Fresh off the NFL Scouting Combine, the Las Vegas Raiders are in a strange spot as one of many teams who need a franchise quarterback but are picking too low in the draft order to secure one. As teams like the Raiders, Broncos, and Vikings appear to be in a holding pattern over who is going to move up first, the draft is still a loaded one at the top.
For Las Vegas, this will be a massive draft for a franchise that is in a bit of a translational phase as they have a new general manager in Tom Telesco to team up with now full-time head coach Antonio Pierce. Still, the Raiders expect to compete for a playoff spot immediately with both Davante Adams and Maxx Crosby under contract long-term.
Truly, the season will hang on their ability to find a quarterback who can even play at a league-average level and facilitate the ball to their elite playmakers if the defense continues to play at the level it did last season.
Made using the mock draft simulator from the folks over at Pro Football Network, this group of players would give Las Vegas a much better chance to make the playoffs next season.