The Las Vegas Raiders couldn't put their fanbase through any more torture, as they decided to fire offensive coordinator Chip Kelly after just 11 games. In that time, the Raiders won just two games under the direction of someone who was the highest-paid OC in the league for a brief period.
The one silver lining that can come out of the Kelly mess and the subsequent decision to pair him with Geno Smith as the starting quarterback is that the Raiders are so bad they could land a genuine franchise-altering talent with one of their premium picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.
The two-win Raiders are now in a position to possibly use their first-round pick in the NFL Draft on a quarterback. The consensus top three players at the position are Indiana's Fernando Mendoza, Alabama's Ty Simpson, and Oregon's Dante Moore.
Raiders may land Dante Moore in 2026 NFL Draft after Chip Kelly firing
Moore may have previously been off Las Vegas' draft boards due to the acrimonious relationship he had with Kelly during his college career. With Kelly gone, the odds of Moore coming to Las Vegas may have just skyrocketed back up. Moore may stay out West after all.
Moore started for Kelly's 2023 UCLA team as a highly-touted freshman recruit, but he completed just 53% of his passes and lost his starting job. After transferring to Oregon and backing up Dillon Gabriel for a year, Moore refined some of the rough edges in his game.
While Moore's lack of elite mobility may come back to bite him behind a terrible offensive line, Raiders fans will likely be very enticed by his rocket arm, accuracy on intermediate throws, and evolved football brain that lets him diagnose defenses with ease.
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Even though Moore is just 20 years old at the time of writing, the fact that the Raiders have a veteran like Smith on the team makes it so Las Vegas doesn't have to throw Moore out there before he's ready and ruin his confidence.
Smith has obviously struggled at length this season, but his presence may at least allow Moore to develop at his own pace while still giving the Raiders the ability to work towards a more prosperous quarterback future.
With Kelly's stink no longer hovering over the offense, the Raiders no longer feel like they have to avoid someone who could give them their best quarterback since Derek Carr departed due to some possible awkward moments between Moore and an offensive coordinator who was in over his skis.