Are the Raiders going to try to make a move for University of Miami quarterback Cam Ward?
Ward is considered by most to be the top quarterback prospect in this year’s draft and league insider Tony Pauline reported this week that the Tom Brady and company will be strong candidates to move up in the draft for Ward.
“The overall belief from people in the league is that the Las Vegas Raiders will be one of the teams actively attempting to trade up with the hopes of selecting quarterback Cam Ward,” Pauline reported on Monday. “The team needs a quarterback and wanted to move up for Jayden Daniels one year ago, though it was a completely different regime running the show in Las Vegas.”
Pauline isn’t the most familiar name in the industry, but he was right about Mike Vrabel’s preferred destination this year and hasn’t been off the mark with most of his reporting around the Raiders in the past.
To this point, there have been far more reports linking the Raiders to University of Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders, and Pauline is part of a growing list of draft pundits who believe Sanders could fall to the no. 6 pick in the draft.
Sanders made the decision this week to not throw at the NFL combine and it will be interesting to see what storylines follow around him this week in Indianapolis.
“Teams I’ve spoken with are concerned Sanders showed no real progress in his game last season, unlike Ward, and that he will need a lot of coaching to rid some of the poor throwing fundamentals he displayed this past season,” Pauline said. “The Deion factor, which I wrote about from Shrine Bowl practices, is a concern for franchises.”
Some don’t perceive Deion’s presence to be a concern, but it will take an organization that’s confident in its direction to welcome the uncertainty of what it will look like to have Deion looming over the organization.
In theory, no team at the top of the draft should be more comfortable with Sanders than the Raiders. With Tom Brady and Pete Carroll in the building, the Raiders should be equipped to take on any challenges that might come with bringing aboard the Sanders family.
