Will the Las Vegas Raiders pass on players who opted-out in 2020?

The Las Vegas Raiders have holes to fill on both sides of the ball in the 2021 NFL Draft, and they may avoid players who sat out last season.

The 2021 NFL Draft kicks off in Cleveland, Ohio, in less than a week and a half, and it will be another shot for the Las Vegas Raiders franchise to bolster the roster heading into next season. The Las Vegas Raiders are in the midst of an offseason that has been viewed as average by many media members and pundits alike.

Regardless of outside opinion, it is no secret that Las Vegas has struggled in the draft process in recent years. The Silver and Black under head coach Jon Gruden rarely tip their hand when it comes to draft strategy, however, per a recent report from The Athletic’s Vic Tafur, the organization may be making a bold statement regarding their draft selections next weekend.

"“This is just a gut feeling, but I don’t think the Raiders will draft any players in the first three rounds who opted out of their college seasons last year for COVID-19 reasons. Both Gruden and Mayock constantly preach about how much they want players who love football. Respecting a player’s decision is one thing, but selecting that player after he opted out of last season may not be easy for Gruden or Mayock to swallow. Especially after the team did not have a good handle on the COVID-19 situation; it was fined a combined $1.2 million and stripped a sixth-round draft pick (which was later returned on appeal) for a series of violations and screw-ups.”"

While this is one’s opinion, it is important to note that Vic Tafur has held the pulse on the Raider organization as a beat writer for over a decade. With that being said, it seems as if the team is making yet another questionable decision before the draft even begins.

Potential Raiders draft picks who opted out in 2020

Some notable prospects that opted out of the 2020 collegiate season due to Covid-19:

• CB Caleb Farley – Virginia Tech
• DE Gregory Rousseau – Miami
• DT Jay Tufele – USC
• DT Jaylen Twyman – Pittsburgh
• DE Joe Tryon – Washington
• DT Levi Onwuzurike – Washington
• LB Micah Parsons – Penn State
• OL Alijah Vera-Tucker – USC
• OL Jalen Mayfield – Michigan
• OL Penei Sewell – Oregon
• OL Rashawn Slater – Northwestern
• WR Ja’Marr Chase – LSU

Looking at this group, you will see some of the more elite talent this draft class has to offer. Many of them are considered the best players in their respective position groups, which is the case when it comes to offensive tackle Penei Sewell, and linebacker Micah Parsons.

Some mock drafts have seen the Raiders selecting Parsons as of late, as he not only missed out on the 2020 campaign, but there are some character issues there. For the Raiders, they cannot afford to pass up on talent like Parsons if he is there at pick No. 17, as he could end up being a generational talent for them at linebacker.

That is a large amount of talent the Raider front office could be overlooking. What do you think of this possible dismissal of prospective NFL talent?