Las Vegas Raiders quick reaction NFL Grades 2021: Alex Leatherwood

Raiders select Alex Leatherwood: Why the pick makes sense

The pick makes sense for the Las Vegas Raiders because the offensive line, especially the RT position was one of the major needs coming into the draft after they traded away center Rodney Hudson, RG Gabe Jackson, and RT Trent Brown. They managed to retain one of their better players in Denzelle Good but Leatherwood fills an immediate need and gives the Raiders the option of playing him at RG and shifting Good to RT or vice versa.

Many believed that the Raiders would go defense with this pick, including yours truly, but the Raiders know they won’t go very far on offense with a weak offensive line. They also still have 3 other picks in rounds 2 and 3 where they can still get major talent on the defensive side of the ball.

The primary knock on this pick is that Leatherwood likely would have been available in the second round, but if he is a great player and wears the Silver and Black for years then that doesn’t matter. Many felt that Kolton Miller was a terrible selection when the Raiders took him in the first round back in 2018, and look how that worked out.