The Las Vegas Raiders caused a stir in the 2020 NFL Draft when they drafted Damon Arnette out of Ohio State in the first round. Jon Gruden, who is involved in the draft process, has a message for the critics that question the Raiders taking Arnette in the first round.
In doing a Q&A article with The Mercury News, Gruden spoke about Las Vegas' decision to select Arnette in the first round:
I just look at his tape. I’ve heard people say, ‘he’s not a first-round pick on our board.’ Well, whose board are we talking about? Then if you’re in to analytics, according to Profootballfocus.com he had the the best QB rating against him of any corner in the draft. I mean, he’s a hell of a player. That’s why I like him. He played at Ohio State. He played big in big games. He’s an excellent tackler, a confident corner. He’s comfortable in bump and run. When we watched him play against good receivers he played good. And he just gives us something we need, something we cherish here. A physical, press confident corner that’s not afraid to hit you.
Throughout the pre-draft process, Jeffrey Okudah — Arnette's teammate at Ohio State — was considered the No. 1 cornerback available. Provided that, plenty of teams got a chance to watch Arnette's film when taking a look at Okudah.
In light of that, it didn't seem like many teams had Arnette as a first-round pick on their draft boards. Nonetheless, Gruden and the Raiders viewed him as a perfect fit for what they want at the cornerback position. As a matter of fact, Las Vegas GM Mike Mayock viewed Arnette as being in the same tier as Okudah.
As a result, they utilized their No. 19 pick in the first round to add Arnette to their defense. If there's anything we've learned since Gruden returned to the Raiders, it's that he selects players based on how he views them — not how other teams view them.
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