Raiders projected to land intriguing franchise QB in 2025

In a recent mock draft by DraftWire, the Raiders are projected to land Colorado Quarterback Shedeur Sanders with the ninth overall pick. Jeff Risdon broke down why the 22-year-old quarterback is a good fit for Las Vegas.

“The Raiders begin the full-scale Antonio Pierce era with two stopgaps at quarterback in Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew," Risdon wrote. "Both players are adequate in the short term, but as things progress through the 2024 season and beyond, it’ll be time for the next franchise guy. In his one major-college season, Sanders showed a real gift for explosive plays both through the air and on the ground, and he’s a better progression passer and reader than some want to admit. Yes, there are things to clean up, but with another year of development, Sanders would be more than an NFL project. The NFL of today is all about creating and preventing explosive plays, and last season, Sanders had 44 such plays through the air, and 17 more on the ground. Seems like a skill set you’d want to work with.”

All Sanders does provide that big play ability that is needed in today's NFL. If we continue to see production and development from Sanders, he would be a player Raiders fans could get excited about.

O'Connell needs a big 2nd season

Since O'Connell is only in his second season, he will have the chance to solidify himself as the Raiders' quarterback of the future this coming season, maybe even more so than Minshew, who will be entering his sixth season. Hopefully, O'Connell has a breakout season and the Raiders already have their quarterback of the future, but if that is not the case, the search for a quarterback will continue.

Sanders at Colorado

That search could very well take them to Sanders, who showed a lot of potential last season at Colorado. Sanders put up some impressive individual stats during his first Division 1 season in 2023. He threw for 3,230 yards, and 27 TDs with only three interceptions and a completion percentage of 69.3%. Sanders certainly is an interesting prospect, and obviously it is extremely early in the process but we will have to keep an eye on his play, as well as the quarterback play for the Raiders this season.