The Las Vegas Raiders were heavily connected to Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders for much of the pre-draft process, although things changed after the team acquired veteran signal-caller Geno Smith in a trade with the Seattle Seahawks.
The overwhelming thought was that the Raiders wouldn’t take Sanders with the No. 6 overall pick, and that came to fruition after the team drafted Boise State superstar running back Ashton Jeanty in that spot.
Raiders fans react to Raiders selecting Ashton Jeanty with No. 6 overall ‘NFL Draft Center’
After that, the expectation was that Sanders could land with the New Orleans Saints at No. 9, but that didn’t happen. Then, it was the Pittsburgh Steelers at No. 21 overall, but that didn’t happen, either.
The New York Giants then traded back into the first round and took a quarterback, but it wasn’t Sanders. Instead, the Giants drafted Ole Miss product Jaxson Dart, making him the second quarterback off the board after Cam Ward went No. 1 overall. The fact that Dart was the second quarterback taken was a surprise.
With that, Sanders was on a crash course to slide into Round 2, and that officially happened. But with that development, the Raiders have a second crack at drafting the Colorado quarterback.
While the Raiders do have a locked-in starter in Smith, he’s set to turn 35 this year and his contract allows the team to cut ties with him after 2026. It certainly wouldn’t hurt for the Raiders to start planning for the future.
However, getting Sanders is far from a guarantee. Even if the Raiders think he’s worthy of their No. 37 overall pick, they might not get an opportunity to actually take him. That’s because the quarterback-needy Cleveland Browns have two selections in the top four of the second round.
The Browns own the No. 33 pick, and they picked up another second-rounder (No. 36 overall) in a shocking trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars, who moved up to No. 2 overall to take Colorado’s Travis Hunter earlier in the night.
With that, the Raiders can’t even move ahead of the Browns if they’re hellbent on taking Sanders, unless the Browns pass on him with the No. 33 pick. If that does happen, the Raiders could trade up with either the Houston Texans or Tennessee Titans, who own the No. 34 and No. 35 picks, respectively.
So, while there remains a possibility the Raiders could get their hands on Sanders, their chances appear to be slim, at best.