Las Vegas Raiders just scheduled a top-30 visit with an elite player that not many expect them to take in Round 2
The Las Vegas Raiders could use some help on the interior of the offensive line, but everything we know about this team and their pre-draft visits says they’re not likely to do that in Round 2.
Every team has until April 15 to complete its official top-30 visits. The Las Vegas Raiders have a few more tasks and, on Sunday, scheduled another with a high-profile player. According to Levi Dombro of Just Blog Baby, Vegas will meet Texas A&M offensive guard Chase Bisontis on a top-30 visit.
Not many have the Raiders taking an offensive guard in the second round. However, taking one wouldn’t necessarily hurt them. They do need help on the interior, as Linderbaum and Jackson Powers-Johnson are the only two guys who are currently proven there. Left guard, or even right guard, depending on where they put JPJ, is up for grabs in terms of having a training camp battle for it.
Right now, Caleb Rogers, the Raiders’ third-round pick last season, seems to be the presumed starter if they don’t make any other moves. However, Spencer Burford could also give him a run for his money in training camp. So, taking a guard hasn’t been what most have guessed the Raiders’ plans are, but it wouldn’t be a bad move. Are there better moves to be made than that? Probably.
But, Rogers, who played only 280 snaps last season, may not be what they thought he could be. Rogers had some decent moments last season, but he also had some very glaring bad moments that rookies tend to have. He finished his rookie year with nine total blown blocks, per Sports Info Solutions. That’s pretty good considering JPJ, who played less than 100 snaps more than him, had 14.
Then again, Bisontis is a very good football player. The Raiders may love what they see in him and just pull the trigger on an offensive guard on Day 2.
Who is Texas A&M offensive guard Chase Bisontis?
Bisontis is my OG3 in this draft, behind Vega Ioene and Emmanuel Pregnon, but he’s still an elite prospect. He’s one of the more balanced OGs in this draft. He’s got great lateral quickness, especially when pulling on run plays. And when he does pull, he’s elite at getting to that next level and actually making a play rather than just running at defenders who are quicker than him, with a bad angle.
Bisontis has great hand usage, especially when punching defenders and using clobber hands. The former A&M guard is also one of the strongest players in the draft, so that combination of strength and smooth movement from his footwork, hip movement, and pad level placement makes him as good a prospect as he is. But there are some negatives as well.
Bisontis doesn’t have the length you might wish he had. He’s got an issue with penalties, including eight last season, all holds, false starts, and unsportsmanlike flags. Because of his length, you will often find Bisonti lunging at contact, which sometimes gives away his leverage. But all of these things are developmental. If they take him, their offensive line is instantly better.
