Oakland Raiders Take a Safe Chance on Terrelle Pryor in Supplemental Draft

The Oakland Raiders are no stranger to controversy. Many NFL stars who fell on hard times sought refuge in Oakland. Interestingly enough, many of those players revitalized their careers in Oakland. But after Oakland’s acquisition of Randy Moss, there has apparently been a hex on the organization.

Now, the fact that Al Davis is out of his mind certainly doesn’t help matters. But the Raiders have also fallen on some bad luck. In multiple drafts over the last decade, Oakland chose players high in the first round of the NFL draft who, according to nearly everyone, would be future Pro Bowlers. To say the least, things didn’t exactly pan out.

Robert Gallery was billed as half offensive tackle and half professional wrestler when he was drafted second overall in 2004. But for the majority of his time in Oakland, Gallery was part of a forgettable offensive line with no personal accolades to speak of.

The next year, 2005, Fabian Washington was drafted to play defensive back alongside Nnamdi Asomugha. Washington was an average DB and was eventually traded once the Raiders nabbed DeAngelo Hall, who, like many other NFL Pro Bowlers, apparently left his skills in his previous location before arriving in Oakland in 2008.

In 2007, the Raiders had the first overall pick and used it on the consensus all-world quarterback JaMarcus Russell. Russell promptly held out until he was paid the highest rookie salary of all time, only to gain about 30 pounds immediately afterward and completely stop caring about the game of football.

All the while, the Oakland Raiders have gone through a coaching carousel, with no coach given adequate time to actually install an offensive or defensive system.

But despite the fact that Oakland is still the butt of many NFL jokes, people have apparently forgotten that this team, despite a number of acquisition shortcomings, isn’t half bad.

Darren McFadden had a terrific season running the ball last year, and Jason Campbell went 7-4 as Oakland’s starter last season. Campbell breathed life into a previously unheralded Oakland receiving corps led by Louis Murphy.

This season Oakland is expecting big things from their super-young offense. Darrius Heyward-Bey is expected to turn the corner at WR, and the super reliable Kevin Boss has been brought in to replace Zach Miller at tight end.

So, if the Raiders really are looking to get even faster and more dynamic on offense, picking Terrelle Pryor makes plenty of sense. The only real conflict is that the Raiders are the Raiders, and thus, everyone thinks this is doomed to fail.

Here’s what I think.

I can already anticipate Terrelle Pryor making it in the NFL, even if it’s not as a quarterback. Dozens of NFL hopefuls have gone through Pryor’s situation. Some have had to wait as long as a full year to be drafted; others had to be looked at in the supplemental draft, like Pryor.

People can say whatever they want about Pryor’s actions (I’ll say that the NCAA is bogus and that the NFL legally can’t get away with upholding an NCAA suspension, otherwise they concede that college football is indeed the Minor Leagues and that college football players should get paid—but I suppose that’s a different story for a different day), but the bottom line is this:

Terrelle Pryor can play, and he plays hard.

Pryor held a workout 48 hours ago that he didn’t even know was going to happen until 60 hours ago. He showed up in phenomenal shape, literally ran the 40 faster than any QB or WR drafted this season, and completed the passes people thought he would complete.

It’s true that Pryor didn’t complete every pass; but he did prove that he was indeed Terelle Pryor, that he was going to take care of himself through this suspension and that he was going to work his tail off.

And here’s the beauty of silent auctions like the supplemental draft: Oakland didn’t outright say, “We want this guy.” They said, “Well, I mean, he’s a superb athlete who makes good decisions (on the field at least), and if we only have to pay him $2.5 million over four years, I guess we could take a chance if no one else does first.”

Frankly, I agree with that logic.

And regardless of whether or not Pryor is the QB of the future in Oakland, he can have an impact this season. They can use him in the wildcat, they can use him as an option back and they can use him outright as a receiver.

Keep in mind that Pryor can still appeal this suspension, and if the judge does as much as skim over the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, Pryor will probably win his appeal.

Terrelle Pryor can be good in this league, and there is absolutely no pressure on him right now.

I like his chances.