The dogfight for the No. 1 pick in this year’s NFL Draft took one final twist Sunday as the regular season played out its finale. 

Heading into Week 18, the New England Patriots were in pole position to lockdown the first selection in April’s draft. 

However, the Patriots fell victim to their own success Sunday when they shocked the Buffalo Bills to clinch a 23-16 win – their first since November 10. 

It was a game they had been heavily expected to lose and their shock defeat had disastrous consequences for their draft standings as they were knocked down, opening up top spot for a new team to swoop in. 

With a 23-14 defeat to the Houston Texans, the Tennessee тιтans emerged with the no. 1 pick – a small consolation for their ugly 3-14 season.

The theft of the pick is a boost for the тιтans who will be in the market for a quarterback in the offseason. 

The Tennessee тιтans have stolen the No. 1 Draft pick from the New England Patriots

With a defeat to the Houston Texans to end the season, the тιтans moved into the top spot

The Patriots fell victim to their own success as they shock win over the Bills bumped them 

Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders is the top-rated quarterback entering the draft, followed by Miami’s Cam Ward, Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, and Texas’ Quinn Ewers.

Meanwhile, the two-way Heisman Trophy winner, Travis Hunter, appears to be the consensus top-rated player in the 2025 class, with the Colorado star not expected to fall beyond the top three picks.

The No. 1 pick has flipflopped between a number of the NFL’s worst in recent weeks with the New York Giants, who finish the campaign 3-14, clutching it ahead of Week 17. 

In a blow to the floundering franchise, they suffered a similar fate to the Patriots on December 29 with a shock 45-33 victory against the Indianapolis Colts – their first win in nearly three months. 

New York, meanwhile, is in desperate need of a new quarterback after Daniel Jones was released from his contract last month, leaving head coach Brian Daboll to rotate between backups Drew Lock and Tommy DeVito.