Talk that the Las Vegas Raiders are looking to take a quarterback in next month’s NFL Draft continued this week. This time around, the quarterback the front office is reportedly looking at is Oregon Ducks’ quarterback Justin Herbert.
Herbert is at least the second quarterback the Raiders are said to have eyes on. As The Inquisitr reported earlier, Las Vegas has been looking hard at Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Jalen Hurts. It’s not clear if Herbert is their backup plan or has surpassed Hurts as their No. 1 target.
It’s also not clear whether Herbert or any quarterback is plan A in the upcoming draft. What is clear is the Raiders have spoken to Herbert, who is moving up the charts for several NFL teams.
Ian Rapoport wrote on Twitter earlier this week that the Raiders had spoken to Herbert using FaceTime. That has become the new way in which teams have been interviewing prospects.
With no pre-draft visits due to Coronavirus, teams have turned to FaceTime meetings with prospects instead. For instance, #Oregon QB Justin Herbert has a video call with the #Raiders today, and he’s spoken with the #Chargers , too. Everyone is adjusting to new realities.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 30, 2020
The coronavirus outbreak has stopped all face-to-face meetings and video conferencing has filled that void. Rapoport added the Raiders weren’t the only team the Ducks’ signal-caller has chatted with this week. Las Vegas has some competition from a team in its own division, according to the NFL insider. The Los Angeles Chargers have also had a FaceTime meeting with him.
Megan Armstrong of Bleacher Report reports interest in Herbert is more than those two teams as well. There are, in fact, multiple franchises who are giving him a long hard look. It’s a bit of a comeback for the prospect who was once at the top of draft boards around the league.
He lost some ground to both Joe Burrow and Tua Tagovailoa before and during the 2019 season. Then Tua went down with an injury and Joe Burrow ran away from the field. The LSU QB is expected to be the No. 1 pick, leaving everyone else as the second passer to be selected.
If there is a way for Herbert to show his value to teams like the Raiders, it is thanks to his improvement in performance last year. In 2018, he threw for 3,100 yards, 28 touchdowns, and just nine interceptions. Last year, he threw for 3,400 yards with 32 touchdowns to just six interceptions.
Armstrong points out Las Vegas already has a quarterback who is coming off his own very good season in 2019. They also have two first-round draft picks. She thinks the pick could come down to who is left on the board when their first selection comes on with the 12th overall pick.