The 2025 NFL Draft is now in the books and by most accounts the Raiders’ first draft under GM John Spytek was a success.
We won’t know for another year or two if the Raiders hit a home run on this year’s draft, but we can go back and make determinations on other years. With that in mind, let’s go back and rank the last 10 Raiders’ drafts (excluding 2025) from worst to first.
For your entertainment only, let’s start with the worst Raiders’ draft of the last decade, courtesy of Reggie McKenzie and Jack Del Rio…
No. 10 – 2017 Draft – GM: Reggie McKenzie, HC: Jack Del Rio
One awful pick after another.
The 2017 draft didn’t improve the Raiders anywhere on the roster. Unfortunately for GM Reggie McKenzie, the following year’s draft wasn’t a lot better.
- Gareon Conley | Round 1, Pick 24 CB, Ohio State
- Obi Melifonwu | Round 2, Pick 56 S, Connecticut
- Eddie Vanderdoes | Round 3, Pick 88 DT, UCLA
- David Sharpe | Round 4, Pick 129 T, Florida
- Marquel Lee | Round 5, Pick 168 LB, Wake Forest
- Shalom Luani | Round 7, Pick 221 S, Washington State
- Jylan Ware | Round 7, Pick 231 T, Alabama State
- Elijah Hood | Round 7, Pick 242 RB, North Carolina
- Treyvon Hester | Round 7, Pick 244 DT, Toledo
No. 9 – 2016 Draft – GM: Reggie McKenzie, HC Jack Del Rio
This looked like a solid draft in 2016, but it didn’t amount to much.
Karl Joseph hung around the league for six seasons, but he was undersized and not the player the Raiders hoped he would be. Jihad Ward is still playing and ended up being the best pick among the group.
- Karl Joseph | Round 1, Pick 14 S, West Virginia
- Jihad Ward | Round 2, Pick 44 DE, Illinois
- Shilique Calhoun | Round 3, Pick 75 DE, Michigan State
- Connor Cook | Round 4, Pick 100 QB, Michigan State
- DeAndre Washington | Round 5, Pick 143 RB, Texas Tech
- Cory James | Round 6, Pick 194 OLB, Colorado State
- Vadal Alexander | Round 7, Pick 234 G, LSU
No. 8 – 2020 Draft – GM: Mike Mayock, HC Jon Gruden
One of the best drafts on paper turned into a disaster with the off-field issues that haunted Henry Ruggs III and Damon Arnette.
Lynn Bowden Jr. was gone from the Raiders in a matter of months, and if not for John Simpson and Amik Robertson turning out to be NFL starters, this class would have easily been the worst.
All that being said, Ruggs was on course to be one of the great wide receivers in the NFL before his career was derailed by tragedy. No one could have predicted his life and career would take the turn it did on November 2, 2021.
- Henry Ruggs III | Round 1, Pick 12 WR, Alabama
- Damon Arnette | Round 1, Pick 19 CB, Ohio State
- Lynn Bowden Jr. | Round 3, Pick 80 WR, Kentucky
- Bryan Edwards | Round 3, Pick 81 WR, South Carolina
- Tanner Muse | Round 3, Pick 100 S, Clemson
- John Simpson | Round 4, Pick 109 G, Clemson
- Amik Robertson | Round 4, Pick 139 CB, Louisiana Tech
No. 7 – 2022 Draft – GM Dave Ziegler, HC: Josh McDaniels
The addition of Davante Adams cost the Raiders their first two picks in the draft and Adams quit on the team after three seasons. As talented as Adams was/is, the trade didn’t elevate the organization.
Dylan Parham is a starter, and Thayer Munford is a borderline starter. Zamir White looked great when Josh Jacobs was lost for the latter part of the 2023 season but hasn’t done much since.
- Dylan Parham | Round 3, Pick 90 OL, Memphis
- Zamir White | Round 4, Pick 122 RB, Georgia
- Neil Farrell Jr. | Round 4, Pick 126 DT, LSU
- Matthew Butler | Round 5, Pick 175 DT, Tennessee
- Thayer Munford | Round 7, Pick 238 OL, Ohio State
- Brittain Brown | Round 7, Pick 250 RB, UCLA
No. 6 – 2018 Draft – GM: Reggie McKenzie, HC: Jon Gruden
Really an awful draft outside of Kolton Miller, but a franchise left tackle carries a lot of weight in the NFL.
Arden Key has 23.5 sacks over the last four seasons, so he’s been solid pass rusher since leaving the Raiders.
- Kolton Miller | Round 1, Pick 15 T, UCLA
- P.J. Hall | Round 2, Pick 57 DT, Sam Houston State
- Brandon Parker | Round 3, Pick 65 T, North Carolina A&T
- Arden Key | Round 3, Pick 87 DE, LSU
- Nick Nelson | Round 4, Pick 110 CB, Wisconsin
- Maurice Hurst Jr. | Round 5, Pick 140 DT, Michigan
- Johnny Townsend | Round 5, Pick 173 P, Florida
- Azeem Victor | Round 6, Pick 216 LB, Washington
- Marcell Ateman | Round 7, Pick 228 WR, Oklahoma State
No. 5 – 2015 Draft – GM: Reggie McKenzie, HC: Jack Del Rio
Amari Cooper, Mario Edwards and Jon Feliciano all ended up being solid picks, but the 2015 draft fell off a cliff after Feliciano in the fourth round.
The story of Neiron Ball is a sad one. Ball passed away at the age of 27 after battling a rare brain condition.
- Amari Cooper | Round 1, Pick 4 WR, Alabama
- Mario Edwards | Round 2, Pick 35 DT, Florida State
- Clive Walford | Round 3, Pick 68 TE, Miami (FL)
- Jon Feliciano | Round 4, Pick 128 G, Miami (FL)
- Ben Heeney | Round 5, Pick 140 ILB, Kansas
- Neiron Ball | Round 5, Pick 161 OLB, Florida
- Max Valles | Round 6, Pick 179 OLB, Virginia
- Anthony Morris | Round 7, Pick 218 OL, Tennessee State
- Andre Debose | Round 7, Pick 221 WR, Florida
- Dexter McDonald | Round 7, Pick 242 CB, Kansas
No. 4 – 2023 Draft – GM: Dave Zieger, Head Coach: Josh McDaniels
It’s still early to put a grade on the 2023 draft, but it is trending slightly downward.
Tyree Wilson hasn’t been the player the Raiders were hoping he would be, but he is slowly developing. Michael Mayer battled a personal matter in 2024, and Byron Young is no longer with the team.
Tre Tucker still has a role in his third season and Jakorian Bennett looks like the team’s CB1 at the moment. Aidan O’Connell is a borderline starting quarterback in the NFL and could factor into the 2025 season for the Raiders depending on how things play out.
- Tyree Wilson | Round 1, Pick 7 EDGE, Texas Tech
- Michael Mayer | Round 2, Pick 35 TE, Notre Dame
- Byron Young | Round 3, Pick 70 DT, Alabama
- Tre Tucker | Round 3, Pick 100 WR, Cincinnati
- Jakorian Bennett | Round 4, Pick 104 CB, Maryland
- Aidan O’Connell | Round 4, Pick 135 QB, Purdue
- Christopher Smith | Round 5, Pick 170 S, Georgia
- Amari Burney | Round 6, Pick 203 LB, Florida
- Nesta Jade Silvera | Round 7, Pick 231 DT, Arizona State
No. 3 – 2024 Draft – GM: Tom Telesco, Head Coach: Antonio Pierce
Brock Bowers is already an All Pro and Jackson Powers-Johnson looks like an above average interior lineman. Those two picks alone elevate the 2024 draft into one of the better drafts we’ve seen from the Raiders in the last decade.
Delmar Glaze could end up being the starting right tackle when the season begins. At the very least, the job is there for him to win.
It’s too early to know what the Raiders have in the rest of their draft.
- Brock Bowers | Round 1, Pick 13 TE, Georgia
- Jackson Powers-Johnson | Round 2, Pick 44 C, Oregon
- Delmar Glaze | Round 3, Pick 77 OT, Maryland
- Decamerion Richardson | Round 4, Pick 112 CB, Mississippi State
- Tommy Eichenberg | Round 5, Pick 148 LB, Ohio State
- Dylan Laube | Round 6, Pick 208 RB, New Hampshire
- Trey Taylor | Round 7, Pick 223 S, Air Force
- MJ Devonshire | Round 7, Pick 229 CB, Pittsburgh
No. 2 – 2021 Draft – GM: Mike Mayock, Head Coach: Jon Gruden
After bombing the first-round pick, Mayock and Gruden went on a rampage with four of their next five picks.
Tre’von Moehrig, Malcolm Koonce, Divine Deablo and Nate Hobbs all signed significant deals in the offseason and Koonce has the potential to be one of the great pass rushers in the league.
Keeping Koonce was a big deal for the Raiders, and he looks like a player ready make his mark in his second consecutive contract year.
- Alex Leatherwood | Round 1, Pick 17 OL, Alabama
- Tre’von Moehrig | Round 2, Pick 43 S, TCU
- Malcolm Koonce | Round 3, Pick 79 DE, Buffalo
- Divine Deablo | Round 3, Pick 80 DB, Virginia Tech
- Tyree Gillespie | Round 4, Pick 143 S, Missouri
- Nate Hobbs | Round 5, Pick 167 CB, Illinois
- Jimmy Morrissey | Round 7, Pick 230 OL, Pittsburgh
No. 1 – 2019 Draft – GM: Mike Mayock, Head Coach: Jon Gruden
Armed with three first-round picks, Mayock and Gruden lead another egg with their first pick, but bounced back in a big way with Josh Jacobs.
Johnathan Abram didn’t turn out to be much, but Maxx Crosby is a top five defensive player in the NFL. The Raiders have the face of their franchise in Crosby, and he is without question the best pick the Raiders have turned in since Khalil Mack and Derek Carr in 2014.
Foster Moreau is still going strong in New Orleans and Hunter Renfrow was arguably the best slot receiver in the NFL before a medical condition and Josh McDaniels derailed his career in 2023.
- Clelin Ferrell | Round 1, Pick 4 DE, Clemson
- Josh Jacobs | Round 1, Pick 24 RB, Alabama
- Johnathan Abram | Round 1, Pick 27 S, Mississippi State
- Trayvon Mullen | Round 2, Pick 40 CB, Clemson
- Maxx Crosby | Round 4, Pick 106 DE, Eastern Michigan
- Isaiah Johnson | Round 4, Pick 129 CB, Houston
- Foster Moreau | Round 4, Pick 137 TE, LSU
- Hunter Renfrow | Round 5, Pick 149 WR, Clemson
- Quinton Bell | Round 7, Pick 230 DE, Prairie View A&M
Conclusion:
Maybe Mayock and Gruden deserve a little more credit for their drafts with the Raiders.
They were better than most of their predecessors and the team was on course to be a winner in 2021 before the Gruden emails surfaced and Ruggs took the life of an innocent person while driving under the influence.
The Crosby picked cancels out the terrible decision to draft Damon Arnette a year later, and every GM gets at least one mulligan in their career, right?
Sure, the Clelin Ferrell pick wasn’t a lot better, but looking at the players that went after Ferrell, the 2019 draft didn’t have a lot of exciting picks in the first half of the first round.
x: @raidersbeat
I have been saying the Gruden – Mayock drats were the Best in a decade. They laid the foundation for what was a Playoff Caliber team until the Gruden assassination. Who knows even Ruggs might still active and a All-Pro by now had Grduen been coach and no doubt Carr would be in his Prime. Those who think Gruden set the team back don’t know squat about the game or personnel. The clown coach (Joke McClown) set the Raiders back a decade…
First of all Mayock did not make any selection Gruden made them all. Next, no Gruden deserves no credit because yes he had a couple good selections but truth is because he made such horrible decisions in all other areas, i.e., trades, free agency, and decisions not to sign (or resign) players.
Those horrific flaws strip Gruden of anything. Finally, no the team Gruden was leading when emails occurred was not doing good. You forget they had just lost horribly to 2 crappy teams after beginning 3-0. They were about to start a terrible losing streak. They turned it around because Gruden left and had it not been for a ridiculous call by officials Raiders beat Bengals n maybe go to superbowl.
I hope you’re kidding!
The first rounds of the Gruden Mayock duo, 5 in 2 years, are horrible!
The choice of Arnette in particular is to be condemned, the entire 2018 draft is probably one of the worst in the history of the Raiders … the first 5 choices, of which two in the first round and three in the third, so 5 choices in the first 100, after three years were all 5 out of the NFL!! The year before with 3 first rounds of which none of the three were optioned for the fifth year … We have been doing horrible drafts for almost 25 years, but Gruden was without a shadow of a doubt the worst of all … and always has been, it is known that he is not able to choose in the draft, his entire career proves it.
How can you write an article like this!?
Mark is the ONLY owner that would turnover control of the draft to someone as incompetent as Gruden. He is without a doubt the worst owner in the league.