The 2020 NFL draft is in the books, and the Las Vegas Raiders' draft class is complete.
The draft, which had been scheduled to take place in Las Vegas, was successfully completed virtually from the homes of coaches, general managers and other front-office staff because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Here's a pick-by-pick look at how each player the Raiders selected will fit.
Analysis of every pick | Updated depth charts
Round 1, No. 12 overall: Henry Ruggs III, WR, Alabama
My take: The receiver-needy Raiders had all three of the consensus top-three wideouts at their disposal with this pick and had an Al Davis moment -- they went with the fastest guy in the draft. Not that that was necessarily a bad thing, not with wide receiver the biggest hole on their roster. Ruggs ran a blistering 4.27 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL scouting combine, and after the Raiders endured the Antonio Brown meltdown last summer, he should step in to take the top off defenses, allowing WR Tyrell Williams and tight end Darren Waller to operate underneath and Hunter Renfrow to get his from the slot.
Sandbagging for Ruggs? GM Mike Mayock downplayed how much impact a first-round wide receiver makes in his rookie season, and indeed, only five of the 30 receivers taken in the first round over the previous 10 drafts had a 1,000-yard receiving season as a rookie. And Ruggs' career high of 746 yards came last fall. And with Ruggs regarded as No. 3 on the WR draft depth chart, behind Jerry Jeudy and CeeDee Lamb, maybe Mayock & Co. don't need that type of production. They simply need a deep threat, and sandbagging or not, the Raiders got their guy.
Need for speed: Coach Jon Gruden looks enviously at the speed and power of the division rival and Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. To battle and beat a Tyreek Hill, you need a Tyreek Hill, the thinking goes. And in the 6-foot, 195-pound Ruggs, who can also leap out of the building, many see a Hill clone. Especially Gruden. Older Raiders fans might see a James Jett, or a smaller Cliff Branch.
Round 1, No. 19 overall: Damon Arnette, CB, Ohio State
My take: Yes, cornerback was a need. And true, Mayock said last week that teams make mistakes by "reaching for need" in the draft rather than taking the best player available. But this reeks of that -- and then some. Arnette was ranked as the 58th overall prospect in the draft by Scouts Inc. and given a third-round grade by numerous observers. Perhaps the Raiders were unsuccessful in trying to move back and feared that Arnette, whom they obviously had ranked higher than anyone else, would be gone by their next selection at No. 80. This just seems, well, strange, given Mayock's declaration last week.
A silver (and black) lining? The Raiders last season allowed an NFL-worst 10.4 yards per attempt to perimeter receivers, a league-high 37 catches of 20-plus yards to perimeter receivers and a league-worst 23 touchdown passes on throws outside the numbers. Arnette is a physical presence, allowing 3.8 yards per attempt in man-to-man coverage, which led FBS. And in allowing a 37.9% completion rate as the primary defender last season, he had the lowest such rate in the Big Ten (minimum 40 pass attempts against).
An underdog: ESPN's NFL Draft Predictor had a 0.1% chance that Arnette would be selected in the first 20 picks. He is the fifth defensive back the Raiders have taken in the first round since 2013, the most in the NFL. Yet, of the previous four such picks, only safety Johnathan Abram, one of three first-rounders last season, remains on the team. It's another head-scratching first-round pick by the Raiders, who took Kolton Miller at No. 15 in 2018 after he was ranked 30th on the Scouts Inc. board, Clelin Ferrell at No. 4 last year after being ranked 21st and now Arnette at No. 19 after he was ranked 58th.
What's next: Unless they package their gaggle of third-round picks (the Raiders pick at Nos. 80, 81 and 91) to move up into the second round, the Raiders sit and wait. Needs still to be addressed include finding a backup for running back Josh Jacobs, another receiver and a linebacker.
Round 3, No. 80 overall: Lynn Bowden Jr., WR, Kentucky
My take: Jon Gruden got himself a shiny new toy, a Swiss Army Knife of a player in Bowden who is, well, the most versatile player in the draft. Officially, he is a receiver -- and the Raiders need help there, obviously. But he can also play running back and wildcat quarterback. Yeah, the Raiders are chasing the Chiefs, and they need as many offensive weapons as possible to keep Kansas City, as well as the Broncos and Chargers. In Bowden, they got a guy who went from high school QB to receiver to QB since enrolling at Kentucky, where he was the 2019 Paul Hornung Award winner and an Associated Press first-team All-American as an all-purpose player. He led the SEC in rushing (1,468 yards) despite playing wideout for the first month of the season. He was also 6-2 as Kentucky's QB.
Round 3, No. 81 overall: Bryan Edwards, WR, South Carolina
Check out highlights from Clemson offensive lineman John Simpson as he helped the Tigers reach the national championship.
My take: The Raiders needed help at receiver, and they addressed it big time. Not only did they become the third team in the common draft era to select three receivers within the first three rounds of a single draft, along with the 1967 Vikings and 1982 Saints, they also took Edwards, South Carolina's career record holder in catches (234), reception yards (3,045) and consecutive games with a catch (48). Edwards was one of just six FBS players who had 30 catches when lined up wide and 30 catches when lined up in the slot in 2019.
Versatility is key in Jon Gruden's offense, and Edwards, a big receiver at 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, checks off many boxes. Consider: The Raiders' offense scored just seven touchdowns of at least 20 yards last year, which tied for 27th most in the NFL. Fellow draft pick Bowden had seven 20-yard touchdowns by himself in 2019, while first-rounder Henry Ruggs III and Edwards both had five 20-yard TDs last season. Now it's up to QB Derek Carr to let it fly, right?
Round 3, No. 100 overall: Tanner Muse, LB, Clemson
My take: Mike Mayock likes Clemson players -- he drafted three last year in defensive end Clelin Ferrell, cornerback Trayvon Mullen and receiver Hunter Renfrow -- and with a need for depth at pass-covering linebacker, the Raiders revisited Death Valley for a linebacker/safety hybrid in Muse. Expect him to be more of a special teams contributor early on as he adds some mass to his 6-foot-2, 227-pound body, though he did have 61 tackles, with 2.5 for loss, two interceptions and five pass breakups last fall.
The Raiders now have six players who appeared in the 2019 national championship game between Clemson and Alabama, with first-round pick Henry Ruggs III joining fellow former Crimson Tide teammate Josh Jacobs, who rushed for 1,150 yards as a rookie last season, in Las Vegas. Hey, Mayock said at the time he could make a living drafting nothing but players from that game.
Round 4, No. 109 overall: John Simpson, OG, Clemson
My take: In trading up to select the massive Simpson -- who goes 6-foot-4, 330 pounds -- the Raiders have let it be known (if it wasn’t already) that right guard Gabe Jackson is on the trading block. Jackson is due to make $9.6 million this year and is coming off an injury-plagued 2019. Simpson is a mauler, like Jackson, and could conceivably slide into that right guard spot. The Raiders have nine guards on their roster now, including Simpson and Jackson. That's a lot.
Round 4, No. 139 overall: Amik Robertson, CB, Louisiana Tech
My take: Robertson is an undersized cornerback at 5-8, 187 pounds, so after playing on the outside in college, he will have to learn the nuances of playing in the slot in the NFL. He should have a good mentor in Lamarcus Joyner, who needs a bounce-back season himself. Robertson is a ballhawk, though, as evidenced by his 14 career interceptions and three pick-sixes in three seasons. The Raiders now have nine pure corners on the roster, including first-round pick Damon Arnette.