The NFL Draft ⎯ A Time to Hope

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I love the NFL Draft.

Why?

It’s a time of hope.

It’s a time of renewal.

Records are back to 0-0.

Every team has a chance.

Who’d we get?

The hype has been building since the moment the Super Bowl ended.

Who’s good?

Who do we need?

What are people saying?

I heard so-and-so say this and so-and-so say that.

I heard his draft stock is rising 📈

He didn’t help himself at the Combine 📉

Pre-Draft media coverage is like the ultimate reality show.

Now, we await with baited breath as the commentators say, “The pick is in, let’s go up to the Commissioner…”

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell walks up to the podium, “With the ___ pick in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the ___________ select _________.

The camera flashes to the fans in the crowd to capture their natural first reactions.

There’s the look of jubilation…

“YES!”

…or looks of bewilderment and outrage painted on the faces of fans reacting to the pick.

“What are you kidding me?!”

Reflections from this draft cycle from the Scouting Director at First Round Mock

To begin, thank you for reading this. Thank you for your interest in my work and your interest in the work of my team of writers. Each of you make First Round Mock what it is.

Slowly but surely, we’re beginning to crack this steel egg, thanks to you.

My work on the 2025 NFL Draft Class began two days after the 2024 NFL Draft concluded. I worked harder during this draft cycle than I worked when I wrote my 350-page 1998 NFL Draft Guide that doubled as my resume and got me hired by the Jets. I put in 17-20 hours a day, six to seven days a week. Every last second was needed to finish my 2025 NFL Draft Top-32 Value Board on Draft Eve.

However, it doesn’t even feel like work. It’s a labor of love.

Did I do anything different this year?

Yes, I decided to watch a lot more games on as many of the consensus top-60 prospects than I ever have in my life to study as many of the variables as I could as thoroughly as I could.

Why?

To make my grading more air-tight.

Grading mistakes are made because of a lack of information, and all the information is out there. I just have to find it. The clues are in the game film. Every play from every game is a piece to a prospect’s puzzle. From there, it’s about piecing the traits, trends, and patterns together to give a grade and make an NFL projection.

What’s the biggest thing I’ve learned this draft cycle?

No matter how much I may love a prospect on his game film, if he doesn’t show up on the consensus top-60 board, he won’t have as much of a chance. I’ve been told that mainstream draft media gets a lot of their information from ‘people in the league.’ Those are the names likely who will get the most opportunity. That doesn’t mean they’ll succeed, but it means those are the prospects the league has taken a liking to. Talent level is half the battle. The other half of the battle is the level of opportunity the prospects will get.

There will always be players drafted lower or not at all “who slip through the cracks,” and end up at the right place at the right time, but that’s something I’ll take with me.

Biggest moments for me?

When legendary draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr. talked about one of my tweets…and when Josh Peter (USA Today) reached out to me for an interview.

To God be all the Glory, for these opportunities and for the scores of other articles that have been written about my draft takes and have mentioned the site, and those who have had me on their podcasts and radio shows while mentioning the site as well. I never could open any of these doors myself. It’s truly an honor and a blessing to be able to contribute to their platforms.

A special thank you to Rajvir Bal (Writer) and Victoria Jonach (Writer/Jr Editor), and to my wife Samantha, who’s my editor, and to all past writers who have contributed to the site.

Hope

Outside of love, hope is the most powerful four-letter word in the English language, and while this is about the hope of the NFL Draft, it’s about more than that.

It’s about you having it.

I’ve been through a lot and I’ve lost a lot in this life, but this isn’t about me.

First of all, never give up.

No matter what’s going on, and no matter what you will go through.

Keep putting one foot in front of another.

That’s the key.

Hope is a nickname. Hope’s real name is Jesus. The best decision I ever made in my life is when I prayed to receive Him as my personal Lord and Savior back when I was with the Jets. He has helped me to make sense out of what makes no sense, and He has given me purpose beyond anything I could’ve ever imagined.

You’re not reading this by accident.

If you’ve never prayed to receive Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, please say these words out loud right now in accordance with Romans 10:9…….”I declare with my mouth Jesus is Lord, and believe in my heart that God raised Him from the dead.”

Amen.

He’s made all the difference in the world for me. Without Him, I never could begin to reconcile what I’ve been through, nor would I have the faith to do what I’m doing.

Daniel Kelly is a former NFL Scout with the New York Jets. He was hired on the regime which featured Bill Parcells, Bill Belichick, Scott Pioli, Mike Tannenbaum, and Dick Haley. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief for First Round Mock, and has written for Sports Illustrated (Lions, Jets, and 49ers), NFL Draft Diamonds, and Yardbarker, as well as a featured guest on ESPN Radio and Fox Sports Radio. For more information about him visit his website at whateverittakesbook.com. Follow on Twitter @firstroundmock.