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It is common belief that Terrelle Pryor was suspended five games by the NFL because of his miss steps at Ohio State. This is simply untrue. Terrelle Pryor was suspended five games for not following the rules of the supplemental draft entry process. Pryor hired Drew Rosenhaus before he was ruled ineligible for the first five games at Ohio State. Based on the rules of the supplemental draft Pryor should have been ineligible for entry. The power of the media and his agent put the league in a tough position. Instead of doing what they should have done and forced Pryor to sit for a year, the NFL allowed his entry while trying to appear tough. There are basically two arguments Pryor will be able to make to get the suspension lifted. 1) The NFL is punishing Pryor because they chose to not follow their own rules. There is no precedent or rule that allows for any such suspension. 2) The five-game suspension is the NFL is punishing Pryor for his college mistakes. This is also unprecedented. The ...

Yes, the Raiders selected Terrelle Pryor with a third-round pick in the 2012 draft via the supplemental draft. Most scouts believe Pryor isn't a great fit as a quarterback in the NFL, but the Raiders didn't waste a third-round pick to immediately covert him to receiver. Pryor is lucky enough to possess elite physical tools. He ran a 4.4 second 40-yard dash at 6'5" and 230 pounds. While he has a long way to go as a quarterback, he has all the needed physical tools to be successful. With no long-term solution at quarterback on the roster, the Raiders are wise to take the chance on Pryor. If the team doesn't feel like he is progressing as a quarterback he can be converted to receiver down the road. Hue Jackson and Al Saunders will attempt to mold Pryor into an NFL quarterback and they have a few good things going for them. Pryor is motivated to be good. He's not receiving a $30 million signing bonus and will need to put in the work to earn a big payday. Warts asid...

I asked Raider Nation to grade the draft picks on a scale of A to F. Love (A), Like (B), Wait (C), Hope D and Hate (F) were the options. Draft grades mean nothing, but what you, the fan, thinks of the draft actually does mean something. Fan grades are a reflection of how much confidence the fans have in the front office. So let's get to the grades... Stefen Wisniewski A - Love Grades: 38 B - Like Grades: 30 C - Wait Grades: 0 D - Hope Grades: 3 F - Hate Grades: 1 Overall GPA: .901 (A) Wisniewski receives a low A letter grade by the fans. His uncle's legacy in silver and black certainly had a lot to do with his reception, but the Raiders needed lineman badly also and this probably boosted his stock. Demarcus Van Dyke A - Love Grades: 2 B - Like Grades: 9 C - Wait Grades: 46 D - Hope Grades: 14 F - Hate Grades: 1 Overall GPA: .609 (D) Ouch, Demarcus Van Dyke receives a near failing grade from Raiders fans, but it is interesting to note that the vast majority voted to wait on Van ...

The Oakland Raiders tried to trade up for Colin Kaepernick, but were not successful. Instead, the Raiders made the most natural pick they could and selected Steve Wisniewski's nephew Stefen. Stefen will play center for the Raiders and become and instant fan favorite. His technique is sound and should be a starter for years. The Raiders traded their 2012 second round pick for the Patriots third, pick 94 and fourth, pick 125. The Raiders used their own third round pick to again draft the fastest player at the scouting combine in Demarcus Van Dyke. You might as well pencil in the fastest player at the combine every year. Al Davis loves his speed. Van Dyke seems like a reach, but he's got good physical tools and will be mentored by Rod Woodson. His teammate will be Stanford Routt, who was much like Van Dyke coming out of college. Van Dyke is long and lean and Hue Jackson said he felt very comfortable with the pick. With the pick acquired from the Patriots, the Raiders selected Jose...

The Raiders came into the day without a first-round draft pick and finished the day without acquiring one. Not much has changed. The Raiders still have needs and the same number of picks to work with. The only thing that happened today, 32 players were skimmed off the player pool. Colin Kaepernick is still available and so are Da'Quan Bowers and Stefen Wisniewski. Five of the top offensive tackles were taken in round one and the talent really thins out now. Raiders would be wise to look to the surplus of guards still available. Brandon Harris and Aaron Williams are two highly-rated cornerbacks that were not taken in the first round. It turns out a trade into the first round was not in the best interest of the Raiders. However, there are just a handful of top-tier players remaining that fit the Raiders most pressing needs. Don't rule out the Raiders jumping into the early second round.

Remember these are all just rumors... 1. Raiders are willing to move back into the first round for the right player. (Believed to be for Nevada QB Colin Kaepernick) 2. Al Davis doesn't think the Raiders have many needs. 3. Jimmy Smith  has been removed from the Raiders draft board (This is a purely smoke and totally incorrect, but heck I'm posting rumors here.) **Check back, more rumors are sure to fly as the day is just getting started**

The Raiders had a renaissance of sorts in 2010. A stellar draft class helped propel them to an 8-8 record and the first non-losing season since 2002. The draft is nearly a national holiday for NFL fans, but for the Raider Nation it has become the national day of prayer. Praying and hoping Al Davis doesn't do something completely crazy. Recent examples include drafting a quarterback with questionable work ethic and giving him $30 million guaranteed and drafting a raw and unproven receiver with questionable hands with the seventh overall selection. It is Al Davis who calls all the shots on draft picks and his recent track record in recent years suggested the man may have lost touch with the modern NFL. Then came 2010, with what appears to be a great haul of picks including Rolando McClain, Lamarr Houston and Jacoby Ford. The Raiders also used picks to acquire Kamerion Wimbley and Jason Campbell. Coach Davis, as new head coach Hue Jackson calls him, has just one glaring team need and ...

Fast rising prospect Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick10) talks about his visit with the Raiders, his decision to stay home for the draft, the pistol offense and more. [powerpress] Thanks to Shawn Smith (@1stladyXAMSport) and Scott Smith (@XAMSports) for making the interview happen. Special thanks to Kyle Kaepernick (@DarthKaepernick) and Rick Kaepernick (@QBDAD10) for sharing some secrets about Colin's past.

ESPN Honolulu was kind enough to have me on Sports Animals. Here is the audio. [powerpress]