B
Las Vegas Raiders
Sanders is the plan now, and the Raiders grade out a B.
by Doughnut ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 5 steals
· 3 reaches
Call it larceny. Brashard Smith sat on the board until pick No. 222, and the Raiders did not need to be asked twice. It does the job without flash, and the B reflects it.
The whole projection now runs through Shedeur Sanders; hit there and everything else looks smarter. Smith has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced. For all the activity, edge rusher went untouched, which is hard to explain.
It is a bet on later, and a defensible one for a team playing the long game.
Bottom line, more hits than misses and a roster nudged the right way.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 6th pick they get a long-term answer under center. A clean fit for the roster.
A quiet steal in pick No. 37: Emeka Egbuka for less than the market said. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They jumped the gun on Charles Grant, taking him earlier than his grade liked. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Deontae Lawson in slot 107 is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Sebastian Castro at Round 5, Pick 5 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Jaylin Smith at pick No. 179 is a steep price for a hunch, hard to square with any board. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.
Addison West at the 212th pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They reached a country mile for DJ Uiagalelei at No. 216, and the board is aghast. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Brashard Smith in pick 222 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. It fills a real need, too.