Joel Klatt projects New York Giants to trade up for Shedeur Sanders at No. 1 in 2025 NFL Draft

Joel Klatt thinks Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders is going to be the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft – except not to the Tennessee Titans.

Klatt projected Sanders to be the first pick in the draft during the release of his Mock Draft 1.0 on Wednesday. However, Klatt doesn’t have the Titans picking first in this draft as he thinks they’ll make a trade before then rather than a selection.

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“On the clock – Tennessee Titans. They’ve got the number one pick in the draft. They obviously need a quarterback. Here’s the problem. I don’t think Shedeur Sanders is going to want to play in Tennessee and I do not believe that any other player should be taken No. 1,” Klatt said. “Tennessee can either not take him and go with Cam Ward at No. 1. Or I think they can get some capital – still fall back and potentially get Cam Ward and get more capital later in the draft. I think that that’s what they’re going to do.”

With that, Klatt mocked a trade between Tennessee and New York at No. 1 and No. 3 that would land Sanders with the Giants.

“I don’t generally do this and it’s going to be the only trade of the first round. I’m trading the first pick. I think Tennessee trades the first pick for a combination of reasons and I believe that the Giants jump up to No. 1. From three to one and the New York Football Giants are in the number one spot,” Klatt said. “They do have a great relationship with Shedeur Sanders. They have vetted him out several times. I believe that it is reciprocal there and I think that the Giants move to No. 1 and take Shedeur Sanders with the number one pick in the NFL Draft.”

Following the predicted deal, Klatt got into the evaluation of why Sanders is not only QB1 but also at No. 1 overall in 2025.

As a prospect, Klatt thinks Sanders has everything a quarterback needs between foundational skills to his own creativity to have success in most situations. More people might say that’s the case but, to him, they don’t, though, considering who his dad is.

“Here’s a little something about Shedeur. I think that, if you really evaluate him as a quarterback and you take the name off the back of the jersey, if you don’t look at who his head coach is? I think he’s a clear, number one quarterback,” said Klatt. “Here’s the reason. Shedeur has this beautiful combination of the ability to be a prototypical passer from the pocket and he’s got the precise ability to be a surgeon in those cases. And he also has the ability to be an artist. That combination doesn’t come around a lot, okay. His ability to create outside of the pocket, extend the play is Fran Tarkenton-esque. He’s excellent in those situations. If he has time and he can diagnose what’s going on, he is surgical from the pocket.”

That’s why Klatt actually thinks that Sanders can be even better in the pros than he was in college. He expects him to improve as a player but also expects his circumstances, specifically his protection, to improve as well with whichever team selects him in the draft, let alone the Giants.

“I believe that he has a chance to be much better in the National Football League than he was even at Colorado because, let’s face it. As Deion was trying to build the roster from a roster that won one game and make them immediately competitive? They got the skill positions players right away, including Shedeur, but what they didn’t have was a great offensive line. As the offensive line got better, Shedeur’s productivity went way up, obviously, and they had a really solid season this last year. But they were never great up front,” Klatt sad. “If he can ever get in a position where he’s playing on a like footing or similar football with the opposition, and an offensive line that can actually do something in front of them? Then watch out. I believe that he’s actually just scratching the surface.”

Sanders is likely to be one of the first players picked in the first round once the clock starts on April 24th. Still, Klatt doesn’t have the Giants waiting two picks for Sanders with this prediction of a deal made to bring him to the Big Apple at No. 1.

“I like him at No. 1 and I like the Giants going up there and trading for him with the number one pick,” Klatt said.