Dane Brugler’s NFL Draft watch: 3 rising prospects who could be surprise first-rounders

It’s only October, so the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft is still very much in flux as scouts across the country make campus visits.

Aside from a few quarterbacks, most of the players on my initial top 50 board have lived up to expectations and will be in the mix to be drafted in Round 1. But for this week’s draft watch, I wanted three non-quarterback prospects who have buzz among NFL scouts as potential upsides, even if they aren’t talked about as much nationally.

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Cameron Williams, RT, Texas

For those who watched Texas’ win at Michigan, you may know Williams as the right tackle who kept getting penalized (four flags in that game). The Michigan game was Williams’ third career start and his first on the road, so juvenile mistakes were expected. But the biggest takeaways from his overall film are his smooth movement skills and powerful grip strength, especially for a player of his size (6-foot-1) and length.

Williams was (hilariously) flagged for holding the play, negating Quinn Ewers’ touchdown pass. It was clearly a decent rep for the right tackle and illustrated his ability to control the lead.

While still raw, Williams is smooth and strong in his kickslide to protect the rim (only two pressures allowed this season), and his range is impressive when Texas asks him to move into space. Most include Kelvin Banks Jr. out of Texas as a first-rounder, but some scouts believe Williams’ raw attributes could ultimately make him the higher draft pick.

Derrick Harmon, DT, Oregon

Harmon is a transfer from Michigan State (Oregon opened the NIL checkbook) and has disruptive qualities with his initial quickness and strong swipes to access gaps.

Harmon, a redshirt junior from Detroit, has put himself on the NFL radar the past two seasons in East Lansing and has made another leap in his development this season. He leads the Ducks in pressures (18) and is second in tackles (13) this season. Scouts are eager to see Harmon – and the entire defensive line – against Ohio State in a few weeks.

Josh Simmons, LT, Ohio State

Ohio State revamped its offensive line last season and that included bringing in Simmons, a young and promising tackle from San Diego State. He was very up and down in his first season in Columbus, but has shown tremendous improvement this season as a redshirt junior.

If I’m betting on offensive line traits, give me the agile blockers with flexible body control and strong finishing traits – which is a neat way to sum up Simmons’ skill set. If he continues to play at this level for the rest of the season, we might add another Buckeye in the first round.

Three NFL prospects you can’t miss this weekend

1. Nate Noel, RB, Missouri (at Texas A&M, Noon ET, ABC)

A transfer from Appalachian State, Noel (6.6 yards per carry) fills Cody Schrader’s shoes. He has rushed for a total of 318 yards over the past two games, but faces a tougher test against the Aggies, who have yet to allow a 100-yard rusher this season. Although undersized at just 184 pounds, Noel reads his blocks well and knows where to attack with concise cuts. He wants to cement himself as a Day 3 draft pick.

2. Yahya Black, DT, Iowa (at Ohio State, 3:30 p.m., CBS)

If Iowa wants to ease the unrest in Columbus, it will have to win in the trenches. Black is an imposing 6-5 1/2, 333-pound lineman with 35-inch arms. He’s still looking for his first sack of 2024, but he has disrupted the run, controlled the point of attack and found the football. He will compete for a spot on Day 2 of draft weekend.

3. Jalen Royals, WR, Utah State (at Boise State, 7 p.m., FS2)

Clearly, the main attraction in this matchup is Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty, who separates himself as the RB1 in this draft class. But when Utah State has the ball, keep an eye on the No. 1 jersey because Royals is a playmaker with draft talent. He is average size (5-11 1/2, 193 pounds), but he is an explosive athlete with the great ball skills needed to create big plays – Royals led the FBS in 2023 with seven catches of 50+ yards .

Statistics of the week

• This is your weekly reminder that Jeanty is one of the top prospects in the 2025 NFL Draft. A month into the season, he leads all of college football in rushing yards (845), yards per rush (10.3), rushing touchdowns (13) and forced missed tackles (43).

What Jeanty did with Washington State’s defense last weekend was remarkable.

Ashton Jeanty made Washington State’s defense look like a JV team. I’ve never seen so many forced missed tackles on an RB tape.

Just take a look at these 5 clips. #RB1 pic.twitter.com/kVZGdYLBeR

— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) September 29, 2024

• Ole Miss wide receiver Tre Harris (6-2, 208) is a big athlete with strong ball skills, but he has also developed his run-after-catch skills this season. In twelve games last season, he ranked 74th in the nation with 360 yards after the catch; through five games in 2024, Harris leads the FBS with 403 yards after the catch (only two other FBS players are above 300 YAC yards). Harris was one of the Rebels’ bright spots in last Saturday’s loss to Kentucky, producing a career-best 121 yards after the catch.

• Alabama lost several key players in the secondary this season, but made a key addition with USC transfer cornerback Domani Jackson. The former five-star recruit collected his first interception against Georgia’s Carson Beck last weekend and has been a shut-down cover man this season, allowing just 16.7 percent catches (12 targets, two catches for 18 yards). Jackson is a true junior and will have to make an NFL decision after the season.

Prospects rise…

One prospect creating buzz among NFL scouts is Boston College pass rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku, who leads the FBS with 8.0 sacks. Although he is undersized (6-2 3/8 and 241 pounds), he has cat-like speed to shoot gaps and dive under blocks. And he also has surprising arm length (34 5/8 inches), which allows him to establish the edge and pop up in the running game. Ezeiruaku was unstoppable against Western Kentucky last weekend, finishing with 14 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks and one forced fumble.

Considered a late-round possibility by scouts entering the season, Ezeiruaku is pushing to be drafted in the top 100.

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Outlook is declining…

One of the reasons quarterback Carson Beck returned to Georgia for his senior season was because of the bad taste left in his mouth after an SEC title game loss to Alabama. But instead of avenging that loss on Saturday, he turned in the worst performance of his career.

Yes, Beck sparked a second-half comeback in Tuscaloosa, but he was responsible for four turnovers and struggled to impress the NFL scouts in attendance. While body of work is most important, quarterbacks’ performance in the biggest games on the schedule carries a little more weight. Beck still has enough pivotal games left to change the narrative, but he played more like a third-rounder than a first-rounder against the Tide.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie Bucky Irving topped 1,000 yards rushing each of his last two seasons at Oregon. (Brandon Sloter/Image of Sports/Getty Images)

Newcomer revisited

The success of the Buccaneers offense is based more on the passing game than the rushing attack. But Bucky Irving has been a productive complementary defender and currently leads all rookies in rushing yards (203) as Tampa adds more to its plate each game.

Here is the summary of his scouting report in my 2024 NFL Draft guide:

Irving, a two-year starter at Oregon, was the leader in offensive coordinator Will Stein’s zone-read, balanced run attack. After leaving Minnesota after one season for more offensive touches, he surpassed 1,000 yards rushing in each of his two seasons in Eugene and led all FBS running backs in catches (56) in 2023. With his vision, quickness and wobble in the hole, Irving routinely finds yards not blocked off to him. While he will have a harder time gaining yards after contact in the NFL, his body balance and low center of gravity are assets – especially in space. Overall, Irving is undersized and underpowered, but he has pass-catching skills and instinctive running qualities to quickly sort and make sharp directional cuts into daylight. He projects as an addition to the NFL that could be a productive change in a committee.

(Top photo of Cameron Williams: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)