The Kansas City Chiefs completed a trade for 49ers quarterback Alex Smith, meaning that the team will not likely be taking a player at that position with the number one pick in the NFL draft, leaving quarterback Geno Smith to fall to other teams with high picks.
According to ESPN reporter Chris Mortensen, Smith could fall to the Raiders at number three, as the team may be interested in drafting the quarterback despite having Carson Palmer and Terrelle Pryor on the roster. Smith is considered to be one of the top quarterbacks in the draft and was projected as the number one pick to the Chiefs before the team made the trade for Alex Smith.
The Raiders have plenty of needs on the roster and do not have many draft picks after trading a couple away for Palmer last year, but if they see Smith as a franchise player, they could take him with the third pick. The team is rumored to be working with Palmer on restructuring his deal, which would be one thing they need to do in order to draft another quarterback.
The team has also expressed interest in getting more playing time for Pryor, who has a similar skill set to Smith and is mobile in the pocket. The Raiders gave up a first round pick for Palmer and still owes the Bengals its second round pick this year, meaning that number three pick is very important for the franchise's immediate future.
The draft has a number of defensive players at cornerback and linebacker that the Raiders may want to draft, including Dee Milliner or linebacker Jarvis Jones, two positions Oakland is lacking at on the roster.
The Raiders are currently in talks with Mike Holmgren to take a front office leadership position and if he comes in and decides that Smith could be a game changer like Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin, he could be the pick for the team.
