Kyler Murray will enter the 2019 NFL Draft, and holding three first round picks, the Oakland Raiders will be impacted by his decision.
The Oakland Raiders hold three first round picks in the 2019 NFL Draft, including the No. 4 overall selection. This past week, Oklahoma Sooners Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Kyler Murray announced that he would enter the draft, sending shock-waves through the entire NFL.
Murray is a fantastic talent, but he was already the No. 9 overall pick of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Oakland Athletics. The narrative before the college football season was that Murray would play the year for the Sooners, and then leave school to begin his baseball career.
Well, things change when you set the college football landscape on fire, and now, Murray is being viewed as a potential first round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. With the Raiders holding so much draft capital, there is no way that his announcement does not affect what they do with their picks next April.
Of course, there are a ton of teams in the NFL that need a quarterback, and in a weak quarterback class, Murray could be the first one taken. Dwayne Haskins from Ohio State has the size you look for in an NFL quarterback, but Murray has a skill set that is perfect for the NFL game now, and has just as much arm talent as any signal-caller in this draft class.
There are a number of ways that Murray can impact what the Raiders do in the draft, including whether or not a team likes him so much that they are willing to give up a bunch of assets for that No. 4 overall pick. Oakland does hold two picks later in the first round, and may be willing to stay in the top ten, but fall back a few picks and trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars or Denver Broncos.
Oakland has serious holes to fill on this roster, and 33 pending free agents, so the more draft picks the better. In addition, they could get a solid edge rusher if they fall back a bit in the draft, as there is plenty of talent at that position in this draft class.
Of course, there is the possibility that the Raiders actually draft the Oklahoma quarterback with one of their three first round picks in April. Murray is an electric talent, but quarterback is not a need for the Raiders in this draft, and him donning the Silver and Black seems like a long-shot at this point.