NFLbets thanks Jon Gruden for embracing the tanking, firing his scouting staff before Draft Day, going completely off the grid for the no. 4 overall pick, and allowing us to cash in on our “Josh Allen Draft Position” prop.
To briefly recap – so as to unabashedly glory in winning one of the few gimmes the sportsbooks had posted yesterday – sanity prevailed for the earliest picks: The Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers chose Kyler Murray and Nick Bosa, respectively, and while the New York Jets did not go with their expected choice of Ed Oliver, instead went with Quinnen Williams, a 21-year-old who NFLbets thinks will be one bad dude in the big league.
And then the Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders were on the clock. Chucky predictably/unpredictably got wacky at no. 4, going with Clem Ferrell, who’d been projected as a late first-rounder.
So this is what Gruden meant when he warned his guy not to screw it up. The Raiders easily could’ve waited on Ferrell until pick no. 24, depending on how the Carolina Panthers brain trust really felt about Brian Burns – but we’re not complaining; we won!
Onto pick no. 24, received from the Chicago Bears in the Khalil Mack trade, did the Raiders fumble (so to speak), taking Josh Jacobs. Raider Nation is trying mightily to sell themselves on the former ‘Bama back as a substitute for the retired Marshawn Lynch – at 5’10” and 220 pounds, Jacobs gives up an inch to Lynch, but outweighs him by five pounds.
Fair enough, except Lynch was never a huge part of the Raiders’ offense. In his last two seasons, Lynch played in 21 games, earning 1,277 yards and 10 TDs on 297 carries. His average line during a career peak with the Seattle Seahawks in 2011-14: 1,364 yards and 12 TDS on 295 carries. Jacobs can probably duplicate the stats of half a halfback, but was that honestly worth a first-round pick? Those outside Raider fandom ain’t necessarily buying it.
Pick no. 28, that acquired from the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for Amari Cooper, soon rolled around and Chucky reached yet one more time, taking Jonathan Abram of Mississippi State. Now Abram was first-team All-SEC (media version), but after the announcement was made, Raider Nation simultaneously exhaled more who’s than a parliament of owls at feeding time.
And if you think the new voice of the Former Raider Fan had turned off the telecast of the draft in disgust after relinquishing his fandom, guess again. This guy definitely had some opinions on Raider pick #3.
Those believing that the signing of Antonio Brown was a signal that Chucky & Co. wouldn’t be tanking in 2019 are surely not thinking so today. Gruden’s performance has definitely got to be making fans of the Kansas City Chiefs and (if any) the Los Angeles Chargers extremely confident going into round 2 – not to mention next season. If you’re considering covering the Chiefs or Chargers in the “To Win Super Bowl LIV” prop, you might want to get on that sooner rather than later because their odds will only be getting shorter after this weekend.
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