Mel Kiper, Yates Predict Under 2.5 QBs in Round 1 of 2025 NFL Draft amid Betting Odds

Sports gamblers who are following the NFL draft will surely want to hear what ESPN's Mel Kiper and Field Yates said Monday (40:55 mark).

The analysts discussed whether there will be over or under 2.5 quarterbacks taken in the first round of Thursday's draft and both decided on under.

While Kiper called 2.5 "a perfect number" because it could go either way, Yates went a step further and said Cam Ward at No. 1 overall was the only lock. He said there will be a "maximum of two" signal-callers taken in the first round and suggested Shedeur Sanders could fall.

"I just think that it's possible by the time we get to Thursday night if you don't see Shedeur Sanders go three, which won't happen, or nine, which I don't think that'll happen, the Steelers at 21 might be saying, 'even though he hasn't signed, we feel very confident Aaron Rodgers will be here,'" Yates said.

He guessed teams that otherwise might have been interested in trading into the later portion of the first round to take a quarterback might not do so if the entire position is still available outside of Ward. Instead, they could simply wait until their own second- or third-round picks.

As of Monday at 6 p.m. ET, DraftKings Sportsbook has a line of -200 (bet $200 to win $100) for over 2.5 quarterbacks in the first round and +150 (bet $100 to win $150) for under 2.5 quarterbacks in the first round.

For what it's worth, B/R's NFL Scouting Department projected three first-round quarterbacks in its mock draft with Ward going No. 1 to the Tennessee Titans, Sanders going No. 6 to the New Orleans Saints (after a trade) and Jaxson Dart going No. 24 to the Cleveland Browns (after a trade).

But all it might take is the Saints to pass on Sanders in the top 10 to set off something of a domino effect at the position.

If the Colorado signal-caller starts to fall, teams will assume there will still be plenty of quarterbacks available in the later rounds. And perhaps those teams won't have significant differences of opinion between Dart, Will Howard, Jalen Milroe, Tyler Shough and others and simply wait to see who is still available after the first round.

Kiper and Yates clearly believe it is a possibility.