2019 Oakland Raiders Discussion

...at quick glance, the second half of our schedule is more difficult than the first.

7-2 then 4-3. 11-5.

 

Lynch for two years $9M base. $16.5M with incentives.
Raiders trade their 5th rounder in 2018 for Seattle's 6th rounder in 2018.

 

Hope so.

Y'all. It's draft day.

 

CB? DL? I sorta wanted Adoree' Jackson, but I'm now really intrigued by the Michigan guys...

 

First Round
Pick 24
Raiders - Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State
6', 195 pounds
66 solo tackles
1 TFL
0.5 sacks
6 INT
15 Passes Defended
Ran a 4.44 40 with a 37" vertical
He has an NFL.com grade of 6.01
He's a legit cover man.
Comparison: Aqib Talib

Holy s***. Tremendous talent. Sexual assault allegations.

 

^Apparently there were two other teams that had Conley in their sights for Day 2... I paused at first then thought of how Amerson or Smith or both could regress so it made sense.

Per SI:

Gareon Conley, CB, Ohio State

GRADE: Incomplete
Well, file this one as TBD. Conley was a sure-fire first-rounder for the last several weeks, until a rape allegation against him came to light. Teams spent the past 48 hours digging into that situation, so the Raiders must feel like Conley has been honest in claiming the allegation is false. (Conley has not been charged.) From a talent perspective, Conley had an argument to be the second cornerback off the board. He is a potential shut-down guy for an Oakland defense that had few answers on the outside last season. How long will his off-field situation drag out, and what will be the outcome?

 

Obi Melifonwu. Big safety from uconn.

 

Per SI:

Grade: A-

Obi Melifonwu
S | Connecticut
It’s obvious from how these last few drafts have gone down that teams are placing a high priority on having not just one, but two standout safeties. In Melifonwu and Karl Joseph, the Raiders are there. Melifonwu’s post-combine hype outpaced his still-developing game, but he’s a unique physical specimen capable of handling a variety of roles.

Scouting report: A four-year starter at UConn, Melifonwu possesses rare physical traits—he had the best vertical jump and broad jump at the combine regardless of position, and good luck finding many other 6’ 4”, 224-pound safeties, let alone ones that can run a 4.4 40. He hits another gear when closing in on an open-field tackle, but when those opportunities don’t naturally come his way he can get caught up in the trash in the middle of the field.

Player comparison: George Iloka

We tryin' to field a Chancellor-Thomas tandem?

 

I was thinking - this physical numbers are incredible. He's big and fast, and his 44" vertical, nearly 13' broad jump - just incredible. He's going to punish some people, and Joseph is going to pick off a lot of passes.

 

Eddie Vanderdoes
6'3" 305#
DT from UCLA
Really interesting pick. Sounds like he was an absolute beast before ACL tear in 2015.

 

Vanderdoes has the strength to plug the middle on runs or collapse the pocket from the inside. I read from the Senior Bowl that after shedding some weight, it helped his mobility but did not diminish his inside presence. Coaches and scouts came away impressed...

 

Per SI:

Eddie Vanderdoes, DT, UCLA
Grade: B+
Here’s the thing about Vanderdoes: If the Raiders get the healthy, 2014 version of him, he’s a guy they can pencil in as a potential starter up front. Oakland did not have a lot of meaningful depth inside on defense, so Vanderdoes restocks the pile.

Oh and forget the Chancellor-Thomas copy.

Melifonwu-Joseph -> Atkinson-Tatum Redux... Stay in the legacy, baby!

 

From FSN "Winners and Losers" from Draft Day 2

Winner: Raiders
Obi Melifonwu was likely a target of Oakland’s at the end of the first round, but Gareon Conley was apparently too good of a value for them to pass up, assuming he’s exonerated of any wrongdoing. Getting the big UConn DB in the second round was a tremendous value, especially with the way the Raiders are going to use him. Melifonwu can play both safety and cornerback, both of which are needs for Oakland. I’d expect the Raiders to give him a shot at cornerback first because of his combination of size and speed, but if he struggles there, he’ll thrive as a safety. Him and Karl Joseph make for a dynamic tandem in the secondary. Adding Eddie Vanderdoes in the third round was solid, as well. The Raiders got much better on defense in the first three rounds.

Note: ex-Raider RB Murray listed as a Loser with the Vikings drafting Cook out of FSU...

Loser: Latavius Murray
The Vikings seemingly replaced Adrian Peterson with Murray in free agency, but little did they know, Dalvin Cook would fall to the second round. The Vikings traded up for the former Florida State running back on Friday night, putting a significant dent in Murray’s workload going forward. He’ll no longer be the featured back he was expected to be with Cook likely handling most of the carries. It’s a win for the Vikings, as they now have two starting-caliber running backs in the backfield, but Murray probably won’t get nearly as many touches with Cook now in the mix.

 

We still need an inside LB (or two)...a right tackle and a DT (for depth).

 

I trust the FO to make good decisions here, but I agree - LB, DT, OL should come today. And if they get creative, I'm all for it. BTW, Melifonwu and Conley were both top 35 prospects according to Pro Football Reference. Conley allowed a 14.0 passer rating against him - best in CFP eligible teams. And Melifonwu allowed 40 yards passing against him in the last five games of his college career - total. He was also 9th among Safeties in run stopping.