Before the start of their Week 18 game, the Raiders have learned their fate with respect to this year’s NFL draft. Vegas will own the top selection for the 2026 edition of the event. 
The Giants were among the teams playing in the early window for the final day of the regular season. Only New York could have overtaken Vegas for the top spot in the order, but that would have required a win against Dallas. However, the Giants beat the Cowboys 34-17. That result clinched the No. 1 pick for the Raiders.
Today’s development represents the expected outcome in this case. The Raiders lost to the Giants in Week 17, the contest which was widely known to have massive implications for the draft order. Both teams drew criticism for their roster handling in the build-up to that contest, particularly the Raiders. Tight end Brock Bowers was moved to injured reserve while edge rusher Maxx Crosby was shut down for the remainder of the season against his wishes.
Head coach Pete Carrol also objected to the idea of sidelining Crosby, who is slated to undergo meniscus surgery. The five-time Pro Bowler has already spoken out about the decision to shut him down, something which has fueled a new round of trade speculation. Managing the Crosby situation will be critical for the Raiders, a team which could undergo a number of notable changes soon.
The 2025 offseason saw numerous arrivals at all levels of the organization. That included a new coaching staff led by Carroll, although his tenure has not gone as planned. A widespread expectation exists Carroll will prove to be a one-and-done staffer. New offensive and special teams coordinators will also be required during the hiring cycle. In the meantime, attention in the front office will turn to the possibility of selecting a new quarterback.
Geno Smith was acquired via trade in a Carroll reunion, and he is under contract through 2027. The veteran has fallen well short of expectations this season, however, and the team could seek out a replacement via the draft. Smith could be retained as a bridge starter, but the acquisition of a future franchise signal-caller would be seen as a pivotal move for a Raiders team desperately in need of stability on several fronts.
Fernando Mendoza is seen by many as the top quarterback in the 2026 class, one which in general is not held in high regard. The Heisman winner is set to lead Indiana in the CFP semifinal against Oregon. That means a matchup against Dante Moore – whose intentions regarding the NFL draft are still not known – is upcoming. Vegas’ evaluation of both passers will be a major storyline over the coming months, presuming both wind up turning pro.
The rest of the draft order will be finalized as the remaining games around the league play out. Shuffling in the top five could prove to be impactful given the dearth of high-end QB prospects relative to the demand amongst many teams. In any event, the Raiders – who of course will look to avoid a repeat of the JaMarcus Russell situation from the last time they selected first overall – find themselves in position to kick off this year’s draft.
I really don’t think Brady is a Mendoza guy. Just from seeing personality.
Mendoza is what you would get if you asked Brady to build a QB prospect in a lab
Watch his gameplay. Very accurate, great timing, can run and knows when to, and he wins. That’s the key that Brady will love….his toughness and he wins. Because he’s a nerd he’s gonna get dogged and I’m pretty sure dude has heard that his whole life. Feeling a lot like Josh Allen coming out of college.
The Minute Mendoza stepped on Indiana campus, he had all the players names memorized by the end of the week, gave credit pretty much to everyone but himself for the heisman, says all the right things at the podium, 22 and already has 2 masters degrees, 6’5 225 and has got speed on him. Mature and athletic, how do you NOT want him
Comes off cheesy like Tebow. He is a way better qb compared to Tebow. Just not sure the overly nice is going to work in an NFL locker room.
Typical of my Giants. Controlled their own destiny to get the top pick and put themselves in line to collect a lot of draft capital by trading out of the #1 slot. Of course they go out and win the final two games and might fall all the way to #7.
Ehhh I wouldn’t be broken up about it. Football should be about winning. Shamelessly shutting down your only two star players to compete for a pick that you should be ashamed to have is pretty transparent to the rest of the league. Maybe Vegas will take the right guy and break their losing woes, but teams that do this typically find themselves picking highly again within a few years. And, considering how blatantly they did it, they might be doing that without Maxx Crosby(and they probably shouldn’t given his trade value and his unhappiness).
What the Giants should be worried more about is whether Schoen’s the right guy to be making those picks. You pretty much have to hope that Daboll had a ton of influence in the draft room these last few years, and that all of it was bad.
More important that your rookie QB led the G-Men to 2 easy victories than any draft positioning.
>>Only New York could have overtaken Vegas for the top spot in the order, but that would have required a win against Dallas.<<
Would've required a loss by the Giants in a game Fox forced to most of the nation because "Dallas Against Anyone".
Well no one had a gun to your head, Chuck!
Congratulations Raider Nation! Latest thing for this organization to screw up!
Congrats to 1 of the 3 premier dumpster fire franchises in the NFL for clinching the number 1 overall pick!!
Only New York could have overtaken Vegas for the top spot in the order, but that would have required a win against Dallas. However, the Giants beat the Cowboys 34-17. That result clinched the No. 1 pick for the Raiders.
IT REQUIRED A LOSS AGAINST DALLAS !!
Proofreading 1001
Not something that happens any more. Sad.
I’m sure everyone appreciates the irony of the Raiders motto…”Commitment To Excellence” 🙂
That pic is hilarious. Tom playing wing man.
Giants don’t know how to lose on purpose. Congratulations to the Jets for doing what the Giants couldn’t do.
Mendoza is the obvious top pick for the Raiders. However, their top offseason priority needs to be to sign both Rasheed Walker and Braden Smith to lead their horrific offensive line.
The free agent list for quality offensive linemen is slim this season and the draft is not deep either. They must sign at least one of these two. If they don’t then sign at least one of them their offseason is a fail.
Still think their best bet is to get an extra #1 or 2. They have so many needs they need to get as many pics as they can. Maybe take the extra first and break it down to get a later 1 this year maybe a 3 and 4 too. Hope they don’t do any of this love to see them struggle. That old rivalry will never die. It has been overshadowed by the 40 whiners rivalry now. Funny how the 2 biggest rivals we have hav were in the Bay Area. Now neither of them are in the Bay Area. LOL
Can’t build anything without a franchise QB…period. Yes there are several needs, but a franchise QB is #1, 2, and 3 right now. I think there will be a cleansing from inside and a new HC and OC are going to get their QB to hitch themselves to. Tons of money in FA to help build this roster which will mean nothing without the right coaching staff in place. They are in a good spot to land a good coach as the situation, as bad as it really is, does cater to a full reset. Tons of money to spend. #1 draft pick could be Heisman winning QB. Or Miami..Jets…
You don’t win in the NFL without defense. Ask the Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, or New York Jets.
Holy crap that game was tough to watch. How could people actually pay money and spend time to go watch something like that? That was an old week 4 preseason type game. Meaningless to the point of actually being a waste of time. Good on any scrubs that actually put something on film. I pray this is the bottom cuz good God 🤦🏻♂️
On the good side, all the Swifties get to see what it’s been like for actual Chefs fans for the previous 50 years of their existence. You had your run, time to dust off those Patriot jerseys and blend back into society.
Completely unwatchable.
Proof of why KC-LV was meaningless: St. Louis, Oklahoma City, and Reno didn’t get the game. Omaha had to request it after being assigned LAC-Denver by CBS.
If Dante Moore declares, I think the Raiders draft him, with Mendoza to the Jets at 2…
I hope you’re right, but I doubt the Jets are that lucky
That would be classic Raiders move. For the record I do not think Moore comes out.
Raiders trade 1st pick plus to Ravens for Lamar. Lamar has been brutal in the Sunday night game against Pittsburgh.
As soon as I write that, Lamar throws a bomb and Baltimore takes the lead. SMH
And the Steelers will host Houston because the Ravens missed the winning FG at the gun.