The Las Vegas Raiders, since the acquisition of former Seattle Seahawks QB Geno Smith, have largely been mocked to land Ashton Jeanty at No. 6 in the 2025 NFL Draft. And, there's nothing wrong with that, as the Raiders do have a pretty big need at RB.
However, now everything seems to be switching, and of course it's the day before the draft where change is happening the most. As they say, it's smokescreen season, and it's lying season. For this regime, I'm willing to say that the only people who truly know what they will do, or the plan, are the people who will be in the war room on draft day.
So, no one truly knows what will happen -- this regime doesn't have the same kind of leaks that the Raiders had before, where insiders around the league knew everything that the team was going to do. However, an insider is claiming to have heard something that is a bit different than everything else we have heard.
And, this is a very reliable guy, and a guy who has gotten a lot of things right in the draft over the years.
”The Jacksonville Jaguars are not drafting Mason Graham, and I’m told the Raiders are not taking Ashton Jeanty at six,” Todd McShay said on The McShay Show during a Monday Mailbag episode. “After talking with some people in the league over the weekend, I no longer expect Jeanty to be the pick at 6. Don’t be surprised if the Raiders start a run on edge rushers at 6, with Jalon Walker and Mykel Williams the most obvious fits. Many teams have Walker higher on their board, but my gut tells me Pete Carroll could bet on traits and take Williams here.”
This may sound crazy, but if the Raiders don't go with Jeanty, there are only three other players I think it's possible that they pick, and none of them are anyone that McShay listed. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders, offensive tackle Armand Membou, and offensive tackle Kelvin Banks Jr.
I would say that Graham is also a possibility, simply because of the Michigan ties with John Spytek and Tom Brady both going to and playing for the Wolverines. Like I said, the Raiders are ready for the draft, but only they know what will happen on Thursday. now, we sit back and watch.
