2025 NFL Draft | Louisville Recap

The 2025 National Football League Draft is now officially in the books.

As expected, the Louisville football program had a solid presence in this year's draft. In total, three Cardinals heard their name called by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, and three others - as of Apr. 27 - have signed undrafted free agent deals or received rookie minicamp invites. Louisville has now had 143 all-time selections in the NFL Draft.

Here's who got selected, when they got selected, and whom by:

Tyler Shough

Selection: No. 40 overall, second round
Team: New Orleans Saints
Position: Quarterback

Shough had been skyrocketing up draft boards since the end of the 2024 season. Couple in the fact that the Saints have questions marks at quarterback due to Derek Carr's shoulder injury, it wasn't surprising to see them take Shough early in day two. He's not only the Cardinals' highest draft selection since Mekhi Becton went No. 11 overall in 2020, he's the first Louisville quarterback to be drafted, period, since Lamar Jackson in 2018.

Coming over from Texas Tech to play his final year of collegiate eligibility, he was able to play a full healthy season for the first time in his career, and it paid off massive dividends. Starting all 12 regular season games, Shough completed 63.2 percent of his passes for 3,195 yards and 23 touchdowns to just six interceptions, earning an All-ACC honorable mention.

Ashton Gillotte

Selection: No. 66 overall, third round
Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Position: Defensive End

While Gillotte might have seen his numbers dip during his senior season, his overall body of work as a collegiate player and his very good testing numbers were more than enough to secure a day two draft pick. He became the highest-drafted Louisville defensive player since Jaire Alexander went No. 18 overall in 2018, and his selection marked the first time since that draft that UofL had multiple top-100 picks in a single draft.

Starting every regular season game this past season, he finished with 43 total tackles (23 solo), 10 for loss and 4.5 sacks. Playing in 51 career games while starting 37, his 41.0 career tackles for loss ranks fifth in school history, while his 26.5 sacks comes in at sixth.

Quincy Riley

Selection: No. 131 overall, fourth round
Team: New Orleans Saints
Position: Cornerback

One Louisville player wasn't enough for the Saints, as they proceeded to use one of their first day three picks to get Riley, who became UofL's highest-drafted defensive back since Alexander. It also marked just the sixth time that an NFL team has selected multiple Cardinals in a single draft, and the first since Carolina drafted Brian Brohm and Breno Giacomini in 2008.

Playing in 10 games last year while starting eight, Riley led the ACC in pass break ups with 13, while collecting 33 tackles (21 solo), three for loss, two interceptions and a forced fumble. During his three years as a Cardinal, he snagged eight picks and broke up 27 passes, while compiling 109 tackles, six for loss and a forced fumble.

Undrafted Free Agent Signings

After the draft concluded, a few Cardinals capitalized on the opportunity to sign as an undrafted free agent.

In the hours after the draft ended, cornerback Corey Thornton signed with the Carolina Panthers, while tight end Mark Redman did so with the Los Angeles Rams. Defensive tackle Thor Griffith also received an invitation to the Seattle Seahawks' rookie minicamp, which will give him the chance to sign a UDFA deal down the line.

Out of the 20 Louisville players in the 2024 NFL Draft pool, 14 of them did got get selected, have not yet signed a UDFA contract or have not received a minicamp invitation. The most surprising addition to this last, so far, is First-Team All-ACC wide receiver Ja'Corey Brooks.

More Cardinals Stories

You can follow Louisville Cardinals On SI for future coverage by liking us on Facebook, Twitter/X and Instagram:

Facebook - @LouisvilleOnSI
Twitter/X - @LouisvilleOnSI
Instagram - @louisvilleonsi

You can also follow Deputy Editor Matthew McGavic at @Matt_McGavic on Twitter/X and @mattmcgavic.bsky.social on Bluesky