Raiders assistant GM ‘can’t confirm’ if decision to draft Brock Bowers over Terrion Arnold came down to a ‘coin toss’

A mini drama unfolded in the middle of the first round of the NFL Draft. Specifically, who would the Las Vegas Raiders select at pick No. 13?

The Raiders were in the market for a quarterback, but there were no more first-round options, with six already off the board. So do you select the best tight end in the draft (Brock Bowers) or maybe the top cornerback (Terrion Arnold)? It was an Alabama versus Georgia kind of thing.

So flip that coin, right?

Arnold said the Lions knew that the Raiders could take him. “And, actually, the Raiders coach, they called me after the draft,” Arnold told The Next Round podcast. “They were like, ‘We actually had a coin toss between you and Brock Bowers. It landed on him.'”

But now that two weeks have passed since the draft, there is some clarification coming out of Vegas. There likely were no coins used when the Raiders picked Bowers. Check that, the Raiders aren’t going to admit the use of a coin.

“I can’t confirm that at all,” Raiders assistant general manager Champ Kelly told reporters this week. “Terrion is a good player. I’m excited to watch his career and watch him play. But we drafted Brock. And we’re excited to get him here. And I don’t think anyone else in our whole draft room felt any other way.”

The Raiders, with new head coach Antonio Pierce at the helm, used the 13th pick for Bowers, the former Georgia Bulldog. Their starting quarterback likely will be Gardner Minshew, whom they signed in free agency from the Colts. Or, the team could rely on Aidan O’Connell, the rookie who took over last year from failed Vegas QB experiment Jimmy Garoppolo. O’Connell was one of 11 rookie quarterbacks who started at least one game in the NFL in 2023.

But here’s a safe assumption, Bowers likely will make the job easier for either quarterback.

Bowers’ “position is tight end, but we saw him as a playmaker,” Kelly said. “He is going to be a fun piece to have. We’ll see what defenses deploy against him when he is on the field.”

As for Arnold, he ended up with the Lions and Dan Campbell, the team’s charismatic coach. It took the Colts, with picked 15th, to finally snap the offensive streak of players in the first round. Indy selected UCLA’s super pass rusher Laiatu Latu, the first defender chosen in the draft.

Meanwhile, the Lions traded with the Cowboys for pick No. 24 in order to select Arnold, the lock-down corner from the Crimson Tide. Once Latu was off the board, six of the next nine players were defenders. Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell was the first DB off the board, with the Eagles taking him at No. 22. The Jaguars then traded up for LSU receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and the Lions moved up five spots for Arnold. In the second round, Detroit went for another cornerback. This time it was Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw Jr.

So whether it was via coin flip or a gut feeling, both the Raiders and Lions probably selected the player they needed. However, it’s still too soon to know whether No. 13 was a lucky pick.