Three quarterback-needy teams will kick off the 2024 NFL Draft on Thursday, as the Chicago Bears sit at No. 1 overall, the Washington Commanders at No. 2, and the New England Patriots at No. 3. Both the Commanders and Patriots have received trade calls about their picks, but no one has offered an attractive enough deal just yet.
The Commanders have shown no indication they will move down from No. 2 overall, per NFL Media, and one team that reportedly attempted to trade for that pick was the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Raiders have Aidan O'Connell on the roster, and they also signed Gardner Minshew in free agency. However, Vegas is still in the market for a quarterback. ESPN's Matt Miller reported that he's heard the Raiders really like Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr., and could select him at No. 13 overall.
Penix is expected to be the fifth quarterback selected on Thursday night, but the Raiders were interested in taking the first quarterback behind Caleb Williams. Who is/was Vegas interested in? Most likely it's the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Jayden Daniels out of LSU.
Daniels and Raiders head coach Antonio Pierce spent three years together at Arizona State before going their separate ways -- Pierce to the Raiders and Daniels to LSU. This past season, Daniels won the Heisman Trophy after throwing for 3,812 yards, 40 touchdowns, and just four interceptions, and rushing for 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns. He recorded the highest passer efficiency in a season in FBS history (208.0), led the FBS in total yards per game (412.2) and total touchdowns per game (4.2), and led all FBS quarterbacks in yards per attempt (11.7) and yards per rush (8.4).
The Raiders still may be a candidate to trade up for a quarterback on draft night. The Minnesota Vikings have an extra first-round pick to utilize in trade talks, and could eventually land in the top five. The rival Denver Broncos make their first selection just one pick ahead of the Raiders at No. 12 overall.
