Raiders' Biggest Draft Steals and Busts of Spytek Era

A look at the hits and misses from the Raiders' 2025 draft class under GM Dave Spytek

Apr. 19, 2026 at 5:35pm

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A cubist, geometric painting depicting a Raiders football game, with the players and field broken down into sharp, overlapping planes of silver, black, and red.The Raiders' 2025 draft class showed both promise and pitfalls, with standout picks and some notable misses that will be put to the test in the 2026 season.Las Vegas Today

The Las Vegas Raiders' 2025 draft class had some standout picks, including running back Ashton Jeanty and cornerback Darien Porter, but also saw some misses like sixth-round pick Tommy Mellott. Wide receivers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton are hoping to make bigger impacts in their second seasons under a new coaching staff. Raiders GM Dave Spytek is feeling more comfortable heading into his second year on the job.

Why it matters

The Raiders are looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2025 season, and the performance of their 2025 draft class will be crucial to that effort. Identifying the hits and misses from that draft will provide insight into the team's talent evaluation and development processes under GM Dave Spytek.

The details

The Raiders found a potential star in running back Ashton Jeanty, who broke the franchise's rookie scrimmage yards record despite playing behind a poor offensive line. Cornerback Darien Porter and offensive lineman Caleb Rogers also look like contributors. However, sixth-round pick Tommy Mellott was cut and didn't even make the practice squad. Wide receivers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton struggled as rookies but have a chance to improve under a new coaching staff.

  • The Raiders will soon get a better idea of how their 2025 draft class performed in the 2026 season.
  • Jeanty broke the franchise's rookie scrimmage yards record in 2025.

The players

Ashton Jeanty

A running back drafted by the Raiders in 2025 who broke the franchise's rookie scrimmage yards record despite playing behind a poor offensive line.

Darien Porter

A cornerback drafted by the Raiders in 2025 who is expected to be a key contributor for the team in 2026.

Caleb Rogers

An offensive lineman drafted by the Raiders in 2025 who is expected to compete for a starting job.

Tommy Mellott

A sixth-round pick by the Raiders in 2025 who was cut and didn't even make the practice squad.

Jack Bech

A wide receiver drafted by the Raiders in 2025 who struggled as a rookie but has a chance to improve under a new coaching staff.

Dont'e Thornton

A wide receiver drafted by the Raiders in 2025 who struggled as a rookie but has a chance to improve under a new coaching staff.

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What they’re saying

“It's great having him [Brian Stark] here, and that's been a big help. But to rely on the people probably around me more than I felt like I did last year. I think I tried to do too much last year, not knowing everybody in the building, having my own vision that I was trying to teach to people about the way that we wanted to do it, how we wanted to build the kind of person we were looking for.”

— Dave Spytek, Raiders General Manager

What’s next

The 2026 season will give a much better idea of how good the Raiders' 2025 draft class was. All eyes will be on wide receivers Jack Bech and Dont'e Thornton to see how they pan out under the new coaching staff.

The takeaway

The Raiders' 2025 draft class had some promising picks, but also saw a few misses. The performance of this class, especially the wide receivers, will be crucial as the team looks to bounce back from a disappointing 2025 season under new leadership.