B-
Las Vegas Raiders
No fireworks, just a tidy B- for the Raiders.
by ggx1 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 4 steals
· 4 reaches
When the story of this class is written, it opens with Kyle McCord at pick 106, a reach of 115 spots that the board flatly disagrees with. Call it a sensible B-, earned the boring way.
Getting Paul Jr. where they did is the sort of value that quietly makes a class. They punted on edge rusher, and it is the miss that keeps the grade honest. Job largely done: wide receiver settled and 5 of 8 of the wish list covered.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 8 they get a long-term starter on the line at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
They jumped the gun on Dylan Fairchild, taking him earlier than his grade liked. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Circle this one: Omarion Hampton at pick No. 69 is a fall that decides a draft. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
No edge and no loss on Jayden Higgins in pick 70; it is a wash and a sensible one. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Kyle McCord. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Kevin Winston Jr. at Round 5, Pick 9 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A minor itch, scratched.
You do not let a linebacker like Chris Paul Jr. reach the Round 6 slot and blink. They did not. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Thor Griffith in No. 212 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. It fills a real need, too.
Elijhah Badger at pick 216 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
Taking Ollie Gordon II in the 223rd overall pick is close to grand larceny; a running back that good had no business lasting this long. The roster fit checks out.