Former Raiders GM Makes Admission About Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix

Former Raiders GM Makes Admission About Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

The Las Vegas Raiders hired Pete Carroll and John Spytek to lead the franchise this offseason, which marks the third straight year that the team has both a new head coach and general manager.

Antonio Pierce and Tom Telesco only got one year at the helm of the Silver and Black, and while the results were disastrous, Telesco actually added several solid pieces to the roster.

In the first three rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft, he grabbed First-Team All-Pro tight end Brock Bowers, All-Rookie lineman Jackson Powers-Johnson, and starting right tackle DJ Glaze. Unfortunately, Telesco was still fired this offseason after a four-win campaign in 2024.

Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix (10) and former Las Vegas Raiders RB Ameer Abdullah (8).Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

Many wanted the Raiders to be aggressive and target a quarterback of the future in last year’s draft. Telesco was quite selective, however, which netted them Bowers in the first round and no young signal-callers to show for it.

His failure to grab a quarterback was not entirely in his control, however. Telesco was featured on an episode of “Check the Mic” on Thursday, and he talked about both Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix.

“Other than Jayden Daniels, (trading up for a QB) was a non-starter,” Telesco said. “Bo Nix, his background of work, his durability, his movement skills, that would’ve been a good possibility (at 13).”

Unfortunately, the Raiders’ roster was not in a position to trade up for Daniels, and the Commanders did not want to move back anyway. Nix also came off the board just one pick ahead of Las Vegas, when their AFC West rival, the Denver Broncos, selected him at No. 12 overall.

Both players had strong rookie seasons, as Daniels led the Commanders to the NFC Championship Game and won the 2025 NFL Rookie of the Year Award. Nix also led the Broncos to 10 wins and finished third in the Rookie of the Year award voting, behind Daniels and Bowers.

Ultimately, this is water under the bridge considering Telesco is now out of a job and there is a new regime in place in Las Vegas. However, Raider Nation cannot help but imagine what could have been if things went a bit differently in the 2024 NFL Draft.

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 5, 2025, where it first appeared.

Former Raiders GM Makes Admission About Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix

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