These key NFL Draft decisions will shape what Texas football looks like in 2025

Posted by Admin January 13, 2025 Football

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The NFL Draft announcements are starting to roll in for Texas football players.

Jaydon Blue, Kelvin Banks Jr. and Hayden Connor each announced their intent to make the jump to the pros and declare for the draft in 2025 on Sunday.

Which other looming decisions will heavily shape the image of the Longhorns in 2025?

Here are a handful of players to watch who could choose to turn pro or come back to Texas.

Quarterback Quinn Ewers

Quinn Ewers seemed to make his intentions clear when he told ESPN’s Pete Thamel before the Cotton Bowl that he doesn’t expect to play another season of college football.

Still, until he’s made a definitive declaration, his name has to be included in this discussion.

Ewers brought Texas to the College Football Playoff twice and threw for 9,128 yards and 68 touchdowns in three seasons as a Longhorn.

Safety Michael Taaffe

Few people not named Michael Taaffe would have thought the former walk-on could craft himself into a genuine NFL Draft prospect when he arrived on campus in 2021.

Named a second-team All-American by the Associated Press in 2024, he’s done exactly that.

His decision is a crucial one for the Longhorns, who are already losing Andrew Mukuba to graduation. Will they return one of the best defensive backs in college football to anchor their secondary? Or will they be forced into starting a pair of relatively inexperienced faces in 2025 in Jelani McDonald and Derek Williams Jr.?

Wide receivers Matthew Golden and Isaiah Bond

The second half of the season didn’t quite work out the way Texas or Isaiah Bond would have envisioned. Dealing with a pair of ankle injuries, Bond caught 14 passes for 176 yards in nine games from the beginning of October through the end of the season.

But he flashed the athletic profile early on in the 2024 campaign that will make him an interesting prospect for NFL organizations. Should he elect to stay, he’s a player with the quality to be a difference-maker for Texas.

Matthew Golden emerged to become the Longhorns’ leading receiver, and one of the most productive in the SEC. The Houston transfer caught 58 passes for 987 yards and a conference-leading nine touchdowns to put himself firmly on the NFL Draft radar.

Should both move on, Texas would have to replace its top three receiving options from 2024, with tight end Gunnar Helm also bound for the NFL. The Longhorns would likely need Ryan Wingo or DeAndre Moore Jr. to step into a leading role if no transfer additions are made.

Offensive linemen Cam Williams and DJ Campbell

The Texas offensive line, which finished as one of three finalists for the Joe Moore Award in 2024, is already down three starters. Center Jake Majors is out of eligibility, while left tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. and left guard Hayden Conner both declared for the NFL Draft on Sunday.

The Longhorns will have to reconstruct the left side of their offensive line. Will they have to do the same with the right? Cam Williams was viewed by many draft experts as a first-round talent throughout the regular season. He wasn’t great in the College Football Playoff, but he’d still likely be turning down a big check to return to Texas.

At right guard, DJ Campbell gave Texas solid production all season long. ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper doesn’t list him among the top 10 guards on the board, but that doesn’t mean he won’t have suitors.

Other Texas football players to watch

DE Trey Moore
DB Jaylon Guilbeau
DE Ethan Burke

Reach Texas Insider David Eckert via email at deckert@gannett.com. Follow the American-Statesman on Facebook and X for more. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Get access to all of our best content with this tremendous offer.