Oakland Raiders: Three roster holes and how to fill them in the draft

Linebacker: Tremaine Edmunds, Virginia Tech

When the Raiders first round selection comes, Tremaine Edmunds may very well be not only the best player available, but also the best fit with the team’s current roster and scheme.

Edmunds will be just 19 years old when he is drafted. This young age combined with his freak athleticism and great college production makes his level of potential seemingly limitless. No one truly knows just how great this player can become.

It will take a few years until we see the best version of Edmunds, but even at his young age he will be able to contribute immediately. The Oakland Raiders currently have a need at weakside linebacker, and Edmunds could fill that role on day one. His unique combination of size and speed, standing 6’5” and running a 4.54 40-yard dash, makes Edmunds the perfect weakside linebacker.

Plug him in next to Tahir Whitehead and Bruce Irvin and the Raiders will possess the most athletic linebacking core in the league, and it’s not even close. Pair this with the already elite defensive line the team possesses and the team’s potential run defense is sky high.

This selection would surprise almost no one, as the Raiders have long been notorious for picking players with outstanding athletic ability. The difference between some of the team’s previous selections of the sort and Edmunds is that none of the others possessed nearly the same potential ceiling.

At the worst, Edmunds is a more athletic Bruce Irvin, at his best, he could be one of the greatest linebackers of this generation.