Jon Gruden may have been a great coach for the Las Vegas Raiders, but he was never a strong evaluator of talent. In his second tenure at the helm of the Silver and Black, he and general managers Reggie McKenzie and Mike Mayock seemed to miss on draft picks far too often.
One could argue that every first-round pick, outside of Josh Jacobs and Kolton Miller, was a massive failure, and that he might have had more misses in the draft than total games won in his second stint.
While Clelin Ferrell became a decent rotational pass rusher, he has far from lived up to his No. 4 overall draft selection through six NFL seasons. Most of the team's other first-round busts are not even in the league anymore because of talent alone.
Damon Arnette signed with the Houston Texans on Wednesday
One of the Raiders' biggest disappointments, Damon Arnette, was out of the league for several years because of both character concerns and a lack of production. After a resurgence in the UFL this year, however, he has found new life in the NFL.
The Houston Texans signed Damon Arnette to a one-year deal on Wednesday, according to ESPN. Arnette will look to find a role in a Texans secondary that certainly does not lack star power, but could use a bit of depth before the 2025 season.
Arnette was a standout on the UFL's Houston Roughnecks this spring, where he recorded 18 tackles, 1.0 sacks and an interception returned for a touchdown.
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Las Vegas selected Arnette with the No. 19 overall pick in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, but he only played 13 games with the team before being released. Arnette struggled mightily with the Silver and Black, recording a 32.9 Pro Football Focus grade in 2021, which ranked 232nd out of 238 qualifying cornerbacks.
He also dealt with several legal issues as he tried to patch his NFL career back together, but ultimately, poor play and off-the-field distractions led to his release from both the Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs.
While it is unlikely that Arnette makes the Texans' final roster or carves out any meaningful role, it is a bit loaded for Raider Nation to potentially see him with another team. Many still harbor frustration with him for his lack of production and poor choices, but if he turns his career around, it may cause fans to think of what could have been.