Raiders 2018 NFL Draft Roundup

Welcome in to the 2018 Raiders NFL Draft recap. This year's draft is in the books and quite frankly, there is a lot of mixed reactions on the Raiders' draft class of 2018. Let's go through all the picks and what I think about them based on first impressions through highlights, draft profile reading, etc.

Round 1

#15 (Trade Down with Arizona): Kolton Miller, T, UCLA

The Raiders opened up going the safe route, selecting Miller out of UCLA. I've read a couple of reports that they were pondering on taking an offensive tackle and most of them linked the Raiders to Mike McGlinchey out of Notre Dame. Clearly, the 49ers took him with the #9 overall pick, making the Raiders trade down with the Cardinals that wounded up being the Josh Rosen selection. I heard that Miller was at best a late first rounder and likely would fall further to the third round of the draft. He's what you'd expect: a big, quick footed athlete. His best strength is his pass protection. But everything else, there's nothing else special to pinpoint about him. Offensive lineman is not always a sexy pick, especially in the first round. And I thought the Raiders could've gotten better value or made a better selection to possibly help the defensive side of the ball since I heard there were a couple of good defensive prospects the Raiders missed out on during the first round. But understandably, the Raiders made the pick to replace Donald Penn in the long run and they need to help keep the "$125 million man" Derek Carr upright before he sustains another major injury in three seasons, especially playing in the AFC West filled with vaunted pass-rushers (Denver especially added coveted pass-rusher Bradley Chubb with their fifth overall pick). In the short-term, Miller is expected to solidify the right side of the O-line. In the long-term, he's gonna be Carr's blindside protector.

Martavis Bryant Acquired

This was a boom-or-bust trade that the Raiders made before the end of Day 1 of the draft. They sent a third round pick to the Steelers in order to get Martavis Bryant. At first, I was excited for this, then I realized, he's one bong hit away from indefinite suspension. On the field, he was a solid complementary deep threat receiver to Antonio Brown. But his off the field issues with weed hindered most of his career. And he fell off on the Steelers' depth chart with the emergence of JuJu Smith-Schuster last season. If he stays clean, he, Nelson, and Coop can form a scary trio of wide receivers since they all can stretch the field. He's also in a contract year, so that should give Bryant some extra juice to stay on the field and prove his worth. This could also spell the end of Seth Roberts. The Raiders attempted to shop Roberts around during the draft, but they couldn't find a suitor.

Round 2

#57 (Trade Down with Tennessee): P.J. Hall, DT, Sam Houston State

I was looking at his highlights provided by NFL Network/Fox's coverage of the draft and all they emphasized on P.J. Hall was him playing special teams and getting some big push up the middle to block field goals. Not the kind of highlights you want to see from a 2nd round pick coming out of Division II football. This is a selection I felt that the Raiders could've made in the later rounds. I did read about Hall's stats, racking up 42 sacks, 86.5 tackles for loss throughout his college career. I feel a little bit good about that, but Division II competition can inflate those stats just a little bit. It's not always impossible for a player to come from a Division II school and dominate the league though. Khalil Mack knows a thing or two about that. At best, he's a rotational piece in pass rush situations. But, he could make an impact on special teams. He's likely filling the void Denico Autry left behind as a rotational inside rusher and a disruptor on special teams.

Round 3

#65 (Trade with Baltimore): Brandon Parker, T, North Carolina A&T

Second straight pick that the Raiders selected a player in a Division II school. According to some scouts, Parker is still a raw talent with potential. This is a project pick that the Raiders are investing in. As I said with the Kolton Miller selection, the Raiders are beefing up the O-line to ensure that Derek Carr stays clean in the pocket and avoid any potential injury in a vaunted AFC West filled with big time pass rushing defense


#87 (Trade up with LA Rams): Arden Key, EDGE, LSU

This is the pick where I thought the Raiders finally righted the ship after a couple of safe picks and gambles in the first three rounds. I heard that Arden Key was a first round talent. Concerns about his character was the ideal reason he slipped out to the third round. As the old saying goes, you can never have too many pass rushers on the team. Highlights-wise, Key just shows absolute relentlessness in getting after the quarterback and punishing them to the ground. What stands out to me, from what I heard, is that he has an Aldon Smith-like ceiling. If he can unlock that early on, he can make up for the triple threat that was to be Khalil Mack, Bruce Irvin, and Aldon Smith, but Aldon could not stay out of trouble. Clearly, the Shilique Calhoun experiment didn't work out and two years later, the Raiders are trying again to add a third pass rusher that'll keep Mack and Irvin fresh off the edge.

Round 4

#110: Nick Nelson, DB, Wisconsin

The Raiders continue the massive overhaul of the defensive backfield. When I saw quick highlights of Nelson when the pick was announced on Bleacher Report, Nelson is grabby with receivers when defending a pass. He can get away with that under college rules. But, those kinds of plays in the NFL will get Nelson flagged for PI 99.9% of the time. He'll have to clean up his technique when it comes to providing physical coverage against opposing receivers.



Round 5

#140 (Trade up with Indianapolis): Maurice Hurst, DT, Michigan

This is a guy whom I've read about constantly prior to the draft. And I can't believe that the Raiders were still able to get him in the fifth round. This is a steal right here. If you look at his highlights, he is the ideal interior pass rusher that the Raiders need in order to free up Khalil Mack and Bruce Irvin. He provides great push up the middle and is as disruptive as can be. The reason he fell off was because teams were concerned about his heart condition. But, doctors were able to clear him, which is great news. This makes up for the Raiders passing up on Star Lotuleilei 5 years ago in the 2013 draft because of similar circumstances. The depth of the Defensive Tackle positions just a lot stronger with Justin Ellis, Mario Edwards Jr., Eddie Vanderdoes, PJ Hall, and now Maurice Hurst on board.



#173: Johnny Townsend, P, Florida

I remember reading that the Raiders had their eyes on Townsend when they cut Marquette King in the first place. Townsend set a lot of school records as a punter for the Gators, including leading the nation in punting average-yards. Nothing much to say here.







Round 6

#216: Azeem Victor, LB, Washington

Azeem Victor just has a knack to finish defensive plays. He's a hard hitter and at the same time, he knows how to wrap up and tackle. Most players looking for the big hit forget the tackling part and it drives Defensive Coordinators crazy. Victor slipped out because of off the field and weight issues. He'll need to overcome that to unlock his potential. Interesting enough, he draws comparisons to Vontaze Burfict in terms of being physical and aggressive. He certainly fits the mold of Paul Guenther's system and will look to prove that.

Round 7

#228: Marcell Ateman, WR, Oklahoma State

Ateman is your prototypical big wide receiver that can get up and grab the football, especially in the end zone. He's also a very solid route runner and has YAC potential based on his highlights. The Raiders could use a big target. They lacked that last season since they let Andre Holmes walk.










Conclusion

Day 1 and Day 2 were largely underwhelming for the Raiders. They went safe in the first round, passing over other prospects that could make an immediate impact. They picked up two small school projects early on when they could've waited into the later rounds to get them. The trade for Martavis Bryant and the Arden Key selection in the third round minimized further disappointment. But, they finished strong with their picks in Day 3, especially nabbing Maurice Hurst in Round 5. That's a big time steal right there. Justifying the draft strategy, Reggie and Gruden were focused on beefing up the trenches on both sides of the ball and lining up potential long-term replacements down the line when the veterans depart. They weren't gunning for more impact players that can help now. They believe they already have impact players on the team right now outside of the 2014 draft class. It's just that injuries and lack of coaching hindered their development. This is a boom-or-bust approach the Raiders are taking on with the personnel they have on the roster for the upcoming season.

Grade: C