Raiders mailbag: Would team be willing to trade up for elite QB?

The Raiders will attempt to break their eight-game losing streak Sunday when they travel to face the Buccaneers.

Some of the team’s fans are weighing the benefits of another loss in regards to what it could do for the club’s draft positioning in April, however. They have plenty of questions about what directions the Raiders (2-10) could go in.

Here is a sampling of what arrived in this week’s mailbag:

Lex Luthor (@LexL538): Three of the last four games are winnable. If they fall out of the top five in the draft, do you think they will attempt to trade up, or will they go best player available?

Vincent Bonsignore: The feeling is the Raiders will try to move up in the draft if they fall out of the top five, assuming they fall in love with a quarterback prospect like Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward of Miami (Florida).

The team tried to move up from No. 13 last year to draft quarterback Jayden Daniels, but Washington stayed put and took him second overall. So the Raiders could face a similar challenge this year if they don’t end up with a high enough draft pick.

Keith (@KeithPrevite): Provided that current management remains intact and they end up with a top-four draft pick, do you hear a leaning as to which quarterback would be favored? And do you think Deion Sanders has the ability to sway where his son plays?

Bonsignore: It’s too early to say which quarterback prospect the Raiders prefer. And even if they had somehow made that decision, they would keep it close to the vest.

Deion Sanders would be well within his rights to make sure his son ends up in the best position possible. And there’s probably some things Deion Sanders can do to dissuade teams from taking Shedeur. The two ultimately only hold so much leverage, though. Yes, Shedeur Sanders can threaten to sit out next season and not sign a contract with whoever takes him. But would he truly be willing to follow through with that?

CV (@raiderfan44): Will (coach) Antonio Pierce be back next year? Who do you think will replace him if they part ways?

Bonsignore: It’s still too early to tell, but it does feel like the Raiders’ last five games will be critical for the coaching staff.

It may not come down to wins and losses as much as whether it feels like the team is making progress. Pierce also has to show growth in terms of how he manages games.

Terrence (@_terrence_R8er): I’ve heard a lot about Jon Gruden. Is there a possibility of him coming back to the Raiders as the head coach or offensive coordinator?

Bonsignore: That’s highly unlikely.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.