Getty Las Vegas Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels.
In recent years, the NFL Draft has been a large focus for the Las Vegas Raiders as former general manager Mike Mayock didn’t typically trade away many draft picks. The team wanted to build through the draft and had five first-round picks between 2019 and 2020. New general manager Dave Ziegler is taking a different approach as he traded away this year’s first and second-round picks in a deal for wide receiver Davante Adams.
The Raiders only have five draft picks this year, which is the second-fewest in the NFL. While the team has done great work this offseason, there are still needs on the defense and offensive line that could be addressed in the draft. However, their first pick comes in the third round at pick No. 86. That might be too late for the Raiders to find a potential starter. Gary Davenport of Bleacher Report believes Las Vegas should offer the Seattle Seahawks their 2022 third-round pick (No. 86 overall), a 2023 second-round pick and a 2023 fifth-round pick for their 2022 second-round pick (No. 40 overall):
In a scenario like this, a team like the Seahawks could be a perfect trade partner, as the team has back-to-back picks at Nos. 40 and 41.
It would cost some picks in next year’s draft (maybe more than what’s listed here), but the Raiders have made it abundantly clear they are about competing now.
Improving the offensive line and secondary would be a sizable help in that regard.
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This Would Be Giving up Too Much
The Raiders would have to really love a player who dropped to No. 40 for them to consider this trade. Giving up three draft picks for just a second-rounder is a steep price. The most the team should consider is possibly giving Seattle next year’s second and fifth-round picks for this year’s second-rounder.
The team has had plenty of high draft picks in recent years and very few of those players are standouts. It would be unwise for the Raiders to give up future picks just to get into the second round. That said, if a player that they’re really high on falls down, then they could move mountains to trade up. As of now, it’s unclear if Ziegler is that excited about any prospects.
#Raiders draft picks after the Davante Adams trade:
– Round 3, Pick 86
– Round 4, Pick 126
– Round 5, Pick 164
– Round 5, Pick 165
– Round 7, Pick 227
Offensive line stands out as the most pressing need. Need to give Derek Carr time to throw to Adams.
Raiders Can Find Impact Players Without High Picks
While having high draft picks is always nice, the Raiders can still find impact players later in the draft. Maxx Crosby, Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller are three of the team’s best players and none of them were selected in the first three rounds of their drafts. Crosby and Renfrow almost immediately became impact players as rookies.
It’s never easy to find studs late in the draft and it’s difficult to know how the new front office will attack. It’s possible that Ziegler wants to be aggressive and move up but he could also fall back on his New England Patriots roots and let players come to him. He’s shown an aggressive side with the Adams trade but that likely doesn’t tell the whole story.
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