Las Vegas Raiders Updated Depth Chart: Where does Alex Leatherwood Fit?

With the 17th pick of the 2021 NFL Draft, the Las Vegas Raiders select offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood, and here is where he fits this season.

The Las Vegas Raiders got their right tackle of the future, however, it was not either of the two anybody but myself had in mind. With the 17th overall pick and many talented players on the board, the Raiders reached a bit as they have tended to do so far in Jon Gruden’s tenure, and selected offensive tackle Alex Leatherwood out of Alabama.

When it comes to the draft, Gruden and General Manager Mike Mayock do not care about anybody else’s big board. They like who they like, and they do not care if they have to reach a little.  I don’t hate Leatherwood as a player, and he could turn out to be pretty good, so at this point, it doesn’t matter if it was a second or a first-round pick the Raiders took him with.

However, if Leatherwood was their guy all along, which apparently he was because both Virginia Tech tackle Christian Darrisaw and Oklahoma State tackle Teven Jenkins surprisingly fell right into their lap, they could’ve gotten him in the second and gotten the best available defensive player in the first.

Alex Leatherwood was a consensus second-round pick to anybody who watched the film which is not necessarily a bad thing since tackle is one of not the deepest positions in this year’s draft.  So where will Alex Leatherwood fit in on the depth chart?

Where does Alex Leatherwood fit with the Raiders?

Leatherwood will be the Day 1 starter at right tackle for the Las Vegas Raiders, with the other two right tackles, former third-round pick Brandon Parker and Jaryd Jones-Smith battling for the backup behind him. After the selection, Mayock was bullish about where Leatherwood fits in.

Leatherwood is a big strong lineman, measuring 6’5 and 312 pounds, and should be no surprise that the Raiders took him considering he was one of the top run blockers out of the tackles in the draft, and Gruden is absolutely in love with running the ball.  He was a long-time starter at Alabama, and a team captain for the Crimson Tide, which is an important distinction for Gruden when looking at a player.

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For his career, he joined the Crimson tide in 2017  as a backup before having to come in to replace an injured Jonah Williams as a left tackle.  He then started as a guard in 2018 and earned second-team All-SEC honors before finishing up his last two seasons as a left tackle while winning an Outland trophy his senior year.