NFL Mock Draft: Smith Doesn’t Impact Raiders Targeting QB

The Las Vegas Raiders have a high draft pick in the upcoming NFL draft, and with it, a lot of pressure to draft someone who will help this roster out tremendously. They could use help at nearly every position, and with the sixth overall pick, they are primed to get that help.

They are one of the many NFL teams that can confidently say their quarterback of the future is not currently on the roster, even after they traded for Geno Smith. Smith is a nice talent upgrade, but it's not like he's gonna lead them into a deep playoff run five years down the line.

He may not even be able to lead them into the post-season next year, so it's clear that Smith is a temporary solution for what is a problem that has plagued this franchise ever since the departure of Derek Carr.

Josh Edwards is a sports writer for CBS Sports, and he recently published a mock draft that sees a sought-after quarterback prospect fall out of the top five. He predicts the Raiders will draft Shedeur Sanders.

"Las Vegas traded for Geno Smith. To me, that suggests it wants to be competitive right now, which would suggest it is not using draft capital to trade up for Cam Ward. However, it could be similar to last year when Atlanta signed Kirk Cousins, then drafted Michael Penix Jr.

The Raiders may not believe they will be in a position to draft this high again for awhile and therefore take their swing on a quarterback of the future", said Edwards.

It's no surprise that the Raiders would think to choose offense in this draft when their offense was as inefficient as it was last year. If Sanders falls out of the top five, I think it'd be a mistake to let him skid down any farther down the draft board.

As the draft inches closer and closer, more and more rumors suggest that Sanders will not be taken as highly as people think he will be. There are even rumors that he may fall all the way down to the second round, but that's all they are rumors.

Nobody knows what NFL team scouts are thinking and what their opinions are on any given prospect, but if the Raiders want to continue their trajectory upward toward success, they'll take him if he's available and hope his poise and accuracy translate from the collegiate level.

Ensure you follow on X (Twitter) @HondoCarpenter and IG @HondoSr and never miss another breaking news story again.

Please let us know your thoughts when you like our Facebook page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.