The Raiders drafted Keyron Crawford with the 67th overall pick just a few months ago. The former Arkansas State standout broke out in his sophomore season with 44 tackles, 8.5 TFL, and 5.5 sacks in just his third season playing football. Crawford has always been an exceptional athlete, he’s shown an explosive first step, quick fluid hips, and a large display of both horizontal & lateral explosiveness. The former standout basketball player, Crawford only started playing football in his senior season at Briarcrest
Christian high school where he logged 78 tackles, 21 TFL, and 14 sacks. As a result, Crawford has been an exceptionally raw prospect, though he’s shown signs of development even over the last three months in the NFL.
Crawford transferred to Auburn, where the Raiders selected him after two seasons racking up 58 tackles, 10.5 TFL, and 5.5 sacks with a FF, 2 FR, and INT in his 24 games at Auburn. The timeline for Crawford is interesting, the Raiders are relying on him to have a runway to the NFL in terms of snap counts, but he should still see a good shot at 200-350 snaps this season in rotational situations. Crawford has a chance to become a starting 2nd pass rusher in the NFL, he’s shown good athleticism, a variety of pass rush moves, has a ton of length, and his initial movement skills are intriguing.
His 2026 season should be slightly inconsistent with Crawford likely behind Maxx Crosby, Malcolm Koonce, Kwity Paye for rotational snaps and he’ll likely also be pushed by UDFA Cian Slone who’s made waves in the off-season so far. Crawford has worked throughout the off-season in minicamp & OTA’s rotating with each team on defense, but he’ll likely be in a strong rotational role seeing time in pass rush situations, third down, and late game rotations to ease out snap counts of the rest of the room. Crawford should also see time in situations as a designated drop player working into quick flats, something that he’s done at Auburn before and should add versatility to the Raiders defensive line.
Year two & three are likely the biggest for Crawford, 2027 can likely see one or all of those above him on the depth chart gone. You’d imagine the Raiders view him as a replacement for Malcolm Koonce should Koonce either have a breakout season and sign for 15 million or more, and/or remain an adequate third pass rusher where Crawford could take the reigns as a starter. Crawford’s goal for the 2026 season is largely working on his technique, functional strength, and applying the transition from Auburn to the NFL but athleticism has been the baseline for his career, and should remain a good path to get him onto the field quickly. Crawford may not have the production of a third rounder in 2026, but he’s a high upside player with a ton of potential, and the Raiders have shown a desire to consistently draft developmental prospects in the third round under John Spytek.
