Oakland Raiders first pick in 2019 may not be at No. 4
By Brad Weiss
The Oakland Raiders hold the No. 4 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft as their first selection, but they could be picking later, or earlier than that.
The Oakland Raiders played their way to a 4-12 record in 2018, putting together one of their worst seasons in recent memory. What made matters worse was the fact that it was head coach Jon Gruden’s return to the sideline, as the expectation was he would take this team back to the playoffs.
Prior to 2018, the team traded away Khalil Mack, and it was the first domino to fall in a season that would bring much change to the Silver and Black. Heading into the new league year, there is a lot of work to do when it comes to the roster heading into 2019, and the Raiders have a golden opportunity ahead of them in April.
Oakland holds three first round picks in 2019, with their first selection coming at No. 4 overall. There is a bunch of different things the Raiders can do with that draft pick, as there are teams behind them that need a quarterback, and could be willing to give up a bounty to get the likes of Kyler Murray, Dwayne Haskins, or Drew Lock.
The Raiders official site tweeted this out on Friday, showing that the team has not committed to using their No. 4 pick. A lot can happen between now and April 25, and Mayock is contemplating moving down, or up in round one.
Of course, if the team wants to move up, they will have to trade away more than just the No. 4 overall pick, and it really does not make sense for them to do that. There are a bunch of solid edge rushers in this draft class, and it would be wiser for the team trade down, collecting more draft capital as they try to improve this roster moving forward.
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General manager Mike Mayock is a former draft analyst, and will certainly be on the prowl during next week’s NFL scouting combine. The combine can really make or break a team’s draft hopes, as we have seen unknowns come out of nowhere, as well as some guys who performed well during their college days really disappoint in workouts.