Why the Las Vegas Raiders should or shouldn't buy into the Jalon Walker hype days ahead of 2025 NFL Draft
Now that the 2025 NFL Draft is a few days away, the smoke screens are all being brought out to try and throw the scent off of anyone and anything that may be close to something. For the Las Vegas Raiders, the recent player now being mocked to the team is Jalon Walker. The Georgia […]
Now that the 2025 NFL Draft is a few days away, the smoke screens are all being brought out to try and throw the scent off of anyone and anything that may be close to something. For the Las Vegas Raiders, the recent player now being mocked to the team is Jalon Walker.
The Georgia linebacker, or edge rusher — whatever you want to label him as– is certainly one of the best players in the league. However, one analyst mentioned he had been told that the team likes Walker, and they certainly like him if Jeanty isn't there at No. 6 when the 2025 NFL Draft kicks off on Thursday night.
And, while Walker is good, one of the best players in the country, he isn't really what the Raiders need. This would be where the Raiders take a best player available strategy rather than just drafting for need. But there are two sides to Walker.
If the Raiders draft Walker with the idea that he is going to be their future edge rusher after Malcolm Koonce and Tyree Wilson are gone, then you have the BPA on your board, and a guy who fills a need. However, Walker also played LB in college, which is a need for the Raiders, too.
But his LB position, an on-ball LB, is not what the Raiders need. That's what both Devin White and Elandon Roberts are best at. The Raiders need an off-ball linebacker, one that can cover, and that's just not what Walker is good at, at all.
So, if the idea is as an edge, buy the hype, but if it's as an LB, don't buy it.
Walker relies heavily on his elite athleticism, which will carry him in the NFL his first year or so, but he needs to refine his pass-rushing moves and hand usage. His limited hand technique stems from his linebacker background, where he's not really forced to use his hands to get through offensive linemen; rather, the gaps are schemed up for him. He tends to bulldoze through blockers instead of using his agility to go around them or a pass rush move to win the rep, and that's a fixable issue with coaching and reps.
In the run game, he engages blockers too often, and it's not because he is setting the edge or containing, but a habit tied to his linebacker instincts at the second level. Linebackers avoid overcommitting to prevent being caught in the wrong gap, but as an edge rusher, this approach is less effective. With more experience at the edge, these correctable flaws should end up getting fixed with some repetition as an edge rusher.
Walker would be a good pick if the Raiders do the right thing with him. If they want to close the gap in the AFC West between the Kansas City Chiefs, Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos, taking a blue-chip guy like Walker would certainly help them do that in the future, but only if he's their edge rusher of the future.
