The Raiders want to leave the upcoming draft with a quarterback, but it’s looking like their chances of getting one of the top quarterbacks are getting slimmer every day.
Many believe Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, J.J. McCarthy and Drake Maye will be the first four picks in the draft and that scenario would leave the Raiders with a difficult decision to make on the remaining quarterbacks.
Michael Penix, Bo Nix and Spencer Rattler are generally considered the next best quarterbacks on the board, and one league analyst believes a name on that list would be a perfect fit for the Raiders.
Via the Move the Sticks podcast, this was NFL Network’s Bucky Brooks on Michael Penix and the Raiders…
“No one is [talking about] Michael Penix. We’ve gone the last month without people talking about Michael Penix. In a Raiders uniform, here’s where it works, and you have to understand the history of the Raiders. The Raiders are a run heavy, push the ball down the field team going all the way back to the great Al Davis. The want to run it. They want to throw it over the top of the defense. I don’t know if there is a better deep ball thrower in this draft than Michael Penix. When you watched the Washington Huskies play all year, it was bombs away. If he is protected, he can spin it like the best of them... If they build the [offensive line] in front of him, there are few guys that can attack like Michael Penix can from the pocket.”
One thing we already know is that Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce wants to emphasize the running game going forward, and that topic came up on the team’s flagship radio station this week.
“I think [Antonio Pierce] wants to pound the football. Luke Getsy wants to pound the football,” JT the Brick said on his daily Raider Nation Radio show. “They want to run it physical, but the only way they [can] do that is they’ve got to get better players on the offensive line. So I think when we think of the offensive line coming up here, it’s becoming more of a priority for me.”
If a tough running game and a strong-armed quarterback is what Pierce is looking for, Penix might be the perfect option for the Raiders. If he needs a year to develop, the Raiders have already proven they can win with Aidan O’Connell, and Gardnew Minshew isn’t a slouch, either.
And if Penix is ready to go right away… roll him out week one and let the deep ball live again in Las Vegas.
twitter: @raidersbeat
He has my Vote take Him AP we Passed on AJ Stroud last year