Following the trade for quarterback Geno Smith, it’s highly unlikely the Las Vegas Raiders will use their first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft on a quarterback. However, that doesn’t mean they won’t take a quarterback at all.
Former fourth-round pick Aidan O’Connell is set to be the team’s backup but they may want somebody with more athletic upside to learn behind Smith. Luckily, some very interesting options should be available later in the draft.
In Chad Reuter’s latest four-round mock draft for NFL.com , he is projected that the Raiders will target Alabam quarterback Jalen Milroe in the third round with the 68th pick.
Mirloe just wrapped up his Alabama Pro Day where he blew scouts away with an unofficial 40-yard dash time of 4.37. That would easily make him one of the fastest quarterbacks in football once he gets drafted.
There are a lot of concerns with Milroe as a passer. He seemed to regress in 2024 and threw just 16 touchdowns to 11 interceptions.
However, his athletic traits are tantalizing. He’s not particularly tall at 6-foot-2 but he’s thick, has a huge arm and is as fast as any quarterback in the NFL.
A team like the Raiders would make a ton of sense for Milroe. He’d be able to sit behind Smith for two to three years and learn under offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, who has a strong track record of developing quarterbacks.
A third-round pick is a small price to pay for a quarterback who has the upside that Milroe does