Breven Honda
The Las Vegas Raiders are putting the final touches on their draft board as the 2026 NFL Draft kicks off Thursday at 5 PM PT.
Beyond the first overall pick, the Raiders have nine selections. One round stands out: the fourth. Las Vegas holds picks at 102, 117 and 134. Three picks in the same round open the door for some possible moves.
Here’s what GM John Spytek could do with them.
Do the Raiders Trade Up?
The Raiders pick early, middle and late in the fourth round. That’s leverage most teams don’t walk in with.
John Spytek could package a second-rounder with a fourth to push into the late first round. Or combine two fourths to move up within the round. Three picks in the same round is currency — and there are teams willing to deal.
Last year, Atlanta moved into the back end of Round 1 by sending the Rams a second, a seventh, and a future first, getting a third back in the process. Multi-piece deals like that don’t happen without extra inventory. The Raiders have it.
The 117th pick came from Jacksonville in the Jakobi Meyers trade. The 134th is a comp pick. There’s another comp at the back end of Round 5.
Also read: Las Vegas Raiders 2026 NFL Draft: John Spytek’s 10 Picks, 4 Positions That Must Be Addressed
Finding Value By Trading Down
John Spytek did this twice in the second round last year and walked away with five players.
No. 37 and No. 143 to Miami became a second, third and fourth — Aireontae Ersery, Caleb Rogers, Tonka Hemingway. Then No. 48 to Houston for 58 and 99 — Jack Bech, Charles Grant. The Raiders turned two picks into five. Hard to argue with that math.
Same concept applies in Round 4. Slide back, pick up an extra selection, address depth somewhere the roster still needs it. Wide receiver, defensive tackle and the secondary are all still in play.
“It starts with if we’re going to make the pick,” Spytek said. “If there’s a player we’re not as excited about or there’s a group of players that we would love to pick from and we can get value from that, then we’re certainly open to listening to that.”
The Case for Staying Put
No deal materializes, the Raiders just pick. That’s a fine outcome too.
Stark said the scouting staff doesn’t treat Day 3 differently than Day 1.
“We put the same amount of attention into every player on the board as we work through that because those picks matter. Those players make it,” Stark said. “I don’t think there’s any different level of detail that we put in the pick No. 1 than we put through any of our fourth-round picks or put into the fifth, sixth or seventh round picks.”
John Spytek said this week is the payoff for scouts who spent the year doing work nobody outside the building sees.
“This is really their Super Bowl,” he said. “The college scouts, in particular, the scouting assistants and the pro scouts, they’ve done a phenomenal job this year.”
Maxx Crosby. Fourth round. 2019. The argument makes itself.
“We feel we can find value all through the draft,” Stark said. “So we put a lot of emphasis on all those picks.”
Related: Ashton Jeanty Has the Tools, the Scheme and the Stage in Year 2 With the Raiders
