Raiders connected to Utah cornerback Jaylon Johnson at No. 19

Let’s add Jaylon Johnson to the names we should consider the Raiders adding at cornerback in the NFL draft, which starts in 16 says.

Johnson is being earmarked to the Raiders by draftnik Evan Silva. Again, there are million mock drafts every year. Most are just for entertainment purposes. Some, though, deserve our attention. Silva’s mock work falls into that category as he has a history of often being right.

Because I don’t see every mock, I don’t know if Johnson has been connected to the Raiders much at No. 19. But I haven’t seen it.

So, when Silva mocks this pick, I’m going to pay attention to it. This is what Silva had to say about the pick:

Especially after they whiffed on Byron Jones and their deal with Eli Apple fell through, the Raiders’ cornerback plan came apart in free agency. Here, they bounce back with underrated Johnson, a high-floor ballhawk who no one could throw successfully against in the Pac-12.

What sticks out to me is the “underrated” description. One of the things I most trust Raiders’ general manager Mike Mayock on is recognizing talent. With Johnson playing a lot on the west coast, I bet Mayock is very familiar with him.

So, with a need at cornerback and no sure bets at No. 19, I can fathom this scenario. Also, with all the talk of the Raiders wanting to trade down, perhaps Johnson could be a possibility if the Raiders slide down in the first round a few picks.

The Fresno native was an All-American last season. He said in this interview that he is confident, based on intel he has been told, that he will go in the first round. He is known as a press-coverage corner who relies on physical play with nice size at 6 foot, 193 pounds.

Here are some of Johnson’s college highlights. Yes, it’s easy to see why Silva is making this call: