Month: March 2025

On Thursday, April 24, we will know who the No. 1 overall pick will be in the 2025 NFL Draft as the countdown is officially on for the biggest night in the NFL offseason. This year, there are a few favorites who could be called up to the stage first in Green Bay, Wisconsin, but one player feels he deserves it most. Abdul Carter, the star defensive end out of Penn State, is confident he’s the best prospect this offseason.

“I feel like I’m the best player in the country, and the best player should be selected No. 1,” Carter, who is the overall No. 2 rated prospect on CBSSports.com, said on CBS Sports HQ.

Tennessee currently holds the first pick, and Carter therefore believes he should be a Titan.

“They have the No. 1 pick, and I want to be the No. 1 pick,” he said. “That’s the ultimate goal.”

Backing himself, the 21-year-old explained why he believes he should be first up come April: “I would just say my impact on the game, my versatility. I can play multiple positions and the biggest thing for me is I show up when it matters most.”

Carter has just one year on the edge, but despite the lack of time at the position, he was still at the top of his game. Carter says this ability to not only switch where he is on the field, but do it at such a high level, is rare.

“That’s another reason why I feel like I’m the best player in the country. Just me being in my first year at a new position, I feel like nobody’s really done this before at this level,” Carter said. “Coming in at a new position and being a first-team unanimous All-American, dominating the way I did, having an impact on the game like I did.”

2025 NFL mock draft: Giants trade for Matthew Stafford, select Abdul Carter; Raiders move up to No. 1 for QB
Chris Trapasso
2025 NFL mock draft: Giants trade for Matthew Stafford, select Abdul Carter; Raiders move up to No. 1 for QB
The All-American recorded 12 sacks in 2024 and credits his “gold rush” move as one reason for his collegiate success.

Whoever does draft him, whether it’s the Titans or someone else, he is open to working with the team on which position he should play.

“Definitely defensive end or edge rusher, but I feel like I could play wherever my coaches need,” Carter said. “Wherever they feel the need, that’s where I’ll play.”

Carter is still rehabbing a shoulder injury he suffered late in the season and won’t be working out at the combine, but does plan to workout at Penn State’s pro day on March 28. He’s confident that he will be at full capacity soon.

“I’m really just starting to heat it up again. Just started training and working out again so the next couple of weeks are just me getting right, getting ready for my pro day to perform at an elite level,” he said. “I think I’m about 90 percent right now. I feel like the next month, it’s going to be really close to 100.”

2025 NFL combine: Top 250 prospect rankings as Travis Hunter, Abdul Carter lead way ahead of workouts
Josh Edwards
2025 NFL combine: Top 250 prospect rankings as Travis Hunter, Abdul Carter lead way ahead of workouts
While some may be concerned about Carter being undersized going into the pros, the 6-foot-3, 248-pound defender is not.

“I’ve never been too small for anything my whole life,” he said. “It’s all about heart for me.”

There’s a chance he goes to his favorite team, the Philadelphia Eagles’ rival, the New York Giants, who pick at No. 3. Carter is putting his Birds fandom behind and just wants to prove to his new team he is capable of helping them win.

“Wherever I go, I want to earn it,” he said.

With the Super Bowl now in the rearview mirror, it’s time for 31 other teams to gear up and try to catch up with the recently crowned champion Philadelphia Eagles. The talent-acquisition phase of the offseason is about to begin, with free agency first up.

With that in mind, we’re spending some time here at CBSSports.com digging into each position group to identify the top available free agents. When we released our rundown of the top 25 offensive free agents last week, that group included 10 interior offensive linemen.

One of them (Zack Martin) retired, so in the space below, we’ll add another to the list and call it a top 10. That list is as follows:

(Note: Some players might agree to a new deal between now and the start of free agency).

PLAYER 2023 TEAM POSITION SNAP % AGE PREVIOUS AAV PROJECTED AAV
Trey Smith Chiefs G 97.3% 26 $0.9M $19.7M
Drew Dalman Falcons C 48.5% 27 $1.1M $6.8M
Will Fries Colts G 24.7% 27 $0.9M $14.1M
Kevin Zeitler Lions G 91.4% 35 $6.0M $9.2M
Mekhi Becton Eagles G/T 78.0% 26 $2.8M $10.2M
Josh Myers Packers C 93.0% 27 $1.4M $7.7M
Teven Jenkins Bears G 65.0% 27 $2.1M $10.3M
James Daniels Steelers G 18.4% 28 $8.8M $7.8M
Brandon Scherff Jaguars G 98.1% 35 $10.0M $6.7M
Patrick Mekari Ravens G/T 89.9% 28 $5.2M $10.3M
Smith is widely considered the top overall offensive lineman potentially available this offseason, and either the first- or second-best free agent, period, alongside Bengals wideout Tee Higgins. The Chiefs are increasingly confident that they will be able to retain Smith, but he should have an extremely robust market if they elect not to use the franchise tag on him.

2025 NFL free agency: Biggest needs for every AFC team this offseason; how will Patriots, Raiders spend money?
Jordan Dajani
2025 NFL free agency: Biggest needs for every AFC team this offseason; how will Patriots, Raiders spend money?
He was a sixth-round pick who did not make all that much on his rookie deal, so he could be looking to break the bank and reset the market in free agency, which would mean that Spotrac’s projected average annual value would come in quite a bit lower than his eventual salary. The current top contract among guard’s is Landon Dickerson’s $21 million per year AAV with the Eagles.

Zeitler and Scherff are veteran stalwarts who have played at a really high level for a really long time, but due to their age they might just be getting one-year, mercenary deals from here on out. (That’s what Zeitler got from Detroit last year, for example). Aside from those two, though, the rest of this group of players is either right on the cusp of or right in the middle of their respective prime years.

Dalman, Fries and Daniels missed time with injuries this season, but they’ve all shown an ability to play at an extremely high level. Becton had a breakout season after attending Jeff Stoutland University in Philly, proving that he could stay relatively healthy and play guard at his size. Myers has been a solid starter at center throughout his career. Jenkins, after kicking inside to guard early in his carer, has shown himself to be a quality starter. And Mekari has the versatility to play pretty much anywhere, but was especially effective as a guard this past season.

As for which teams could be interested in the services of players like these, there are plenty. The Chiefs, obviously, are among that group. So are the Lions and Eagles, whether they intend to retain their top free agents or not. The Cowboys could be in the market for either a center or a guard, though they tend not to spend very much in free agency anymore.

The Dolphins have free agents at basically every position along the offensive line, so they could get in the mix. The Patriots have needs everywhere up front so they can better protect Drake Maye. The Cardinals could use some help on the inside, as could the Bears, who couldn’t keep the pocket clean for Caleb Williams last season.

The Bengals, Texans and Vikings could have needs at guard, while the Colts could use a center with Ryan Kelly set to be a free agent. The Jags probably need to revamp their offensive line. The Giants desperately need help on the interior. And the Buccaneers could use a guard if Ben Bredeson leaves town.

In other words, most of the league could use help. So, these guys should have plenty of opportunity to get paid.

INDIANAPOLIS — For a second consecutive year, the Miami Dolphins are the top-ranked team in the NFL Players Association report card.

The third annual iteration of the NFLPA report card was released Wednesday morning at the NFL Scouting Combine, which was compiled during the 2024 NFL season and had responses from 1,695 players across all 32 teams.

And also for a second straight year, the Minnesota Vikings came in second place behind the Dolphins. The Falcons, Raiders and Chargers rounded out the top five.

JC Tretter, the NFLPA’s chief strategy officer, noted Wednesday morning that the gap between fifth and eighth was “close.” The Texans, Packers and 49ers were sixth through eighth, in order.

The survey takes into account 11 different categories within teams: treatment of families, food/cafeteria, nutritionist/dietician, locker room, training room, training staff, weight room, strength coaches, team travel, head coach and owner.

The survey also showed the bottom-ranked teams in the NFL. The Steelers ranked 28th, followed by the Jets, Browns and Patriots. The Arizona Cardinals finished in last place after being ranked 27th last year.

Some of the biggest improvements involved the Falcons and Chargers. Atlanta went from 25th to third this year, and the Chargers — with their sparkling new facilities — went from 30th to fifth.

2025 NFL mock draft: Giants trade for Matthew Stafford, select Abdul Carter; Raiders move up to No. 1 for QB
Chris Trapasso
2025 NFL mock draft: Giants trade for Matthew Stafford, select Abdul Carter; Raiders move up to No. 1 for QB
The Commanders, who finished in last place in 2024, moved up to 11th with new owner Josh Harris taking seriously the issues from players who dealt with poor facilities and treatment from Dan Snyder, the previous owner of the team.

“You don’t have to just build a new facility,” NFLPA executive director Lloyd Howell said. “Just be responsive. And we see [the owners] are being responsive.”

The survey showed there was a 41 percent increase in A’s in all the categories from last year. Tretter noted there were three times as many A-pluses than last year. When it came to D-pluses and below, those grades decreased by 51 percent from last year.

“The standard is rising, the floor is rising more than ever before,” Tretter said.

As an example, when the NFLPA first began its survey three years ago, 11 teams did not offer daycare for players’ families on game day. Last year that decreased to seven. And today it’s at three.

Stephen Ross (Dolphins) and Zygi Wilf (Vikings) ranked at the top of ownership in the league. The union broke down the ownership survey into three subcategories: willingness to invest in facilities, contributions to a positive team culture and commitment to building a competitive team.

When it came to willingness to invest in team facilities, the owners who ranked 28th to 32nd were Robert Kraft (Patriots), David Tepper (Panthers), Art Rooney II (Steelers), Michael Bidwill (Cardinals) and Woody Johnson (Jets).

On contributions to a positive team culture, the owners who ranked 28th to 32nd were Bidwill, Jimmy Haslam (Browns), Kraft, Tepper and Johnson.

And for commitment to building a competitive team, the owners who ranked 28th to 32nd were Mike Brown (Bengals), Haslam, Kraft, Johnson and Tepper.

2025 NFL trade rumors: Seven big names who could draw interest in free agency, including Pro Bowl tight end
Cody Benjamin
2025 NFL trade rumors: Seven big names who could draw interest in free agency, including Pro Bowl tight end
Whether NFL team owners or the league itself is willing to admit it, anecdotal evidence would suggest the annual survey has motivated owners to improve team facilities and other various categories that are surveyed. Commanders owner Josh Harris said last year that he’s “not an F-minus guy.”

“The owners are competitive, too,” Howell said. “Peer pressure matters. They don’t want to look like a laggard.”

Coaching also matters. Last year the NFLPA surveyed players for their favorite coordinators. Then-Cowboys defensive coordinator Dan Quinn and then-Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris ranked third and fifth, respectively.

This year, Quinn, now the head coach of the Commanders, got the highest marks as a head coach. And Morris, now the head coach of the Falcons, ranked second.