Raiders GM discusses possibility of drafting QB

Las Vegas Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler isn't ruling out spending the No. 7 pick of the 2023 NFL Draft on a quarterback even though the team signed Jimmy Garoppolo earlier this offseason. 

"I think that any time you can find a young player at that position that's gonna have an impact on your team, you have to keep an open mind to that," Ziegler told reporters during a Friday predraft news conference, per Coral Smith of the NFL's website. "Of course, we're excited to have Jimmy, and having Jimmy does supply us with a very high-quality starting player at the position. We feel comfortable with that. But, I think to close that door and just say that that's not something you would do because of X, Y and Z, that's not the business we're in."

The Athletic reported in March that Garoppolo and the Raiders agreed to "a three-year deal worth up to $72.5M." However, Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio later inspected the contract and wrote that "it can be a one-year, $24.25M deal with $11.25M in 2024 guarantees that likely would be subject to offset." Florio added at that time the agreement "definitely doesn’t take the Raiders out of the mix for a quarterback in the draft." 

In a mock draft updated on Thursday, CBS Sports' Pete Prisco predicted that the Raiders will take Kentucky Wildcats quarterback Will Levis with the seventh overall pick. Meanwhile, CBS' Will Brinson forecasted in his mock that Ohio State Buckeyes signal-caller C.J. Stroud and Anthony Richardson of the Florida Gators will both be available when the Raiders are called to use selection No. 7. 

"The value at that position and having a young guy that can come in and play and contribute; we've seen where those contracts have gone on quarterbacks, too," Ziegler said. "So there's obviously an advantage of having someone on a rookie, a quarterback on a rookie contract, in terms of roster construction and those types of things. And so, like I mentioned at the beginning, I think just closing that door is irresponsible to do that."

For what it's worth, it's widely believed Garoppolo was an excellent mentor for Trey Lance when both were with the San Francisco 49ers the past two seasons.