NFL Draft Fan Survey: How Optimistic is Your Franchise's Fanbase in 2025?
The 2025 NFL Draft will apparently a painful one for most fans in the AFC South.
Franchise fortunes are often decided by how teams fare in the annual NFL Draft – and fans of the league's 32 teams boast a wide variety of outlooks heading into the seven-round event. From supporters brimming with optimism to those who would rather spend the draft hiding under the covers, the draft brings out the best – and worst – in fan emotion.
We surveyed 2,000+ football fans across North America and asked them to score their level of draft optimism for their respective franchises out of 10. Here are the results:
Key Takeaways
🏈 Fans of the Los Angeles Chargers are the most optimistic heading into the 2025 NFL Draft, garnering a optimism score of 7.44.
🏈 The defending-champion Philadelphia Eagles lead a pack of four teams close behind, scoring 7.39 out of 10.
🏈 The Jacksonville Jaguars own the distinction of having the most pessimistic fan base entering the draft with a score of 5.00.
🏈 The Indianapolis Colts not only boast the second-worst score (5.25), they also saw the second-largest year-over-year rankings drop.
🏈 NFL fans who participated in our survey produced an average optimism score of 6.6.
Most Optimistic NFL Fanbases
| Rank | Team | 2024 Score | 2025 Score | Rank Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🌟 1 | Los Angeles Chargers | 6.59 | 7.44 | ▲ 7 |
| 2 | Philadelphia Eagles | 6.59 | 7.39 | ▲ 7 |
| 3 | Washington Commanders | 5.97 | 7.37 | ▲ 18 |
| 4 | Houston Texans | 6.57 | 7.30 | ▲ 7 |
| 5 | Los Angeles Rams | 6.66 | 7.28 | ▲ 1 |
| 6 | Arizona Cardinals | 6.43 | 7.13 | ▲ 8 |
| 7 | Buffalo Bills | 6.53 | 7.11 | ▲ 6 |
| 8 | Kansas City Chiefs | 7.18 | 7.09 | ▼ 5 |
| 9 | Detroit Lions | 7.21 | 7.06 | ▼ 7 |
| 10 | Baltimore Ravens | 6.62 | 6.94 | ▼ 3 |
| 11 | San Francisco 49ers | 6.77 | 6.81 | ▼ 7 |
| 12 | Atlanta Falcons | 5.71 | 6.67 | ▲ 13 |
| 13 | Denver Broncos | 5.05 | 6.65 | ▲ 18 |
| 14 | Cincinnati Bengals | 6.16 | 6.62 | ▼ 3 |
| 15 | New York Jets | 5.67 | 6.55 | ▲ 12 |
| 16 | Green Bay Packers | 6.32 | 6.51 | ▲ 1 |
(Source: Sportsbook Review survey)
Charge! L.A.'s AFC team has the most optimistic fans pre-draft
The Los Angeles Chargers landed three starters at last year's draft, including one of the league's premier rookie receivers. Combined with their in-season success and growing faith in second-year head coach Jim Harbaugh, it's not difficult to understand why optimism is high in L.A.
The Chargers' optimism score of 7.44 is nearly a full point higher than its 2024 tally, moving it up seven spots in the rankings to No. 1 in our survey. Los Angeles enters the week with a whopping 10 picks in the 2025 draft, including the No. 22 overall pick and four sixth-round selections that could be packaged to move up (or offered up for future picks).
The defending champs are next, with the Philadelphia Eagles coming in with an optimism score of 7.39. The Eagles also rose seven spots year-over-year after recording an identical score to the Chargers in 2024. Philly has eight picks, but they're all in the first five rounds, including No. 32 overall and four in the fifth round.
A sensational season led by 2024 first-round pick Jayden Daniels has Washington Commanders fans feeling great. They come in at No. 3 on the optimism list with a score of 7.37 – up an incredible 18 spots from 2024 – despite having a paltry five 2025 picks entering the week. Of course, when you have the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year in Daniels, you're in good shape.
Fans of the Houston Texans are the only ones in the AFC South with any sort of optimism for this year's NFL Draft. The Texans rank fourth on the list at 7.30, good for a seven-spot increase from a year ago. The Texans not only have seven picks in 2025, they have one of the most talented young cores in the league.
We get a City of Angels bookend for our top five, with the Los Angeles Rams claiming fifth place with an optimism score of 7.28. This despite having just one draft choice in the first 90 picks (in the opening round, 26th overall). L.A. moved up one spot from a year ago, when it turned the 17th pick into AP Defensive Player of the Year Jared Verse.
Most Pessimistic NFL Fanbases
| Rank | Team | 2024 Score | 2025 Score | Rank Change |
| 💀 32 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 5.93 | 5.00 | ▼ 9 |
| 31 | Indianapolis Colts | 6.55 | 5.25 | ▼ 19 |
| 30 | New Orleans Saints | 5.69 | 5.74 | ▼ 4 |
| 29 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 6.72 | 5.88 | ▼ 24 |
| 28 | Cleveland Browns | 5.07 | 5.92 | ▲ 2 |
| 27 | Carolina Panthers | 4.75 | 5.94 | ▲ 5 |
| 26 | Miami Dolphins | 6.58 | 5.95 | ▼ 16 |
| 25 | Las Vegas Raiders | 5.98 | 5.97 | ▼ 5 |
| 24 | Dallas Cowboys | 5.60 | 6.20 | ▲ 4 |
| 23 | Tennessee Titans | 5.75 | 6.23 | ▲ 1 |
| T21 | Seattle Seahawks | 6.20 | 6.25 | ▼ 5 |
| T21 | New England Patriots | 6.08 | 6.25 | ▼ 3 |
| 20 | Minnesota Vikings | 6.04 | 6.35 | ▼ 1 |
| 19 | Chicago Bears | 7.28 | 6.44 | ▼ 18 |
| 18 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 5.93 | 6.46 | ▲ 4 |
| 17 | New York Giants | 5.59 | 6.48 | ▲ 12 |
2025 NFL Draft a real drag for Jags fans
Draft misery has become a fixture of the Jacksonville Jaguars fan experience – and vibes might be at an all-time low heading into the 2025 iteration.
Jags fans recorded an average optimism score of 5.00 in our latest survey, comfortably the worst score among the 32 NFL fan bases. Landing quarterback Trevor Lawrence first overall in 2021 has produced mixed results, and the Jaguars have managed to turn 29 picks into just nine regular starters in three seasons since. The Jags have 10 picks in 2025, including No. 5 overall.
Fellow AFC South inhabitants occupy the No. 31 spot, with the Indianapolis Colts producing an average score of 5.25. And similarly to the Jaguars, it's easy to link fans' general pessimism to recent draft fails. The Colts have mined just four regular starters from the draft in the past two years despite having a combined 21 picks.
The New Orleans Saints have the third-worst optimism rating at 5.74 despite having nine picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, including six in the opening four rounds. Recent draft success has proven elusive to the Saints (sound familiar); they have produced just two regular starters in the past two years, spanning 14 selections.
What a difference a year makes for the Pittsburgh Steelers – at least, when it comes to draft optimism. After ranking fifth among NFL fan bases in 2024, Steelers supporters have turned on the front office, generating a paltry score of 5.88 in our optimism survey; that's good for a 24-spot drop in the rankings.
Perennially disappointed Cleveland Browns fans round out the five least optimistic supporter groups ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft. It would take considerably more space than I have here to go through why Browns fans are the way they are – but let's just say that their score of 5.92 is probably higher than most think it should be.
Other notes
- That AFC South negativity extends to the Tennessee Titans, who own the No. 1 pick entering draft week. Despite being able to pick any player they want, Titans fans have an average optimism rating of 6.23 (good for 22nd overall), which might speak to both a lack of faith in their front office and a draft that is weaker than most at the top end.
- Having the top pick does matter, though. Just ask the Chicago Bears, who had the most optimistic fans of 2024 but have seen their ranking plummet 18 spots. The Bears, who come in with a score of 6.44, landed QB Caleb Williams and WR Rome Odunze in Round 1 last year and have four of the first 72 picks in 2025.
- NFL fans produced an average optimism rating of 6.6 overall, slightly lower than last year's mark. Again, it's likely due at least in part to the fact that the top end of the 2025 draft is seen as being among the weakest in recent memory, led by quarterbacks Cameron Ward and Shedeur Sanders and two-way star Travis Hunter.
Methodology: We surveyed 2,010 NFL fans in both the United States and Canada and asked them to score their optimism rating on their NFL team drafting, out of 10.
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