The Oakland Raiders are ready to improve in 2013 after a tough season last year and one way that things will be able to get better is through the NFL draft and so far general manager Reggie McKenzie has done a good job of getting its picks into camp, signing six players on Thursday, including Nick Kasa.
According to the Mercury News, general manager Reggie McKenzie signed six of the teams 10 picks in the draft, including sixth round tight end picks Nick Kasa from Colorado and Mychal Rivera from Tennessee, running back from Central Florida Latavius Murray out of the sixth round, wideout Brice Butler from San Diego State in the seventh as well as Oklahoma DT Stacy McGee and DE David Bass from Missouri Western State from the sixth and seventh rounds respectively.
The team still has four important picks to sign with number one pick DJ Hayden at cornerback, offensive tackle Menelik Watson from the second round, linebacker Sio Moore from the third round and quarterback Tyler Wilson out of the fourth round. All the picks are expected to sign and while not all are expected to contribute in big ways, some players will get the chance to start, including Watson, Kasa and Butler, as the team has needs at all those positions, especially at wide receiver for Butler, who could be the breakout player of the draft.
Kasa is expected to play a big part on offense, as new quarterback Matt Flynn will need a solid check down player in the middle after the team lost Brandon Myers in free agency to the Giants. Myers was tops on the team last year with 79 catches for 806 yards and Kasa could end up putting up similar numbers this season depending on how he develops in training camp. Murray could also end up being a key player depending on his health, as Darren McFadden has dealt with injuries for his entire career and he could end up stepping in.
The biggest and most interesting pick of the bunch is Wilson and whether he can challenge for the backup or starting job, as Flynn already lost his job to a Wilson previously in Seattle in Russell Wilson. The team is also hoping that Menelik Watson can challenge for a starting position when he signs and after getting surgery, Hayden might be the biggest question mark.
The Raiders have overhauled their secondary and Hayden was expected to be a big part of it, but he needed surgery to remove scar tissue from his scary college injury. The team added Mike Jenkins, Tracy Porter and Charles Woodson to the secondary with Nick Roach and Kevin Burnett on defense and they are expected to improve.