Could Raiders trade up in the 2025 NFL Draft?

It is known the Las Vegas Raiders have been looking for a franchise quarterback since Derek Carr was released in 2023.

The Raiders signed Jimmy Garoppolo and Gardner Minshew, who both flopped, and even drafted Aidan O'Connell in the 2023 NFL Draft. While O'Connell showed some flashes, him being the starter long-term doesn't appear to be in the plans even though general manager John Spytek said they need to look at him and Carter Bradley.

It is expected the Raiders will draft a quarterback, but will it come in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft? The Raiders hold the No. 6 pick and are rumored to be trading up. That was on the mind of Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer on Tuesday, who asked Spytek at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis if the team plans on trading up.

"We're just getting started here," Spytek said. "We're going to go through our process and figure out who's the best fit. I mean, (head coach) Pete (Carroll) and I are drinking from the fire hose. It is pretty strong right now and we're going to get there, but I wouldn't rule out anything. I try to be an open-minded person, and if it makes sense for the Raiders, we'll do it."

Cam Ward of the University of Miami and Colorado's Shedeur Sanders are expected to go early in the draft that begins April 24 in Green Bay. Will the Raiders see any of those two quarterbacks available when it is their time to pick? Other teams need a quarterback, including the Cleveland Browns and New York Giants, who hold pick Nos. 2 and 3, respectively.

Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi told reporters he is already taking calls for the No. 1 pick, but it is "a process," as shared by The Tennessean's Nick Gray. It is no secret that Raiders minority owner Tom Brady mentored Sanders. The connection is there between the two and Spytek said Brady is bouncing off ideas.

"He certainly has thoughts, which I appreciate," Spytek said. "I'd be some kind of idiot if I didn't listen to what he thought about things, too, but he kind of approaches it just from 'what are we thinking?'"

Borgonzi didn't say which teams called him for the No. 1 pick, but the Raiders figure to be one of the teams since they need a quarterback. The Raiders will have time to think it through at the QB position, but it is also possible they can find their QB1 in free agency.

Long term, however, the Raiders need a franchise quarterback because if they were to sign any free agents, it would be for the short term and not a long-term solution that was left vacant by Carr's departure due to former GM Dave Ziegler and former HC Josh McDaniels.

The Raiders could soon be on the clock.