Projected AFC South Draft
Southern Draft
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The 2025 NFL Draft starts April 24, 2025 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. We are going to take a look around the AFC South and see what position each team should address in the first round.
Tennessee (3-14): The Titans are tied with Cleveland and the New York Giants for the worst record in the NFL. That earned them the first pick in the 2025 draft.
Quarterback Will Levis was drafted in the 2nd round, No. 33 by the team in 2023. He started the season opener and for a total of twelve games.
He passed for 2,091 yards, 13 touchdowns, 12 interceptions and he completed 63% of his passes. He showed that he takes risks and throws bad interceptions. I think Tennessee has to look at their QB of the future.
The most likely candidate to pick is Cam Ward (Miami). This year’s quarterback class is considered weak but Ward is the best in this class.
He transferred from Washington State and played great at Miami. He threw for 4,313 yards, 39 TD’s, 7 interceptions and completed 67% of his passes.
He also rushed for 204 yards and 4 scores. Ward won the Davey O’Brien Award (2024), Manning Award (2024), ACC Player of the Year (2024) and Consensus All-American (2024).
Jacksonville (4-13): The Jags need help on the defensive line or in the secondary. They have the fifth pick so I think they will draft a pass rusher.
The best pick is Abdul Carter (Penn State). He was an off-ball linebacker his first two years before he was moved to edge rusher for the 2024 season.
In 2024 he had 43 solo tackles, 24 tackles for loss and 12 sacks. Carter was a Unanimous All-American (2024), Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year (2024) and two-time first-team All-Big Ten (2023, 2024).
He’s 6’3 and 259 pounds so he has great size and speed. He’s a great athlete that could have an immediate impact like another Penn State pass rusher has recently, Micah Parsons.
Indianapolis (8-9): The Colts were only one game under .500 so they are close to becoming a playoff team. They have the No. 14 pick.
Quarterback Anthony Richardson was drafted 4th in the 2023 draft. In his two seasons he has only played in 15 games. They are really hoping he can stay healthy and make a drastic leap going into his third season.
Indy can go in a couple of different directions with this pick. They could select an offensive lineman or defensive back.
If they pick a lineman it could be inside offensive lineman Armand Membou (Mizzou). He was a tackle at Missouri but he’s 6’3 and 332 pounds so he’s not the ideal size for an NFL tackle. He will probably be moved inside to guard.
If they pick a DB safety Malaki Starks (Georgia) might be the pick. He’s very smart and athletic so he would be a great fit.
Houston (10-7): The Texans were very inconsistent but they still won the division and a playoff game. Second year QB CJ Stroud regressed and the offensive line did a bad job protecting him. They can address the offensive line, defensive line or add a weapon on offense. They are picking No. 25.
I think they might draft guard Grey Zabel (North Dakota State). He’s listed as 6’6, 305 lbs. and he’s a two-time FCS national champion. He was also named first-team FCS All-American (2024).
