Las Vegas Raiders Hold No. 1 Pick, But Their Problems Go Much Deeper

The Las Vegas Raiders have earned the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Their 2-14 record finishes the 2025 campaign as the worst team in football. Almost certainly, the Raiders will stay put and draft a quarterback, likely Indiana Hoosiers Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza.

But the Raiders have plenty of other questions that will need to be answered prior to April’s draft in Pittsburgh.

Namely, where did things go wrong this season?

The Raiders traded a third-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks for Geno Smith. That simply did not work. Neither did the decision to hire Pete Carroll as the oldest coach in the history of the NFL.

Certainly the Raiders needed a culture reset after cycling through a plethora of coaches and quarterbacks over the last few seasons. But at 74 years old, it feels like Carroll is one and done in Las Vegas with only two victories to show for his efforts.

Despite working out a fresh two-year contract extension with the Raiders after his trade, Smith is likely no longer the starting quarterback in Las Vegas, either.

Certainly, a new head coach would be attracted to Las Vegas because they have the No. 1 overall pick. But it’s a roster without much talent. Additionally, the Raiders could be open to trading superstar pass rusher Maxx Crosby, which would set the organization back further.

As we know, a generational rookie quarterback changes everything. But there’s no guarantee that Mendoza will be that. He’s a bit of a late bloomer, and does not have the same pedigree as Caleb Williams, Trevor Lawrence or Joe Burrow were touted with upon entering the NFL.

The Raiders would be wise to hire an offensive-minded coach. While some teams could be scared out of the inexperienced, hot shot coordinators – as plenty of those have backfired over the last few seasons – Las Vegas cannot get serious unless they solve their quarterback conundrum.

Smith finished the season with 19 touchdown passes to 17 interceptions. That’s not going to cut it. However, neither will a wide receiver room headlined by Tre Tucker.

The Raiders invested a first-round pick into Boise State standout running back Ashton Jeanty. It certainly seems like they miscalculated where they were at as an organization. Carroll and Smith’s pairing did not go as the Raiders expected, leaving them atop the NFL Draft order in 2026.

Unfortunately for Raiders fans, Las Vegas has a lot more questions than the No. 1 pick will be able to solve.