The Las Vegas Raiders have Geno Smith locked down for three seasons but that hasn’t stopped them from doing a lot of work on the current quarterback class. It’s unlikely they’d consider using their No. 6 pick in the first round to address the position but anything after that is fair game.
Former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers has been commonly linked to the team as he’s somebody who could be available in the third round. He has visited with the team this offseason and thinks highly of head coach Pete Carroll.
“Coach Carroll would be awesome,” Ewers said on “The Rich Eisen Show.” “He’s always talking about ‘compete, compete, compete.’ I think he says that word 100 times a day. I think it would be super cool to be part of a franchise that they live or die by how they compete. It doesn’t matter what you are doing, if you are in the building, he said you are either competing or not. I think that’s how I already live and it definitely would be cool.”
Carroll may be the oldest head coach in the NFL but he’s always had the respect of younger players due to what he did when he was the head coach at USC.
Is Quinn Ewers Worth Drafting?
Coming out of high school, Ewer was one of the top quarterbacks in the country. While he had a very successful college career, he never turned into the future first-round pick that many thought he would.
That doesn’t necessarily mean he can’t turn into an NFL starter. The 33rd Team’s Kyle Crabbs praised Ewers for his arm talent but thinks he needs a lot of work.
“Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers should be regarded as a developmental quarterback prospect,” Crabbs wrote in his scouting report of Ewers. “He boasts noted throwing ability and a live arm, allowing him to make aggressive plays to the far side of the field or down the field.
“However, Ewers’ aggressiveness can get the best of him at times, and he lacks discipline and risk mitigation. Accordingly, he’s too erratic to be trusted as an early starter and will need to be molded into a more deliberate player at the position. Ewers is at his best with play-action ball fakes, RPO ball handling, and quick decisions with the football, but durability, ball security, and pocket presence all threaten his future pathways to playing time.”
Raiders Could Be Good Landing Spot for Ewers
If scouts think that Ewers is going to take a year or two before he’s ready to take meaningful NFL snaps, the Raiders might be a perfect landing spot. He’d be able to work under offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who has a long track record of developing young quarterbacks.
Even though Carroll has a defensive background, he’s also done great with quarterbacks as a head coach. Plus, the Raiders have Smith for at least two years and he could serve as a mentor for Ewers. If the former Texas star didn’t work out, it wouldn’t be too much of a loss for the Raiders if they were able to get him in the third or fourth round.
