High Rolling Raiders

By Peyton Schultze

The relationship between Derek Carr and Jon Gruden will surely be the most notable discussion among the Raiders heading into next season (via Las Vegas Review-Journal).

Joe Burrow will go #1 to the Bengals. Chase Young will follow by heading to Washington at the #2 slot, with Tua Tagovailoa close to follow with Miami’s pick at #5. And after that, Justin Herbert will head to Los Angeles to become the franchise’s next quarterback of the future, with Jordan Love falling somewhere in the top 12. Right?

Even though many of the top picks in this year’s draft appear to be a lock in place with several teams at this point, there’s always one or two teams with the ability to cause absolute chaos at the top of the board. This year’s candidate in none other than one of the league’s oldest franchises in a brand-new (and their third overall) city in the now-Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders took a step forward last season with a sudden youth movement led by running back Josh Jacobs and pass rusher Maxx Crosby, but now face a crucial draft that could make or break their development in a loaded AFC West. Will they be the surprise team to make a stunning move by trading up for an elite prospect, or will they hold off and wait until the 2020 season rolls around?

Loaded with heavy draft capital, plenty of cap space, and several young franchise cornerstones on both sides of the ball, perhaps no team in this year’s draft enters the summer with as many interesting questions as the Las Vegas Raiders. And it seems to be even more strange how quiet the Raiders have been all offseason long, especially when it comes to the franchise’s electric move to the Sin City and with the always-eccentric Jon Gruden looming. Yet the Raiders have two first round picks this year and could really improve this season with a good draft, even with the rising Broncos, talented Chargers, and the reigning Super Bowl champion Chiefs in the same division. General manager Mike Mayock and Gruden face some huge choices to make in the next couple of weeks leading up to the draft, and it will be fascinating to see just how they respond to the lethal talent on offense and defense in this year’s pool of prospects.

The signing of quarterback Marcus Mariota could really complicate things in the Raiders’ quarterback room next season (via Raiders Wire).

One of the reasons that the Raiders remain an interesting squad to watch in the draft is due to their confusing quarterback situation. After Derek Carr put together a solid, but not spectacular, season for the Raiders in 2019, Vegas went out and signed quarterback Marcus Mariota to step in and compete with Carr for the starting job. Yet even though the name Marcus may immediately inspire some hope among Raider fans, Mariota is certainly not the same exciting prospect that he once was when he entered the draft after winning the Heisman Trophy at the University of Oregon. Mariota’s career with the Tennessee Titans was shaky at best, and it unsurprisingly closely resembles that of Carr’s time with the Raiders. Yet with both of these players now on the same team, which of these quarterbacks does Jon Gruden have true confidence in, if either of them?

It has been well-documented how Gruden prefers to have a veteran quarterback to run his offense throughout his coaching career, but it has also been noted how Gruden has been heavily interested in young quarterbacks in the draft in the past. In fact, one of the rumored reasons that Vegas ended up signing Mariota this offseason was because he loved his talent coming out of Oregon during his time evaluating the position in his ESPN series, “Gruden’s QB Camp”. Even a season ago, the Raiders were heavily rumored to be very interested in Oklahoma quarterback Kyler Murray up until he was eventually selected in the top spot by the Arizona Cardinals, which makes you wonder how interested the Raiders are in this class of quarterbacks.

Even with two veteran starters in the mix for the Raiders, don’t be shocked if there starts to be some rumors of Las Vegas taking a signal caller in this year’s draft. Although Burrow will likely be out of reach and does not appear to be a clean systematic fit, Tagovailoa could be a nice option if the Raiders decide to trade up. Even with his injury history proving to be troubling at best, there is no sense of denying how immense the University of Alabama product;s talent is at the quarterback position, which could be very interesting for the Raiders. In addition to this, Justin Hebert’s size, strength, and posture in the pocket could also appeal to the Vegas’ front office, especially if he begins to fall in the draft a little bit for whatever reason. The last first-round option that could be interesting is that of Jordan Love, who seems to be the most unpredictable of the group. Although his college numbers do not reflect it, many think that Love’s upside tops that of any of his rivals in this year’s draft, which appears to be something that appeals to Gruden and company. Just like the potential risk of taking the undersized-yet-immensely-talented Murray a year ago almost swayed the Raiders, Love could possibly do the same thing for Vegas in the 2020 draft if Gruden goes ahead and pulls the trigger.

Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy appears to be the most logical target for the Raiders, but will he still be available? (via FanBuzz).

Nevertheless, the Raiders still figure to have big plans in the draft even if they don’t make a move for a quarterback. Heading into the draft, the Raiders have two major needs that they’ll need to shore up: wide receiver and cornerback. Luckily for the Silver and Black, there is plenty of depth at the receiver position in their year’s class in what many are calling the best group of draftable wide receivers in years. With names such as Jerry Jeudy, CeeDee Lamb, and Henry Ruggs expected to be available when the Raiders are on the clock at #12, Vegas could be in a great position to select a #1 wide receiver for the future to play alongside wideout Tyrell Williams and star tight end Darren Waller. Doing so would make the situation behind center that much easier for Gruden and company, but it remains to be seen which of the receivers that the Raiders prefer. Jeudy’s large size and excellent production in college probably makes him the ideal target for the Raiders, but he could be easily taken by a team with rash draft decision making in the past such as the Jacksonville Jaguars at #9 or the New York Jets at #11.

With that being said, even if the Raiders end up selecting a wide receiver with either of their picks, they are still going to need an upgrade in the secondary. The Raiders’ defense was not quite as bad as many expected last season, but they will need to fill up a few more holes in the draft if their defense wants to make any kind of real leap forward. Luckily, free agency was kind to the Raiders and helped them cover a major problem at linebacker in the form of underrated linebacker Cory Littleton. Although Vegas also went out and overpaid for inconsistent and controversial cornerback Eli Apple, they still need to address their secondary in a major way. This class is not quite as deep in the back end of the defense, but there are still some nice options that could contribute right away. Players like CJ Henderson (junior, Florida) and Kristian Fulton (senior, LSU) could be on the radar at either first round slot for the Raiders, and it wouldn’t be a shock to see them select either player. However, this draft’s prized defensive back comes in the form of Ohio State corner Jeff Okudah, who could be selected as early as #3 overall. If the Raiders are serious about making a move for one of the best players in the draft, they could easily decide to use their vast draft capital and move up with a team willing to switch spots for future picks such as the Detroit Lions at #3 or the New York Football Giants at #5 to select Okudah. A league-shattering move like this is something that only a heavily draft-compensated team like Vegas can pull off in this year’s draft, and it would truly send severe shockwaves throughout the top of the draft board for teams in search of a prized quarterback or offensive lineman.

The Raiders hope to score a huge win in this year’s draft, just as they did in 2019 with the selection of star running back Josh Jacobs (via Raiders Wire).

Whatever the case may be, the Raiders need to hit the jackpot in this year’s draft if they want to be taken seriously whatsoever. For most of the last two decades, the Raiders have been the least relevant team in the AFC West and are in need of an organizational jolt that could propel them into Super Bowl contention. They may have started that re-invigoration with the return of Gruden and by drafting franchise cornerstone Josh Jacobs last year, but they are a few key pieces away from getting back into the postseason and actually making some kind of serious noise in the AFC playoff picture (which has been updated to include an extra team in 2020).

Las Vegas has plenty of options in the 2020 draft, and it will be interesting to see where the organization goes with all of their chips on the table. This is certainly not a make-or-break draft for Mayock and Gruden at the top, but the Black Hole is typically as raucous as any fan base in the league and certainly wants to return to their ranks at the top of the NFL as soon as possible. Whether that actually happens sooner rather than later could truly depend on the quality of players from this draft, and the Raiders’ potential risk-taking this month could set them up for years to come, or send them right back down the drain and into the never-ending abyss of football hardship. The Raiders have been an atrocity for quite some time now, but they finally showed some signs of life in 2019 that have given fans some real hope heading into the future. And with so many things working in their favor heading into the draft, the 2020 draft could truly be a point of no return that either sends the Raiders back into the bottom of the AFC or toward the top of NFL prosperity.