Oregon QB Justin Herbert staying for senior season not good news for Raiders

Being a Ducks fan, I am ecstatic that quarterback Justin Herbert will be staying for his senior season. But for any team with a high selection in this year’s draft, it’s not great news. The Raiders will be one of those teams drafting high and therefore aren’t too happy about it, even though it was expected Herbert wouldn’t declare for the draft this year.

Herbert would have been far and away the top quarterback in this draft and a lock to be selected near the top of the draft. The Raiders’ disappointment isn’t because they would be looking to draft him. It is the same as it would be for the Cardinals or the 49ers or the Jets — none of whom are in the market to add a quarterback.

Having Herbert in the draft raises the value of all picks at the top of the draft. It’s two-fold, really. It either raises the value of the picks for teams further down in the draft wanting to trade up to get a quarterback, or it raises the likelihood that the player the Raiders want will be available when they select.

As of right now, the Raiders are in line for the 4th overall pick. And they badly need a pass rusher. Let’s say they have their sights set on Kentucky’s Josh Allen. Well, the Cardinals and 49ers are also looking at pass rushers and currently hold picks ahead of the Raiders. One of them takes Nick Bosa with their top pick and the other... well, if Herbert were on the board someone could jump up in a trade and take him, leaving Allen for the Raiders. Without Herbert, Allen gets taken and the Raiders either settle for the third best pass rushing prospect or look to another position.

Other QB’s in the draft this year like Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins or Missouri’s Drew Lock won’t have many teams dying to trade up. In fact, knowing this will be a weak QB class will likely have them looking to find their QB in free agency. Joe Flacco, anyone?