Yesterday, Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie spoke with the Bay Area media about his basic draft philosophies as we approach the 2012 NFL Draft.
There wasn’t anything too amazing in the press conference but there were a couple of points that stood out.
Probably the most important is that he has little to no interest in trading up at the expense of future draft picks, especially high ones. The practice, which Raiders fans were accustomed to under Al Davis’ draft days, tends to not return as much value because the team must trade away a higher future pick for a lower pick at present.
McKenzie also said he isn’t adverse to trading at any given time, depending on what the offer was.
He said that his draft philosophy is to take the best player available regardless of need unless there are a couple that are graded very close and then need comes into it. He said that the mini-camp that starts April 17th will help the coaches decide where their needs truly are and that he will sit down with Allen and some of the other coaches to discuss that before the draft.
Finally, McKenzie said they will look at QB Terrelle Pryor as a possible backup, starting with the upcoming mini-camp, and will see if he is able to handle that role or if they need to bring in a veteran at the position.
Here is a link to a transcript of the conference.
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