Silver Minings: Jon Gruden has high praise for Damon Arnette

The Raiders are highlighting a rare post-draft interview with head coach Jon Gruden on a Las Vegas radio show in which he raved about first-round pick Damon Arnette.

Las Vegas took the cornerback from Ohio State at No. 19 but many draft observers have panned the pick, saying Arnette was taken too high.

Clearly, Gruden doesn’t think so. You can listen to his high Arnette praise here.

The key points made by Gruden include that Arnette was more productive than teammate Jeff Okudah, who was the No. 3 overall pick by the Detroit Lions; that he is the best tackling cornerback in the draft; and that he reminds Gruden of Aqib Talib — who Gruden drafted in the first round for Tampa Bay in 2008 and has gone on to have an outstanding career.

Gruden is clearly pumped up about his cornerback. He thinks the Raiders have a potential shut-down corner in him. If he’s right, it will go a long way into transforming the Raiders’ defense.

In other Raiders’ news links:

• More power rankings: The Raiders are ranked No. 22 in the NFL by ESPN.com.
• Raiders’ rookie fantasy time: Check out which Raiders are ranked by ESPN.com’s rookie fantasy rankings.
• Learn more about Tanner Muse: The Athletic has a feature on the Raiders’ third-round pick, linebacker Tanner Muse from Clemson.
• The cost of a fanless season: Team owners could stand to lose millions if games are played without fans this season.
• Schedule time: We will learn the Raiders’ 2020 schedule Thursday evening.