The Las Vegas Raiders’ scouting department has worked hard all year. The draft process begins every May, and for scouts, this is their Super Bowl. New names like Brian Stark, Brandon Hunt, Anthony Patch, and John Spytek have joined the Raiders.
Quarterback Fernando Mendoza transferred from the California Golden Bears to the Indiana Hoosiers, and Assistant GM Stark explained that because of the transfer portal and NIL, evaluations now have to start earlier. Scouts must gather information from sources at every school.
“If there's a player that stands out that we feel it's not worth losing, it's not worth even picking up the phone, then we'll just make the pick,” General Manager John Spytek said in the pre-draft press conference.
“If it's a player that we're not as excited about or there's a group of players that we would love to to pick from and we can get value for that then we're certainly open to listening to that.”
Last year, the Raiders traded back twice in the second round and felt they accumulated strong draft capital. “We’d be open to doing that again,” Spytek added.
DJ Cabanlong- The Sporting Tribune
Las Vegas Raiders newly hired General Manager John Spytek speaks to the media during a press conference, Monday January 27, 2025 in Henderson, Nev.
According to Spytek, the Raiders won’t make drastic changes, but there will be some new faces in the draft room this year. They also have a brand-new draft room:
“I think it's state-of-the-art. I think it's the best in the NFL. I don't think that's up for discussion… but we'll have that thing ready to rock on Thursday next week.”
Last week, draft meetings were held with head coach Klint Kubiak and his staff, producing excellent evaluations of players. The focus was on identifying the top 10 players for the Raiders at this stage. On the quarterback decision, Spytek said they’ll decide after training camp:
“Ultimately, this is a meritocracy, and the best guy will play. It's just really hard to play really well at a young age, but we've seen plenty of quarterbacks do it recently… obviously, we added Kirk (Cousins), we have Aidan (O'Connell). We'll see how it goes but the best man will play.”
Spytek noted he was pleased with how cornerback Darien Porter finished last season. His offseason has been strong, and Spytek has seen significant physical improvement.
“If we feel like adding another corner, another linebacker is in the best interest of us, we'll do it,” he said.