B-
Las Vegas Raiders
A passer of the future in Mendoza, and a B-, for the Raiders.
by Grumzy ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 5 steals
· 2 reaches
After circling the position for what felt like forever, the Raiders committed. Fernando Mendoza is the quarterback now, and the roster gets built to his timeline. More right than wrong, and a B- to match.
Demmings falling to them is the kind of break a good board is built to catch. That edge rusher hole did not close this weekend, and it was the biggest one on the wall. Spending an early pick on safety with edge rusher and offensive lineman open is the decision the grade keeps circling back to.
Every board in the league had Black lower, and that gap is the story.
All told, a solid class that does its job everywhere but edge rusher.
Pick-by-Pick
In slot 1 they get a passer to set the clock by. A real need, handled.
A slide stopped in pick 36, with Dillon Thieneman worth more than the price. A minor need, but a need all the same.
Zachariah Branch at No. 67 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Good things come to war rooms that wait, and Ted Hurst at Round 4, Pick 2 is the proof. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
The needs board was loud and they turned it down, spending pick No. 117 on Bud Clark with edge rusher and offensive lineman unsolved.
A premium they did not need to pay, Chris McClellan a notch or two before his time. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Charles Demmings at the 175th overall pick is daylight robbery; nobody expected him to last. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They let Bryce Boettcher come to them and pounced at the Round 6 slot. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
They reached a country mile for Kaelon Black at pick 208, and the board is aghast. A need, and now a little less of one.
They took Riley Nowakowski at par in No. 219, which is nothing to complain about. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.