Raiders NFL Draft Prospect: Drake Jackson, USC Trojans

The USC Trojans' Drake Jackson is a young player that has his best football ahead of him.

At 20-years-old, he has impressed scouts around the NFL to receive draft grades as high as the first round, and he is just scratching the surface.

Jackson's timeline to develop and contribute gives teams such as the Las Vegas Raiders a chance to add a young player with so much upside.

“[Drake] Jackson’s 2020 campaign established him as one of the top players in the nation. The talented pass rusher boasts special lateral agility and change of direction ability. The Trojan star is difficult to touch when he employs head fakes, jab steps and body language to force an offensive lineman into false steps. What’s more, Jackson has fluid hips and powerful bend to work through half-man engagement,” NFL Draft Bible noted.

Jackson enters the draft talks as an underrated edge rusher/outside linebacker.

At 6-foot-4 and 250 pounds, Jackson is considered to be an undersized edge rusher for a 4-3 base defense, although played that position early in his college career.

After losing nearly 20 pounds due to an illness his sophomore year at USC, Jackson’s lighter frame suited well to transition to outside linebacker under a new defensive coordinator.

“The star pass rusher has the length to manage distance and control the nature of engagement. As a pass rusher, Jackson has the all-around athletic profile to threaten the outside and inside tracks. Against the run, the Trojan standout has the strength to bench press, anchor down, fill space, and fill. Jackson even has sufficient spatial awareness to operate in zone coverage; conversely, he has the requisite movement skills to handle man responsibilities underneath. Jackson’s all-around skill set gives him the versatility to play 3-4 outside linebacker or 4-3 defensive end at the next level,” NFL Draft Bible said.

Last season at USC, he excelled as an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense.

Acknowledging that Jackson is still young, he does need to get stronger at the point of attack, use his hands a little better, and consistently close out tackles in the run game.

All this can be corrected with more reps under his belt and good coaching.

Jackson has received grades of being selected as high of the first round through the third round on Day Two.

While I don’t see him slipping past the second round, the Raiders will have to decide if depth priorities are more important than selecting the best available player.

Want to talk about this? Want to air your opinion about all things Las Vegas Raiders? Maybe you like to talk about other sports that aren't Silver and Black related? We got your back. Join our 100% FREE message board, a brand new option, when you CLICK RIGHT HERE.

Make sure you like our Facebook Page WHEN YOU CLICK RIGHT HERE.

Want the latest breaking Las Vegas Raiders news delivered straight to your email for FREE? Sign up for the DAILY Raiders Nation newsletter when you CLICK THE FOLLOW button on the main page. Don't miss any of the latest up to the second updates for your Las Vegas Raiders when you follow on Twitter @HondoCarpenter