“We’re tickled and thrilled that Terrelle went in the third round and to the Raiders,” his agent Drew Rosenhaus said. “The third round is quite an accomplishment for a young man who had his pro day 48 hours ago and didn’t know he would be in the draft until Thursday morning and wasn’t able to meet with any decision makers.”
Of course, this move didn’t come as a monumental surprise especially since we all know that owner Al Davis is in love with speed. Note that Pryor, who’s 6’5 232 lbs., clocked a 4.36 in the 40 yard dash on Saturday.
“We all know how Al Davis likes big players who can run and Terrelle brings a dimension of size and speed that’s unique to the quarterback position,” Rosenhaus said.
At the same time, we all know that strategy hasn’t exactly worked out for them in recent past particularly with JaMarcus Russell who was the No. 1 overall pick in 2007. So, the real question now is what type of an impact he’ll have on the team and whether or not it was a wise move.
There’s no doubt that the void was there. After allowing Bruce Gradkowski sign with the Cincinnati Bengals, they were only left with Jason Campbell, Kyle Boller, and Trent Edwards as the remaining quarterbacks on the roster. Needless to say, that’s nothing to get excited about. But is Pryor the man to fill that void and provide them with the first quality play under center since Rich Gannon?
He’s certainly not a prototypical quarterback and definitely needs to refine his skills, but he’s got the raw physical tools to be a solid player if given the right training. But that’s where the next problem lies.
The Raiders are one of the most dysfunctional franchise in all of sports, and there’s no way I see them developing Pryor’s true potential. Perhaps a team like the New England Patriots or Green Bay Packers could have, but it’ll be a challenge for a team that’s on its sixth head coach in the past decade.
And to make matters even worse, don’t forget that he’s suspended for the first five games of the season. That tacked on to the fact that he hasn’t played organized football since January, and I find it highly unlikely that he’ll even see the field very often, let alone have any success.
According to reports from ESPN’s John Clayton, the team may take a look at him as a wide receiver, but I’m a firm believer that the crossover of positions is even more difficult than the transition from the college ranks to the pros. Sure, Derrick Ramsey and Ronald Curry did it with the Raiders before, but those are the exceptions not the rule.
I felt it was a reach as Pryor probably could’ve been picked up in the later rounds, but apparently the Raiders were enticed by his athletic prowess enough to take a chance. And it better pay off as this now leaves them with
Only time will tell how it ultimately turns out, but I’ll start off by saying I don’t expect it to end well.
Western Carolina defensive back Torez Jones, Georgia running back Caleb King, Lindenwood defensive end Keenan Mace, North Carolina defensive end Mike McAdoo and Northern Illinois defensive back Tracy Wilson are all set to be free agents now since they weren’t selected in the draft.
