2025 NFL Draft: Top Betting Picks & Player Props

The NFL Draft is no longer simply a time for teams to replenish rosters. Now spread over three days with a prime-time broadcast of the first round on Thursday, the NFL Draft has become another hugely popular event for the public.

For NFL draft enthusiasts, the 2025 NFL Draft offers hundreds of possible ways to wager. The choices are aplenty, from the simple (betting odds on the first overall pick) to the more nuanced (Over/Under on offensive linemen taken in Round 1), there are more than enough options for every sports betting fan to stay tuned. 

Bookies.com NFL handicapper Adam Thompson has used his resources of NFL contacts developed over 20 years covering the league and the NFL Draft to break down several of the most popular wagers and offer his best bets, from the No. 1 overall pick amount of Big Ten players selected.

(NFL Draft odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook)

Barring a blockbuster trade, the first four picks seem all but assured, with QB Cam Ward (-1000) going to the Titans, WR/CB Travis Hunter (-2000) to the Browns, Edge Abdul Carter (-800) to the Giants and OT Will Campbell (-650) heading to the Patriots. 

Starting at No. 5 is where the intrigue begins. Will the Jacksonville Jaguars keep the pick? Will they trade it to a team eager to add star RB Ashton Jeanty? 

If they keep, Jeanty is unlikely to be the pick. Defense was the Jaguars’ issue last year, and it starts on the line. The team had zero defensive tackles ranked among the Top 75 in Pro Football Focus 2024. Michigan’s Mason Graham ranked No. 1 in metric at the combine and has been compared by NFL.com scouts to Raiders star DT Christian Wilkins. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Mason Graham +140 at BetMGM Sportsbook

The Raiders own this pick. If Ashton Jeanty is available and Vegas doesn’t snag him, everything about the front office should be questioned.

In every sense, Jeanty to the Raiders makes sense. They got Geno Smith, so they’re set at QB. Their defense ranked 15th in yards allowed, there are pieces there. The team ranked dead-last in rushing, way last, at 79.8 ypg. No other team is under 90. It was also dead last in yards per rush attempt.

In Jeanty, the Raiders would be adding an RB who gained 2,800 total yards and had 30 TDs. Few RBs have been taken this high over the last 5-6 years (Saquon Barkley, Jahmyr Gibbs, Bijan Robinson), but every team who did is happy about it. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Ashton Jeanty -105 at BetMGM Sportsbook

The Bears are rumored to be trying to leapfrog the Raiders at No. 6 so they can acquire Jeanty, the 3,000-yard dual-purpose Boise State product. But we’ll double down on Jeanty to the Raiders. The Jaguars need line help and the Bears can stand pat and make improvements without selling the farm. It makes too much sense for Vegas. 

The Aaron Rodgers era in New York was short-lived and unfruitful. Now it’s Justin Fields who gets a second crack at running an offense. The Jets have two top-tier priorities and could go in either direction at No. 7. One is to improve the offensive line, and the other is to grab an elite tight end. 

While the O-line is maligned, injuries derailed its potential. It was considered a potential Top 5 unit in last year’s preseason but failed to work as a full unit. Meanwhile, there is no tight end to work as a short-yardage option for the scrambling-heavy Fields. 

Penn State’s Tyler Warren is a Day 1 starter and an immediate help to an offense that was void of production. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Tyler Warren +300 at BetGM Sportsbook

Arizona’s McMillan and Texas’ Golden are definitely the top two receiver prospects. Who gets picked first, however, is up for debate. 

McMillan is 6-foot-4 and can win 1-on-1 battles. His workout catches have gone viral. Golden is 5-foot-11 but runs a sub-4.3 40. Teams who have a speedster out the outside may choose McMillan, those who need speed could go Golden. 

One of them will be picked by No. 12 when the Dallas Cowboys are on the clock. But that’s probably the ceiling spot for Golden. McMillan has attracted teams picking earlier, including the Jaguars (No. 5), Saints (9) and Bears (10). 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Tetairoa McMillan -200 at BetMGM Sportsbook

We know Cam Ward is going No. 1. After that, it’s a crapshoot. 

If the Saints don’t take a QB, the  Steelers at 21 and Rams at 26 are the other two teams seeking a QB. Shedeur Sanders is considered the No. 2 QB on the board, but many scouts don’t believe he’s a first-round type talent. There are also concerns about the poise and experience of Ole Miss’ Jaxson Dart, and Alabama’s Jalen Milroe is ultra-athletic but likely more of a second or third-round future starter. 

The odds are worth the flyer. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Under 2.5 +310 at BetMGM Sportsbook

The home team of this year’s NFL Draft. There may be some pressure to make a splash and take a receiver, which would draw cheers for a team that is full of No. 2-type WRs but without a No. 1. 

Still, the GB front office hasn’t bowed to fan pressure, and probably won’t here. While the two top WRs are likely to be off the board, the team could have its pick of high-level CBs and D-linemen. That goes double for the cornerback spot, and the Packers need to find a replacement for the likely soon-to-be-trade Jaire Alexander. Michigan’s Will Johnson would be a slam dunk here. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Cornerback +140 at BetMGM Sportsbook

There’s going to be one RB taken in the first round for sure, in Ashton Jeanty. After that, it gets cloudy. 

Omarion Hampton of North Carolina is considered a first-round potential. The Bears may be too high at No. 10 to take a leap with Hampton. The same likely goes for the Cowboys at No. 12. The Broncos, at No. 20, makes more sense. 

Running back is still a position that most teams will wait until Day 2 or longer, unless there’s a Jeanty available. 

NFL 2025 Draft Pick: Under 2.5 RBs -275 at BetMGM Sportsbook

2024 NFL Draft Betting Tips

1. Don’t Believe The Smoke

National media has changed its collective minds a dozen times over the last two weeks. Why? For one, it gives them something to talk about. But two, the GMs are, how do we put this nicely? We can’t: they’re lying. 

Two years ago, we woke up on Draft Day to hear that Kentucky QB Will Levis might go No. 1 overall. He ended up going No. 33 to the Titans. Tennessee likely wishes he would have gone No. 1. Now the Titans are going No. 1 to choose Levis’s replacement. 

Whoever the consensus choices were in March are the players who often get taken in the final week of April. 

2. Expect A Draft Day Curveball

There is always one player who slides down far below what everyone believes. Aaron Rodgers is probably the most famous case – that worked out well for QB12 and the Green Bay Packers. 

Two years ago, it was Georgia DL Jalen Carter, who could have gone No. 3 but slipped to No. 9 to the Eagles, and CB Christian Watson, who was a top-seven pick, only to slip to No. 17 and the Patriots. 

Maybe Shedeur Sanders is that guy for 2025. 

3. Don’t Go All-In On Anything 

All it takes is one shocker to domino through the opening round. Thus, it’s best to spread the wealth and not go all-in on one no-brainer pick – because there are no surefire no-brainers. That goes for any NFL Draft. This year, the earthquake could come from a team that really wants Jeanty. 

If the Jaguars trade the No. 5 pick, for example, that starts a domino effect that could affect the next 4-5 selections. 

The NFL Draft is a fun diversion to wager on, and you can do really well on it if you play it right. But we’re still putting all our eggs on the decision-making of men in suits, not players on fields. The entire viewing nation can see one thing, but if one scout gets into the ear of one GM, it doesn’t matter.