RAIDERS MOCK DRAFT GRADE B-

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TakingShape17426 B-

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Letter grade with a four-component score, written analysis, and a pick-by-pick breakdown for every selection in this saved mock.

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B-

Las Vegas Raiders

The Raiders drew a line under the quarterback search with Mendoza: B-.

by Grumzy · 2026 NFL Draft · 10 picks · 4 steals · 3 reaches
Value B-
Need B
Trades B-
Future B-

They finally answered the question that shadows every other one. Fernando Mendoza is the Raiders' quarterback, full stop. Nothing here to lose sleep over; call it a B-.

The cost of the Black reach is exactly the players who went right after him. They banked enough surplus on Wheatley to cover a lot of smaller sins. 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.

In sum, a sturdy weekend with one asterisk, the edge rusher spot they never got to.

Pick-by-Pick

R1.1 · Pick 1 · Fernando Mendoza · QB · rank 4
In pick 1 they get their guy under center for the next decade. A clean fit for the roster.
R2.4 · Pick 36 · Chris Johnson · CB · rank 33
Good price on Chris Johnson in No. 36, a hair ahead of his grade with no real quibbles. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
R3.3 · Pick 67 · Lee Hunter · DT · rank 49
A top-tier interior defensive lineman at a bargain, Lee Hunter in the 67th pick, plain and simple. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
R4.2 · Pick 102 · Ted Hurst · WR · rank 89
Ted Hurst at the 102nd overall pick is money in the bank, a wide receiver taken below his worth. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
R4.17 · Pick 117 · Zakee Wheatley · S · rank 90
You do not let a safety like Zakee Wheatley reach Round 4, Pick 17 and blink. They did not. It thickens a room that could stand to be thicker.
R4.34 · Pick 134 · Jakobe Thomas · S · rank 140
Of all the spots to shop, they chose safety. Jakobe Thomas in pick No. 134 leaves edge rusher and offensive lineman for later.
R5.35 · Pick 175 · Kaelon Black · RB · rank 227
The board screamed and they did not listen, reaching into the next round for Kaelon Black. A sensible fit for a spot that needed help.
R6.4 · Pick 185 · Riley Nowakowski · TE · rank 225
Riley Nowakowski at the Round 6 slot is the pick scouts circle, and not in a good way. The roster fit checks out.
R6.27 · Pick 208 · Eli Heidenreich · WR · rank 252
They left a pile of value on the table to take Eli Heidenreich this early at the Round 6 slot. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
R7.3 · Pick 219 · VJ Payne · S · rank 201
They robbed the room for VJ Payne here, a fall nobody at the table saw coming. A want more than a need, though you can never have too many.
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