The Oakland Raiders head into Thursday's NFL draft as a team looking to bounce back after a rough 2012 campaign and after a fairly active offseason, they will look to take larger steps towards adding talent to the roster, as they have the number three overall pick and are in a position to add an elite prospect to the team.
Following the trade of cornerback Darrelle Revis to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from the New York Jets, the Raiders could be in prime position to take the top player at that position, Alabama's Dee Milliner, or even trade down with other teams looking to get their hands on him or someone like Eric Fisher, who is expected to go in the top 10. The Raiders have needs at a number of positions on the roster and could go after a player on the offensive line, defensive line or at cornerback.
The Raiders have focused primarily on the defensive side of the ball in free agency with players like Kevin Burnett and Nick Roach at linebacker, as well as Mike Jenkins and Tracy Porter at cornerback. Oakland was in desperate need of signing a corner before going after Jenkins and Porter and the team could look to add Milliner so that they are three deep at the position and could allow the first round pick to develop without too much pressure on him.
Cornerback can be one of the toughest positions to transition to in the NFL and if the team decides to look at other players, options include Eric Fisher, Ezekiel Ansah, Sharrif Floyd and Jarvis Jones. The Kansas City Chiefs are expected by many experts to take lineman Luke Joeckel with the number one overall pick, leaving the Jacksonville Jaguars as the only team between the Raiders and whoever they want. There are a number of good players at the top of the draft despite no one being considered "superstar" picks like Robert Griffin and Andrew Luck, including Dion Jordan and Lane Johnson at left tackle.
The Raiders originally were thought to be in the Geno Smith race, but after acquiring Matt Flynn from the Seattle Seahawks for draft picks, it's very unlikely that they will go after another quarterback with Terrelle Pryor also in the mix to start. The team traded away Carson Palmer to get a few picks back and the Raiders will be looking to make the first pick count, as they are without a second rounder.
The Raiders will open the season with a road game against the Colts before hosting Jacksonville and travelling to play Denver on Monday night football. The team will play two straight division games after taking on the Redskins, with a home game against the Chargers and a road tilt against the new-look Chiefs before heading into the bye week. Oakland ranked eighth in passing last season while gaining only 88 rush yards per game, good for 28th in the NFL. The defense was inconsistent for most of the season, ranking 20th and 18th in passing and rushing yards per game.
