Raiders Use No. 17 Pick To Take Alex Leatherwood
With the No. 17 overall pick, the Raiders tapped Alabama tackle Alex Leatherwood. Leatherwood wasn’t widely viewed as a mid-first rounder, but GM Mike Mayock has never been afraid to think outside the box. 
Pundits may have mixed opinions about Leatherwood, but the offensive line was unquestionably among the Raiders’ biggest needs heading into tonight. Now without Gabe Jackson, Rodney Hudson, and Trent Brown. While they have Denzelle Good, Andre James, and Nick Martin to manage the interior, Leatherwood will be tasked with protecting the edge.
Leatherwood’s stock might have been higher last year. However, he opted to return to school and watch tackles Jedrick Wills Jr., Andrew Thomas, Tristan Wirfs, and Austin Jackson go pro ahead of him. At the pro level, he’ll look to reward Mayock’s confidence at the tackle position, though his long-term future could be at guard.
Mayock has delivered his first shock of the night, but he’ll have plenty of opportunities to stun the league throughout the weekend. As of this writing, the Raiders hold:
- Round 2: No. 48
- Round 3: No. 79 (from Cardinals), 80
- Round 3: No. 80
- Round 4: No. 121
- Round 5: No. 162 (from Dolphins), 167 (from Seahawks)
- Round 5: No. 167 (from Seahawks)
- Round 6: No. 200
2022 NFL Fifth-Year Option Tracker
NFL teams have until May 3 to officially pick up their options on 2018 first-rounders who are entering the final year of their rookie deals. In a change from years past, fifth-year option seasons are fully guaranteed, rather than guaranteed for injury only. Meanwhile, salaries are now determined by a blend of the player’s position, initial draft placement, and specific performance metrics:
- 2-time Pro Bowlers (excluding alternate Pro Bowlers) will earn the same as their position’s franchise tag.
- 1-time Pro Bowlers will earn the equivalent of the transition tag.
- Players who achieve any of the following will get the average of the 3rd-20th highest salaries at their position:
- 75%+ snaps in two of their first three seasons
- 75%+ average across all three seasons
- 50%+ in each of first three seasons
- Players who do not hit any of those benchmarks will get the average of the 3rd-25th top salaries at their position.
With the deadline looming, we’ll use the space below to track all the option decisions from around the league:
Updated 4-30-21, 4:24pm CT
- QB Baker Mayfield, Browns: Exercised ($18.858MM)
- RB Saquon Barkley, Giants: Exercised ($7.217MM)
- QB Sam Darnold, Panthers (via Jets): Pending ($18.858MM)
- CB Denzel Ward, Browns — Exercised ($13.294MM)
- LB Bradley Chubb, Broncos — Pending ($12.716MM)
- G Quenton Nelson, Colts — Pending ($13.754MM)
- QB Josh Allen, Bills: Pending ($23.106MM)
- LB Roquan Smith, Bears: Exercised ($9.735MM)
- OT Mike McGlinchey, 49ers: Exercised ($10.88MM)
- QB Josh Rosen, Cardinals: N/A
- S Minkah Fitzpatrick, Steelers (via Dolphins): Exercised ($10.612MM)
- DT Vita Vea, Buccaneers: Exercised ($7.638MM)
- DT Daron Payne, Washington — Exercised ($8.529MM)
- DE Marcus Davenport, Saints: Exercised ($9.553MM)
- OT Kolton Miller, Raiders — N/A (extension)
- LB Tremaine Edmunds, Bills: Pending ($12.716MM)
- S Derwin James, Chargers: Exercised ($9.052MM)
- CB Jaire Alexander, Packers: Exercised ($13.294MM)
- LB Leighton Vander Esch, Cowboys: Pending ($9.145MM)
- C Frank Ragnow, Lions: Exercised ($12.657MM)
- C Billy Price, Bengals: Declined ($10.413MM)
- LB Rashaan Evans, Titans: Pending ($9.735MM)
- OT Isaiah Wynn, Patriots: Pending ($10.413 MM)
- WR D.J. Moore, Panthers: Exercised ($11.116MM)
- TE Hayden Hurst, Falcons (via Ravens): Pending ($5.428MM)
- WR Calvin Ridley, Falcons: Pending ($11.116MM)
- RB Rashaad Penny, Seahawks: Pending ($4.523MM)
- S Terrell Edmunds, Steelers: Pending ($6.753MM)
- DT Taven Bryan, Jaguars: Pending ($7.638MM)
- CB Mike Hughes, Vikings: Pending ($12.643MM)
- RB Sony Michel, Patriots: Pending ($4.523MM)
- QB Lamar Jackson, Ravens: Exercised ($23.106MM)
QB Rumors: Patriots, Raiders, Lock, Love
If the Patriots do not opt to make a trade up for one of this draft’s top five quarterback prospects, or if none falls to New England at No. 15, the team could conceivably turn to Jimmy Garoppolo. The Pats, of course, sent Garoppolo to the 49ers nearly four years ago and have a need at quarterback — the Cam Newton re-signing notwithstanding. Tom Brady‘s former backup appears to be on New England’s radar. While a Thursday-morning report indicated Garoppolo is likely to stay put, some in the Patriots organization are wondering if San Francisco will realize keeping Garoppolo and the quarterback it selects at No. 3 overall tonight will not make sense, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com notes. The Patriots would figure to be at or near the top of Jimmy G’s wishlist, given his familiarity with Josh McDaniels‘ system. Garoppolo has a no-trade clause, giving him say in where he is dealt — if/when he is traded.
On a rather big day for the position, here is the latest from the QB world:
- Jon Gruden has met with a few of this year’s top quarterback prospects, per Albert Breer of SI.com. Teams were permitted to conduct virtual meetings with an unlimited number of virtual prospects this year, with the pandemic still nixing “30” visits. Perennially linked to aiming for a Derek Carr upgrade, the Raiders have scouted QBs in this class. They have also discussed potential trade-ups from No. 17, Breer adds. Carr is going into Year 4 with Gruden, and although he has played well, the Las Vegas HC has been known to covet other passers from time to time.
- If the Broncos pull the trigger on a quarterback at No. 9 or trade up from that position to snag one, Breer notes Drew Lock would be expected to go on the trade block as soon as Friday. The Broncos would certainly not recoup a second-rounder for their former second-round QB choice, but Breer notes the Vikings and Panthers would be teams in the Lock mix in this scenario. The Vikings have acquired two ex-Bronco QBs in recent years — Trevor Siemian and Kyle Sloter — to back up Kirk Cousins, while the Panthers just dealt Teddy Bridgewater to Denver. Bridgewater would make sense as a mentor to a quarterback the Broncos select — Justin Fields or Trey Lance perhaps — but Lock would not have a place on the team in this scenario.
- The Packers are running away with the draft-day news cycle lead, despite not picking until No. 29 tonight. The Aaron Rodgers saga hitting a fever pitch thrusts Jordan Love back into the spotlight. Despite Green Bay’s first-round pick last year receiving zero regular-season snaps, the team remains high on him and is pleased by his development, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. The Packers let QB2 Tim Boyle go this offseason, moving Love up to Rodgers’ primary backup. Rodgers appears keen on letting Love receive another promotion.
49ers, Broncos, Raiders On Aaron Rodgers’ Wishlist
3:42pm: While a previous report indicated the 49ers made an offer, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets the Packers have not received a firm trade proposal for their superstar quarterback. Multiple teams have inquired, only to be rebuffed. Given Thursday’s developments, offers figure to come in for the three-time MVP.
3:16pm: It hasn’t even been an hour since the NFL world was rocked by news of Aaron Rodgers potentially wanting out of Green Bay, and we’ve already got a new batch of updates for you.
Perhaps most importantly, a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk that Rodgers “could indeed be traded this weekend” (Twitter link). In a separate tweet, he reports the potential destinations. An “unimpeachable” source told Florio that as of last night Rodgers’ wishlist was the “49ers, Broncos, Raiders (not necessarily in that order).”
He also adds that Rodgers wanted the Packers to accept the 49ers’ offer, which we only heard about within the past couple hours. The 49ers make a ton of sense as Rodgers is a Bay Area native, although it’s unclear what his specific attractions to the Broncos and Raiders are.
The Raiders have never seemed particularly committed to Derek Carr, and Jon Gruden would likely jump at the chance to add Rodgers. With only Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater right now, the Broncos would too. San Francisco traded up to get a quarterback with the third overall pick, and they’ve now only got a few hours left until they need to decide on a passer. Maybe they can trade whoever they end up drafting as part of a potential package for Rodgers.
In our original story we heard that the two sides were still in some sort of negotiations over a contract extension, but it sounds like that’s probably not realistic if there’s a real chance he gets traded in the next few days.
Florio has additional bad news for Packers fans, as he says in another tweet that he’s been told Rodgers “doesn’t like anyone in the front office for a variety of reasons.” Meanwhile, Packers brass are continuing to act like nothing is wrong, at least publicly.
GM Brian Gutekunst issued a statement shortly after the news broke, saying “as we’ve stated since the season ended, we are committed to Aaron in 2021 and beyond. Aaron has been a vital part of our success and we look forward to competing for another championship with him leading our team” (Twitter link via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
Whether Rodgers is with the Packers or another team in 2021, it sounds like he wants more input with the organization. The reigning MVP “wants to have a say in personnel decisions for whatever team he is on – both in the draft and free agency,” sources told Tony Pauline of ProFootballNetwork (Twitter link).
It’s safe to say the Packers wouldn’t have taken Jordan Love in the first-round last year if Rodgers had a say in draft decisions. It’s not an unreasonable ask for a player of Rodgers’ stature, but it’s more confirmation that Rodgers is unhappy and could see himself playing elsewhere in the near future.
That’s all for now, but we should be hearing plenty more on this situation in the coming hours, so stay tuned…
2021 NFL Draft: Team By Team
The 2021 NFL Draft has arrived! Soon, picks will soon be swapped and shuffled at lightning speed. But, before the trading frenzy starts, here’s a look at the draft picks owned by each team:
[RELATED: 2021 NFL Draft Order By Round]
Arizona Cardinals – Picks: 6
Round 1: No. 16 overall
Round 2: No. 49
Round 5: No. 160
Round 6: No. 223 (from Vikings)
Round 7: Nos. 243, 247 (from Bears through Raiders)
Atlanta Falcons — Picks: 9
Round 1: No. 4 overall
Round 2: No. 35
Round 3: No. 68
Round 4: No. 108
Round 5: Nos. 148, 182, 183
Round 6: Nos. 187, 219
Baltimore Ravens – Picks: 10
Round 1: Nos. 27, 31 (from Chiefs) overall
Round 2: No. 58
Round 3: Nos. 94 (from Chiefs), 104
Round 4: Nos. 131, 136 (from Chiefs)
Round 5: Nos. 171, 184
Round 6: No. 210
Buffalo Bills — Picks: 7
Round 1: No. 30 overall
Round 2: No. 61
Round 3: No. 93
Round 5: Nos. 161 (from Raiders), 174
Round 6: No. 213
Round 7: No. 236 (from Panthers)
Carolina Panthers — Picks: 8
Round 1: No. 8 overall
Round 2: No. 39
Round 3: No. 73
Round 4: No. 113
Round 5: No. 151
Round 6: Nos. 191 (from Broncos), 193, 222
Chicago Bears — Picks: 8
Round 1: No. 20 overall
Round 2: No. 52
Round 3: No. 83
Round 5: No. 164
Round 6: Nos. 204, 208 (from Seahawks through Dolphins), 221, 228
Cincinnati Bengals — Picks: 8
Round 1: No. 5 overall
Round 2: No. 38
Round 3: No. 69
Round 4: No. 111
Round 5: No. 149
Round 6: No. 190
Round 7: Nos. 202 (from Dolphins through Texans), 235 (from Lions through Seahawks)
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/27/21
Today’s minor transactions:
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: TE Carson Williams
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: DL Josiah Coatney
The Williams signing is a fun one. He split four seasons of collegiate basketball between Northern Kentucky and Western Kentucky. The 6-foot-5, 240-pound forward averaged 11.2 points per game, 5.9 rebounds per game, and 1.3 assists per game during his collegiate career. Jimmy Durkin of The Athletic tweets that Williams hasn’t played football since the 8th grade, although he did participate at Western Kentucky’s pro day.
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.