Raiders 7-round 2023 NFL Mock Draft: Trading back and landing a franchise QB

Raiders NFL Mock Draft: Trading back and landing a franchise QB

142. Isaiah Land EDGE Florida A&M – TRADE

With the 142nd overall pick, we head back to the defensive side of the ball and grab an incredibly intriguing player in Isaiah Land out of Florida A&M. Land measured in at 6-3 and 235 pounds at the NFL combine and posted some impressive numbers including 21 reps on the bench press and a 4.62 in the 40-yard dash.

What makes Land an intriguing prospect is that he was a no-star recruit out of high school who went to an FCS program and became a star. His first two years were unimpressive but after the 2020 season was canceled due to the COVID pandemic, he burst onto the scene with an incredible 2021 season. In 12 games he recorded 25.5 tackles for loss, 43 tackles, and an astonishing 19 sacks.

He was the Defensive Player of the Year in the FCS and followed that up with a solid 2022 where he recorded 11.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks in eight games.

The obvious question about Land is if his production would translate from the FCS to the NFL but at this point in the draft it is worth taking that gamble on a player with his potential. He would be far from the first small-school prospect to explode at the NFL level, and we know that talent and athleticism can be found anywhere. The Raiders could draft and stash him as a rotational defensive end and allow him to learn from one of the best to ever do it in Chandler Jones.