2023 NFL Draft Recap: Las Vegas Raiders

The 2023 NFL Draft has concluded after months of scrutiny about these prospects, potential landing spots, team and scheme fits, and so on. Now we get to start the entire process all over again now that we have team landing spots for these college prospects with their new NFL teams.

Today, we tackle the Las Vegas Raiders and how they fared in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Las Vegas' 2023 NFL Draft Selections:

  • Round 1, Pick 7 - Tyree Wilson, EDGE, Texas Tech
  • Round 2, Pick 35 - Michael Mayer, TE, Notre Dame
  • Round 3, Pick 70 - Byron Young, DT, Alabama
  • Round 3, Pick 100 - Tre Tucker, WR, Cincinnati
  • Round 4, Pick 104 - Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland
  • Round 4, Pick 135 - Aidan O'Connell, Purdue
  • Round 5, Pick 170 - Christopher Smith, S, Georgia
  • Round 6, Pick 203 - Amari Burney, LB, Florida
  • Round 7, Pick 231 - Nesta Jade Silvera, DT, Arizona State

The 2023 Fantasy Football Impact

To the surprise of some, Michael Mayer was the third tight end prospect chosen in the 2023 NFL Draft despite being the perceived TE1 throughout much of the draft process. With that said, he didn’t fall far, being selected with the third pick in the second round by GM Dave Ziegler and the Raiders. Mayer is the prototypical tight end with his 6-foot-5, 250-pound frame and decent speed. He can block, he can catch, and most importantly he showed us on the field by producing more than 1600 yards and 16 touchdowns in his last two seasons at Notre Dame. 

Mayer feels like a victim of draft fatigue by the fantasy community, and I have seen some excellent value in Mayer so far in the early rookie drafts. Let’s not forget Mayer is stepping into a Raiders offense that no longer has Darren Waller. While Austin Hooper and OJ Howard are on the roster, I fully expect Michael Mayer to lead the Raiders TE group in targets even as a rookie. With this position so difficult to predict for fantasy purposes, make sure you get some shares of this rookie tight end in your dynasty leagues this year.

Tre Tucker has nice quickness and great speed which gives him upside on special teams as a return man. Although he is joining Davante Adams, recently acquired Jakobi Meyers and slot man Hunter Renfrow, there is still a place for him on the team. 

Tucker was surprisingly selected ahead of college teammate Tyler Scott, but there are not a ton of fantasy implications for Tucker and the Raiders at the moment. That door could eventually open up if the Raiders were to move on from Renfrow. However, it’s probably best not to waste a roster spot on Tucker unless you just have the open space for an extra player.

Follow Conner Shears on Twitter @ConnerShears!

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