The Oakland Raiders have not enjoyed a winning season in 12 years. That stretch of incompetence is actually impressive as it's hard to be that bad for that long in the worst-to-first NFL. But Oakland's losing ways could become a thing of the past sometime in the immediate future. Slowly but surely, the Raiders have accrued several important building blocks that can serve as foundational pieces of a winning team. They've accomplished this by drafting well over the last two years.
Initially, ESPN NFL Draft Insider Mel Kiper Jr. assigned the Raiders a B grade for their 2015 draft. In retrospect, Oakland's solid 7-9 season has earned an A-minus rating for their rookies.
"In 2014 they got Khalil Mack and Derek Carr," Kiper wrote. "This year they got Amari Cooper and Mario Edwards Jr. - and plenty more. Clive Walford is a player to be excited about, and Jon Feliciano looks like a future starter. A quietly good get will be Ben Heeney, who saw time at linebacker. I know it's easy to say this was a great draft based on early returns because the team is still building back to playoff caliber, but give them credit, because they took Cooper when many said Kevin White was worth that pick, and while I thought Edwards was a slight reach he looks like he'll be really good for them."
Cooper exploded onto the scene, becoming the first Raider wide receiver to top 1,000 yards since Randy Moss in 2005. In fact, Cooper is just the fourth player in NFL history to do that in his age 21 or younger season, making Carr's job a lot easier in Year 2.
Edwards wasn't quite the pass-rushing force some had expected, but he did post 42 tackles with 2.0 sacks and three forced fumbles in 14 games. Defensive end has long been a glaring need for Oakland and Edwards looks like he'll stick.
As Kiper mentioned, there are several contributors from the 2015 draft class. This influx of young talent has helped put the Raiders back on track to contention for the first time in more than a decade.
