The surprise pick of Round 1 was actually Henry Ruggs III to the Las Vegas Raiders
The Raiders might have a new home, but they’re still up to the same old tricks.
With the 12th overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Las Vegas selected the first non-quarterback skill position player: Alabama’s Henry Ruggs III.
Welcome to Vegas!
The @Raiders select @AlabamaFTBL WR Henry Ruggs! pic.twitter.com/Llf1VoJHFp
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) April 24, 2020
You recognize Ruggs. He was the guy that did this:
New Raiders WR Henry Ruggs III ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash at the combine.https://t.co/kq3zxxalP4
— USA TODAY NFL (@usatodaynfl) April 24, 2020
And apparently, like always, that speed was too much for the Raiders to pass up.
17 players have run a 4.29 or faster at the Combine since 2002.
5 of them have been drafted by the Raiders.
No other team has picked more than 2.
– Henry Ruggs
– Fabian Washington
– Stanford Routt
– Jacoby Ford
– Demarcus Van Dyke pic.twitter.com/cBTx8JrIQn— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) April 24, 2020
However, the pick came as a shock to many. It wasn’t that Ruggs and his blinding speed weren’t worthy of being selected at No. 12. It was that, while most mock drafts predicted that the Raiders would draft a wide receiver, no one thought it would be him.
Nearly every draft expert had his Alabama teammate, wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, and Oklahoma wide receiver CeeDee Lamb ranked ahead of Ruggs coming into the draft.
As you can see, Joel Klatt had Jeudy going 11th to the New York Jets, Lamb going 12th to Las Vegas, and Ruggs going 13th to San Francisco.
Mel Kiper Jr. had Jeudy going 13th to San Francisco, Lamb going 15th to the Denver Broncos, and Ruggs going 21st to Philadelphia.
Seeing a trend? Jeudy and Lamb were the consensus top two receivers in a loaded wide receiver class and both were still available when the Raiders were on the clock.
But of course, the Raiders march to the beat of their own drum, and they elected to swing for the fences with the speedster Ruggs, who caught 86 passes for 1,487 yards and 18 touchdowns over the course of his final two seasons at Alabama.
Henry Ruggs III is the first WR drafted, going to Las Vegas.
Al Davis would have loved the Raiders pick.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 24, 2020
On Friday, Max Kellerman applauded the Raiders’ selection and discussed how Ruggs turns Las Vegas into a potential threat to the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC West.
“I think they are trending in the right direction at the moment, and I think they addressed the needs of the team in an area that really speaks to the modern game. Particularly in that division – can you score with the Chiefs?”
The Raiders pose the biggest threat to the Chiefs in the AFC West, per @maxkellerman. pic.twitter.com/xV0O4KlBsv
— First Take (@FirstTake) April 24, 2020
The Chiefs have a speedster of their own in Tyreek Hill, effectively nicknamed “The Cheetah.”
Can Ruggs match Hill in the speed department on the biggest stage? That’s yet to be seen.
But currently, he’s not far off.
Skip Bayless, however, was on the opposite side.
FIRST SHOCKER, AND I DO NOT BUY THIS PICK. Raiders get too cute and take Henry Ruggs just for his best-in-the-draft speed. But he will not be more productive than CeeDee or Jeudy. Ruggs will make more draft news than he’ll make plays.
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) April 24, 2020
Ruggs’ selection didn’t exactly send shockwaves through the football world, but it did make Jeudy and Lamb available to a few teams that didn’t think the duo would still be around.
With the 15th pick in the draft, the Broncos delightfully selected Jeudy.
Thrilled to be able to select Jerry Jeudy with the 15th overall pick.
He’s an explosive player who was the top WR on our board. Jerry’s an excellent route runner who knows how to get open, and he’s from a winning program at Alabama.
Excited to add Jerry to the Broncos! pic.twitter.com/hMGlVyCs2A
— John Elway (@johnelway) April 24, 2020
In his final two seasons at Alabama, Jeudy caught 145 balls for 2,478 yards and 24 touchdowns.
The pick was lauded by pundits, including Peter King, who couldn’t believe Broncos president John Elway’s luck.
“You’re sitting there at 15 and hallelujah! [Jeudy and Lamb] fall into your lap … and you pick Jeudy … The Denver Broncos are going to be a force to be reckoned with.”
Then, two picks later, the Dallas Cowboys snagged Lamb at No. 17.
The @dallascowboys really landed @OU_Football WR @_CeeDeeThree ?pic.twitter.com/SDKv3hhMiU
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) April 24, 2020
Bayless called it “the steal of the first round.”
“I have never been more stunned and obviously, never been happier about a Cowboy first round pick than this one … CeeDee Lamb is/was the best receiver in this draft … I always viewed Jerry Jeudy as a little more of a luxury. More of a slot receiver. More of a No. 2 receiver.”
“My Dallas Cowboys managed to pull off the steal of the 1st round. CeeDee Lamb is a flat-out alpha No.1 receiver. Jerry Jones has done an underrated great job of drafting over the last decade.” — @RealSkipBayless pic.twitter.com/QTsanyyw9k
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) April 24, 2020
In his final two seasons at Oklahoma, Lamb stats are eerily similar to Jeudy’s: Lamb caught 127 passes for 2,485 yards and 25 touchdowns.
All three teams seemed to emerge from the first round happy with their picks.
We’ll see which young star makes his team the happiest come this fall.
