3 Michigan football players in the top 15 of ESPN’s 2025 NFL Mock Draft
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As the kids say, it’s Mock Draft SZN (season).
OK, technically the majority of the mock draft season takes place in the 100 or so days between the end of a college football season in mid-January and the NFL Draft in late April. But that has never stopped early speculation.
With the college football season quickly approaching, it’s never too early to start looking at the next crop of talent. The good news for Michigan football is that earlier this week, ESPN’s Matt Miller released his first mock draft ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft (which will be held in Green Bay, Wisconsin). The Wolverines were well represented, with three mock picks in the first half of the first round.
The first UM star to come off the board? Cornerback Will Johnson at No. 3 to the Denver Broncos, which is no surprise. After his freshman season, Johnson appeared in the top 10 of some mocks that drafted the best available athletes, not just those who were draft-eligible.
Johnson has now developed into one of the most promising cornerback prospects in the NFL over the past decade and could clearly be a good fit for Denver, where Miller says they have the “best players available.”
“Johnson’s footage from his first two seasons at Michigan is some of the best footage of a cornerback I’ve ever seen,” Miller wrote. “The 6-foot-2 playmaker is most comparable as a college prospect to Pat Surtain II, whom he would face in this scenario.”
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A former five-star product from Grosse Pointe South, Johnson was named an All-American as a sophomore and was a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten player. With 25 games played (16 starts), Johnson was named the defensive MVP of the College Football Playoff title game in January and finished his sophomore year with 27 tackles (including one for a loss) and four interceptions (including one returned for a touchdown).
If that trend holds true, Johnson would be the highest-drafted Wolverine since Aidan Hutchinson went to the Lions as the No. 2 pick in the 2022 draft, and the highest-drafted cornerback at UM since Charles Woodson completed his Heisman Trophy campaign during the 1997 national championship season and was selected No. 4 overall (Oakland Raiders) in 1998.
According to Miller, UM doesn’t have to wait long for its next name. Mason Graham, the star defensive tackle who former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh called a “gift from the football gods” when he arrived in Ann Arbor, should go as No. 7 and reteam with JJ McCarthy on the Minnesota Vikings.
“The interior of the defensive line should get a big look next year, and Graham is a legitimate contender for the best prospect in the class,” Miller wrote. “His stats won’t blow you away, thanks to Michigan’s rotation and defensive line assignments — he had three sacks in 2023 — but Graham’s explosiveness and power jump out at you.”
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The 6-foot-3, 300-pound product of Anaheim, Calif., was named a second-team All-American last season after appearing in 13 games (13 starts) and recording 36 tackles, including 7.5 for loss, and three sacks, along with three quarterback hurries, a pass defense, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
The last UM prospect to be mocked in the first round wasn’t Graham’s running mate Kenneth Grant, nor was it running back (and EA Sports College Football 25 cover athlete) Donovan Edwards or safety Rod Moore, who was considered a late first-round pick before suffering a knee injury in the spring.
Instead, it was Colston Loveland, perhaps Michigan’s best offensive weapon this season. Miller sent him to the Indianapolis Colts with the No. 14 pick. Loveland is widely considered the nation’s best tight end after an incredible sophomore season in which he caught 45 passes for 649 yards (14.4 yards per pass) and four touchdowns.
Loveland had 10 games with at least three pass catches and seven games with at least 55 receiving yards, despite playing in a run-first offense that featured the most decorated running back the program has ever seen and two receivers selected in the NFL Draft.
“Who could resist giving Anthony Richardson more playmaking?” Miller wrote. “The tight end remains one of the few question marks on the team’s offense, and Loveland will be a top-10 player on my preseason list thanks to his ability as a receiver and excellent run blocking.”
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“The 6-5-year-old junior has outstanding agility and speed in the open field as a pass receiver.”
While that’s a bit of an exaggeration considering he’ll be working with a new quarterback, Loveland is now just 763 yards away from surpassing Jake Butt’s Michigan record (1,646 yards) for most receiving yards by a tight end in a career.
Although the Wolverines set a program record with 13 NFL draft picks last spring — the second-most by any program in a single draft — they only produced one first-round pick, McCarthy. Barring anything unforeseen, Michigan can expect at least three first-round picks next spring — and possibly more.
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