F
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders drew a line under the quarterback search with Ward: F.
by Texxx ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 0 steals
· 7 reaches
The Raiders clearly saw something nobody else did in Will Sheppard, taking him 177 picks ahead of his grade. The board is not convinced. About as rough as the board gets, and a F to prove it.
Everything downstream of Cam Ward depends on Cam Ward, and the building knows it. The trades bled value they could not afford to lose.
They will regret leaving cornerback for another day if the season turns on it.
Bottom line, it will take a lot of luck to make this look better later.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 7 they get their quarterback of the future. A real need, handled.
In the Round 1 slot they get a cornerstone up front, though the board says they badly overpaid. Exactly the need they had to hit.
Will Sheppard at the 39th overall pick is the kind of overdraft that needs everything to break right. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They paid up for Nick Emmanwori at No. 71 when waiting would have done the job. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
Jonah Coleman at pick 92 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
Jasheen Davis in pick No. 103 is a reach so steep the board needed a second look to believe it. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Logan Brown at the 135th overall pick is right where the board had him, plain and simple. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They left a pile of value on the table to take Cody Simon this early at pick No. 167. Depth more than a fix, but depth they can use.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Akheem Mesidor in the 199th pick, miles early. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.