B
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders let Ayomanor fall and pounced. Final grade: B.
by Cuda21 ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 6 steals
· 3 reaches
The value of the weekend has a name and a slot: Elic Ayomanor, the 212th pick, roughly 116 picks past where he belonged. More right than wrong, and a B to match.
If Rourke pans out, nobody remembers the price. If not, this is the pick they hear about. The edge rusher spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at.
They went 5 of 8 on their needs, which is most of what a draft is for.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 6 they get an island corner at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Omarion Hampton at the Round 2 slot is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
Kurtis Rourke in slot 68 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Jalon Walker in Round 3, Pick 9 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
A quiet steal in the 107th overall pick: Kevin Winston Jr. for less than the market said. It adds depth where they could use a little.
They talked themselves into Dont'e Thornton Jr. at pick 142, and the board did not agree. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Jeffrey Bassa at No. 179 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. Depth on depth, at a spot that was hardly crying out.
You do not let a wide receiver like Elic Ayomanor reach the 212th pick and blink. They did not. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
They let Miles Frazier come to them and pounced at slot 216. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
A real head-scratcher, Nick Nash in No. 222 is miles ahead of his ranking. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.