On Monday, ESPN’s Matt Miller released his first mock draft after the Senior Bowl, and he has a quarterback being drafted by the Raiders that is going to be a popular pick at no. 13 for the next 10 weeks.
Right now, J.J. McCarthy isn’t going in the top 10 of many mock drafts, but after the NFL Combine the expectation is that his draft stock is going to get a significant boost.
McCarthy has a strong arm and moves a lot better than what he showed at Michigan. This was Miller’s rationale behind the Raiders taking McCarthy with the 13th overall pick…
“The Raiders have a new general manager in Tom Telesco and must make finding a long-term quarterback the priority of the 2024 offseason (free agent signing Jimmy Garoppolo has not worked out). McCarthy, who started two years at Michigan, just turned 21 and has the requisite tools to be that player. He’s mobile and tough as nails, and scouts praise his arm strength and ability to make difficult throws in big situations. He has thrown only 44 touchdown passes in college to nine interceptions and compared to the other top quarterbacks in this class, he’s by far the least-experienced thrower. But his potential and ceiling have him worthy of a top-15 selection.”
A lot can change between now and the draft, but unless the Raiders hand out a massive contract to a veteran quarterback in free agency, there’s a good chance they will take a quarterback with their first pick.
McCarthy is considered by most to be the fourth-best quarterback in this year’s draft, although Bo Nix and Michael Penix Jr. are also in the discussion. If the Raiders move up in the draft, it will take a top 3 pick to be guaranteed an opportunity to take Caleb Williams, Drake Maye, or Jayden Daniels, who has a well-documented history with Raiders’ head coach Antonio Pierce.
Had the Raiders hired Kliff Kingsbury, there was probably a real chance the Raiders would figure out a way to get Williams. Now that Kingsbury is reportedly headed to the Commanders, the Raiders probably won’t be in the mix for Williams unless Mark Davis issues an owner mandate to make it happen.
From a veteran quarterback standpoint, the Raiders probably burned any bridge they had with Justin Fields when they hired former Bears OC Luke Getsy. Kirk Cousins is set to enter free agency in March, but he seems to be happy with the Vikings, and Baker Mayfield is expected to return to the Buccaneers.
With no other notable veteran options expected to be available, the next big move the Raiders make for a quarterback will probably come in the draft.
And as of today… J.J. McCarthy is the popular pick at no. 13.
twitter: @raidersbeat
Getting J.J. would be spectacular. Jim Harbaugh recently said that he thinks HE MAY GO TO NUMBER 1. I hope that Jim is wrong and J.J. stays at 13. Jim did not feature him because Jim likes to pound the opponent’s line with runners. In fact, likely unknown to many, 2 or 3 of J.J.’s intercepts were thrown when Jim wasn’t coaching. If Jim was coaching, he would have fixed him after the first interception. J.J. is also a WONDERFUL YOUNG MAN. I think he may be getting married so will settled down with a supportive wife so football will be important to him.
I am NOT a football expert, but I have seen a lot of football, including 6 years at Michigan, at 85 years of age. He is without a doubt the BEST I have ever seen.
JJ McCarthy is a horrible idea with Jim Harbaugh being the coach for the Chargers in our division he knows him better than anybody else. He made him who he is pretty much. An with us playing them twice a yr. We can not afford the loses.
That’s who I would pick at 13.Nix and Penix👎🏾👎🏾
Sorry Gary Musser I disagree with you. My vote is for Michael Penix. I’ve watched all the QB’s this year. I’ll take Penix.#1 better deep ball,#2 better down the sidelines,#3 better over the middle,#4 quicker release,#5 although he’s not as mobile as J. J. He can still move if he has to. #6 his ball will cut thru the bad weather that he will encounter in AFC cities and some NFC cities. My concern is the new OC.