Las Vegas Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler has been a busy man on Day 3, as he traded up for the third time on Saturday.
The Las Vegas Raiders went into Day 3 of the 2023 NFL Draft holding seven picks, though they have not picked in any spot they held after Day 2 finished up on Friday night. General manager Dave Ziegler has been hard at work on Day 3, as all three selections have come from the Silver and Black moving up.
In fact, Ziegler has shown a tendency to move up during the entire three-day event, as he sat put on Day 1, but then moved up to take Michael Mayer at No. 35 overall on Day 2. On Day 3, he moved up for cornerback Jakorian Bennett and quarterback Aidan O'Connell, before trading up a third time for Georgia safety, Christopher Smith.
The trade was made between the New York Jets and the Raiders for pick No. 170 overall, as Las Vegas sent picks No. 204 and 220 to Gang Green. Smith was widely considered one of the best safeties in this draft class, and after avoiding the secondary on both Day 1 and 2, Las Vegas has spent half of their picks on the defensive backfield on Saturday.
Raiders still have two picks remaining on Day 3
The Raiders still have draft capital after selecting four times already on Saturday, as they currently hold the No. 203 overall pick, and pick No. 231. They could go a number of different ways with those picks, but interior offensive line help is still needed, as is some more depth at the linebacker position.
Smith will be an excellent addition to this Raiders secondary, as he was named first-team All-American by the Associated Press last season. With Bennett and Smith joining the Raiders defensive backfield, the group as a whole got younger, and more talented, something Ziegler and his staff were hoping to accomplish this draft season.