Round 1, No. 7 overall: Missouri T Armand Membou (6-4, 332)
Membou played in 35 games for the Tigers, all at right tackle and earned second-team All-SEC honors in the 2024 season when he did not allow a sack. His 4.91 40-yard dash at the Combine in February was the fastest among tackle prospects in this year’s draft and the fastest by any O-lineman that’s at least 6-4, 330 since 2003.
DM: “Armand’s a guy that we first got a chance to meet at the Combine in a formal interview. We’ve always kind of admired the film, his physicality, we knew he’d be a physical fit.”
AG: “The athletic profile is off the charts. He’s mean, he’s nasty, he’s tough. What we’re trying to do on offense, he really fits what we’re trying to do, so it was a no brainier. I mean, once the pick was there for us, man, it was like this is the guy.”
Round 2, No. 42 overall: LSU TE Mason Taylor (6-5, 251)
Taylor, the son of Hall of Fame DL Jason Taylor, was LSU’s most productive tight end in school history with 129 receptions, 1,308 yards and 6 touchdowns.
DM: “A tight end we’ve had our eye on. Think he can come in and really help us on offense. Young, athletic, really good ball skills, instinctive, has versatility.”
AG: “He’s a smart man. The bloodlines of him understanding football, that stands out. His ability to block and be a receiving threat is something that stood out on tape. He’s going to come in, he’s going to compete and I think he’s going to do a good job for us.”
Round 3, No. 73 overall: Florida State CB Azareye’h Thomas (6-2, 196)
Thomas was a one-year starter for the Seminoles and totaled a career-high 52 tackles last season to go with 5 pass defenses and an interception. He allowed 17 receptions on 33 targets.
DM: “Another long, athletic, talented press corner. Plays physical, young, still development there. He’ll come in, add good depth at a premium position.”
AG: “Football is football and he plays the brand that we want to play. He’s a big, physical man and I’m looking forward to him getting up here and being able to take what he did at Florida State and bring that to us because that’s how we play.”
Round 4, No. 110 overall: Georgia WR Arian Smith (6-0, 179)
Smith is a burner and his 4.36 40-yard dash at the Combine was the fifth-fastest among wideouts. He totaled 68 receptions, 1,356 yards and 10 touchdowns in his four seasons with the Bulldogs and averaged 19.9 yards per catch. He has a track background and claimed a Florida state title in high school in the 200 meters and took a silver medal in the 100. He also anchored the U.S. 4×100 relay team to a World Under-20 record of 36.62 seconds at the Pan American Championships in Costa Rica.
DM: “Elite speed. He has an explosive element. When you have a piece like that on offense it allows you to do more, whether you’re taking the top [off a defense] or you’re taking shots, whether you’re getting him on speed sweeps, quick smokes, I mean just elite speed.”
Round 4, No. 130 overall: Alabama S Malachi Moore (5-11, 196)
Moore played the “star” position for the Crimson Tide before he transitioned to safety full time in the 2024 season. A two-time team captain, he earned first-team All-SEC honors and totaled 70 tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 2 forced fumbles, 10 pass defenses and 2 interceptions.
DM: “A very instinctive, tough player. He was a team captain, he’s made of the right stuff at safety. He was a guy we really coveted and kind of targeted early in the day, glad we added him.”
AG: “What he did in college actually shows exactly what he’s going to be able to do in the NFL and being able to have the versatility to play safety and also play nickel has always been great. You see Brian Branch [in Detroit], he had the same thing. When I had Chauncey [Gardner-Johnson] he did the same thing. To be able to have a player that has that versatility is always good for defense, so now you can start to have defensive structures where can have people in different spots.”
Round 5, No. 162 overall: Miami LB Francisco “Kiko” Mauigoa (6-2, 233)Mauigoa played two years for the Hurricanes after two years at Washington State. A team captain for the 2024 season and the green-dot player, Mauigoa led the team in tackles as a junior and senior. The American Samoa native also has an extensive special teams experience and did not miss a game because of injury in his 51 collegiate games.
DM: “Another tough, physical, instinctive linebacker. He was another team captain at Miami.”
AG: “Kiko’s a smart, heady, aggressive, physical linebacker that’s going to get a chance to go in and compete for a linebacker spot. Plus, he has special teams value.”
Round 5, No. 176 overall: Miami Edge Tyler Baron (6-5, 258)
Baron, who played four seasons with Tennessee before one at Miami, led the Hurricanes with 5.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss. He totaled 13.5 sacks, 101 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, and 1 forced fumble with the Volunteers in 48 games (19 starts).
AG: “If you watch him on tape, he actually showed really good pass rush ability, so now it’s just nudging him a little bit more to get him over that hump to be a really good player for us and we expect our player to do that for us.”