2025 NFL Draft prospect stock watch: Top risers and sliders after Week 5 - Alabama's Jalen Milroe rockets up, Oklahoma's Downs struggles
Week 5 on the college schedule saw several exciting endings in conference play, as Oklahoma pulled it out late against Auburn, Miami held on to beat Virginia Tech and Kentucky upset Mississippi on the road.
Yet the game that pitted Georgia against Alabama, which went down to the wire after a furious comeback by the Bulldogs, and the way the two top NFL prospects under center played will be talked about all week. And it leads off Week 5’s risers and sliders.
2025 NFL Draft stock: Risers after Week 5 of college football
#1 Jalen Milroe (QB/Alabama)
The game most hyped this weekend, Georgia versus Alabama, turned out to be worth it, though it didn’t start that way. Alabama jumped out to a 30-7 halftime lead thanks largely to a suffocating defense and great play by their quarterback.
Jalen Milroe missed on just three passes in the first half, completing 18 of 21 throws for under 200 yards and three touchdowns. One score came through the air, and the rest used his legs.
He then went cold at the start of the second half and was unable to move the offense, but when Alabama found itself down by one point with just over two minutes left in the game, Milroe got the momentum back, hitting on a 75-yard touchdown pass to freshman Ryan Williams and converting on the two-point conversion.
In this single game, we saw the best and worst of Milroe against one of the best defenses in the nation. He tore that defense apart and had his way with Georgia the first 30 minutes, then after being unable to move the team at the start of the second half, he came through when the Tide needed him most.
Milroe is the most physically gifted quarterback in this year’s draft class when breaking downsize, arm strength, and foot speed. He shows great poise and wherewithal on the field and has consistently progressed his game.
While his pass placement needs to improve a bit, there’s never been any doubt in my mind that Milroe deserves to be a top-10 pick in the draft, and that was further confirmed Saturday night against Georgia.
#2 Roman Hemby (RB/Maryland)
The Terps lost to Indiana in a contest that was closer than the final score of 42-28, and Hemby did his part for Maryland. The senior finished with 117 yards on 10 carries, including a 75-yard jaunt for his only TD.
Long run aside, he was a consistent force who picked up yardage every time he handled the ball. Hemby also had five receptions for 48 yards with an additional score. After a spectacular freshman campaign at Maryland, Hemby fell out of favor and was buried on the depth chart.
There was speculation he would enter last April’s draft or possibly transfer, yet he decided to return to Maryland and is having a terrific season. He’s a nice combination of power as well as explosion, and Hemby offers skills as a ball carrier and pass catcher. He’ll be a solid option on Day 3 of the draft.
#3 Antario Brown (RB/Northern Illinois)
It’s been a strange first month of the season for NIU. After upsetting Notre Dame in South Bend, they lost a difficult game to conference foe Buffalo in overtime, then fell to North Carolina State by seven points on Saturday.
Yet through it all, Brown has been a consistent force on offense. Graded by NFL scouts as a potential late-round pick, Brown is a large, 220-pound back, yet he’s exceptionally quick and creates yardage by making defenders miss and quickly cutting back into open lanes.
And despite pedestrian production as a pass catcher (seven receptions this season), Brown does a nice job when the ball is thrown in his direction. He has enough ability to make an NFL roster as a fourth back who lines up as a situational player.
#4 Ricky White III (WR/UNLV)
It was a hellacious week for UNLV. Starting quarterback Matt Sluka, who transferred from Holy Cross, announced Tuesday he was leaving the team and taking a redshirt season over a disputed NIL deal.
The Rebels were 3-0 at the time and had Fresno State, a conference favorite, scheduled next. Enter backup quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams, who promptly built a rapport with Ricky White III, the top pro prospect on the team.
White, himself a transfer, doubled almost all his receiving totals from the previous three games, finishing with 10 receptions, 127 receiving yards, and two TDs. White is a legitimate next-level prospect, graded as a late-round pick by scouts.
He measures over six feet tall and is a smart receiver with reliable hands. If the Williams-to-White connection continues to develop, so too will White’s draft stock.
#5 Mario Williams (WR/Tulane)
The Green Wave has done a solid job placing receivers into the NFL Draft. Darnell Mooney and Ryan Grant immediately come to mind, as well as rookie Jha'Quan Jackson, whom the Tennessee Titans have high hopes for.
Mario Williams is expected to be the next name on this list, and the playmaking junior is off to an explosive start in 2024. His numbers against South Florida included four receptions for 94 yards (23.5-yard average) with two TDs.
When Tulane faced off against Kansas State earlier in the year, a team that has three NFL prospects in the secondary, Williams caught six passes for 128 yards.
He’s a smaller wideout who will measure around 5-foot-9, yet Williams is incredibly quick with legitimate deep speed. When he enters the draft, Williams will be a solid Day 3 pick who’ll line up as a slot receiver, return specialist, and even run an occasional reverse.
Sleeper Prospects in 2025 NFL Draft class (Week 5)
#1 De’Zhaun Stribling (WR/Oklahoma State)
The Cowboys had their lunch handed to them by Kansas State, losing by 22 points. Yet Stribling continues to show a lot of progress in his game, and he’s developing into a terrific next-level prospect.
He finished the contest with seven receptions for 157 yards and one TD. In five games this season, Stribling has totaled 27 receptions, 502 yards, and three scores.
After transferring from Washington State, Stribling played just three games last season before being sidelined with injury.
He’s a long-limbed receiver with sneaky speed and reliable hands. Someone who wasn’t on the scouting radar before the season, Stribling, has worked his way into the draft’s final day and has the potential to continue climbing up boards.
#2 Elijah Ponder (Edge/Cal-Poly)
Ponder is proving to be one of the better pass rushers on the small-school level and looks worthy of the late-round grade handed to him by NFL scouts over the summer.
Four games into the season, he’s recorded three sacks and 5.5 TFLs to go along with 19 tackles. Last year, his numbers included 10 sacks and 13 TFLs. Ponder primarily comes out of a three-point stance for Cal-Poly, but he has the athleticism to stand over tackle.
Measuring 6-foot-2.5, 251 pounds, he’s expected to time the 40 in under 4.7 seconds. And Ponder plays to those numbers, making plays in pursuit or out in space.
We will see Ponder in a postseason All-Star game such as the Senior or Shrine Bowl, and there’s a good chance he’s invited to the combine.
Good results at those events, coupled with his body of work in college, will push Ponder into the middle part of the draft’s final day.
2025 NFL Draft stock: Sliders after Week 5 games
#1 Ethan Downs (Edge/Oklahoma)
Downs was graded by scouts as a mid-round choice entering the season, and there was even talk outside the scouting community that he could be a first-round pick.
None of that was ever going to happen. Coming in at 6-foot-4, 265 pounds, Downs is an average athlete with defensive tackle speed.
He’s recorded just a single sack and two TFLs in five games this season, and he’s never posted more than 4.5 sacks in any single year. He’s a high-effort, intense defender, but he doesn’t offer much upside and will end up deep in the draft.
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