Raiders 7-round NFL Mock Draft: Securing their franchise QB on Day 1

Linebacker is not technically a position of need for the Raiders but we just couldn't resist drafting a potential elite play you're at the position with the 77th overall pick. Payton Wilson out of NC State has great measurables at 6-4 and 233 lbs and has great speed which he showed off at the combine with a 4.43 40.

There are only a few elite middle linebackers in the NFL but we have seen the transformative abilities of guys like Fred Warner and Roquan Smith who are equally adept in coverage as they are laying the wood in the run game. We believe that Wilson fits that mold and he has all of the physical and mental ability to be an elite player in the NFL.

Wilson won both the Chuck Bednarik and Dick Butkus award in 2023 for his elite play and lit up the stat sheet with 138 tackles, 6 sacks, and 3 interceptions. There are injury concerns as he has torn both ACLs during his college career but bounced back in a major way to be one of the best players in college football in 2023.

If he didn’t have those concerns, he would likely be a mid-first round pick and he still might be if a team feels he is no longer an injury risk. The Raiders have two good linebackers in Robert Spillane and Divine Deablo but Wilson has the potential to be elite and we just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to add him to an already stacked defense.