Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek often uses the word “versatility” when discussing his favorite traits in potential draft targets.
That preference was evident in his selections on Friday.
The Raiders moved back two spots in the second round in a trade with the Houston Texans to select Treydan Stukes of Arizona with the 38th pick. Stukes is a potential option at safety who has played both outside corner and nickel in his collegiate career.
The Raiders used the additional third-round pick (No. 91 overall) they acquired in that deal to add Texas A&M’s Trey Zuhn, who played both tackle and center last year and probably projects as a guard at the NFL level.
In between, they picked up Auburn defensive end Keyron Crawford who has high-end pass rushing traits and a relentless motor against the run with the 67th pick.
“Versatility is part of it for sure,” Spytek said after the second and third rounds had concluded. “But they’re just really good football players that are selfless. They do whatever is asked of them. The versatility is awesome, but at the end of the day, wherever they were put they were OK with it and proved themselves to be pretty good football players.”
Stukes is a very intelligent defensive back who has played all over the defensive backfield and possesses elite speed.
A 4.0 student in high school and academic all-conference player in college, Stukes believes his brain has helped him go from walk-on to second-round pick.
“We used to have a coach that said, ‘The days of the dumb jock are over,’ and it’s very true,” Stukes said. “You have to be smart to play high-level football. There’s a lot of moving parts. There’s a lot of things going on, and if you want to be able to keep up and adjust in real time, you got to have the brain processing power to do so, especially playing safety. You’re the quarterback of the defense.”
It also helps to run a 4.33 in the 40-yard dash. But the Raiders agree that his intellect and character were key selling points.
“He’s a very good communicator on the field,” assistant general manager Brian Stark said. “He’s a late bloomer. He was a walk-on and a three-time captain and played several positions. He’s a guy who’s going to come in immediately and compete to play, bring some leadership and communication ability. And as good a player as he is and as talented as he is, he’s that good or better as a person.”
The Raiders had identified him as their potential pick at No. 36, but believed they could trade back two spots and still select him. The reward was moving up 26 spots from the fourth round to No. 91 at the end of the third.
It’s the second consecutive year Spytek has moved back in the second round.
“We just kind of evaluate all of the offers as they come, and we felt like it was a great move for us,” Spytek said. “We were pretty confident he would still be there, but we also had a group of players we also liked at that spot if for some reason he was gone and you only have to survive two picks. Definitely worth it.”
They didn’t have to move at all to get their guy at the top of the third round as Crawford was still on the board.
Crawford was a lifelong basketball player before discovering football as a senior in high school. He proved to be a quick learner.
While his elite athleticism translated to his pass-rush skills, his drive to succeed helped him quickly learn enough about the game to be an every-down player.
“I would definitely say probably my upbringing, just being able to be a part of a single-parent home and just seeing my mom work, so that’s all I saw,” he said of what has made him so dedicated. “I just picked that up naturally. It’s always been part of the way I carry myself, even if I’m not getting praise, I’m going to still end up showing up day-in-and-day-out and if the lights are off, I’m going to turn them on and go to work.”
His relative lack of experience could also be an indicator he still has plenty of room for improvement.
“We’re excited about just the rugged toughness and the passion with which Key attacks the game of football,” Spytek said. “I think that will resonate in our D-line room and our defensive meeting room in general.
“I think when you find guys like that who have a high ceiling they haven’t reached yet, they start to climb that ladder pretty quick.”
Zuhn is closer to a finished product after starting a whopping 54 games in the SEC as a player at several different positions.
“I think I bring my consistency and my quick feet, and I’m a smart player,” he said. “I love to learn a playbook, and I love to learn about football and have a high football IQ. So I’m going to get to work learning the playbook as soon as they get it out to me, and I’m just going to be a consistent player and get on the field as quickly as I can.”
The scout on Zuhn was pretty simple.
“He started 54 games in the SEC,” Spytek said. “And all he did was block the guy in front of him. Didn’t matter who it was or where it was.”
Spytek has added two offensive players and two defensive players in the first three rounds. He has six more picks over the final four rounds, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on X.
