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Oakland Raiders 2018 NFL Mock Draft: Wild Card Weekend

By John Buhler

PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Quarterback Baker Mayfield No. 6 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks to avoid a sack by linebacker Roquan Smith No. 3 of the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
PASADENA, CA - JANUARY 01: Quarterback Baker Mayfield No. 6 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks to avoid a sack by linebacker Roquan Smith No. 3 of the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half in the 2018 College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual at the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2018 in Pasadena, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /
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You’re starting to see a trend here, right? The Raiders should be able to target a bunch of guys that either played in the College Football Playoff at some point of their collegiate careers. One guy that could be of huge value should he fall to the Silver and Black at No. 75 would be Alabama Crimson Tide defensive lineman Da’Ron Payne.

Though not as productive as Nick Saban and his staff would have liked, Payne has the frame to be a pain for offensive interior linemen at 6-foot-2, 308 pounds. He has the hardiness and possibly the leverage to be a great defensive tackle at the 3-technique. With Paul Guenther coming in to run the Raiders defense from the Cincinnati Bengals for Gruden, expect him to put a heavy emphasis on getting physical specimens in his front-seven.

Payne will be playing in the 2017 National Championship Game against the Georgia Bulldogs in Atlanta on Monday night. In three years at Alabama, Payne has 96 total tackles (36 solo, 60 assists), 5.0 for a loss of yardage, five pass breakups, 3.0 quarterback sacks, two fumble recoveries, a forced fumble and a 21-yard pick-six of Kelly Bryant in the 2018 Sugar Bowl last week.

Payne is coming off arguably his most notable game of his college career. Not only did he find pay dirt on the Bryant interception versus the Clemson Tigers, but he caught a pass as a tight end for the Crimson Tide. Payne is not the pro prospect of a Dontari Poe, as he hasn’t been nearly as productive in college. If he’s half of Poe, then he’s worth the No. 75 overall selection by the Raiders in 2018.

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