Raiders 2023 7-round NFL Mock Draft: Las Vegas trades down on Day 1, still get franchise QB

Raiders 2023 7-round NFL Mock Draft: Las Vegas trades down on Day 1

220 Israel Abanikanda RB | Pittsburgh

We fully expect Josh Jacobs to be back on the Raiders in 2023 but we can't guarantee that he will be in Las Vegas beyond that. With that in mind, we use a late round selection on a running back with high upside in Israel Abanikanda out of Pittsburgh.

Anaconda has a solid build at 5-10 and 216 pounds and he is one of the fastest and more athletic running backs in this class. He ran a 4.41 2nd 40 which is in the 91st percentile and completed a 41-inch vertical which is in the 98th percentile. He was one of the most productive running backs in college football with 1400 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2022.

He was not much of a receiving threat at Pittsburgh but he has good hands and is in adept blocker in the passing game. There are some concerns about him being not physical enough of a runner and he has very small hands which could make him susceptible to fumbles. Abanikanda only had three fumbles in 11 games last year but of course that is at the college level.

Running back is not a major need for this team but it's hard to pass on a guy with potential like this given the uncertainty around Josh Jacobs long term future as a Raider.