The 2025 NFL Draft is roughly nine weeks away and the Tennessee Titans control how it unfolds. Quarterback is the position on everyone's mind, but this class is loaded with talent at the second most valuable position in football, EDGE.
Currently, a trade-down is a popular option, but what if that costs them a chance to draft Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter? There is a debate between Travis Hunter and Carter for the top spot on big boards, but most big draft analysts have the Nittany Lions standout as the best player in the class. Talent, need, and positional value all seem to be matching up, so are the Titans being greedy if they consider trading down?
The short answer? No. While we are still waiting on the athletic testing from this class of EDGEs, the good news is that one big metric already points to this draft class having multiple players with high-end potential.
This comes courtesy of Marcus Mosher, who has always pointed out the strong connection between tackle-for-loss production, and the potential for EDGEs.
2025 EDGE class by TFL production.
— Marcus Mosher (@Marcus_Mosher) January 17, 2025
1.5 TFLs/game is usually the number you want to clear to be a first-round pick. pic.twitter.com/mKlQDh4x26
The other key metric here is athleticism. You must be an outstanding athlete to be a dominant EDGE in the NFL. but how athletic do they have to be? Luckily Mosher outlined that too using Kent Lee Platte's RAS formula and looking at the NFL's most productive EDGEs this year. The average RAS for the top 10 EDGEs was 8.91 and only two players had a score lower than 9.26.
So, what does all that mean for the Titans? It means that from a production standpoint, Mike Green, Donovan Ezeiruaku, Antwaun Powell-Ryland, and Carter all hit that high watermark (1.5 TFLs per game) for a first-round EDGE.
Assuming all the EDGEs pass the RAS threshold and that the Titans agree with the consensus rankings of these players, it opens up doors for the team to be creative in their attempt to find a solution to their issues at EDGE.
If the Titans keep the first overall selection or trade down with the New York Giants at No. 3, they could still be in the range to draft Carter with their first pick.
What if the New York Jets or Las Vegas Raiders make the Titans an offer they can't refuse? They could trade down and draft Green knowing that the analytics suggest he has an upside similar to what they would have gotten in Carter.
That is great, but what if they trade down with the Giants and Carter is gone? Or if they trade down with the Jets and Carter and Green have been selected? The Titans don't have to panic, because they can take the best player available and then attempt to trade into the back half of the first round to draft Ezeiruaku, or hope he falls to the top of the second round.
This is a moot point if the Titans love Carter and draft him No. 1, but this class is deep at EDGE and the numbers suggest the Titans could trade down, add more selections, and still have a great chance at landing an EDGE that will be a difference-maker at the next level.