2018 NFL Mock Draft: Two complete rounds including massive trades

The board broke pretty well for the Oakland Raiders in this 2018 NFL mock draft. There are a lot of talented players available who would make a lot of sense for this team. I could certainly see the Raiders snagging Roquan Smith to help their linebacking corps, and top cornerback prospect Denzel Ward would make some sense as well. That being said, when push comes to shove, I think Minkah Fitzpatrick should be the pick.

Fitzpatrick was a big-time contributor for all three of his years at Alabama, starring at both the cornerback and safety position. His quickness and natural man-to-man coverage skills are for real, making Fitzpatrick an impressive cornerback option at the next level. However, he will probably be best used as a versatile do-everything safety.

Fitzpatrick showed fantastic range and ball skills in college, which obviously translates well to the deep safety position. He also played in-the-box, consistently flying around the field and making plays against the run and in man coverage. Simply put, Fitzpatrick can do it all. At the next level, he will likely primarily be a deep safety, but his versatility to play in the box and nickel cornerback would be extremely valuable.

Safety is not a huge position of need for the Raiders. They draft Karl Joseph in the first round of the 2016 draft and Obi Melifonwu in the second round last year. However, in today’s NFL where the passing game is king, you can never have too much defensive back talent. Fitzpatrick’s versatility would allow the Raiders to mix and match with all three of their young and talented safeties.

Simply put, this is a case of the Raiders taking the best player left on the board. Fitzpatrick could immediately come in and dominate at the next level.