Draft season is lyin’ season in the NFL and if you’ve been following the Raiders in recent weeks, there have been a few reports that probably qualify as bad information.
It can be difficult to separate good information from bad information this time of year, but a report from league insider Tony Pauline over the weekend definitely sounded like something that might have been cooked up a little.
According to Pauline, the Raiders are a sleeper team to draft Quinn Ewers, adding that the Texas quarterback could be taken as high as the first round.
“The Raiders like quarterback Quinn Ewers, probably even more so after his combine workout on Saturday,” Pauline reported on Sunday. “If the Raiders can’t swing a deal and move up for Cam Ward, keep an eye on Ewers to the team with their next pick. It could be the top of round two or a move into the back end of round one for the Texas passer, who is QB3 on most boards.”
The Raiders might be on tilt a little after missing out on Matthew Stafford, but it’s hard to imagine a scenario where any team jumps on Ewers in the first round.
Unlike Jalen Milroe, whose athletic ability gives him unique upside, Ewers doesn’t have the physical traits that most NFL teams would consider to be elite. Additionally, he has had trouble staying healthy over the course of his college career.
As always, the truth will come on draft day, but the stories around Ewers over the last few days definitely feel like an effort to flood the quarterback rumor mill. It’s a common tactic in the NFL to spread rumors of interest in multiple players so that opposing teams don’t know which stories to take seriously and which to ignore.
In this case, using a first-round pick on Ewers wouldn’t match the film he has put up over the last few years.
For what it’s worth, Jaxson Dart is the other quarterback that teams seem to be falling in love with and a top 10-15 pick on him seems like a questionable move, as well.
A third-round pick for Ewers might make sense, but only if Jalen Milroe and Will Howard are no longer on the board. Dart probably performed like a second-round pick in 2024, but he does have a few special traits that might give his career a little more upside than Ewers.
x: @raidersbeat
Just DON’T do a Gruden and do a gross overreach for any player.
I’m a Texas fan … please no Ewers, he is like DC imo … too inconsistent, drives you nuts watching them . DC has a better arm too. Both solid guys though. If they don’t want to roll the dice on Shadeur at 6 . Trade AOC to New England for Milton and draft Howard in the third round. I don’t like Darnold for Big Bucks . They should have signed Russ last year for a million instead of Uncle Rico RaaaDuh for 7.
I wasn’t impressed.
Maybe Dart or Shough