B-
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders left with their quarterback, and a B- to match.
by WattsRaider ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 2 steals
· 5 reaches
The rest of the league will want that one back. Ollie Gordon II tumbling to the Raiders in pick No. 215 is a gift they did not have to think twice about.
They will need Higgins to outplay his draft slot in a hurry to justify it. Cam Ward is the bet, and the class will be judged on how it pays off. For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain.
Bottom line, more hits than misses and a roster nudged the right way.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 4th pick they get a passer to set the clock by. A real need, handled.
Jordan James at Round 2, Pick 4 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Jayden Higgins at the Round 3 slot is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They reached into another round for Jack Nelson, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Circle this one: Smael Mondon Jr. at the 106th pick is a fall that decides a draft. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Donovan Jackson at pick 142 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A real head-scratcher, Kyren Lacy in No. 179 is miles ahead of his ranking. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A wild overpay on Thor Griffith in the 212th overall pick, the sort that defines a class for the wrong reasons. A need, and now a little less of one.
Ollie Gordon II at pick No. 215 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.