The NFL Draft is set for tonight in Pittsburgh, with the Las Vegas Raiders expected to take Fernando Mendoza as their new franchise QB
For bettors, the NFL Draft is one of the more frantic events of the year, with last minute trades, surprise picks, expert mock drafts laid to waste. Total unpredictability. That’s what makes it fun.
The Draft gets going tonight at 8 p.m. EST, in Pittsburgh.
Anyone who has been following all of this closely, knows it’s a sure bet that the Las Vegas Raiders select Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza tonight to be their quarterback of the future.
Mendoza has already spoken about how excited he is about that scenario, with the GOAT Tom Brady already with the team, as a minority owner.
Betway has Mendoza at -100000 to go No. 1, with the new era in Las Vegas about to begin under new head coach Klint Kubiak. Incredibly, Raiders’ general manager John Spytek has been getting calls from teams enquiring whether he’s open to trading the pick.
The only unknown around Mendoza is if he shows up tonight for the draft in person. Up to now he has said he wants to be at home with family while it all goes down.
If the Raiders do what is expected and select Mendoza, he’ll go to camp competing with newly signed Kirk Cousins for the starter’s role.
Where it starts to get interesting is after Mendoza. Betway has Arvell Reese, the 6-foot-4, 243-pound linebacker from Ohio State, a legitimate pass rusher, the favourite to go No. 2 (-165), followed by David Bailey, the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Edge from Texas Tech (-112). The New York Jets hold that pick.
Reese and Bailey have been flip flopping in the No. 2 and 3 slots for weeks.
Betway has Reese the betting favourite to go No. 3 (+165), followed by Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love (+185), who might be the best offensive weapon in the draft, and Bailey at +250. The Arizona Cardinals hold the third pick.
At No. 4, Betway has Love (+150) the betting favourite, and Ohio linebacker Sonny Styles at No. 5.
The Tennessee Titans currently hold No. 4, with the New York Giants holding the fifth pick.
The Giants got the trades going Sunday when they sent defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence to the Cincinnati Bengals, in return for the Bengals’ first round pick tonight (No. 10 overall).
There are relative certainties, like when a Mendoza comes along, but the NFL Draft is very much a crapshoot. Bettors have to stay on their toes.
Plenty of rumours from insiders this afternoon have been swirling, as per the norm. The Cleveland Browns (No. 6 overall), the New Orlean Saints (No. 8) and Cardinals (No. 3) are reportedly all interested in trading out of their current spot. The Saints are interested in moving up.
Another rumour this afternoon had Love with the Cardinals at No. 3. Love was a Heisman Trophy finalist.
“If the Cardinals hold on to their pick some around the league believe they could pull an early draft surprise and select Love in a slot slightly higher than he has been projected to go,” wrote ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter.
The Cardinals also need a quarterback, with Kyler Murray now with the Minnesota Vikings, which puts the second-best quarterback available tonight, Ty Simpson, in play. Betway has Simpson at +15000 to go No. 1.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, needing a QB with no official word yet that Aaron Rodgers will be returning for a 22nd season, could nab Simpson at No. 21. At Betway, the Over 1.5 quarterbacks drafted in the first round is -400.
Six teams have two first round picks tonight. Six teams don’t have a pick until the second round. That’s what’s going to make tonight so unpredictable.
The L.A. Rams may choose a quarterback now that Jimmy Garoppolo is considering retirement. The Jacksonville Jaguars, without a first round pick, might make wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. available to secure one, according to another story.
And with Dallas Cowboys’ star wideout George Pickens likely holding out for more money, eyes will be on Dallas owner Jerry Jones, to see if he has another Micah Parsons-level trade earthquake up his sleeve. The Cowboys hold the No. 12 and No. 20 picks tonight. And ESPN reported the Cowboys want to hold on to those two picks, rather than move up for one player.
And Buffalo Bills fans? They’ve been active this off-season, giving QB Josh Allen a legitimate wide receiver, DJ Moore, in a trade with the Chicago Bears, and signed outside linebacker Bradley Chubb to a three-year deal. Chubb joins Greg Rousseau, moving to outside linebacker, with the team going to a 3-4 defence system under new defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard. So there’s a need for big, strong lineman, to complement Ed Oliver and T.J. Sanders, and nose tackle Deone Walker, so the linebackers can stay free to make plays.
Which means a focus on what they do tonight with the No. 26 pick. An ESPN mock draft has the Bills taking edge Malachi Lawrence, 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, who is definitely athletic enough. Lawrence posted a 4.52-yard dash in the 40 at the combine, the second fastest among defensive linemen.
