D-
Las Vegas Raiders
A franchise passer in Sanders headlines a D- weekend for the Raiders.
by [email protected] ·
2025 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 4 steals
· 2 reaches
The war room fell hard for Nick Martin, and it showed at slot 218: 45 picks ahead of a board that had other ideas.
They lost the exchange badly enough to drag the whole class down. They have staked the next five years on Shedeur Sanders, which is the only story that really matters here. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher.
They banked enough surplus on Thornton Jr. to cover a lot of smaller sins. They are betting the present roster is worth a lighter draft next spring.
It is a steep hill from here, and the grade knows it.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 6 they get their quarterback of the future. A clean fit for the roster.
In Round 1, Pick 21 they get a true top target at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Kenneth Grant at pick 37 is the proof. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
A straight-up fair deal on Quinshon Judkins at the 68th overall pick, value and slot in agreement. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
Tate Ratledge in the Round 3 slot lands just on the right side of the ledger. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
They paid sticker price for Darien Porter in the 75th pick, and that is fine. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
Kevin Winston Jr. slipping to No. 107 is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
They reached a country mile for Oronde Gadsden II at the 144th pick, and the board is aghast. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
They took Raheim Sanders at par in pick No. 147, which is nothing to complain about. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
Circle this one: Bhayshul Tuten at Round 6, Pick 4 is a fall that decides a draft. It fills a real need, too.
Dont'e Thornton Jr. in the 214th overall pick is the kind of fall that makes a whole class. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Nick Martin at slot 218 is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.