B
Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders bet the future on Penix Jr.. The board says B.
by sportelaspgmailcom ·
2024 NFL Draft
· 8 picks
· 5 steals
· 0 reaches
When a board-topper like Jaylin Simpson slides to pick 223, you do not overthink it, and the Raiders did not.
So much rides on Michael Penix Jr. that the rest of the class almost grades on a curve behind him. They will regret leaving edge rusher for another day if the season turns on it. The hoard sets up next April more than it helps this September.
The dealing tilted against them, just enough to notice.
Not a headline-grabber, but a perfectly good weekend's work.
Pick-by-Pick
You do not let a quarterback like Michael Penix Jr. reach the 28th overall pick and blink. They did not. It patches a soft spot without any drama.
Ennis Rakestraw Jr. at slot 35 is neither steal nor reach, just the going rate. A must-fix position, and they treated it like one.
Kiran Amegadjie slipping to the 77th overall pick is the kind of luck good rooms make for themselves. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
A clean, defensible pick in the 112th pick with a little surplus value in Zak Zinter. The biggest hole on the depth chart just got a whole lot smaller.
A market-rate wide receiver, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Tyrone Tracy Jr.. Better still, it is exactly the hole they had to fill.
A wide receiver of that caliber at the Round 6 slot is the definition of value, full stop. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
They robbed the room for Jaylin Simpson here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
Fabien Lovett at slot 229 is a first-round grade at a bargain-bin price, no notes. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.