Michael Penix Jr.-Raiders rumors could be completely overblown according to insider

There's been a lot of speculation about what the Las Vegas Raiders will do with their No. 13 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The popular belief is that the Raiders will use their draft pick to select a new franchise quarterback, but it remains unclear which quarterback will end up in Vegas.

Considering their draft position, the top candidate has been Washington Huskies quarterback Michael Penix Jr., according to multiple NFL insiders.

"One constant I keep hearing from people I trust is that the Raiders really do like Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and could select him at No. 13 overall," ESPN NFL draft analyst Matt Miller said last week.

"The whispers are getting louder that the Raiders just might take Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. here," The Athletic's Vic Tafur recently wrote.

Yet, the latest report from KOA Colorado's Benjamin Allbright seems to indicate otherwise. The Raiders may trade back to land Penix Jr., but it seems more likely the New England Patriots or New York Giants would do this, per Allbright. Instead, he suggests the Raiders could make a play to land Jayden Daniels.

Patriots, Giants more likely than Raiders to trade back for Michael Penix Jr.

"There's a lot of talk centered around Michael Penix in the first recently," Allbright wrote for KOA Colorado. "Most people I've talked to, their teams aren't considering that but could see another team doing that. I'd suggest that the leading teams to trade back in and do that would be the Patriots, Giants and possibly the Raiders (who love Jayden Daniels)."

Daniels has extensive ties to the Raiders organization because he's known head coach Antonio Pierce since high school. While the move makes sense on many levels, it's unlikely that the Heisman winner would fall all the way to No. 13. If the Raiders want Daniels, they'll have to trade up, which is costly for a team looking to rebuild through the draft.

Allbright affirms what other NFL insiders have said in that the Raiders are interested in Penix Jr. but emphasizes that the Raiders are still the least likely candidate for such a move. The Patriots are clearly looking for a quarterback, but most reports have pointed to New England drafting J.J. McCarthy at No. 3 overall instead of Penix Jr. In a recent mock draft, The Athletic suggested that the Giants could trade up to No. 4 overall to pick Daniels as a Daniel Jones replacement.

Allbright's report may differ from what other NFL insiders have said about the Raiders' level of interest, but one thing is clear: Las Vegas has been consistently associated with Penix Jr. per multiple sources. Allbright may consider it the least likely option, but his report joins a chorus of insiders who envision Las Vegas as the eventual home of Penix Jr.