One last mock for every Texas Longhorns NFL draft prospect

Happy Draft Day, everyone! I hope you’re all excited as ever to see your team fumble their first round pick, lose a trade to the Eagles or for the “freak athlete that just needs to put it all together” to be the future at yet another one of your positions.

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We’ve now entered an era where the draft is littered with Texas Longhorn prospects, something that felt foreign even just three years ago. Texas expects to have up to 15 players drafted this weekend, potentially tying 2021 Georgia for the most taken in a single NFL Draft.

With the Draft beginning at 7 p.m. central time tonight, there’s not much left to talk about and learn about these prospects, but IT would be doing you an injustice if it didn’t take one last stab at a predictive mock draft for every Longhorn prospect in this NFL Draft.

Pick 1.09: OT Kelvin Banks Jr. to the New Orleans Saints

Banks has (finally) picked up a ton of steam this last week, and is likely established as a consensus top-15 pick. We’ve been preaching this for a while: NFL teams panic when tackles start going, and Banks may be OT1 for some teams. Ryan Ramczyk is retired and the Saints aren’t picking up Trevor Penning’s fifth year option. They need an entirely new tackle room, and a rebuild among other things. Drafting Banks is a super high-floor pick for a NOLA team desperate for talent.

Pick 1.12: WR Matthew Golden to the Dallas Cowboys

It’s been mocked for the past month for good reason. Golden is likely the WR 2.5 (depending on how you view Travis Hunter) and Dallas is in desperate need of a playmaker. Ashton Jeanty will probably be off the board at this point, so Golden is the perfect option to add another dimension to a Cowboys offense that needs to help Ceedee Lamb on the outside.

Pick 1.23: CB Jahdae Barron to the Green Bay Packers

Green Bay is paper thin at cornerback outside of Jaire Alexander, and his future in Wisconsin seems questionable. Barron hits a short term need on the inside and a long term need on the outside for the draft hosts, and he’ll be a favorite in GB for many years.

Pick 2.62: DT Alfred Collins to the Buffalo Bills

Buffalo may have the luxury of passing on DT in the first round to try to find an elite talent that slipped, but there’s no denying that the Bills need a two-gapping run stopper to support Ed Oliver in the trenches. Collins fits their mold to a tee, providing a high-ceiling as an early-down tackle with pass rushing upside.

Pick 3.72: S Andrew Mukuba to the Chicago Bears

Mukuba’s range could be as high as a top-50 pick or as low as the end of the third round, it truly comes down to how teams view the safety position in this draft. One team that can afford to select a position of lower value is the Bears, who desperately need to add youth and talent to an aging group. Mukuba may be Texas’ most underrated player in this draft and would have the chance to play as early as Day 1 in Chicago

Pick 3.75: QB Quinn Ewers to the Los Angeles Rams (trade)

The Ewers landing spot has been flipped around for a while. At first it seemed like the Saints may be the spot to go for Quinn, but they may be in full tank mode for a QB in the 2026 draft. Miami has been floated around, as have many other QB-needy teams, but the Rams seem to be the ultimate fit.

GM Les Snead loves to use middle round picks to take flyers on offensive skill players, and Matthew Stafford’s shelf life is dwindling each season. Ewers needs to sit in 2025 and develop, and the McVay offense with Stafford’s leadership may be the singular best place for Ewers to go.

Pick 3.89: OT Cam Williams to the Houston Texans

Keeping Cam in state, the Texans have invested a ton of money in the offensive line this offseason but haven’t truly found a long term answer at the tackle position. They may look elsewhere in the first two rounds, but taking a high upside pick in the athletic Williams may be their best opportunity at finding a franchise tackle in the draft.

Pick 4.116: TE Gunnar Helm to the Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins love using multiple tight ends and have an affinity for speed and YAC. While Helm isn’t the fastest TE in this class, he would fit perfectly next to Jonnu Smith in a mainly blocking role, with the opportunity to be the franchise TE in a Mike McDaniel offense.

Pick 4.118: WR Isaiah Bond to the Atlanta Falcons

What’s the best thing to pair with a 6’4, traditional X receiver like Drake London? A WR with game breaking speed on the outside. Bond had a tough season in Austin, dropping from an expected first rounder to a potential fourth round pick, but his speed shows up too much on the tape to let him drop much farther.

Pick 4.136: RB Jaydon Blue to the Baltimore Ravens

Baltimore often takes Derrick Henry out on third downs, opting for the less explosive Justice Hill to receive the majority of passing-situation snaps. Baltimore could use a younger, more explosive third-down back, all boxes that Blue ticks.

Pick 5.147: EDGE Barryn Sorrell to the San Francisco 49ers

Nick Bosa needs all the help he can get on the defensive line in San Francisco, and that includes a defensive end on the opposite side of their patented 4-2 defense. DC Robert Salah and GM John Lynch adore large, athletic players in the front seven, with Sorrell being the next in line of high-level young edge rushers in San Fran.

Pick 5.158: DT Vernon Broughton to the Los Angeles Chargers

Don’t Broughton and Jim Harbaugh seem like a match made in heaven? A big-game player with tenacity and good pass rush technique in the trenches, Broughton’s lack of size can be hidden on a team that plays majority 3-4 with big man Teair Tart manning the middle.

Pick 6.188: C Jake Majors to the Tennessee Titans

The Titans have had horrid center play for the majority of the last few seasons, and though Majors’ NFL upside is limited he is a natural center through and through. Sixth round may be a bit low in a perceived weaker C class, but he’s not going to blow anyone’s socks off with his athleticism and tape. Still, a smart and veteran player like him could be a starter quickly in his NFL career.

Pick 7.228: G Hayden Conner to the Detroit Lions

Conner deserves to be drafted this weekend, but it may be at a late pick like this. Detroit needs O-line depth and has a knack for developing people on the interior. Conner would be thrilled with this selection.

Pick 7.252: LB David Gbenda to the San Francisco 49er

San Francisco has taken a stab at linebacker in the end of the draft in two straight drafts now, trying to Moneyball their way to replacing Dre Greenlaw. Gbenda fits his mold athletically, and we think he could sneak his way into hearing his name called.

Priority UDFA’s: WR Silas Bolden, CB Gavin Holmes, DT Bill Norton

If these picks were to come into fruition, it would be one of the most successful drafts for any school in NFL history. Three first rounders, 12 players in the first five rounds and 15 overall selections, tying the record.

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The first round of the 2025 NFL Draft is tonight, with the ensuing rounds broadcast on Friday and Saturday.