Getty Free agent WR Lynn Bowden Jr.
The Las Vegas Raiders have bet on potential in many recent drafts which is a reason why so many of the players they’ve selected continue to get jobs in the NFL. However, many of them fail to make a consistent impact. One of the most questionable draft picks the team made under general manager Mike Mayock was taking Lynn Bowden Jr.
The decision to take Bowden in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft wasn’t an egregious one but the fact that the Raiders wanted to convert him to a running back didn’t make much sense. They almost immediately realized that it was a mistake and traded him to the Miami Dolphins where they converted him back to a wide receiver.
That still wasn’t enough to get him to be a productive NFL player as he was eventually cut before making his way to the New England Patriots. He played in just one game for the team last season and won’t be getting another chance. The Patriots announced that they have released Bowden.
Patriots release WR Lynn Bowden Jr.:
He still has some potential to be a decent player and should get a shot on another team. That said, it’s looking like he’ll have a hard time being the impact player teams thought he could be when he first came into the NFL.
Raiders Must Draft Better
Despite being considered a draft expert during his time working at NFL Network, Mayock had a very poor track record of drafting once he became a general manager. His poor drafting likely set the Raiders back a few years. Thanks to that, current general manager Dave Ziegler has much less wiggle room.
He finally had a chance to put together a full draft class for the first time and while there were some questionable picks (wide receiver Tre Tucker in the third round), the consensus was that the Raiders put together a good draft class this year. Time will tell if Ziegler found some difference-makers but the early signs are promising. If he struggles the same way Mayock did in the draft, the Raiders will be in a very bad spot.
Thayer Munford Humbled by Maxx Crosby & Chandler Jones
Ziegler didn’t get much of a chance to show what he could do in the draft last year as the team traded away their first and second-round picks to land Davante Adams. However, he did make some interesting picks. One of the best picks he made was landing offensive tackle Thayer Munford Jr. in the seventh round. He ended up playing pivotal snaps as a rookie and could have a bright future.
Mayer recently opened up about his rookie season and revealed how he was humbled by a couple of Raiders star defensive linemen.
“Usually I’m used to beating everybody, like every one-on-one rep,” Munford said of his rookie year to the Akron Beacon Journal. “But now I’m like, I’m not really beating everybody because I’m going against Maxx Crosby and Chandler Jones and it’s like, they’re pretty freaking good.
“It’s like, how can I get myself through this so I can be the best version of myself?”
Things could get even tougher for Munford in practice this year with the team drafting Tyree Wilson with the No. 7 pick.