A vertical draft board is a simple concept: a list of prospects in the order in which you prefer the team takes them. As prospects are selected you cross them off of the board, and when the team's pick comes around the highest ranked player is your choice pick.

Below I have listed out my top 140 for the Raiders in this fashion. I cannot stress enough that this board is built specifically for the Raiders, and is dependent on their coaches, schemes, and roster. The factors that I weighed while ranking the players were:

Talent

Obviously, this is the most important factor. This includes what they have done, what I think they can, but haven't been yet asked to, do and what I think they may develop the ability to do in the future. This mostly comes from watching game footage at draftbreakdown.com (when available). Cut ups or highlights from media members, as well as draft process reports (senior bowl practices, etc.) are also taken into consideration.

Intangibles

It seems that I tend to value this more than most. I think this is as big of an indication of potential as special physical traits are, as superior work ethic and coach-ability is a common theme among great players. This is undoubtedly the hardest factor for me to judge, as it is mostly a gut feeling based on interviews I have seen, and articles I have read. It's hardly an exact science, and would best be described as, "a barely educated, guess."

Impact

For me, the goal of the draft is to add positive impact to the next 4+ years of the team. The sooner the impact can be made, the better. The opportunity that I forecasted for each prospect to make an impact weighed heavily on my rankings. The earlier in the rankings, the more I weighed the immediate opportunity at their primary positions, while special teams contributions are considered more the further down the board you go. I considered these positions (in order) a need:

Inside Linebacker

Single High Safety OR Matchup/Box Safety (assuming mostly odd coverages)

Split Field Safety (assuming mostly quarters coverage)

Nose Tackle

Cornerback (ability to play slot corner early prioritized)

Offensive Tackle

Edge Defender

Wide Receiver (deep threats and RAC ability prioritized)

There are no quarterbacks on my board because that position seems to be set for the future. Other positions I devalued because of the strength of the roster:

Guard

Center

Fullback

Punter

3-5 Tech Defensive Linemen

All other positions were viewed as positions that could use an upgrade at some point in the depth chart, but the need for one is not pressing.

Reliability

This is where the red flags come in. Whether it be for medical or personality reasons, the trust I have in the prospect being on the field is a large factor. "The most important ability is availability." Not only is it important to be able to play, but it is important to fit into the locker room seamlessly. I don't want anyone that will upset the apple cart. Since my access to this type of information is extremely limited in comparison to NFL general managers, the same can be said for this category as was said for Intangibles; I’m making my best guess. Players whose ranking was affected by such concerns are denoted in the FLAGS column. Some prospects were completely removed from the board for such reasons.

MED refers to medical and health concerns. This applies to prospects who either having troubling injury history, were unable to participate in any draft process events, or players that are expected to be injured at the start of training camp.

CH refers to character and personality concerns. Prior incidents or arrests, reporting and speculation about character and work ethic in their college programs, and the sense I get from interviews and the like are considered here.

The Board