The NFL draft is still more than a month away, but it’s never too early to throw a few predictions against the wall.
It will be an interesting draft for the Raiders because they don’t have a long list of needs, but the ones they have are significant.
We know Antonio Pierce would love to leave the draft with upgrades at quarterback, cornerback and offensive tackle, but the order that those picks are made will depend on how the next five weeks of free agency play out and how the team values those positions in terms of depth in the draft.
Quarterback is the most important position on the field, but will there be a quarterback at pick 13 that’s worth the investment?
Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy are expected to be off the board in the first five picks, and there are rumors in recent days that Bo Nix is expected to be drafted before the Raiders are on the clock at pick 13.
If the Raiders aren’t comfortable taking the no. 5 or no. 6 quarterback with the 13th-overall pick, the decision will probably come down to a cornerback or an offensive tackle (with defensive line never off the table).
If it plays out that way, two Alabama prospects could be at the top of the Raiders’ wish list. Terrion Arnold is arguably the best cornerback in the draft and J.C. Latham is widely considered the best right tackle in the draft.
In that scenario, which pick would make the most sense for the Raiders… offensive tackle or cornerback?
“If it did come down to offensive tackle or cornerback, it feels like such a deep draft on the offensive line that maybe the Raiders can wait and address that position on the second day,” Vinny Bonsignore wrote this week in the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “There are some exceptional cornerbacks in this draft, and grabbing one of the elite defenders at 13 would go a long way in lifting what appears to be a very good defense even higher.”
When in doubt, it’s never a bad idea to consider the head coach. Antonio Pierce is a defensive-minded coach and it shouldn’t surprise anyone if he leans that way in the draft.
So let’s pencil in Arnold to the Raiders at pick 13.
Arnold is a good fit for the roster and a perfect personality for the culture Pierce is trying to build.
In round two, the sensible pick for the Raiders might be to take an offensive lineman, but there is a certain amount of pressure on the head coach and GM to find the next franchise quarterback.
If Michael Penix drops in the first round because of his injury history, the Raiders will have to think hard about trading back into round one and drafting him.
The Raiders medical department has blocked a few players from wearing silver and black in the past, but the risk will be worth the reward in this case.
With their second pick in the draft, the Raiders move back into the first round and get Penix. They will walk away from day two of the draft with the best cornerback and one of the most interesting quarterback prospects in the field.
What’s not to like about that?
twitter: @raidersbeat
Penix is an IR QB waiting for his next injury. The NFL is a high powered aggressively attacking the QB on every play by those 300 pound mammoths. He’s got two bad knees and other past injuries. NO WAY Telesco trades up or back for Penix.. The medicals are extremely important to Telesco and no way our DRs pass off on this kid.
As much as I love Arnold. Latham would do wonders for our offense in both the run and pass. Makes the right side as good as the left side.
I hate those picks. Trade up for once and draft a qb. Is anyone else tired of the inept qb play the past two seasons? Pennix is so injury prone….why would you want that? Stuck with somebody who can’t stay on the field.
no to penix , first in my opinion he is not a first round Qb , also too many injuries in the past .second to go at the end of the first round the raiders must give pick 44 and 77, the team need all their pick 44 and 77. in my opinion the best scenario is terrion arnold in first and jordan morgan OT in round 2, spencer rattler in round 3. others possibility Jc Latham RT in round one , Tj tampa CB in round 2
I’ve had T.Arnold as our 1st for months, but had to go back to our style of defense – off the ball, and Q.Mitchell fits perfectly as well as his athleticism. We drafted an on the ball CB in Bennett and he couldn’t play zone.
For our 2nd, I’m being aggressive and putting pressure on the opponents defense by selecting X.Worthy or X.Legette as WR. Q gets to practice against Tucker and Worthy!
In the 3rd to complete this new defense we need a defensive quarterback in J.Trotter at MLB. We’ve been adding band aides since G.Beckert and that’s why we haven’t made the playoffs in 20+ years. Nothing against Spillane which would be better as WLB and backup MLB. Diablo should come off the bench.
We finally get our QB in the 4th with J.Travis – the forgotten Heisman candidate. We could even put him in IR and now you have a serious QB room in 2025 in the same system. At that point we can leap forward.
Now onto the 5th and 6th for the OLine which appears to be the deepest group of the draft. D.Puni on the interior and F.Crum on the outside. We already have starting Tackles, just need more mobile RG for the zone blocking scheme. There’s others that could be UDFA’s for the Oline, but don’t forget that we hid D.Wagner for the RT spot.
In the 7th, there are countless RB’s that are good for committee work. I do have fav’s but if F.Gore is available, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.