Raiders: 3 Derek Carr replacements no one is talking about
By Ethan Lee
Bailey Zappe, Western Kentucky
If the Raiders want someone who can throw the ball around, why not consider someone who threw it a ton in college?
Western Kentucky’s Bailey Zappe will be available in the upcoming NFL Draft and his proficiency in Zach Kittley’s brand of Air Raid offense makes him an interesting option that teams will need to take a look at.
At 6-foot-1 and 220 pounds, Zappe isn’t the most physically imposing quarterback, but he definitely demonstrated that he can dissect defenses as he threw the ball nearly 50 times a game this season.
Zappe threw for 5,967 yards and 62 touchdowns while completing a remarkable 69.3 percent of his passes. While he was doing all of this, it would have been easy for him to throw several interceptions. However, Zappe only threw 11 picks this season. Of the 687 passes he attempted, only 11 ended up as interceptions.
That’s not bad.
He’s not going to be the top quarterback in this draft and could potentially be available in later rounds. If the Raiders want him, they could probably prioritize a few other needs first and pick Zappe up later on.
Moving from Western Kentucky to the NFL would be a huge adjustment though. The Raiders probably can’t just expect Zappe to step in and be significantly better than what Carr brings to the table right now. They may still want to consider bringing in someone else who is more experienced along with Zappe.