Lately for the Las Vegas Raiders, it's been the same story. A disappointing campaign leads to wide-scale changes for the organization in the offseason, then the fan base gets its hopes up and things look promising, and then everything comes crashing back down again.
While other teams are looking at the playoff picture and NFL standings, in most years, Raider Nation is looking at college prospects and rooting for a myriad of seemingly meaningless game results so as to further move up the draft board. 2025 is no different, and it's not even December.
The 2026 NFL Draft will be a pivotal thing for the Raiders to get right. In a way, however, they almost can't go wrong, as they need upgrades at practically every position on the field, and it wouldn't take much to find players who can contribute more than some of the current players in the buidling.
Raiders draft Rueben Bain Jr., LaNorris Sellers in latest 2026 mock draft
At the forefront of the team's needs are a young quarterback, a better offensive line, and a jolt to the pass rush. Well, earlier this week, NFL Mocks' A.J. Fagerlin released his latest 2-round mock draft, and Las Vegas addresses two of the aforementioned three holes.
In the first round, the Raiders are fortunate enough to see Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. fall to No. 5, where they are currently slated to pick. Not only would Las Vegas get a generational talent in this selection, but they'd finally be giving Maxx Crosby the running mate he so desperately needs.
"The Las Vegas Raiders are another team that certainly could be in the market for a quarterback in the 2026 NFL Draft, but after trading for and extending Geno Smith last offseason, the team may need to stick with him for a bit while rebuilding the rest of the roster," Fagerlin wrote. "The Raiders defense has been abysmal this year, and Rueben Bain could very well end up as the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. The Hurricanes' edge rusher would give Las Vegas a running mate for Maxx Crosby while they look to reshape their roster."
As Fagerlin noted, Bain is in the conversation to be the top overall pick in April. While his sack numbers haven't been particularly noteworthy this season, he is an unbelievably explosive athlete with great bend that has a whopping 25.4% pass-rush win-rate on 353 snaps this season.
With Malcolm Koonce likely to hit free agency, Tyree Wilson still yet to emerge, and Charles Snowden far from a consistent threat as a pass-rusher on the edge, Bain would be an instant starter in Las Vegas and an impact player from Week 1.
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On Day 2 of Fagerlin's draft, the Raiders land their potential franchise quarterback. With the No. 36 overall pick, they take a swing on South Carolina signal-caller LaNorris Sellers, who is a young dual-threat with some of the highest upside in the class.
His Gamecocks teammates don't do a lot to help him out, but Sellers has 2,324 all-purpose yards and 16 total touchdowns compared to just six interceptions. His production has fallen off a bit this season, but Sellers has every tool in the drawer.
Yes, he's a bit rough around the edges, and he could certainly benefit from essentially taking a redshirt year in the NFL behind a veteran. With Pete Carroll's firing not imminent, Geno Smith is sure to be under center next season, and Sellers would be a great succession plan.
If the Raiders were able to pull off a draft in which they land a generational prospect to get after the passer along with Crosby, and they also try their luck at a potentially franchise-altering quarterback prospect, it's hard to imagine the fan base being mad about that.