12-30-2019, 02:17 AM
Monday was the National Championship game. That ended the college bowl season Bo Jackson Jersey , giving us our last glimpse of many of the draft’s top prospects. With their bodies of work now complete, who would you like to see the Raiders take at the fourth overall pick?Missing on a top five pick can set your organization back years, so it’s imperative that Jon Gruden and new general manager Mike Mayock strike gold with this pick.This year’s draft class is littered with talent along the defensive line; a major area of need for the Raiders.The list of top defensive line talent includes Nick Bosa, Quinnen Williams, Josh Allen, Clelin Ferrell, and Ed Oliver.Bosa is ranked as the top prospect on many draft boards, making it highly unlikely he falls to the four spot. Any of the other prospects could potentially be there.Here is a profile of each prospect.Quinnen Williams, DT, AlabamaHeight: 6-4Weight: 295Williams rise to the top of draft boards has been quite remarkable.Williams, a redshirt sophomore craved out himself a small role as a rotational player along Alabama’s dominant defensive line in 2017.In 2018, Williams worked his way into a starting position.Williams was one of the most dominant defensive of players in all of college football.He was awarded the Outland Trophy, an honor presented to the nation’s top interior offensive or defensive lineman.He also received first team All-American honors.Williams finished the season with 71 tackles, 19.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, and 12 quarterback hurries.Josh Allen, OLB https://www.raiderslockerroom.com/authen...own-jersey , KentuckyHeight: 6-5Weight: 260After Kentucky’s Citrus Bowl victory over Penn State, Senior linebacker Josh Allen proclaimed himself the top pick in 2019 draft.His three sack and one blocked punt performance in the game certainly didn’t hurt his case.Allen finishes his career with 31.5 sacks (17 in 2018), 220 tackles, and 42 tackles for loss.He was recognized for his stellar play in his Senior season by winning several awards and honors including first team All-American, SEC defensive player of the year, Bronko Nagurski award (most outstanding defensive player), Chuck Bednarik award (national defensive player of the year), Ronnie Lott trophy (defensive impact player of the year), and the Jack Lambert award (top linebacker).Clelin Ferrell, DE, ClemsonHeight: 6-4Weight: 265Two time national champ and captain of this years team, Clelin Ferrell would fill an immediate need for a Raiders pass rush that generated a league worst 13 sacks. Another highly decorated prospect, Ferrell was named 2018 ACC player of the year, consensus All-American, and Ted Hendricks award winner (nation’s top defensive end).He will leave Death Valley with 27 career sacks, 166 tackles, 50.5 tackles for loss Womens Derek Carr Jersey , and five forced fumbles.Ed Oliver, DT, HoustonHeight: 6-3Weight: 290A month or two ago, Oliver’s name was mentioned as a potential top pick in the draft but following a knee injury that forced him to miss the team’s final five games (Oliver opted not to play in the bowl game) and some issues surrounding his character after a sideline dispute with his coach, he has seen his stock drop on some big boards.Despite those minor issues, there is no denying his talent.Oliver is being compared to 2017 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Aaron Donald.As stout as Oliver was in 2018, his best season might have been in 2017 when he registered 73 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and 16.5 tackles for loss.That season he was named a consensus All-American (2017, 2018), Outland trophy winner (nations most outstanding interior lineman), and AAC defensive player of the year. ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Back-to-back lopsided losses have given Oakland five losses in six games. The Raiders have already traded away their best player and there are reports that other key pieces could be dealt soon.Very little has gone right in the first season of coach Jon Gruden’s second stint in Oakland. But as the Raiders left town for a bye week, Gruden had a message to his legion of critics calling 2018 a lost season in Oakland.“I’ll say this, we aren’t tanking anything,” Gruden said Tuesday. “I hear the hatred out there Antonio Brown Raiders Jersey , some of the rumors that we are tanking it to get a first-round pick or a higher pick. We are not getting up at 4 o’clock in the morning to tank it. Ain’t nobody tanking it. I don’t know who wrote that or who said that or who thinks that, but that isn’t the case here. We are going to continue to work hard, continue to build our team and that was part of the message.”A week off might be just what the Raiders need to change the course of a difficult season that has left the team battered physically and frustrated by the mounting losses.Oakland blew second-half leads the first three weeks to start 0-3 and then responded from a comeback, overtime win over Cleveland by getting outscored 53-13 the past two weeks in losses to the Chargers in Los Angeles and the Seattle Seahawks in London.The Raiders released linebacker Derrick Johnson on Tuesday and promoted Jason Cabinda from the practice squad to take his place but other moves could be coming with receiver Amari Cooper and safety Karl Joseph among the players reportedly available in trades.Gruden already dealt away one of general manager Reggie McKenzie’s former first-round picks when he traded star edge rusher Khalil Mack to Chicago for a package of draft picks a week before the season. With the status of Cooper and Joseph in question and 2017 first-rounder Gareon Conley getting no defensive snaps last week, Gruden is dismantling the team McKenzie built.More moves could be coming over the bye week.“We’re still looking at the roster. We’re looking around the league to find means to get better,” Gruden said. “Reggie and I had a long meeting yesterday. I know that’s a shock to some people. I’m telling you, we’re working hard to solidify this roster every day and improve ourselves and get the right people on the field. Those are decisions that we’re looking at. We’re going to continue to try to develop our young players. We’re going to stay on the gas pedal and go as hard as we can.”The frustration is mounting in the locker room with cornerback Rashaan Melvin expressing frustration this week over his lack of playing time and saying he will go back to his old technique of playing rather than play the style defensive coordinator Paul Guenther wants.“I haven’t talked to him yet, no. I’m sure I will,” Gruden said. “I know Paul Guenther did. I heard there was a Twitter report out there. Melvin is on his seventh team, I think. He’s had different techniques. Maybe he’s confused, I don’t know. I’ll talk to him. But he has to play better. He’s in a competitive situation. Perhaps he’s frustrated, and I can’t blame him.”The main priority over the bye will be getting healthy. Many of the struggles the past two weeks can be attributed to starting left guard Kelechi Osemele being out with a knee injury, right tackle Donald Penn on injured reserve with a groin injury and rookie left tackle Kolton Miller slowed by a knee injury that has contributed to him allowing six sacks in two weeks, according to Pro Football Focus.Gruden hopes to get Osemele back for the game Oct. 28 against Indianapolis and Miller should be healthier, which will be good news for quarterback Derek Carr. Carr was sacked six times against Seattle and had little time to get the ball downfield. He threw just one pass more than 10 yards downfield and had 140 of his 142 yards passing come after the catch.“It was obvious that it affected the ability to drop back and look around and throw the ball,” Gruden said. “”We got to block better than that. We got to play better than that. That certainly had an impact. No doubt.”NOTES: RB Marshawn Lynch has a groin strain. Gruden said he would have an update on the severity next week. … DL Frostee Rucker (neck) could be back next game. … Cooper and WR Seth Roberts remain in concussion protocol. … Joseph (hamstring) also could return against the Colts.