Updated 2021 NFL Draft Order: Round 1
The Ravens sent Orlando Brown to the Chiefs on Friday, shuffling the first-round order of the NFL Draft once again. Now, the Ravens are one of four teams to hold multiple first-round picks, joining the Jaguars (Nos. 1 and 25), Jets (Nos. 2 and 23), and Dolphins (Nos. 6 and 18). In turn, Chiefs no longer have a top-32 choice, joining the Seahawks, Texans, and Rams.
As we look ahead to Thursday, here’s how the first round currently stands:
1. Jacksonville Jaguars
2. New York Jets
3. San Francisco 49ers (from HOU via MIA)
4. Atlanta Falcons
5. Cincinnati Bengals
6. Miami Dolphins (from PHI)
7. Detroit Lions
8. Carolina Panthers
9. Denver Broncos
10. Dallas Cowboys
11. New York Giants
12. Philadelphia Eagles (from SF via MIA)
13. Los Angeles Chargers
14. Minnesota Vikings
15. New England Patriots
16. Arizona Cardinals
17. Las Vegas Raiders
18. Miami Dolphins
19. Washington Football Team
20. Chicago Bears
21. Indianapolis Colts
22. Tennessee Titans
23. New York Jets (from SEA)
24. Pittsburgh Steelers
25. Jacksonville Jaguars (from LAR)
26. Cleveland Browns
27. Baltimore Ravens
28. New Orleans Saints
29. Green Bay Packers
30. Buffalo Bills
31. Baltimore Ravens (from KC)
32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Raiders Scouting First Round QBs
The Raiders have done extensive work on all the top quarterbacks in this year’s draft (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). As RapSheet notes, this has been par for the course for the Raiders in recent years. However, if one of this year’s top passers slides past the top part of the order, Jon Gruden & Co. could be poised to make a move. 
Trevor Lawrence and Zach Wilson are guaranteed to be long gone, and it’s expected that Mac Jones will follow them at No. 3 overall. Beyond that, there’s at least some chance of this year’s top-rated QBs sliding. Some expect the Falcons to select North Dakoka’s Trey Lance at No. 4 and it’s widely anticipated that Ohio State’s Justin Fields will hear his name called in the top ten. Still, draft day is always full of surprises, and the Raiders’ board of first-round worthy QBs could be longer than others in the NFL.
Barring a QB slide, the Raiders could use the No. 17 choice to give Gus Bradley a top-end linebacker like Notre Dame’s Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah. Then again, they could focus on other areas of need — like the offensive line — now that they have edge threat Yannick Ngakoue on board. It’s a situation we’ll be monitoring on Thursday night, along with Derek Carr.
This Date In Transactions History: Raiders Trade Terrelle Pryor
When Terrelle Pryor was traded from the Raiders seven years ago today, many questioned whether he’d be able to stick around the NFL as a quarterback. Little did we know that the player would eventually transform into a 1,000-yard receiver.
Before we discuss that trade, let’s go back a bit. Following an autograph scandal and subsequent withdrawal from Ohio State, the former Big Ten star had to settle for the 2011 Supplemental Draft. The Raiders gave up a third-round to acquire the quarterback, and he later inked a four-year deal with the organization. Prior barely saw the field as a rookie, but he showed flashes during the 2012 season, tossing two scores and running for another on the ground.
He finally got a shot to start in 2013 following the Carson Palmer trade, and results were mixed. The Raiders went 3-6 in Pryor’s nine starts, with the quarterback completing only 57.4-percent of his passes for 1,798 yards, seven touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. However, he continued to show his talents on the ground, running for two more scores. During the 2014 offseason, Pryor found himself buried on the depth chart following the team’s signing of Matt Schaub. So, on April 21, 2014, the Raiders cleared a roster spot and saved a chunk of money by trading Pryor to Seattle for a seventh-round pick.
Pryor didn’t even make it to the regular season with the Seahawks, and he proceeded to bounce around the NFL a bit over the next few years, spending time with the Chiefs and Bengals. He spent time on the Browns roster during the 2015 campaign, and he got some recognition when he hauled in a 44-yard catch during the final game of the season.
He stuck around Cleveland for the 2016 season and proceeded to have a breakout campaign. Pryor played everywhere for the Browns: quarterback, wideout, safety. He was most productive at receiver, finishing the year with 1,028 yards from scrimmage and five scores (he also completed five of his nine passes). That performance earned him a one-year, $8MM deal from Washington, but he was unable to replicate his production from 2016, finishing the 2017 season with only 240 yards from scrimmage in nine games. Pryor had stints with the Jets, Dolphins, and Jaguars between the 2018 and 2019 seasons, and he hasn’t been on an NFL roster since the end of the 2019 preseason.
While Pryor’s peak was brief, it was memorable. Pryor’s transformation from struggling quarterback to 1,000-yard wideout was one of the better comeback stories in recent NFL history, and that transformation was unexpected when Pryor was traded on this date in 2014.
Raiders Hosted CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson
Blidi Wreh-Wilson could be heading back to the AFC. The Raiders hosted the veteran cornerback on a visit today, reports ESPN’s Field Yates (via Twitter).
[RELATED: Raiders Sign CB Rasul Douglas]
Following a standout career at UConn, Wreh-Wilson was a third-round pick by the Titans back in 2013. He spent three seasons in Tennessee, including a 2014 campaign that proved to a be a career season. During that sophomore season, Wreh-Wilson finished with 57 tackles, one interception, and 10 passes defended. Following a 2015 campaign that saw him appear in only 10 games, Wreh-Wilson was let go by the Titans at the end of the 2016 preseason.
Wreh-Wilson eventually caught on with the Falcons during their 2016 run to the Super Bowl, appearing in a single regular season game. He ended up spending the next four seasons with Atlanta, appearing in 40 games between the 2017 and 2020 seasons. He also got into a pair of playoff games during the 2017 season.
Las Vegas will begin the season shorthanded at corner, with the recently re-signed Nevin Lawson set for another two-game suspension. The team added Rasul Douglas yesterday, and they signed former first-round pick Karl Joseph earlier this offseason.
Some Raiders Attend Workouts
- Despite the Raiders being one of the teams to join the boycott, some of their players reported to their facility Monday, according to The Associated Press. Some members of the Cowboys, Panthers and Patriots did as well. The Pats also indicated many of their players would not attend. Cowboys executive VP Stephen Jones said “a lot” of players were present Monday.
Raiders Sign CB Rasul Douglas
Former Eagles and Panthers cornerback Rasul Douglas agreed to join the Raiders on Monday. The team announced the signing.
Las Vegas will begin the season shorthanded at corner, with the recently re-signed Nevin Lawson set for another two-game suspension. Douglas will attempt to be part of the solution for a team that has struggled in pass coverage for many seasons.
A 2017 third-round Eagles pick, Douglas spent three seasons with Philadelphia. The 6-foot-2 corner did not see time on defense during the Eagles’ 2017 playoff run but started in both of Philly’s 2018 postseason tilts. He has logged 29 starts over his four-year career. The Panthers gave Douglas his biggest opportunity, claiming him off waivers last September and using him as an 11-game starter.
Douglas, who intercepted five passes between the 2017 and ’18 seasons, graded as a middle-of-the-pack cornerback last season, in the view of Pro Football Focus, which slotted him just outside the top 60 at the position in 2020. Douglas, 26, filled in for Eli Apple in Carolina. The Raiders initially agreed to terms with Apple in 2020, but the deal fell through. Injuries impeded Apple with the Panthers, who turned to Douglas for much of the season.
He represents the Raiders’ first outside investment at the position this offseason. Douglas will join former West Virginia teammate Karl Joseph in Vegas’ secondary; the Raiders brought back their 2016 first-round pick earlier this month.
Raiders Skipping Offseason Workouts
Add another team to the list of squads that will be skipping in-person offseason workouts. Via the NFLPA (on Twitter), Raiders players announced that they will not be attending their voluntary workouts.
“We have come together as a team to discuss the important issues related to our health and safety,” the statement read. “We know the devastating impact COVID-19 has had on our membership, our families and our home city of Las Vegas this past year, and we continue to feel for everyone in our community and our country who has been impacted by the coronavirus.
“Given the data and facts shared by our union about rescued injuries and other health benefits of the virtual off-season last year, players from our team will not participate in a voluntary in-person workout program. We respect those players on our team and across the NFL who have contractual incentives linked to their participation in the program, but we stand in solidarity with our fellow players who are making the best decision on behalf of themselves and their families.”
Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review Journal tweets that the player vote was not unanimous, but a decision was ultimately made “to move forward together.” The reporter also notes that “accommodations” will also be made for players who had incentives tied to these voluntary workouts.
The Raiders join a long list of teams that have announced that they’ll be opting out of these workouts, a grouping that includes the Seahawks, Giants, Browns, Bears, Patriots, Lions, Buccaneers, and Broncos.
The NFL recently responded to some player complaints with a memo touting the benefits of in-person workouts at team facilities, which you can read courtesy of this tweet from Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. The league points out that any player who gets hurt at an in-person workout will be covered financially, but a player who gets hurt while working out on their own won’t be.
Raiders Cut Arden Key, Maurice Hurst
The Raiders are making some big cuts on their defensive line. Las Vegas has waived defensive end Arden Key and defensive tackle Maurice Hurst, a source told Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).
The Raiders have already added free agents like Yannick Ngakoue and Quinton Jefferson this offseason, making these guys more expendable. Both Key and Hurst were drafted by the Raiders in 2018, Key in the third-round and Hurst in the fifth. Hurst was initially viewed as a much better prospect, and potentially a first-rounder, until a heart condition was discovered just before the combine.
That heart issue was initially feared to be career-threatening, but fortunately Hurst was able to be cleared to play. He fell to 140th overall though, costing him a lot of money in the process. In the end, neither player made it to the end of their rookie deals.
Key started 10 games as a rookie but was used as a rotational player this past year. Despite playing around 40 percent of the defensive snaps, he finished with no sacks. The LSU product was the 87th pick in 2018 and is still only 24, so he should get scooped up before too long.
Hurst, who will turn 26 next month, was fairly productive his first two years in the league. From 2018-19, he had 7.5 sacks, six passes defended, an interception, and a couple of fumble recoveries. He was limited to 11 games this past year, finishing with 27 tackles, a half sack, and one pass defended.
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/15/21
Today’s minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-signed: LB Dennis Gardeck (RFA), LB Kylie Fitts (ERFA)
- Signed: WR Andre Baccellia, DL Ryan Bee, RB Tavien Feaster, LB Jamell Garcia-Williams, WR Darece Roberson
Cleveland Browns
- Re-signed: DE Porter Gustin
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Re-signed: LB Dakota Allen (ERFA)
Las Vegas Raiders
- Cut: QB Kyle Sloter
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: WR Jalen McCleskey
Broncos, Seahawks, Bucs To Skip Onsite Offseason Workouts
6:33pm: Add the Buccaneers to this list. The defending Super Bowl champions will follow the Broncos and Seahawks, with players voting to skip onsite workouts (Twitter link). They will move forward virtually.
6:01pm: Absent an agreement between the NFL and NFLPA on how this offseason will be structured, teams can begin holding voluntary workouts April 19. As of Tuesday, at least two teams are not on track to do so.
Broncos and Seahawks players voted to skip the voluntary portion of this offseason’s workouts — which covers everything except the yet-to-be-scheduled June minicamp — due to COVID-19 concerns.
“With offseason programs starting in less than a week and without adequate protocols in place in order for us players to return safely, we will be exercising our right to not participate in voluntary offseason workouts,” Broncos players said in a statement (Twitter link); Seahawks players’ statement can be read here (Twitter link). “COVID-19 remains a serious threat to our families and to our communities, and it makes no sense for us as players to put ourselves at risk during this dead period.”
[RELATED: NFL Mandates COVID-19 Vaccine For Team Employees]
This comes shortly after NFLPA president J.C. Tretter urged players to boycott OTAs. Broncos union rep Brandon McManus notified Vic Fangio of this decision to begin the offseason virtually Tuesday morning, Troy Renck of Denver7 notes. Thus far, 22 Broncos players have worked out at the team facility this offseason, per several reports, though McManus added most of the players that have done so are rehabbing injuries. Broncos players have not received an outlined plan regarding protocols for an onsite offseason program, according to McManus. Testing is an issue for many players, per ESPN.com’s Jeff Legwold, with workouts going Monday through Thursday and players receiving the other three days off.
The league and the union have spent several weeks negotiating offseason parameters, as the sides did last year, but no deal has been reached. Suspicion exists in NFLPA ranks that the NFL is running out the clock until April 19 to create a scenario where teams can begin holding workouts with no agreement in place, Albert Breer of SI.com notes. Last year, the NFL conducted an entirely virtual offseason. Some onsite work is expected this year, but barring an agreement between the league and the union, the Broncos, Seahawks and perhaps other teams may hold fully virtual offseasons again.
It will be interesting to see how other teams proceed. (Raiders players will discuss how they plan to navigate this issue Wednesday, per the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s Vincent Bonsignore.) Hundreds of players have workout bonuses at stake, and the prospect of certain teams conducting onsite workouts while others meet virtually would create a historically unusual dynamic that could create a potential advantage for certain squads.