B
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders robbed the room for Cowing. Final grade: B.
by Eddieerd ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 13 picks
· 4 steals
· 3 reaches
The rest of the league will want that one back. Jacob Cowing tumbling to the Raiders in No. 171 is a gift they did not have to think twice about. They moved the roster forward and banked a B for it.
Laube has a lot of ground to make up just to look fairly priced. They covered a lot of ground and still skipped edge rusher, which is a strange place to end up.
The dealing nudged the ledger their way without much fuss. Job largely done: cornerback settled and 6 of 8 of the wish list covered.
All told, a draft that does its job without fuss, and there is real value in that.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 26 they get a blindside protector, outstanding value to boot. The biggest hole, addressed.
Jackson Powers-Johnson at pick No. 44 is money in the bank, a offensive lineman taken below his worth. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A tidy bit of business in the 48th pick, where Ennis Rakestraw Jr. graded well above the range. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Jermaine Burton in the 77th overall pick is fair value, right on his grade. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
By-the-book stuff, Khyree Jackson at the Round 3 slot squarely in line with his ranking. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Theo Johnson in slot 112 lands just on the right side of the ledger. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A market-rate safety, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tykee Smith. Not urgent, but hardly pointless.
They jumped the gun on Marist Liufau, taking him earlier than his grade liked. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
Dylan Laube at No. 150 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
No edge and no loss on Decamerion Richardson in the 168th overall pick; it is a wash and a sensible one. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
No drama and no debate, Jordan Jefferson went about where he belonged in pick 170. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Jacob Cowing at pick No. 171 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
A reach on Jase McClellan in the Round 6 slot; the board had better options right there. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.