Last week, we learned a couple of the clever tactics Raiders’ GM John Spytek used to hide the team’s interests in the draft.
According to an ESPN report, the Raiders intentionally didn’t allow for any pre-draft connections to Montana State quarterback Tommy Mellott, who they were able to draft at the end of the sixth round.
Additionally, the story about Spytek’s son lobbying for Ashton Jeanty was true, and was reportedly shared with the purpose of misleading teams on who the Raiders wanted with the no. 6 pick.
We know at least one Bay Area beat writer took the bait prior to the draft and it’s possible a few teams did, as well.
But according to NFL draft analyst Todd McShay, there was another maneuver by Spytek in the hours leading up to the draft that might have thrown off teams trying to figure out what the Raiders were going to do with the no. 6 pick.
Based on comments from McShay on his podcast last week, the rumors around the Raiders’ interest in Texas offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. can probably be filed into the category of ‘fake news.’
As a refresher, Banks was never linked to Las Vegas at pick 6 until the Tuesday evening before the draft.
It was a surprise to see Banks brought up with so much enthusiasm, but there are times when good information gets out at the last minute. Years ago, a CBS report linked Houston cornerback D.J. Hayden to the Raiders on the morning of the draft and not many bought into the report until the Raiders drafted him.
McShay was one of the first to issue a mock draft with Banks going to Vegas and a handful of mock drafts followed suit in the two days leading up to the draft.
By Thursday night, Banks was being mocked to the Raiders as often as Jeanty and by some of the NFL’s most respected draft insiders.
Even after the draft, The Athletic’s Vic Tafur said he believed the Raiders would have drafted Banks if Jeanty had not been on the board.
But reading between the lines on McShay’s comments last week, it sounds like Spytek might have leaked bad information on Banks at the eleventh hour.
“I want to give a lot of credit, first of all for the espionage, for getting out the late leak that it was going to be Banks [with the no. 6 pick]. John Spytek, I see you,” McShay said on The McShay Show.
We might never know what Spytek would have done with the no. 6 pick if Jeanty wasn’t there, but according to Sports Illustrated insider Hondo Carpenter, Geogia linebacker Jalon Walker might have been the pick.
“Had Jeanty not been there… and Mason Graham and Will Campbell, I think the Raiders would have pulled the trigger on Jalon Walker easily. Carpenter said on the Las Vegas Raiders Insider podcast. “I know the Raiders loved him. Had they traded back, let’s say they had gone to nine or 12, I would not have been stunned if Omarion Hampton was a Raider.”
“They loved him,” Carpenter continued on Hampton. “They liked Jeanty more, but it was negligible, very close. They loved Omarion Hampton.”
As it turned out, Hampton was the no. 22 pick in the draft to the Los Angeles Chargers, so Spytek and company wouldn’t have come anywhere near getting Hampton with their second-round pick. If the decision makers in Las Vegas wanted one of their top two running backs, it had to happen in the first round, and nearly everyone covering the draft had Jeanty rated above Hampton as a prospect.
Looking ahead to next year, let’s see if Spytek switches things up.
Maybe the player getting all the draft buzz in the 48 hours leading up the draft will be the player the Raiders want?
x: @raidersbeat