Oakland Raiders top 6 acquisitions during 2018 offseason
By Brad Weiss
6. Drafting Kolton Miller and Brandon Parker in the 2018 NFL Draft
Heading into the 2018 NFL Draft, the offensive tackle position was one of serious need for the Oakland Raiders. During the offseason, they had brought in Breno Giacomini to take over for Marshall Newhouse at right tackle.
Well, the Raiders made their play for a tackle in the first round, trading down to No. 15 with the Arizona Cardinals and selecting Kolton Miller from UCLA. Sure, Miller is not Mike McGlinchey, but at least he gives the Raiders a very talented, young player at the right tackle position in 2018.
With Miller in tow, the Raiders did not stop there, adding Brandon Parker from North Carolina A&T in the third round. Parker was an absolute beast during his time in college, and is going to seriously push himself up the depth chart this Summer.
After the draft, word came down that Vadal Alexander would be suspended the first four games for PEDs, making the selections of Miller and Parker even bigger. Had the Raiders won the coin toss with the San Francisco 49ers, they likely would have taken McGlinchey No. 9 overall, which is where their Bay Area rivals took him.
Miller has the right tackle job, and all he has to do is prove to the organization that he is the man to have it. Parker is going to be an interesting watch, and with currently left tackle Donald Penn getting up there in age, these two could be the bookends for most of Derek Carr’s NFL career going forward.