With Geno Smith faltering, Raiders eye Oregon's Dante Moore. Could this dynamic QB prospect fix Las Vegas's future?
At this point, the Geno Smith experiment has not worked out very well. Smith is now dealing with an injury, and Kenny Pickett is starting for the time being.
The Raiders traded for Smith and gave him a giant two-year extension, but after just one season, they might be regretting that decision.
At this rate, the Raiders should earn a top-3 pick, at worse, and bringing in a quarterback might be a smart decision.
ESPN's Field Yates compiled a new NFL mock draft, and he had the Raiders taking Oregon Ducks star QB Dante Moore.
"Moore received immense hype after five starts as a true freshman at UCLA in 2023, but 2025 has been his true breakout year. While he has a slender build at 6-foot-3 and 206 pounds, he has shown strong functional mobility and high-level downfield accuracy (third-best completion percentage in the FBS). He has a unique ability to change his arm angles when navigating pressure, too, making him a very creative quarterback overall."
Now, Moore has not declared, not yet, but if he does, he should go in the top-five picks, and Indiana's Fernando Mendoza might be the lone QB taken ahead of him.
"Moore hasn't made his intentions clear about declaring, but there's little doubt he would go very high if does enter the 2026 draft. And for the Raiders, it's clear that Geno Smith is no longer a viable starter; he's tied for the league lead in interceptions (14) and has the second-lowest QBR (32.5). Moore could be the centerpiece for an offense that already has an elite pass catcher (Brock Bowers) and a potential star running back (Ashton Jeanty)," Yates added.
The Raiders have many questions to answer once again when the offseason comes, but after the way things have gone at the QB position, landing a talent such as Moore would be a wise move by Las Vegas.