B+
Las Vegas Raiders
Mendoza is the plan now, and the Raiders grade out a B+.
by ezekiel ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 9 picks
· 1 steals
· 1 reaches
Call it belief, call it a gut call, but Eric Gentry at slot 219 is 133 spots clear of consensus, and that is the headline. Nothing here to lose sleep over; call it a B+.
So much rides on Fernando Mendoza that the rest of the class almost grades on a curve behind him. The trade ledger is the best part of the whole weekend. If one pick saves this weekend, it is McNeil-Warren.
They will regret leaving edge rusher for another day if the season turns on it.
All told, a draft that does its job without fuss, and there is real value in that.
Pick-by-Pick
In pick No. 2 they get the arm they will build around. A clean fit for the roster.
In the 16th pick they get a home-run threat at receiver at fair value. It fills the loudest need on the roster.
They took Emmanuel Pregnon at par in pick 36, which is nothing to complain about. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Emmanuel McNeil-Warren in Round 3, Pick 3. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
A clean, defensible pick in No. 102 with a little surplus value in Ja'Kobi Lane. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They did well to land Davison Igbinosun in the Round 4 slot, just ahead of his grade. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
No edge and no loss on DeMonte Capehart in No. 134; it is a wash and a sensible one. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
A straight-up fair deal on Zane Durant at the Round 5 slot, value and slot in agreement. Another box on the needs board, quietly ticked.
They talked themselves into Eric Gentry at slot 219, and the board did not agree. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.