Antonio Pierce’s latest answer hints at Raiders looking for options other than Shedeur Sanders
Antonio Pierce's Las Vegas Raiders secured a win over the Jaguars, but it may have hurt their chances of drafting Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders in the 2025 NFL Draft.
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Antonio Pierce and Shedeur Sanders (Image via IMAGO/X)
Did the Las Vegas Raiders forget they are playing for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL Draft? Shedeur Sanders would not be too happy that his (alleged) favorite team is straying from its intended path.
Before the week 16 Sunday clash against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the draft board started off with the Raiders, then the New York Giants in second, and the Jaguars at third, followed by the New England Patriots at fourth.
Aidan O’Connell returned for the Jaguars fixture, and he threw 24 completions from 38 attempts for 257 yards, zero touchdowns, and zero interceptions, but set up Alexander Mattison and Ameer Abdullah for one rushing touchdown each. The game ended in a 14-19 victory for Mark Davis’ team.
Davis was so happy with the rare win that he and a few other players were reportedly dancing in joy inside the locker room.
#Raiders owner Mark Davis was in the locker room clapping and talking to Daniel Carlson and AJ Cole when the locker room opened to the media. Some other players were dancing. Davis was in a good mood. Doesn't seem to care about the draft order ramifications of the win over JAX.
— Tashan Reed (@tashanreed) December 23, 2024
The win flipped the draft list on its head. Now the Giants hold the first overall pick after losing 7-34 in Atlanta earlier in the day. The Patriots are second with a close 21-24 loss against the Buffalo Bills, and the Jaguars are in third. The Raiders fell down to the sixth spot.
The Raiders win and drop to #5
— Tankathon.com (@tankathon) December 23, 2024
Jacksonville up to #2
Giants are in the driver's seat for the #1 pickhttps://t.co/AJoUOqeWzT pic.twitter.com/wgTMNxeVvv
After the game, reporters notified head coach Antonio Pierce about the draft list and whether they were serious about drafting a quarterback, more specifically Shedeur Sanders.
Talk to Tom Telesco (Raiders general manager).
Antonio Pierce replied
This isn’t exactly the approach the Raiders Nation wants, but they have to sit through it.
“Talk to Tom Telesco.”
— Vegas Sports Today (@VegasSportsTD) December 23, 2024
Raiders coach Antonio Pierce responds to talk of potentially losing out on the no.1 overall pick after beating the Jaguars.
🎥: By @Sean_Zittel, Vegas Sports Today#RaiderNation pic.twitter.com/YLCGKZvaG0
If not Shedeur Sanders, then which quarterback should the Raiders target in the draft?
Sanders was phenomenal for Colorado in college this year. He capped off the season with 337 completions for 3926 yards, 35 touchdowns, and just 8 interceptions (74.2 completion rate), bagging the Johnny Unitas Award, the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, and First Team All-Big 12.
Not to mention, the 22-year-old keeps sending signals that he wants to play in Vegas. Even his father, Hall of Famer Deion Sanders and coach of Colorado Football, asked Pierce to draft Shedeur and his other son, CB Shilo Sanders.
However, to draft Shedeur, the Raiders must finish first because he will most likely be the first player taken in the 2025 NFL Draft. The win on Sunday has given the Giants the upper hand, who want a quarterback as well and may not pass up on the opportunity to select Sanders.
So, if the Raiders don’t get Sanders, then who should be on their priority list? They can trade with the Jaguars and move up to third and draft Miami quarterback Cam Ward. The 22-year-old was 10-2 for the season, threw 435 completions for 4123 yards (67.4 completion rate), 36 touchdowns, only 7 interceptions, and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting.
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Ishan Misra
(2960 Articles Published)