B-
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders found their guy under center in Mendoza: B-.
by Grumzy ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 10 picks
· 2 steals
· 4 reaches
The search is over. The Raiders handed the keys to Fernando Mendoza, and the whole operation now runs on his development. Call it a sensible B-, earned the boring way.
They will need Nowakowski to outplay his draft slot in a hurry to justify it. If this class has a fault line, it runs straight through edge rusher.
The Smith pick reads as want over need, and the roster will feel it at edge rusher and offensive lineman. The Smith steal is the beam this whole class leans on.
Good work on the whole, with edge rusher the one box left unchecked.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 1st pick they get a long-term answer under center. A real need, handled.
A market-rate safety, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Dillon Thieneman. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
A clean, defensible pick in pick 67 with a little surplus value in Zachariah Branch. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Treydan Stukes in No. 102 lands just on the right side of the ledger. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
They bypassed pressing needs at edge rusher and offensive lineman to take Genesis Smith, a safety that was not the priority.
They jumped the gun on Chris McClellan, taking him earlier than his grade liked. It plugs a real leak on the depth chart.
Tanner Koziol is a better player than Round 5, Pick 35 suggests; smart patience, rewarded. A need, and now a little less of one.
Value said wait; Riley Nowakowski in pick No. 185 says they were not listening. A sensible fit that makes the depth chart a little sturdier.
A conviction pick on Kaelon Black at Round 6, Pick 27 that the board grades a round light. It fills a real need, too.
Eli Heidenreich in pick No. 219 is a bet on their own eyes over everyone else's grade. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.