Raiders 2023 7-round NFL Mock Draft: Las Vegas moves on from Derek Carr
Raiders 2023 7-round NFL Mock Draft: Las Vegas moves on from Derek Carr
Joey Porter Jr.. 8. player. 806. . CB. Nittany Lions
The Raiders have wasted a few high picks on defense of backs and corners in recent years including Damon Arnette and Jonathan Abram most recently. Because of all of these whiffs in the draft and free agency, defensive back and corner is a major need for the team.
In this mock draft, Jalen Carter and Will Anderson are off the board as are Miles Murphy and Noah Sewell, so the Raiders go with star cornerback Joey Porter, Jr.
Porter Jr. is the son of former All-Pro linebacker Joey Porter who spent most of his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He is considered by many as the top cornerback prospect in this draft and would be an excellent value with the eighth overall pick. He would follow in the footsteps of Patrick Surtain II and Jaycee Horn as sons of former NFL stars that made their way to the league.
Porter has come on strong in the last two years for the Nittany Lions and has become one of their better players in 2022. He does not have eye-popping statistics with just one interception in his career, but much of that has to do with quarterbacks simply not targeting him.
This season he has surrendered a quarterback rating of just 63.6 when targeted by opposing QBs.
Porter has the right build for a top tier corner at 6-2 and 198lbs and his 40 time is in the high 4.4s which is more than respectable. Most of the concerns around him are coach-able which include a tendency to be grabby and needing some improvement in zone coverage. Even with some of these flaws he could immediately become one of the better defensive backs on the Raiders roster and would be a great building block for the future.