Oakland Raiders: One EDGE target in every round of the 2019 NFL Draft

It can be hard to find players who could contribute in any way in the seventh round of the NFL Draft. Sure there are exceptions here and there, but more often than not, these players aren’t long for the NFL or never become regular contributors at any point in their careers.

But Oregon’s Jalen Jelks has a shot to be one of the few exceptions.

Much like a few of the other players we’ve covered, Jelks is a lanky, quick edge rusher who possesses upside as a pass rusher down the line. He has adequate mobility to slip through gaps and work well in space but doesn’t have the tools/traits to win one-on-one matchups consistently.

Jelks is an active, high-motor type of player who plays hard despite his lack of overall production. In four seasons and 39 games at Oregon, Jelks totaled just 15.5 sacks highlighted by a seven-sack junior season in 2017.

The best chance for Jelks to succeed in the NFL and perhaps with the Raiders would be for him to add on a bit more weight so that he fills out his frame more and for him to become a regular contributor on special teams. With his length and quickness, there’s no reason why he can’t do just that.

Since the Raiders have two seventh-round picks, it may not be the worst idea to use one of them on their biggest position of need. And in this range, Jelks would be an ideal fit.