Spytek Details Raiders' 'Open-Minded' Gameplan Heading Into NFL Draft

The Las Vegas Raiders are facing excitement on all fronts, as the NFL Draft will bring in a new wave of talent.

Darrell Craig Harris, ON SI

The Las Vegas Raiders will soon add more players to a roster that is in the early stages of an overhaul. Las Vegas' roster rebuild will take multiple seasons, but the upcoming NFL Draft is a significant part of the Raiders' short- and long-term plans of turning things around.

Fernando Mendoza participates in Indiana University's Pro Day at Mellencamp Pavilion on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. | Rich Janzaruk/Herald-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Raiders' Reality

Las Vegas has an uphill climb to relevancy, but it is far from impossible. The quickest way struggling teams have turned things around lately has been by adding a franchise quarterback and other contributors through the draft. The Raiders are in the perfect position to do both.

Feb 24, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Raiders' Decisions

The Raiders have already made several notable roster moves on both sides of the ball. Yet, none of those moves will bring the excitement and intrigue that Las Vegas' 2026 draft class will bring. Raiders general manager John Spytek recently explained how the process works for him and his team.

“I think it starts with, are we going to make the pick? And if there's a player that stands out that we feel it's not worth losing, it's not worth even picking up the phone, then we'll just make the pick. But if it's a player that we're not as excited about, or there's a group of players that we would love to pick from, and we can get value for that, then certainly open to listening to that," Spytek said at the team's pre-draft press conference.

Feb 24, 2026; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek speaks at the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Still, for as much of a plan as the Raiders may have for draft night, like every other team, the Raiders must take into consideration what the teams ahead of them in the draft will do. Aside from the No. 1 pick in the draft, Las Vegas has no shortage of options for how to handle its picks.

The Raiders have many remaining roster needs, even after a productive start to free agency. Spytek explained that the Raiders are open to trading up or down in the draft with their remaining nine picks after presumably selecting Mendoza.

Apr 25, 2025; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders first round draft pick in the 2025 NFL Draft Ashton Jeanty, speaks to the media at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Candice Ward-Imagn Images | Candice Ward-Imagn Images

“So, I think when you go on the clock, unless you're super convinced that you're making the pick, you kind of just sit there and wait for a little bit and see if your phone will ring. And sometimes, you can get really good trade offers that maybe you didn't expect, and other times your phone doesn't ring, so then you just pick," Spytek said.

“But we try to be open-minded. We try to give ourselves as much time as allotted to make the best decision for the Raiders. And we traded back twice in the second round last year and accumulated a bunch of what we thought was really good draft capital, and we'd be open to doing that again."

Feb 10, 2026; Henderson, NV, USA; Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek at press conference at Intermountain Health Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images