B-
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders left with their quarterback, and a B- to match.
by Grumzy ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 4 steals
· 3 reaches
The search is over. The Raiders handed the keys to Fernando Mendoza, and the whole operation now runs on his development.
They are betting Murdock proves the room right and everyone else wrong. However the rest shakes out, Everette at that price is a win they earned.
The edge rusher hole is the one line item this class does not answer. The roster is better shaped than it was, with cornerback chief among the fixes.
Add it up and it is a good, unfussy class.
Pick-by-Pick
In No. 1 they get a long-term answer under center. A clean fit for the roster.
Denzel Boston in slot 36 is fine work, a shade of surplus and no downside. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
A.J. Haulcy in the 67th overall pick is a bargain the rest of the room will envy. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Steal is underselling it; Daylen Everette at Round 4, Pick 2 is a heist with the alarm still ringing. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
Nice patience on Jalon Kilgore, who had no business lasting to pick 118. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
They stopped a slide they were happy to see, landing Will Lee III in the Round 4 slot. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Red Murdock at pick No. 175 is an overdraft of the loud, memorable kind. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
J'Mari Taylor at the 185th pick is a conviction pick that outran the value. It fills a real need, too.
This one needs a full-page explanation: Kaelon Black in the Round 6 slot, miles early. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
They took Riley Nowakowski at par in the 219th overall pick, which is nothing to complain about. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.