Oakland Raiders 2015 NFL Draft Selections (Rounds 4-7) + Final Grade

Conclusion:

*Changes to grade and research are closed once conclusion is posted*

Overall, this was a pretty good draft McKenzie put together. It wasn't as good as 2014, but it's up there and McKenzie has addressed areas of concern in the early rounds. Were there better prospects that the Raiders passed up? Absolutely. Drafting Amari Cooper started the fireworks, then Mario Edwards, Jr. getting selected in the 2nd round, left us "iffy" because Preston Smith and Owa Odigizuhwa were better prospects in my opinion, Clive Walford built our excitement back up, then the amount of linebackers selected had us in anxiety because we want Reggie to start focusing on other priorities like secondary help. But we're just all online GMs and not professional scouts and they won't pick the player we want them pick sometimes. But final thoughts, it's a solid draft, it's not legendary like last year's draft where the Raiders snagged 4 starters in the first four rounds and 1 in the 7th round, but it adds more pieces to help cornerstones, Khalil Mack and Derek Carr, to drive this franchise towards perennial playoff contention in the near future.

Final Grade: B+

Round 7: Pick 242, Dexter McDonald, CB, Kansas

Highlights:

Comment: We've been crying for some help in the secondary, possibly screaming if there's any and finally the Raiders have addressed that by using their final pick on Dexter McDonald out of Kansas. Raiders are taking another page out of the Seahawks' playbook of getting tall, lengthy corners and McDonald is the latest tall corner drafted by the Raiders. This guy managed to hold his own against 7th pick, Kevin White in the highlights. According to his profile, he can play press, very disruptive, needs a little polishing in being a physical corner and he can be over-aggressive with his hands leading to some PIs. Nonetheless, it's a good value pick and adds needed help for the cornerback position, in fact, probably increases the competition with McGill, Carrie, and Thorpe to start opposite of D.J. Hayden.

Grade: A-

Round 7: Pick 221, Andre Debose, WR, Florida

Highlights:

Comment: Mike Mayock says he has a potential to be scary and was projected to be the next Percy Harvin. After looking at his highlights, all I can say "holy sh*t." This guy can give the Raiders an electric kick/punt returner, something we haven't seen since Jacoby Ford was drafted back in 2010. Forget reading the scouting profile, this guy can be an instant contributor on special teams right away. He showed flashes to be a deep threat as well. Now looking at more reports on him, he is a bit older at 25 years old and had off the field issues and likely a risk-reward guy and Reggie takes chances at players with red flags at this point of the draft. But, my goodness, if this guy makes the roster and works to his potential, it's a pick your poison situation when Carr is going for the deep ball whether the defense double teams Cooper or Debose, but likely he is going to be a big time contributor and bring that energy and electricity to special teams we haven't seen in a while since Jacoby Ford.

Grade: B+

Round 7: Pick 218, Anthony Morris, OT, Tennessee Tech

Highlights:

Comment: Usually, the 7th round goes by really fast, so I'll make this short and quick. Morris is another big lineman, he's pretty decent at run blocking and pass protection and he can pull too, I'll give him that. If I can see his scouting profile, it would be convenient, but he's likely there for depth and again, it addresses the need and fortifies the O-line depth.

Grade: B

Round 6: Pick 179, Max Valles, LB, Virginia 

Highlights: 

Comment: Surprise! Another linebacker. Three linebackers in a row the Raiders went. Looking at this guy and reading his scouting profile, he's big, athletic, and he can play on the dirt or play standing up. The guy is still raw and needs to be coached up in terms of technique, instinct, and footwork as a pass rusher. The Louisville game as showed above shows his athleticism, batting down passes a la J.J. Watt. Not saying that he's the next J.J. Watt or anything. You can't get enough of linebackers, but I was hoping the Raiders would start addressing the secondary or continually bolster the d-line or o-line, but this guy is projected to play more defensive end since the Raiders drafted him as a DE. I see this guy as a project under Del Rio, Norton, and Sunseri.

Grade: B-

Round 5: Pick 161, Neiron Ball, LB, Florida

Highlights: N/A

Comment: Man, hearing his 12 minute video about him and his brain surgery reminds me of D.J. Hayden and his story after suffering a near-death experience. The guy had brain surgery in 2011 and worked his way up to get back to finish his collegiate career with the Gators. Looking at his profile, he's a versatile linebacker able to play inside and outside and can play the 4-3 or 3-4. He doesn't give up on the play, he's a viable asset to special teams. Of course the concern is that can he get back to top notch health because the NFL plays at a much faster pace. Not to mention, he's battled a lot of injuries in his young career. The Raiders picked two linebackers in the 5th round, it wasn't too much of a need at this point considering the core is stacked, but you have to root for this guy to have a fairy tale ending by being in the NFL and I think he's going to be a valuable asset on special teams and needed in some situations.

Grade: C+

Round 5: Pick 140, Ben Heeney, LB, Kansas

Highlights: 

Comment: He has that old school Raider look with that beard on. From what I'm hearing, this guy has "steal" written all over him a la Chris Borland. From the highlights, Heeney is really a run stuffer and according to his profile, he has posted up "eye-opening" numbers for tackles for loss in his collegiate career. This is a guy, even if a running back gets a hole, he doesn't give up on the play until that running back gets tackled and he barely allows offenses to run up on him for a TD in the end zone. He has pretty good awareness on the ball, but again highlights only tell a tiny bit of the story than a full breakdown. Looking at his profile again, he tends to struggle against bigger, more powerful linemen and last season he was the nation's leader in missed tackles. That's definitely an area of concern because it's like the Raiders drafted another Miles Burris, but I think he has the potential to be better than Burris, only time will tell.

Grade: A-

Round 4: Pick 128, Jon Feliciano, G, Miami

Highlights: N/A

Comment: So the Raiders apparently traded down twice in the 4th round and finally at pick 128, the Raiders select Jon Feliciano out of Miami. So they selected a player out of the U for two consecutive rounds and he's another big body interior lineman. 6-2, 323 pounds and this guy has played left tackle, guard, right tackle, so he's pretty versatile. From the scouting profile, he's effective in the short pull game, so definitely he will be an asset in the run game, decent awareness against the pass rush, allowing just 4 sacks in his entire collegiate career. Some weaknesses include that he has short arms, lacks quickness, and his hand placement can be a mess at times. Most of Feliciano's weaknesses can be coached under Mike Tice, but overall this is a pretty good pick. The Raiders needed a guard and beef up that O-line to give Carr more protection and make this up-tempo offense work. Yeah there were better prospects the Raiders could've taken like Tre Jackson, but Feliciano will be coached up and compete for the starting job at right guard.

Grade: A-

Oakland Raiders 2015 NFL Draft Selections (Rounds 2-3)

Round 3: Pick 68 Clive Walford, TE, Miami

Highlights:

Comment: Are you sure this guy is a Tight End? Looking at this guy's highlights, this guy can not only catch in the middle, but he can catch on the outside. He can run after the catch, he fights for extra yards, you can line him up almost anywhere, and he can make contested catches. Some of his weaknesses though, he has to improve on his blocking. Reading from the profile, he's gradually improving in that aspect. Other weaknesses do indicate he struggles with some drops and his speed can be somewhat misleading just from interpreting from what the scouts say. But I say this is a great pick for the Raiders as it gives Derek Carr more weapons offensively and if Walford continuously improves his blocking while being that ideal security blanket, Mychal Rivera's days could be numbered with the Raiders, although it would be wise to keep both, especially in the red zone if the Raiders are going to draw up end zone pass plays in a two tight end set.

Grade: A-

Round 2: Pick 35 Mario Edwards Jr., DE, Florida State

Highlights:

Comment: I have a feeling that this has Linebackers Coach Sal Sunseri's name written all over this pick considering he was the Defensive Ends Coach for the Seminoles last year. Some of the notes that I read off Edwards is that he can play in either a 4-3 or a 3-4 as defensive tackle in a 4-3 or defensive end in a 3-4; he's like a poor man's Leonard Williams. Looking at his highlights, he's pretty solid at stuffing the run and doesn't get fooled very often when teams are running read option plays, play action, or any other trick plays. He just stays home and wait for the play to develop before he could make a play. Reading his weaknesses, it is said that he doesn't have any explosiveness when coming off the edge and it depends on his weight on which position he can play whether end or tackle. If he's over 300, he's playing DT, but if he can shed some of that weight, he is able to play DE. I really don't know about this pick; he was projected to end up in the 3rd round. I look at this as a project pick for the Raiders a la Menelik Watson. I thought Preston Smith or Owamagbe Odighizuwa would be the pick if the Raiders were to address the need at defensive end. Mario Edwards fills a need, but I think this was somewhat of a reach to take him that early in the 2nd round.

Grade: B+

AC/DC Amari Cooper & Derek Carr Wallpaper Version 1.0

What up Raider Nation, MechG here again. Anyway, I'm sure we're still excited about the Raiders selecting Amari Cooper at #4 to help out Derek Carr and the offense. Here, I present to you a wallpaper (1st draft) made by yours truly. Be sure to right click and save if you want this wallpaper. AC/DC, it's gonna be a great WR-QB duo for years to come.

Oakland Raiders 2015 NFL Draft Selections (Round 1)

Round 1: Pick 4 Amari Cooper, WR, Alabama

Highlights:

Comment: The draft so far was all according to plan. Winston to Tampa, Mariota to Tennessee, Fowler to Jacksonville, that left the Raiders' draft open and all down to Leonard Williams or Amari Cooper. It was a toss up between helping Mack or helping Carr and the Raiders chose to help Carr by selecting Cooper at #4. I was never mad either way. I was torn between Williams and Cooper the past few days. Now that's over with and Amari Cooper is an Oakland Raider. I'll tell you this, he is the sole reason I was following Alabama football during the season. The game where I saw him in action for the first time was against the Florida Gators. As Blake Sims threw a deep ball, I see a #9 wide open with all green around him and I was like "who is this guy?" The more I see highlights and tape of Amari Cooper, this guy is always getting open in some way or some form. He possesses excellent route running, he finds ways to elude the defender around him and he's got smooth hands when he catches the ball. You can line him up literally anywhere, in the slot, on a screen pass, on a deep ball, etc. He can go for the jump ball too, I've seen 'Bama call a couple plays in games in the red zone where they just jump ball it to Cooper, but ultimately, the versatility that Cooper has with his route running and his deep ball, even his work ethic is the reason why I wanted the Raiders to pick him and give Carr a new toy to throw the deep ball to. Now the playbook is wide open for the Raiders to run the no huddle that Musgrave is drawing up, heading into the season.

Grade: A