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

38 Hendon Hooker QB | Tennessee

After trading down in the first round and missing out on the top quarterback prospects, we find ourselves linked yet again to Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker. There are some that believe that Hooker will be a first-round pick but we have seen guys slide for a multitude of reasons and we believe that his health and age will see him drop to the second round come draft weekend.

If Hooker was fully healthy then we believe he could easily be a top 16 pick but an ACL injury at the end of the 2022 season has hurt his stock and not allowed him to work out this offseason. The other knock on him is his age as he is one of the older prospects in this draft having spent six years in college.

However, in this era quarterbacks are playing longer than ever and if he becomes the starter for the Raiders at age 26 then he could easily remain in that position for 10 years. He has the size you look for in a quarterback at 6-3 and 220 pounds and his numbers the last two seasons are excellent.

He has hovered around 70% completion rate and has thrown just five interceptions his last two seasons along with 58 touchdowns.

The Raiders have the luxury of having a starting quarterback in the building in Jimmy Garoppolo and could bring Hooker along slowly. He can learn the offense from Garoppolo and Brian Hoyer and be ready to take the reins in 2024.