The Las Vegas Raiders made four trades on Saturday, the final day of the 2026 NFL draft, as they selected seven defensive backs and dealt former top-10 pick Tyree Wilson to the New Orleans Saints. The flurry of moves continued the team’s roster overhaul centered around No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza.
The Raiders opened Day 3 by trading a 2027 seventh-round pick to the Buffalo Bills to move up one spot and select Tennessee cornerback Jermod McCoy at No. 101 overall. McCoy, who had six interceptions at Tennessee before missing the 2025 season with a knee injury, ran a 4.37 40-yard dash at his pro day but faces concerns about a cartilage issue that may require surgery.
“I feel good,” McCoy said. “As far as another surgery and all that, that would just be strictly based on what the team wants me to do.”
McCoy and Mendoza have history: McCoy recorded his first career interception off Mendoza when both were making their debuts in 2023.
“It was probably one of the top moments in my life,” McCoy said. “Now I’m on the same team, too, with the best quarterback in college football – now going to be the best in the league.”
The Raiders traded up again in the fourth round, sending picks No. 134 and No. 208 to the Atlanta Falcons to select Arkansas running back Mike Washington Jr. at No. 122. Washington rushed for 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns last season, averaging 6.4 yards per carry, and will join 2025 rookie standout Ashton Jeanty in the backfield.
“I’m super excited to get rolling with him. All I can think of is thunder and lightning,” Washington said. “(Excited) to be a sponge and learn from him also at the same time.”
In the fifth round, the Raiders traded Wilson and a 2026 seventh-round pick (219th overall) to the Saints for pick No. 150. They used that selection on Arizona safety Dalton Johnson, who recorded a career-high 97 tackles, four interceptions and seven pass deflections last season while earning First-Team All-Big 12 honors. Johnson reunites with former Arizona teammate Treydan Stukes, whom the Raiders selected in the second round.
With their own fifth-round compensatory pick at No. 175, the Raiders took Cal cornerback Hezekiah Masses. Masses led the nation with 18 passes defended and 1.38 passes defended per game as a senior, earning first-team All-ACC and multiple All-America honors.
The Raiders made their fourth trade of the day in the sixth round, sending pick No. 185 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for pick No. 195 and No. 229. At No. 195, they selected Oregon wide receiver Malik Benson, who led the Ducks with 716 receiving yards and six touchdowns last season while also averaging 17.89 yards per punt return.
Benson played at Alabama in 2023 (13 catches, 162 yards) and Florida State in 2024 (25 catches, 311 yards) before his breakout senior season at Oregon.
