Source: www.fanragsports.com --- Sunday, April 30, 2017
Oakland Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie was in no hurry to draft a linebacker, despite that position being one of his team’s most glaring needs entering the 2017 NFL Draft. The Raiders meticulously worked their way down the board picking up the best available players at other positions rather than rushing to select a linebacker. Gareon Conley, the troubled cornerback out of Ohio State, was the first player selected. On Day 2, they kept the focus on defense by drafting another defensive back, Connecticut safety Obi Melifonwu, and UCLA defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes. By the time Day 3 rolled around, people were already scratching their heads wondering if the Raiders were going to add a linebacker at all. Rueben Foster, Raekwon McMillan and Zach Cunningham were just a few of the names the team had already passed on. But there wasn’t an iota of panic in McKenzie as many of the more talented linebackers began to come off the board. He quickly shifted his focus to the other side of the ball and selected Florida offensive tackle David Sharpe. It wasn’t until the No. 168 overall pick in the fifth round that the Raiders finally keyed in on a linebacker, and it would be the only pick used at that position in the entire draft. That player was Wake Forest’s Marquel Lee. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound linebacker joins a makeshift group that hasn’t been particularly good the last couple of years. Interestingly enough, McKenzie admitted as ...
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