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Raiders mailbag: Is team done adding on the offensive line?

The closer the NFL draft gets, the more questions Raiders fans have about the prospects of landing a quarterback April 25.

All possibilities are in play as the team pursues its next face of the franchise. That means trading up, staying put at the 13th overall pick and anything in between.

Here is a sampling of what arrived in this week’s mailbag:

Matt Berger (@matt_berger): If the Raiders were to trade up to No. 2 or 3, do you think it would’ve happened by now with two weeks left before the draft?

Vincent Bonsignore: Not necessarily. The Rams traded up to acquire the first overall pick in 2016 on April 14. It’s not unusual for teams to consummate deals closer to the draft.

There are reasons the Raiders may need to wait to trade up. It’s still unclear who the Commanders are going to take with the second overall pick. If the Raiders are trying to acquire No. 3 from the Patriots, for example, they can’t close the deal until they know if Washington is grabbing a quarterback they like.

Karl (@Rayderfan25): Will the Raiders add any free agents to the offensive line?

Bonsignore: The Raiders will almost certainly use free agency to shore up their offensive line. But they will likely wait until after the draft.

The Raiders have to see if they can add any prospects from a deep class of offensive linemen. That will give them a better idea of what their remaining needs are.

The veteran free agents that are available are going to want to wait as well. That way they can see which teams still have holes after the draft and which ones have crowded depth charts.

Bigtime (@Bigtimechuck87): Do you think a draft-day trade happens to move to No. 4 if Caleb Williams, J.J. McCarthy and Drake Maye are the first three players taken?

Bonsignore: The Raiders would be aggressive in trying to move up in that scenario. They’d try to make a deal to acquire Louisiana State quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Eric (@BigE4203): If the Raiders cannot move up, will they stay put at 13 or look to move back in the draft?

Bonsignore: They could move down if they believe one of their top targets will still be available later on. But that would require another team wanting to move up to No. 13.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on X.

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