Raiders' quarterback situation murky after latest update

When the Las Vegas Raiders traded for Geno Smith on March 13, they knew exactly what they were getting themselves into.

While Smith is a definite upgrade on Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell, he is also on the last year of his deal during an age-35 season. Both head coach Pete Carroll and general manager John Spytek remain confident that a contract extension will get done in short order, but there are plenty of factors that must be taken into consideration. Until pen is put to paper, the fact of the matter is Smith currently stands as a one-year proposition.

On top of all of this, recent comments on the Raiders’ draft strategy has thrown up some mixed signals.

Is quarterback still on the table for the Raiders with the sixth pick?

According to The Athletic’s Tashan Reed, it sounds like all options for the Raiders remain on the table, including quarterback, when they are on the clock in April’s draft.

“Despite trading for Smith, the Raiders remain open to drafting a quarterback as early as the first round of the 2025 draft, according to league sources,” Reed wrote.

Spytek’s comments at the annual league meeting on Monday only added to this speculation, suggesting that the addition of Smith to the roster did not alter the Raiders’ draft strategy.

“From a team-building standpoint, I don’t think it changes our approach at all,” Spytek said, per Reed. “We’re deep into the evaluation of the quarterbacks in this class, and we’re going to stay in that. … We could take one anywhere.”

With Miami quarterback Cam Ward expected to go No. 1 to the Tennessee Titans, that leaves Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders for the Raiders to take at six.

Recent reports have suggested Sanders is a candidate to slide down the draft, so connecting him back to the Raiders is a welcome sight for him and his camp. Sanders has openly flirted about the idea of playing for the Raiders in 2025 for months, even after the Smith trade. The idea of learning the NFL game from a longtime veteran like Smith, as well as a seasoned offensive coordinator in Chip Kelly, should give the Raiders some confidence in the development of Sanders or any quarterback they take.

Should Smith’s contract extension remain unsettled closer to the draft, expect the Sanders rumors to kick back into overdrive again.