There has been a lot of talk in recent days about the Raiders potentially trading up in the 2024 draft for a quarterback, but one scenario that isn’t getting a lot of attention is the idea of moving down in the draft.
If the Raiders don’t like any of the quarterback options at pick 6, they could have an opportunity to trade down and get the best wide receiver in the draft.
The Athletic’s Vic Tafur talked this week about the Raiders finding a true ‘x’ receiver between now and next year and he said the buzz at the NFL Combine last week was that Arizona wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan could slide out of first 10 picks on draft day.
“I think the new regime does not really view Jakobi Meyers as the number one guy. I think that they like him, but I think they clearly want a number one guy, a guy who can make the big plays, stretch the field a little bit,” Tafur said on the Just Win podcast. “I think there are a lot of guys in the draft this year who can do that and there are some guys that are in free agency, so I think that will be a big thing they hit on is number one receiver.”
“If you do want to trade down and get more picks… you hear these things and you don’t know if it’s a buzz or just noise, but you hear all of a sudden Macmillan, the receiver out of Arizona, may be falling a little bit out of the top 10. If that’s the case, you may be able to trade down and get a number one receiver at 12 or 13,” Tafur continued.
“I think [McMillan] is really good and he’s a guy who I think has big playability and definitely, I think he’s just scratched the surface as far as what he can do to get better so that’s a guy I’d be excited about if I could trade down and get Macmillan from Arizona and attack my number one need on offense.”
According to the most widely accepted trade charts, the 6th pick would be worth at least an additional second-round pick if the Raiders move down to pick 12 or 13.
If the Raiders can move down and add another premium pick, that might put them in position to trade back into the first round if a quarterback they like drops to the bottom of the first round.
It hasn’t been talked about a lot with the quarterback decision looming over the Raiders, but it makes sense that Tom Brady and company would want to make an investment in a young wide receiver to pair with Brock Bowers for the foreseeable future.
And for what it’s worth, FOX Sports insider Jordan Schultz, fresh off his coffee shot showdown with Ian Rapoport, made an interesting observation on McMillan over the weekend.
“Arizona WR and projected top pick Tetairoa McMillan has been invited to the NFL Draft in Green Bay, per source,” Schultz tweeted on Sunday. “Here’s something interesting: McMillan posted the highest AIQ score — an advanced cognitive tool used in the pre-draft process — of any WR in this year’s class. Just another box checked for teams doing their evaluations.
x: @raidersbeat
I’d be ok if McMillan is the pick.
I love the idea of moving back. We need all the draft capital we can get.