While the Raiders certainly have struggled in Round 1 over the last few years, they’ve done a fantastic job of finding top-end talent on Day 3. Hunter Renfrow, Nate Hobbs, and Foster Moreau have all been great finds after the top 100 picks.
But their biggest homerun selection was Maxx Crosby in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. An undersized EDGE rusher from Eastern Michigan, Crosby has quickly established himself as one of the top defenders in the entire league.
The Raiders strike gold again as Eastern Michigan has yet another highly productive pass rusher expected to go on Day 3 of the NFL Draft. That player is Jose Ramirez, who totaled 18.5 sacks over the last two seasons in the MAC.
In a recent article by Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus, he named some of the biggest pre-draft risers and Ramirez made the list. Here is what the site had to say about the senior defensive lineman:
Ramirez has one of the most refined pass-rush plans of any edge defender in the draft class. That helped him earn pass-rushing grades of 90.5 and 91.6 the past two seasons.
Like others on this list, though, Ramirez doesn’t quite tick the size box, standing at a shade under 6-foot-2 and weighing in at 242 pounds. Still, at that size he can really move, as evidenced by his 6.95-second three-cone (90th percentile) and 4.3-second shuttle (79th percentile). That’s where he wins, and I’d bet on him continuing to do so in the NFL.
If the Raiders want to bet on athleticism and production again on Day 3, Ramirez should be their target. And with their history of success with Crosby, it only makes sense that they would show some interest.
Keep an eye on Ramierez as we get into the fourth or fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft as he could be a target for the Raiders.
