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Offseason workouts underway for teams with rookie head coaches

All 32 teams are in full 2025 NFL Draft mode, but teams with rookie head coaches are permitted to get a head start on the offseason workout program. Activities are limited to meetings, strength and conditioning, and physical rehabilitation only. Some have already begun, and others will on Monday. Let’s recap those teams’ offseasons so far and identify their top draft needs.

Chicago Bears: The Bears began workouts on Monday, under the direction of new HC Ben Johnson. Jumping over from the AFC North rival Detroit Lions, Johnson was arguably the most coveted coaching candidate during this year’s cycle. Among Bears players who spoke after the first day of workouts were quarterback Caleb Williams and cornerback Jaylon Johnson.

The top free agent additions for Chicago this offseason include guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson (via trade), center Drew Dalman, defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo, and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett. Some of Chicago’s top remaining needs heading into the draft are at edge rusher, running back, and offensive tackle.

Jacksonville Jaguars: Workouts are also already underway for the Jags, who hired former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen as their HC. All eyes are on QB Trevor Lawrence, who is coming off surgery on an AC joint. Coen said that they’re going to take things slowly with Lawrence, but is confident that he’ll be at 100 percent when the season starts.

Jacksonville’s notable free agent signings are OT Patrick Mekari, safety Eric Murray, cornerback Jourdan Lewis, and wide receiver Dyami Brown. Defensive line, defensive back, and offensive line highlight some of the Jaguars biggest remaining needs heading into the draft, in which they have a whopping 10 picks in.

New York Jets: The Jets hired Aaron Glenn as their HC after he served as the Lions’ defensive coordinator over the past four seasons. They have also kicked off their offseason workouts, following a free agency period in which they underwent a lot of change. Gone are the likes of QB Aaron Rodgers and WR Davante Adams, in are players such as QB Justin Fields, CB Brandon Stephens, S Andre Cisco, and tight end Stone Smartt.

Glenn and new Jets general manager Darren Mougey will look to change the culture in New York and get the franchise back to the postseason for the first time since 2010. Their biggest roster holes entering the draft include DL, OL, and WR.

New Orleans Saints: The Saints will begin workouts on Monday. They waited the longest to hire a new HC in 2025, bringing in Super Bowl winning OC Kellen Moore from the Philadelphia Eagles. Pressure is mounting on New Orleans to draft a QB after an underwhelming two season from incumbent Derek Carr.

According to FanDuel, the Saints are the favorites to land QB Shedeur Saunders at No. 9 overall. Other draft needs include CB, edge rusher, OL, and WR. New Orleans’ prize free agent signings this offseason are S Justin Reid, WR Brandin Cooks, DT Davon Godchaux (via trade), DE Chase Young (extension), and TE Juwan Johnson (extension).

Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys are also set to begin their workouts on Monday. They promoted OC Brian Schottenheimer, who has been an NFL assistant for 24 years, to HC following the departure of Mike McCarthy. Owner Jerry Jones has been under fire for much of the offseason, particularly with how he handled the team’s coaching search and contract negotiations with star linebacker Micah Parsons.

Notable free agent signings for Dallas are DEs Solomon Thomas and Dante Fowler, RB Javonte Williams, DT Oza Odighizuwa (extension), and WR KaVontae Turpin (extension). The Cowboys have 10 selections in this year’s draft, with needs at WR, RB, and CB that need to be addressed.

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2025: Year of the RB?

We have seen an RB resurgence in the NFL over the last couple of years, with Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry leading the position back to relevancy. This year’s draft class is thought by most experts to be very deep at RB, and our Destin Adams examined some of the top ones who could come off the board early.

Ashton Jeanty: “Ashton Jeanty is the name talked about the most, of course, following one of the best seasons by an RB in college football history. This landed him as a Heisman finalist, and he finished second only behind Travis Hunter for the prestigious award. Even with RB not typically being viewed as worthy of a first-round pick, Jeanty is a shoo-in for being one of the first 32 players drafted in the 2025 NFL Draft.”

Omarion Hampton: “After Jeanty, North Carolina's Omarion Hampton seems to be the consensus second RB in the class, with multiple counts believing he could end up hearing his name called in the top half of round one.”

Another RB listed by Destin is Ohio State’s Quinshon Judkins, who was named one of the most polarizing prospects among his position. Our Rob Gregson made a case for Judkins being one of the top RBs in this year’s class, while Ryan Roberts made a case against it. Dylan Sampson out of Tennessee was also pegged with the same label, as Rob argues in favor of him, but Ryan has Sampson ranked shockingly low.

Here are some other RBs to keep an eye on during the early rounds:

• TreVeyon Henderson, Ohio State
• Kaleb Johnson, Iowa
• Cam Skattebo, Arizona State
• DJ Giddens, Kansas State
• Damien Martinez, Miami

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