Matt Miller projects three Georgia players in 2025 first round including No. 1 overall pick

It wasn’t long ago that ESPN’s Matt Miller and Jordan Reid were weighing in on the 2025 NFL Draft with their top players at each position group. A deep dive that featured double-digit Georgia Bulldogs, Miller is back at it again – this time with an early look at the first round of the draft. Topping its total from this past draft, Miller has UGA landing three players in the first round including one in the top overall spot.

Quarterback Carson Beck is the top player at the coveted position entering the 2024 fall according to both Miller and Reid, and as a result, Miller has him first off the board. Projecting a trade up by the New York Giants to get their guy, he’s got Beck becoming the second Bulldog to go in the top spot in the last four years – and the fifth top-10 pick of the Kirby Smart era in Athens.

“The Giants threw 15 touchdown passes last season (fifth fewest in the league) and Daniel Jones is coming off a season-ending ACL injury, but the team is running it back this year. Veteran Drew Lock was added as a backup, but there still isn’t a long-term answer under center on this roster. So the front office might get aggressive in finding one,” Miller wrote about his projection for the first overall pick. “Beck — my QB1 in the class at the moment — is a steady pocket passer with a big arm and great processing speed. And he is primed for a breakout season after throwing 24 touchdown passes and completing 72.4% of his throws in his first season as a starter in 2023.”

Projecting Beck to the Giants is a move that shows some desperation in New York. Jones was taken with the sixth overall pick in 2019 to replace Eli Manning. Prior to last season, he and the Giants agreed to a four-year extension with the team worth $160 million. However, the 1-5 start before his season ending injury and just one winning season (and a 23-37-1 overall record as a starter) leaves much to be desired in New York. Beck to the Big Apple, a somewhat common projection, could be the next attempt to find a franchise quarterback for the Giants.

Georgia’s two other projected first round picks come on the defensive side of the ball – where the majority of Smart’s 17 at Georgia have come so far. Joining the likes of Roquan Smith, Deandre Baker, Eric Stokes, Travon Walker, Jordan Davis, Quay Walker, Devonte Wyatt, Lewis Cine, Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith would be Mykel Williams and Malaki Starks, off the board at No. 17 (Chicago Bears) and No. 28 (Philadelphia Eagles) respectively.

“General manager Ryan Poles has done a masterful job rebuilding the roster in Chicago, but the defensive line could use someone like Williams,” Miller wrote. “The 6-foot-5, 265-pound junior has experience playing both inside and outside alignments, but his future is off the edge in the pros. His nine sacks in two seasons of rotational work point to the impact he can make with full-time reps in 2024. Williams’ combination of power and a sudden first-step could get him drafted in the top 10.”

“Make your jokes about Philadelphia drafting a defender from Georgia, but Starks would fill a big hole for the 2025 Eagles,” Miller added. “He was a consensus first-team All-American in 2023 after grabbing three interceptions and making 52 tackles. And Starks is a do-it-all safety who has experience playing press coverage in the slot. You’re going to hear comparisons to Kyle Hamilton, and they’re warranted given his three-down impact.”

Both big time contributors for the Bulldogs in their first two seasons, the projected three-and-out players are hoping that their final go-around at Georgia is their best. Williams is making a move to spend more time at stand-up outside linebacker in an effort to increase his production while Starks will lead a secondary that’s losing three key pieces to the NFL.

In eight seasons on the job, Kirby Smart has seen 63 Georgia players picked in the NFL Draft – more than any other head coach in his first eight drafts at a school, including Nick Saban’s 48 Alabama players picked from 2008 to 2015. The Bulldogs saw eight selected this past year after hitting double-digits in both 2022 (15) and 2023 (10). UGA leads the way among all schools over the last three (33) and five (49) years and will look to add to those totals with a loaded group in 2025.