2025 NFL Draft: Potential Trade Packages for Titans' No. 1 Overall Pick

The 2025 NFL draft is less than a month away, and we still don't have much clarity on what will happen with the No. 1 overall pick. Recently, it has felt like the Tennessee Titans were poised to stay at No. 1 and grab the top quarterback prospect, Miami's Cam Ward.

While the Titans do appear to like Ward, they might be willing to part with the top pick—for a price.

Yahoo Sports' Charles Robinson told 102.5 The Game on Thursday (h/t Bleacher Report's Timothy Rapp) that the Titans are seeking three first-round picks "or something of that value" to move down from No. 1.

That's a steep price, especially in a year with a shallow draft class. But if a team believes Ward can be an elite NFL signal-caller—or believes another prospect, like Travis Hunter or Abdul Carter, is a surefire Hall of Famer—we could see a blockbuster ahead of the draft's opening night on April 24.

Here, we'll examine five hypothetical but realistic trade packages that the Titans would have to at least consider before the draft.

Cleveland Browns

Stacy Revere/Getty Images

Browns GM Andrew Berry

Browns Get: No. 1 overall pick

Titans Get: No. 2 overall pick, 33rd overall pick, 2026 second-round Pick, CB Greg Newsome II

No team has ever traded up from No. 2 to No. 1 overall. For the Cleveland Browns to make history next month, they'd have to view Ward as a substantially better prospect than Colorado's Shedeur Sanders, and they'd have to value him over both Hunter and Carter.

That isn't an outlandish scenario. The Browns finally appear ready to admit that the Deshaun Watson experiment was a failure, and they need a new long-term answer at quarterback. The trade to acquire Kenny Pickett won't provide that, even if it does give them some short-term insurance under center.

Adding a pricey veteran—perhaps through a post-draft Kirk Cousins trade—isn't a realistic option either, because the Browns will be paying Watson handsomely at least through 2027. Getting a quarterback on a rookie contract is probably Cleveland's only way out of this mess, and Ward appears to be the team's preferred solution.

"The sense is that Cleveland would like Cam Ward," ESPN's Adam Schefter said on Get Up on March 20.

While the Browns are highly unlikely to offer three first-round picks to move up only one spot, offering a pair of second-round picks and starting cornerback Greg Newsome II, who is entering a contract year, might be acceptable.

It could be a reasonable return for the Titans as well, especially if they like the idea of having two of the first three picks on Day 2. Tennessee could add a quality starter, the highest non-first-round pick it could possibly get in 2025, and a future second-rounder while still getting its pick of Sanders, Hunter and Carter.

New York Giants

Todd Kirkland/Getty Images

Giants head coach Brian Daboll

Giants Get: No. 1 overall pick

Titans Get: No. 3 overall pick, No. 34 overall pick, 2026 first-round pick

The New York Giants have signed both Jameis Winston and Russell Wilson within the past week, but neither is a long-term solution for them.

Adding two veterans was smart because general manager Joe Schoen and head coach Brian Daboll are both under pressure to win now. Daboll helped deliver a playoff season in 2022, but New York has struggled to get back on track since.

"It’d better not take too long because I’ve just about run out of patience," franchise owner John Mara said in January, per The Athletic's Charlotte Carroll.

The Giants need to find their quarterback of the future anyway. Making a play for a rookie this year might buy Daboll and Schoen a little more leeway. However, with Tennessee and Cleveland both in need of quarterbacks, Ward and Sanders could both be off the board by No. 3 regardless of who holds the top selection.

If New York views Ward as a franchise-altering (or a job-saving) prospect, it could make a move to jump Cleveland. Offering a future first-rounder and a high second-rounder would be a steep price to move up two spots, but there's virtually no chance the Giants can stay put and land the Miami quarterback.

While this trade package would be a bit short of Tennessee's preferred return, the Titans would still be guaranteed a shot at either Hunter or Carter—which might be what they've secretly wanted all along.

"We won't pass on a generational talent with the first pick in the NFL draft," president of football operations Chad Brinker told reporters in January.

Hunter and Carter, the top two prospects on the Bleacher Report Scouting Department's big board, are the only players in this year's draft who might qualify as "generational."

New York Jets

Stacy Revere/Getty Images

Jets head coach Aaron Glenn

Jets Get: No. 1 overall pick

Titans Get: No. 7 overall pick, 42nd pick, 2026 first-round pick, QB Justin Fields

The Titans can't expect to trade down much further than two spots and still have a realistic shot at Ward or Sanders. The Browns and Giants are legitimate threats to take a quarterback, and any team moving up to No. 1 will presumably only do so for a quarterback.

The New York Jets could potentially interest Tennessee by offering up another young quarterback with upside. The Jets signed 2021 first-round pick Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract in free agency. That contract suggests the Jets believe Fields can still develop into an above-average starter, but it's hardly a sign that they're sold on him as a long-term answer.

Ward's upside could convince the Jets to make an aggressive pivot ahead of the draft.

"Ward is among the most gifted throwers in the NFL draft class," Dame Parson of the Bleacher Report Scouting Department wrote. "...He has superstar potential if he can cut down on mistakes/risky decisions."

In addition to Ward's talent, the Jets could be intrigued by his willingness to play in a high-pressure market.

"I think the Jets are not too far off, maybe a couple pieces, and I'm just hoping that I can be one of them," Ward said, per Nick Wojton of Jets Wire.

This hypothetical package would include two first-round selections, a high second-rounder and a 26-year-old quarterback who does have a connection to Tennessee. Titans receivers coach Tyke Tolbert was Fields' passing game coordinator with the Chicago Bears in 2022 and 2023.

Fields wouldn't be a guaranteed answer for the Titans either, but he'd make for an interesting QB competition alongside a rookie prospect like Ohio State's Will Howard or Mississippi's Jaxson Dart.

Indianapolis Colts

Justin Casterline/Getty Images

Colts QB Anthony Richardson

Colts Get: No. 1 overall pick

Titans Get: No. 14 overall pick, No. 151 overall pick, 2026 first-round pick, QB Anthony Richardson

Where would third-year quarterback Anthony Richardson rank in this year's draft class? That's a question the Titans would have to ask themselves if faced with this offer from the Indianapolis Colts.

Indianapolis used the fourth overall pick on Richardson two years ago. However, injuries and inconsistent play have left the Colts uncertain about his future. They're now hoping that an offseason competition with former Giants starter Daniel Jones will deliver a reliable starting option.

"Between Daniel and Anthony, you’re going to see a really good competition,” general manager Chris Ballard said in an interview with the Colts' media team (h/t Pro FootballT alk's Josh Alper). “It’s going to be a spirited competition, but I also think it’s going to be one where they help each other to grow too."

Jones, who largely disappointed in New York, probably isn't Indianapolis' long-term answer. If the Colts don't believe Richardson is either, the idea of resetting with this year's top QB prospect could become rather tempting.

Meanwhile, the Titans could be intrigued by the idea of adding a 22-year-old quarterback whose ceiling might be even higher than Ward's.

"Players with his build, athletic profile, arm strength and advanced pocket management are hard to find," Derrik Klassen wrote for the B/R Scouting Department in 2023.

Given Richardson's lack of development in Indianapolis, he probably wouldn't draw first-round value in a trade if dealt alone. However, a young quarterback, two first-round picks and a fifth-round sweetener might be enough to convince the Titans to move into the middle of Round 1.

Pittsburgh Steelers

Scott Taetsch/Getty Images

Steelers Get: No. 1 overall pick, No. 103 overall pick

Titans Get: No. 21 overall pick, No. 83 overall pick, 2026 second-round pick, 2026 third-round pick, Edge T.J. Watt

A trade from No. 21 to No. 1 feels like exactly the sort of move the Pittsburgh Steelers wouldn't make on draft day. Trading away one of the best players in recent franchise history feels like an even more un-Steeler move.

However, the Steelers are faced with a harsh reality. While they have a talented team that continues to stay in the playoff picture under head coach Mike Tomlin, they don't have an answer at quarterback and have been largely irrelevant in the postseason because of it.

Pittsburgh's last playoff win came after the 2016 season.

"We've had enough of this," franchise owner and team president Art Rooney II said in January, per ESPN's Brooke Pryor. "It's time to get some wins; it's time to take these next steps."

This year, the Steelers appear to be hitching their wagon to the fading star of Aaron Rodgers. Pittsburgh added Mason Rudolph as insurance in free agency, but it still feels like a deal with the 41-year-old Rodgers is imminent.

A source recently told Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio that it's a "safe bet" Rodgers eventually signs a deal with Pittsburgh.

If adding Rodgers is enough to push Pittsburgh to a deep playoff run, great. However, if the Steelers don't find their quarterback of the future, they could be right back in their current situation next year. Star pass-rusher T.J. Watt is scheduled to be a free agent next offseason, too.

While the idea of trading Watt may seem outlandish, it would be worth the initial backlash from the fanbase if doing so could land Pittsburgh a franchise-caliber quarterback.

The Steelers have reached the point where they're doing it wrong if they're not getting desperate to find a long-term QB answer.

Is Watt worth two first-round picks at age 30 and entering a contract year? Probably not, but he's worth at least one first-rounder and would give Tennessee a legitimate defensive star.

In this hypothetical scenario, the Steelers offer Watt, future second- and third-rounders and a swap of third- and fourth-round 2025 selections. That would be valuable capital for Tennessee's ongoing rebuild while still giving the Titans a shot at Howard, Dart or Alabama's Jalen Milroe late in Round 1.

Meanwhile, the Steelers might finally add the long-term quarterback answer they've lacked since Ben Roethlisberger's prime years.