Raiders pull the plug early on rookie experiment

No one could fault the Las Vegas Raiders for trying to be creative.

When the Raiders drafted Tommy Mellott and Cam Miller in the sixth round of April’s draft, it drew some curious reactions from fans and analysts. Despite both being quarterbacks from the FCS, the Raiders made the decision to convert Mellott to wide receiver. While the idea made sense to make good on Mellott’s athleticism, it only made what was a huge leap in competition that much harder.

Unfortunately for Mellott, it appears things did not work out as expected.

The Raiders have already lost one member of their 2025 draft class.

Ultimately, Mellott did not make either the 53-man roster or the practice squad for the Raiders, and it appears his time in Las Vegas has already ended.

“I have a lot of respect for Tommy, and there was a lot of hard decisions that we made the last couple of days. Ultimately, our responsibility, coach (Carroll) and myself, is to put the best 53, and then 17 after that, to get ready to win football games,” Raiders general manager John Spytek said on Wednesday. “There’s always a development part of that, too. But there’s a reality, sometimes, that who is most ready, and who is furthest along and who can help this team win the most. Ultimately, we made some decisions that didn’t include him, for now.”

It is an unfortunate development for Mellott, who simply could not quite get on his feet in time to establish himself as a roster player. While he could still latch on to a NFL roster, it appears that the path with the Raiders has closed.

“Unfortunately, this is not a field where there’s a lot of patience all the time. I still believe in Tommy. I think he’s got a really bright future. I really hope that he finds a place where he can find maybe a little more patience from a roster standpoint,” Spytek continued.