Will the Raiders take a QB in the NFL draft’s first round? If not then, when ... and who?
At some point in the 2023 NFL draft, the Las Vegas Raiders will select a quarterback.
Whether it’s with the seventh overall draft pick or later in the first round and beyond, only Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler and Josh McDaniels have those answers.
And of course, other teams also will will dictate the Raiders’ course. Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud will likely be selected in the first five picks. Maybe Anthony Richardson and Will Levis will go in the top 10.
The Raiders will have their choice of several top options, but the best bet for the Silver and Black — if Young or Stroud are gone — is to go defense first and select a quarterback later in the draft.
Las Vegas signed quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in free agency and added Brian Hoyer to be the backup, so the Raiders are OK in the short term.
Garoppolo has a problem staying healthy, however, and there’s the future to consider, so it will be imperative the Raiders add someone at the position through the draft. Who, though?
Here is The Bee’s look at the possible quarterbacks who could be available in the late first round and beyond and might interest Las Vegas.
Hendon Hooker
Hooker, 25, could go in the late first or in the second round.
He played at Tennessee and is listed at 6 feet, 3 inches and 217 pounds. Hooker was having a good season for the Volunteers before he suffered a torn ACL.
He could be ready for the 2023 NFL season, but teams will monitor that and hope he can be a steal in the draft.
Could the Raiders be a fit? He met the team on the top 30 private visit.
Jake Haener
Why not another Fresno State quarterback?
Raider Nation may not want that after nine seasons with Derek Carr, who set multiple franchise records. Carr signed a free-agent contract with the New Orleans Saints.
Haener, 24, is listed at 6-1 and many compared him to San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy, but he’s not having any of that.
He held his own with the Bulldogs and led the team to Mountain West and LA Bowl titles this past season.
Raiders offensive coordinator Mick Lombardi was in Fresno for Pro Day, along with scouts.
He could go in the third to fifth rounds.
Dorian Thompson-Robinson
It would be a dream-come-true for Thompson-Robinson, 23, to play for his hometown team.
The former Bishop Gorman High star is slated to go in the fourth or fifth round.
He’s listed at 6-2 and has many intangibles that will fit at the next level.
He had a top 30 private visit with the Raiders.
What will the Raiders do?
Those three are possibilities if the Raiders wait past the first round. But in his news conference, Ziegler remained open to grabbing one of the top quarterbacks that could be available when Las Vegas drafts.
“I think that anytime you can find a young player at that position that’s going to have an impact on your team, you have to keep an open mind to that,” he said.
“Of course we’re excited to have Jimmy and having Jimmy does supply us with a very high quality starting player at the position, and so we feel comfortable with that. But I think to close that door and just say that that’s not something you would do because of X,Y and Z, that’s not the business that we’re in.”
The NFL draft begins Thursday from Kansas City.
