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The Las Vegas Raiders are almost definitely going to be in the quarterback market this offseason and there’s starting to be a lot of smoke surrounding Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders. Recently, his father and head coach Deion Sanders hinted that there could be some mutual interest there.
The Shedeur Sanders to the Raiders rumors will only be stronger after the quarterback decided to attend a Las Vegas Aces game. Notably, after the game, Sanders chatted with Raiders owner Mark Davis.
Davis told Sanders that he watches all his games and then dropped a very telling line.
“Who knows, you may be home right now,” Davis told Sanders.
That seems like a pretty straightforward comment from Davis. He likes Sanders and wouldn’t be opposed to him playing for the Raiders. That said, Davis is not known to meddle too heavily in his front office so if general manager Tom Telesco doesn’t think Sanders is an NFL quarterback, the team probably won’t draft him.
Davis is starved for a star quarterback. The Raiders have had a difficult time growing a stable fan base in Las Vegas and the quickest way to fix that is to get a dynamic and young franchise quarterback. Time will tell if Sanders is that guy but he’s definitely on the Raiders’ radar.
Raiders Projected to Draft Shedeur Sanders
Sanders has cemented himself as one of the best quarterbacks in college football. He’s led Colorado to a 4-1 record and has thrown 14 touchdowns to just three interceptions this season.
A potential problem facing the Raiders is that there should be many teams interested in Sanders’ services. However, some believe he could fall in the draft. Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus recently projected Las Vegas to take him with the No. 21 pick.
“There’s a strong chance the Raiders will look to make a splash at quarterback after missing out in the last draft class. Sanders seems like a potential fit for them, regardless of where they’re drafting,” Sikkema wrote in an October 2 mock draft. “His poise and performance under pressure at Colorado instill confidence that he could step in and start immediately. His 90.6 passing grade is currently the third-highest in the FBS.”
If the Raiders could get a franchise quarterback without having to trade up, that would be a massive win for the franchise.
Raiders Can’t Afford to Wait
The Raiders have been patient trying to find their next franchise quarterback and it’s not paying off. The team is struggling to score points and hasn’t won a playoff game since 2002 in large part due to poor quarterback play.
The last time the Raiders drafted a quarterback in the first round was 2007 when they took JaMarcus Russell with the No. 1 pick. He ended up being arguably the biggest draft bust in NFL history so it’s easy to understand why the team has been apprehensive to take a quarterback early.
However, the Raiders aren’t going to even sniff a Super Bowl until they figure out how to upgrade the quarterback situation. This has to be the year the team makes a full-court press to draft a quarterback. If they decide to wait again, it’s going to be another long year in 2025.
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