Raiders 2022 draft: Focus on cornerbacks

Over the years, I haven’t automatically spent a lot of time focusing on pre-draft visits and meetings.

After all, all teams can have pre-draft visits with 30 players and they can have several more meetings at the NFL combine and they attend limitless pro days. So, basically, every team talks to a ton of players before the draft. So, these exercises are often not indications of who a team will draft.

Yet, sometimes, we do get hints and I’m sensing that is happening at position, in particular, for the Las Vegas Raiders. If pre-draft and meetings are an indication, the Raiders appear serious about adding a cornerback in the draft.

According to reports, the Raiders have shown interest in multiple cornerbacks. Among them are LSU’s Cordale Flott, Houston’s Marcus Jones, Tariq Woolen of the University of Texas at San Antonio and Hawaii’s Cortez Davis.

Most of those players are mid-round prospects. The Raiders, of course, don’t pick until No. 86, in the third round, due to the Davante Adams trade with Green Bay. So, they would have to hope for someone like Woolen or Jones was still available in the third round.

At this point, I’d think the Raiders are likely to use one of their five picks on a cornerback as they look to restock the defensive under new coordinator Patrick Graham.

The Raiders have already focused on the position in free agency as they have signed Darius Phillips and Anthony Averett in free agency and traded for Rock Ya-Sin. So, through the veteran adding period and the draft, cornerbacks does seem to be a big focus for the new Las Vegas brass.