B-
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders won the night they stopped Paul Jr. from sliding. Grade: B-.
by T ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 6 steals
· 3 reaches
The Raiders did not reach, did not trade up, did not blink. They just waited, and Chris Paul Jr. fell into pick No. 216. A sturdy weekend that grades out a B-.
They are betting Gabriel proves the room right and everyone else wrong. The edge rusher hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The weekend tilted hard toward the defense.
A workmanlike haul that should hold up just fine.
Pick-by-Pick
In Round 1, Pick 6 they get a lockdown presence outside. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
A tidy bit of business in pick No. 37, where Jalon Walker graded well above the range. It adds depth where they could use a little.
Tez Johnson in No. 68 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Dillon Gabriel in the 73rd pick, miles early. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Devin Neal in the Round 4 slot is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. A need, and now a little less of one.
They barely believed it either: Deontae Lawson still on the board at the 142nd overall pick. They added to a strength when a need was still open elsewhere.
The board fumbled Cam Skattebo all the way to pick 178, and they scooped it up. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Shilo Sanders in slot 212 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
A top-tier linebacker at a bargain, Chris Paul Jr. in pick No. 216, plain and simple. Insurance at a position that did not really ask for it.
Value with a capital V on Miles Frazier in No. 222, a genuine coup. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.