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Las Vegas Raiders GM Tom Telesco.
For much of the season, the Las Vegas Raiders controlled their own destiny when it came to getting the No. 1 pick. However, the team won in Week 16 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, which knocked them down to No. 6 in the draft order, per Tankathon.
While there are still two games left for the Raiders to try and move back up the draft board, it’s looking more likely they won’t have a top-three draft pick, which should put them out of the running to get Cam Ward or Shedeur Sanders, who are widely considered the top two quarterbacks in the class.
There isn’t a third quarterback who would warrant a top-10 draft pick but the Raiders are desperate for an upgrade at the position. This is why Kyle Crabbs of The 33rd Team is projecting Las Vegas to take Alabama’s Jalen Milroe with the No. 6 pick.
“The Raiders’ win against the Jaguars has thrown the conventional understanding of the top of the draft in a complete loop,” Crabbs wrote in a Dec. 23 mock draft. “Falling behind not only Tennessee but also Cleveland puts the Raiders in a precarious position for drafting a quarterback — although they ultimately choose to draft the most physically gifted one eligible for 2025 here in Jalen Milroe.
“Will Milroe choose to return to Tuscaloosa? If so, the Raiders may be up the creek without a paddle. And although he’s got more development needed than both Ward and Sanders, he does have special talent that can be used to craft a unique offense to defend.”
Jalen Milroe at No. 6 Would Be Massive Reach
Milroe has shown a lot of promise at Alabama. He’s very athletic and has a big arm. He has all of the skills a team would want in a quarterback.
However, he’s also been very inconsistent with his play. He’s thrown 15 touchdowns to 10 interceptions this season, which is worse than the 23 touchdowns to six interceptions he had last season. Typically, a quarterback who has shown significant regression doesn’t move up draft boards.
Milroe does have promise but there are few mock drafts that have him going in the first round, let alone the top 10. Perhaps he can wow teams with his pre-draft workouts and that will help him move up draft boards but it’s still hard to see a team using a top 10 pick on him. The Raiders can’t afford to take that kind of gamble on a project like Milroe, especially considering they don’t have a good offensive coaching staff right now.
Raiders May Need to Wait Until 2nd Round to Address QB
If Ward and Sanders are off the board when the Raiders select in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, they may need to consider either trading down or addressing a need other than quarterback. There are plenty of high-end prospects at the top of the draft who could help the Raiders.
That said, Las Vegas needs to come out of the draft with at least one quarterback prospect. If Milroe makes it to the second round, he should be much more appealing to the Raiders. They could also look at Jaxson Dart, Dillon Gabriel or Carson Beck.
