The Raiders 2014 draft has the potential to be one of the most remarkable drafts the NFL has ever seen.

Khalil Mack already has a Defensive Player of the Year award on his resume and Derek Carr finished third in the league MVP vote a year ago. Gabe Jackson was the Raiders third-round pick in 2014 and he’s already paid like one of the best at his position.

The way the 2014 draft came together for general manager Reggie McKenzie was remarkable, but there were many ways the draft could have gone a different direction entirely.

Thankfully, when the Bills leapfrogged the Raiders in the first round, it was to draft Sammy Watkins and not Khalil Mack – who the Bills somehow overlooked despite the fact that Mack played college football in their own backyard.

Then there was Carr.

Every team passed on Carr in the first round, but the Texans were gifted another opportunity to take Derek in the second round.

Fortunately for the Raiders, Houston had drafted David Carr with the first overall pick in 2002 and were shy about returning too many times to the well. Despite their need at quarterback, the Texans drafted offensive guard Xavier Su’a-Filo.

What’s interesting about Carr falling to the Raiders is that, according to The Athletic’s Vic Tafur, McKenzie had an opportunity to trade back into the first round and draft Carr, but chose to wait and take his chances.

Had the Raiders been aggressive and traded up for Carr, they probably would have lost the third-round pick they used to draft Gabe Jackson.

Other picks that could have been lost to trade up for Carr were the fourth-round pick used on Justin Ellis and the seventh-round pick used on T.J. Carrie – both of whom the Raiders will probably try to bring back next season.

Then there’s the other side of the coin. How much did the Raiders actually value Carr in 2014 if they weren’t willing to trade up to draft him?

According to The Athletic’s John Middlekauff in 2014, Carr was the second-rated quarterback on the Raiders draft board behind only Blake Bortles.

#Raiders had Carr rated as a 1st rounder. He was the 2nd rated QB on their draft board behind Bortles — John Middlekauff (@JohnMiddlekauff) May 10, 2014

It certainly wasn’t a mistake to not trade up for Carr, but it would have been had the Texans, Browns, Cardinals, and Vikings (who all needed a quarterback) not passed on him.

And that’s the way the draft tends to go. It’s as much about good fortune as it is about good scouting.

The Raiders were fortunate to land Mack, Carr, and Jackson with consecutive picks.

McKenzie and the gang deserve credit for changing the Raiders course with the 2014 draft, but a number of teams around the league at least deserve to be credited with a hockey assist.

twitter: @raidersbeat