5 prospects under the radar the Raiders should target at the NFL Combine

Darnay Holmes – Cornerback, UCLA

Much like Donovan Peoples-Jones, Darnay Holmes was a highly touted recruit coming out of high school, but things didn’t always click while at UCLA.

The lack of on-field success made it a tough environment, and there was a point where Holmes reportedly consider transferring and playing one more season in college elsewhere. That ended up not being the case, and Holmes was able to turn some heads at the senior bowl a few weeks back with his toughness and movement skills.

And as someone who personally saw Holmes play during high school, one thing that I doubt has gone away is his supreme athleticism. So the combine could end up being huge for Holmes and a real eye-opener to scouts and teams.

Just to give you an example of how well Holmes could test in Indianapolis a few years back when UCLA played Oklahoma in Norman, Holmes was keeping stride for stride down the field with Hollywood Brown. Now we know just how fast Brown is and how his speed has translated to the NFL, so Holmes definitely has some juice. And with is quickness, he should test well all-around. For the Raiders, perhaps taking Holmes could move Lamarcus Joyner back to deep safety where he was most effective while with the Rams.