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Oakland Raiders: Could Get A Huge Steal In Round 4 With Tre’ Jackson

By Jonathan George

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The Oakland Raiders have methodically been addressing areas of need during the 2015 Draft. There was of course the big hole they needed to fill at wide receiver that the Amari Cooper pick in round 1 conceivably filled. They hope that the lack of defensive line play making issues are taken care of with Mario Edwards Jr. from Florida State, and they gave Derek Carr another passing threat with the addition of  Clive Walford.

One issue that remains is there need to bolster the offensive line, and if the Raiders grab guard Tre’ Jackson from Florida State in the 4th round it would not only fill that need but the pick at that point in the draft would be an absolute steal.

I wrote about Tre’ Jackson as a player the Raiders could and should target in round 3 of the draft, and the possibility of him being gone by then was real. Many draft experts had him listed as the best right guard in the draft, and for good reason. Per CBSSports.com draft profile of Jackson, when you are 1st team all ACC  and start 42 games against a lot of the top college football programs, you immediately become a very viable prospect for NFL scouts and teams.

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While Jackson might have dropped in the draft due to either his measurables, or the fact that teams did not value him as high as certain draft experts and scouts, there should be no hesitation from the Raiders when they pick third in round 4 in the 102nd slot. Coach Jack Del Rio has always had a love of hard-nosed maulers in the trenches, and Jackson is a guy who definitely fits that description.

Jackson is known to be a better run blocker than pass blocker, quickly getting to the second level when pulling and using his massive but quick frame to seal linebackers or safeties. While being a great run blocker isn’t as highly valued in today’s pass happy NFL, Oakland was one of the worst running teams last year and should be making improving their overall running attack a priority. If they truly want to attack teams downfield with over the top passes to Cooper or Walford, they need to keep teams honest by forcing them to cover both facets of their offense.

Knowing that a team can’t beat your defensive line at the point of attack on a run play makes it much easier to double team great receivers or play a lot of nickel and dime coverage. Jackson could help flip the script and get opposing defenses respecting the Raiders backfield again.

There isn’t a lot of times in an NFL draft that you can find a day one starter after round 3. Most of the time, once teams get to the third day of the draft they are looking for either depth at various positions or special teams help. The Raiders can grab Jackson a round or 2 later than he was projected and be in prime position to have greatly improved all of their areas of need from 2014.

Next: Did Raiders miss on a pick?

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