The Las Vegas Raiders elected to make Henry Ruggs the first wide receiver taken off the board with the No. 12 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Nearly a month after the selection, Jon Gruden opened up on why Ruggs is an ideal fit for Las Vegas.
While doing a Q&A article with The Mercury News, Gruden highlighted why the Raiders had their sights on Ruggs:
“We were able to really concentrate on Henry Ruggs, from our house, make a specific reel to ask him specific questions. We even asked him to memorize formations and asked him to regurgitate it to us, and I don’t think we had a receiver or anybody at any position perform better in terms of football intelligence than Henry Ruggs. A lot of it has to do with Alabama, playing the pro style system. A lot of it really had to do with this guy has the “it” factor. He loves it. He learns it quick. Comes easy to him. And we all know he’s fast physically. But when you find out he’s fast mentally, he can handle a lot of stuff. We think we’ve got someone with a chance to be great. You remember Cliff Branch. You remember the speed factor with the Raiders. It’s something we have to get back in our organization and we think Ruggs will be a big part of it.”
Altogether, over the course of their history, the Raiders have typically selected fast wide receivers for their offense. Therefore, it didn't come as a surprise that Las Vegas chose to side with Ruggs over Jerry Jeudy and CeeDee Lamb.
Under Gruden, the Raiders have shown a willingness to target players from Alabama, Clemson, and LSU due to their success in the college football ranks.
His time at Alabama coupled with his blazing speed is why Gruden believes Ruggs was the perfect pick at No. 12 for Las Vegas.
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