Sportsnaut
One NFL executive believes the Las Vegas Raiders passed on drafting a player like Shedeur Sanders to avoid similar drama to what the Atlanta Falcons dealt with last season.
Heading into the 2025 NFL Draft, there was a ton of speculation that the Raiders would use one of their picks on a QB. And many around the franchise thought it should be Colorado star Shedeur Sanders. In the end, they did select a signal caller. But it was Cam Miller with pick 215. Many have wondered why the team never took Sanders despite still being on the board in Round 5. Well, one executive believes they know why.
“My guess is that (head coach Pete Carroll) doesn’t want to do Geno (Smith) the way Atlanta did (Kirk) Cousins,” the exec told The Athletic NFL insider Mike Sando. “Atlanta was able to do that to Cousins because they didn’t have a previous relationship.
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“For Pete, let’s face it: How long is he going to coach that team? Does he really want to start his last chance by alienating the quarterback he just got?”
Carroll built a relationship with Smith when both were with the Seattle Seahawks a couple of seasons ago. The coach was a key part of Smith’s career renaissance, and it is why he was all for the organization acquiring him in a March trade to be their new starting QB.
However, Smith probably knows the organization would like a long-term answer at the position. And might have been okay with mentoring a rookie QB drafted in one of the early rounds. The Falcons created a mess for themselves when they gave Cousins an $180 million contract in free agency. Then seemingly took his replacement — Michael Penix — with the eighth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Related: Las Vegas Raiders insider projects 2025 rookie class to deliver two new offensive starters
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