-the-radar names are rapidly climbing draft boards.
It's the time of the year when breakout stars emerge, and Week 6 gave us no shortage of talking points.
Below, we'll dive into updated scouting notes on several key prospects. We'll also offer pro player comparisons beyond the simplistic height/weight/length similarities to give you an idea of how each prospect's tools and traits could translate to the next level, and we'll also name few other standouts from play around the country.
Advanced stats via Pro Football Focus.
Cam Ward, QB, Miami
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Reminds Me Of: Jameis Winston because of Ward's elite arm talent and willingness to win inside the pocket
Week 6 Stats: 35/53, 437 yards, 2 TDs, 43 rushing yards, 1 TD vs. Cal
Impact Play: 25-point comeback win
A win over California was a tale of two halves for Cam Ward.
In the first stanza, the Hurricanes offense was stymied, Ward looked frustrated, and Miami, on the road, quickly found itself chasing. For Ward, it was his first taste of adversity in the ACC after the prior four weeks contained limited pushback.
What made Ward's performance special was his poise and confidence inside the pocket. While his arm talent and ability to rip throws at every depth remain elite, Ward's ability to keep his heartbeat at a slower rhythm amid chaos is a skill even some NFL veterans fail to possess. His numbers against Cal jump off the screen, but it was his approach to the game, control at the line of scrimmage and his ability to lead Miami back that was so impressive.
Winston's name doesn't hold the same value as it did a decade ago out of Florida State. That said, he went No. 1 overall and was also a flamethrower on the mound for the Seminoles' baseball program. Winston's elite arm talent, combined with his willingness to dissect teams inside the pocket first before ever escaping the pocket, draws a few comparisons to Ward. Both players' proclivity for head-scratching throws is a similarity, too.
Potential NFL Fits: Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Las Vegas Raiders
Emeka Egbuka, WR, Ohio State
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Reminds Me Of: Frame of Josh Palmer with the short-area nuance of Amon-Ra St. Brown
Week 6 Stats: 9 catches (11 targets), 71 yards, 3 TDs vs. Iowa
Impact Play: 14-yd TD catch to open up scoring in the first quarter
Another name out of the Ohio State wide receiver pipeline.
While Egbuka doesn't have the explosiveness of a Terry McLaurin, or the 50/50 ability of a Garrett Wilson coming out of Columbus, his route-running and suddenness out of the slot makes him a special prospect. The ways in which he wins make him a similar prospect to St. Brown, and more recently, Jaxon Smith-Njigba.
Egbuka by no means will blow away defenses with his long speed or dominate smaller corners inside the red zone, but the nuance showcased in his game highlights a player who understands the finer details of the position. Through five games, Egbuka has caught 30 of his 41 targets for 433 yards and five TDs.
Potential NFL Fits: Pittsburgh Steelers, Los Angeles Rams, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans
Nic Scourton, EDGE, Texas A&M
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Reminds Me Of: Keion White
Week 6 Stats: 3 pressures, 3 hurries, 3 tackles, 2.5 TFLs vs. Missouri
It's mystifying to watch Nic Scourton move at 280-plus pounds.
While questions surrounded his game following his transfer from Purdue last winter, Scourton has met every expectation placed on him through six weeks. A powerful yet elusive and alignment-versatile presence up front, Scourton's game emulates that of Keion White, a second-round selection of the New England Patriots in 2023.
Like White, Scourton has no issues in setting the edge in the run game, and he can also pin his ears back to win matchups on passing downs.
Scourton, one of the SEC's premier defenders, has amassed 17 pressures and three sacks through the first month and a half of the campaign.
Potential NFL Fits: New England Patriots, Cincinnati Bengals, Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Oronde Gadsden II, WR/TE, Syracuse
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Reminds Me Of: A more explosive version of Johnny Wilson
Week 6 Stats: 10 catches (12 targets), 142 yards vs. UNLV
Oronde Gadsden's prospect profile will remain a fluid evaluation as the pre-draft process progresses. A former every-down wideout, Gadsden has moved inside into the 'power slot' role, one that has been most famously executed by longtime Tampa Bay Buccaneers WR Mike Evans.
Every bit of 6'5", Gadsden's blend of size and route-running has made him a tough cover thus far in 2024. And in Week 6 against the then-No. 25 ranked Runnin' Rebels, Gadsden enjoyed his most productive outing of the campaign, showcasing nuance and excellent spatial awareness all evening long on his way to 142 receiving yards.
Framed similar to Johnny Wilson, the two are comparable based on their size and strength, yet Gadsden's true alignment versatility (has 82 snaps as an in-line TE this fall) makes him unique compared to other large, tweener types at the wide receiver position.
Potential NFL Fits: Tampa Bay Buccaneers, New England Patriots, Denver Broncos, New York Jets
Kelvin Banks Jr, OT, Texas
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Reminds Me Of: Christian Darrisaw
Totals through Week 6: 160 pass pro snaps, 0 sacks, 0 QB hits, 1 pressure allowed
Week after week it seems Kelvin Banks only gets better.
A former five-star recruit out of Humble, Texas, Banks has been an immovable force for the top-ranked Longhorns thus far in 2024. A physically overpowering run blocker who also possesses the footwork to slide and shuffle with the most agile of edge-rushers, his game emulates that of Darrisaw, a former first-rounder of the Minnesota Vikings with similar size and movement thresholds.
Banks' game will continue to have a massive spotlight cast on it as Texas searches for its first title since 2005.
Potential NFL Fits: New England Patriots, Carolina Panthers, Los Angeles Rams
Other Notable Standouts
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Le'Veon Moss, RB, Texas A&M: 12 carries, 138 yards, 3 TDs vs. Missouri
Kurtis Rourke, QB, Indiana: 25/33, 380 passing yards, 3 TDs vs. Northwestern
Harold Fannin Jr., TE, Bowling Green: 9 receptions (9 targets), 135 yards vs. Akron
Andrew Armstrong, WR, Arkansas: 9 receptions (11 targets), 132 yards vs. Tennessee
Jordan Clark, CB, Notre Dame: 8 catches allowed (15 targets), 47 yards against in five weeks vs. Texas A&M, Northern Illinois, Purdue, Miami (Ohio) and Louisville
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