C+
Las Vegas Raiders
A passer of the future in Simpson, and a C+, for the Raiders.
by yesyeyse ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 12 picks
· 7 steals
· 4 reaches
You build a draft on nights like this. Keionte Scott had no business being available in the Round 4 slot, and the Raiders did the only sane thing and turned in the card.
Whatever Ty Simpson becomes, the front office has tied its fortunes to the answer. The Crownover reach is the anchor dragging on the value grade.
The edge rusher hole is the one line item this class does not answer. They were the ones paying the moving tax this weekend.
So much rides on Ty Simpson that the real verdict is a season or two away.
Pick-by-Pick
In the 6th pick they get their guy under center for the next decade, even if it was a touch early. A clean fit for the roster.
Makai Lemon in No. 33 is a gift, value that borders on unfair. Top of the wish list, and they did not leave without it.
Olaivavega Ioane at pick No. 36 is the sort of value that quietly wins a weekend. They walked in needing this and walked out with it.
They let Chris Johnson come to them and pounced at slot 44. That was the need underlined and circled, and now it is checked off.
You do not let a wide receiver like Jordyn Tyson reach No. 70 and blink. They did not. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A market-rate interior defensive lineman, with the board and the slot shaking hands on Darrell Jackson Jr.. A real hole, addressed with a reasonable pick.
A big swing on Dametrious Crownover at Round 4, Pick 17, well ahead of any board in the building. The one spot they could not leave alone, and did not.
Keionte Scott at pick 134 is the steal of the weekend, a first-round talent at a bargain-bin price. A glaring weakness, addressed head on.
Quietly one of the better values of the day, Demond Claiborne at the 175th overall pick. It shores up a spot that genuinely needed the help.
A reach on VJ Payne in the Round 6 slot; the board had better options right there. Useful body for a position without much behind the starter.
Miles Kitselman in pick No. 208 is early enough to raise a brow, if not a full objection. A need, and now a little less of one.
Aamil Wagner in pick 219 should not have been possible, and that is the whole point. It answers the question that was keeping the coaches up at night.