The Raiders will be looking for a quarterback in the 2025 draft, but it’s starting to feel like Shedeur Sanders and Cam Ward might be out of reach unless GM Tom Telesco is able to pull off a blockbuster trade.
Assuming the Raiders don’t end the season with a top 5 pick and can’t find a trade partner, they will have to consider some of the lesser quarterback prospects entering the draft.
Unfortunately, this year’s draft isn’t considered to be particularly deep at the quarterback position, but there will be at least one option after Sanders and Ward that might be comparable in terms of potential.
University of Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe will be the no. 3 quarterback on a lot of draft boards in April, but there’s a good chance he isn’t going to be taken in the first round.
Assuming the Raiders don’t take a quarterback in the first round, Yahoo and FOX Sports host Jason Fitz believes Milroe would be an exciting option for the Raiders in round two.
“Jalen Milroe is an athlete. If you told me that the Raiders draft Jalen Milrow in the second round, I’d get goosebumps over because here’s what I know… I know that there wouldn’t be the expectation that he comes in day one and saves the franchise. I know that the quarterback room will have somebody else that’s really going to be expected to be day one,” Fitz said on Raider Nation Radio’s Morning Tailgate.
“Then I’m going to trust that they hire the people offensively to be able to start to work with Jalen,” Fitz continued. “I think if Jalen went into a really good situation that was focused on utilizing his skills, he throws a beautiful deep ball, and there’s no doubt about the fact that he throws a beautiful deep ball.”
“He absolutely is an athlete that can save you, which we need in the modern NFL. You need somebody that can save a play when it’s absolutely dumped. He is the fastest player on Alabama’s football team… I think Jalen Milroe, if he goes into the right situation, has a good chance to turn around and develop into being a solid starting quarterback in the NFL.”
If they managed to draft him, Milroe would bring a level of athleticism at the quarterback position that the Raiders haven’t had since Terrelle Pryor.
As Fitz pointed out, Milroe is more of a developmental quarterback and would probably benefit from a year on the sideline. But that might be situation that would work for the Raiders.
Given the right situation, Milroe has shown he can do things that arguably no other quarterback in the draft is able to do. That’s the kind of player it might take to get past the elite quarterbacks and coaches dominating the AFC West right now.
If he’s available in the second round, what’s not to like about swinging for the fences with a player like Milroe?
Worst case scenario is the Raiders would have a little long-term hope at the most important position on the field.
