Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast: Grading the Draft

In this episode of the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast, we recap the 2023 NFL Draft and tell you what we hear from NFL Executives about the Silver and Black's draft.

HENDERSON, Nev.--The Las Vegas Raiders came out of General Manager's Dave Ziegler's first NFL Draft with a complete quiver of picks in a good position.

The Raiders had an advantage over many teams in that Patrick Graham, the defensive coordinator, was one of the head coaches at the Senior Bowl, and several others were assistants.

Many of the Raiders' picks referenced those relationships as reasons why they were excited to be coming to the Silver and Black.

Below is our latest Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast breaking down the final day of the NFL Draft, and giving you our overall grade and what some NFL Executives think about how the Silver and Black did:

I asked General Manager Dave Ziegler about that connection on Saturday, and he told me: "It's another kind of detailed exposure that you often don't usually get if you don't have a coach involved. I think we talked about it the other day, but just being able to really see how guys learn, really get to see how guys operate day-to-day in meeting rooms, at practice, interaction with their teammates. Those are all things that we looked at, all things that we got feedback on. It wasn't just about the football performance. It was about how they treated each other, how they interacted, their commitment, and all those different types of things, different positions that they could play. And so, it was a really valuable tool for us, and something that we utilized and helped us in the decision-making process here over the weekend."  

One player I asked Ziegler about was Nest Silvera, a defensive tackle from Arizona State. The Raiders selected him in the seventh round (No. 231 overall), and Ziegler gave me great insight into why he fits in the Silver and Black.

“Yeah, we were, impressed just with the production that he had he this year at Arizona State. He started his career at Miami, transferred to Arizona State and he was a really disruptive player this year. He wasn't a player who I had been able to spend much time on prior to draft meetings. I'm only able to watch so many players, but when we put on the tape it was just surprising to see this inside player and just how disruptive he was in the running game. A lot of penetration, a lot of plays where he's in the backfield and just a lot of plays where he's finding the football and making tackles. And so, those guys are hard to find. Sometimes these guys that are transferring and things like that can get lost in the shuffle a little bit, but Antonio Pierce knew him from his recruiting days while he was at Arizona state. So, he had some knowledge of him. And then the new head coach at Arizona State wasn't there with Nesta but is in the building now and obviously he has connections. Kenny Dillingham was someone who I coached at Chaparral High School when I was coaching high school football in Arizona. So, there was some connections for us just to learn a little bit about his journey, learn about who he was, and we he was also a guy we brought in for 30 visit. So, we got to spend some time with him in the building and, yeah, really excited that he was there. And again, there's going to be a lot of competition in that defensive tackle room. Everyone's going to have to buckle up and bring their best every day because there's going to be a lot of hungry people in that room.”  

Here is a complete list of every pick and links to more information about them:

Round 1 No. 7 overall pick: Tyree Wilson, DE, Texas Tech

Round 2 No. 35 overall pick: Michael Mayer, TE, Notre Dame

Round 3 No. 70 overall: Byron Young, DT, Alabama

Round 3 No. 100 overall: Tre Tucker, WR, Cincinnati

Round 4 No. 104 overall: Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland

Round 4 No. 135 overall: Aidan O'Connell, QB, Purdue

Round 5 No. 170 overall: Christopher Smith II, S, Georgia

Round 6 No. 203 overall: Amari Burney, LB, Florida

Round 7 No. 231 overall: Nesta Jade Silvera, DT, Arizona State

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