The Las Vegas Raiders have a long and challenging offseason ahead of them. They currently have one of the barest rosters in the entire league with very few bright spots aside from Maxx Crosby and Brock Bowers. They also have a mile and a half of ground to make up in order to catch up to the other three teams in their division—all of whom made the playoffs last season.
The first step to rebuilding this roster is to find an answer at quarterback; however, there is currently no clear indication as to what direction the Raiders will decide to go. Will they choose to sign one of the available free agent QBs next month or will they opt to find their signal-caller of the future in April’s draft? If they prefer to go with the latter option, they might end up running into some challenges.
For one, the Raiders completely messed up their draft position thanks to two late season wins that dropped their 2025 first-round pick from first to sixth. While Las Vegas will still be able to take a very good player at sixth overall, they will almost certainly miss out on Cam Ward and potentially Shedeur Sanders as well. Three quarterback-needy teams, the Titans, Browns, and Giants, are currently scheduled to pick before the Raiders.
Will The Raiders Make A Trade To Move Up?
Rumors have circulated that the Raiders could be in line to make a big splashy trade to secure the ability to draft one of the top two QBs. There is no clear answer as to who the top pick in the draft will be like there was last year. This fact could prove to be advantageous for teams that might be looking into making a trade for the No. 1 overall selection. It’s quite likely that the Titans are still considering all possible options, including trading back and accumulating more future picks.
Should the Titans decide that they want to move the top pick, there is no more fitting trade partner than the Las Vegas Raiders. The Raiders would only have to move up five spots, making it quite feasible that the sixth-overall pick will be the only first-rounder Las Vegas would have to part with in the move. Giving up a combination of second and third-round picks over the next couple years will ultimately be worth it in order to be able to draft a top quarterback.
Would The Raiders Prefer Cam Ward Or Shedeur Sanders?
Assuming that the trade actually ends up happening, the Raiders would have the luxury of picking which of the two quarterbacks they prefer. Even though it was once thought that the Raiders and Shedeur Sanders had mutual interest, that apparently is no longer the case. Insiders have leaked that the Raiders’ QB preference should they trade up would in fact be for Cam Ward.
Several different publications, including Bleacher Report, have described the Raiders as actively trying to trade up to acquire Ward. Las Vegas supposedly has their sights set on the Miami star, so much so that they would prefer to ensure that they can draft him as opposed to standing pat at sixth and gambling that Sanders might still be available. It will be interesting to see what the Raiders end up doing.
For More Sports And Entertainment Content
Follow me on X at @genz_sportz
Our Partners
