B-
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders finally solved quarterback, and it carried them to a B-.
by DameGame ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 18 picks
· 2 steals
· 4 reaches
The Raiders spent real capital to be 71 picks early on Matt Lee, and the board is going to hold them to it.
Everything downstream of Jayden Daniels depends on Jayden Daniels, and the building knows it. They robbed the room blind at the table, and it lifts the grade on its own.
A whole weekend of picks and tight end is somehow still a want. They will answer for taking DT-EDGE early while tight end and interior defensive lineman went begging.
That is an edge rusher worth more than the slot they spent on him, plainly.
Solid rather than spectacular, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 8th overall pick they get a long-term answer under center. A real need, handled.
Xavier Worthy at pick No. 50 is right where the board had him, plain and simple. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A market-rate cornerback, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Kris Abrams-Draine. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They took Khyree Jackson at par in No. 82, which is nothing to complain about. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Austin Booker at pick 96 is money in the bank, a edge rusher taken below his worth. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
A curious use of the Round 3 slot. Tight end and interior defensive lineman needed the pick; a DT-EDGE in Maason Smith did not.
Isaac Guerendo in the 107th pick is exactly on the number, no argument either way. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
No drama and no debate, James Williams went about where he belonged in Round 4, Pick 19. A minor itch, scratched.
A conviction pick on Johnny Wilson at the Round 4 slot that the board grades a round light. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
A quiet steal in No. 148: Christian Jones for less than the market said. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
Roger Rosengarten in pick 149 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
Nothing to complain about; Kitan Oladapo went a shade earlier than his grade, which is fine. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
Khristian Boyd in slot 171 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
By-the-book stuff, Steele Chambers at pick No. 187 squarely in line with his ranking. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Joe Milton III at No. 197 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. The roster fit checks out.
No edge and no loss on Nathaniel Watson in pick 208; it is a wash and a sensible one. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
They reached into another round for Matt Lee, and the board is nowhere close to agreeing. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They paid sticker price for Javontae Jean-Baptiste in Round 7, Pick 9, and that is fine. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.