Raiders get No. 1 pick in 2026 NFL Draft as Giants fully blow up tank

Story by

Malik Brown, ClutchPoints

Sun, Jan 4, 2026 ·

2 min read

Raiders get No. 1 pick in 2026 NFL Draft as Giants fully blow up tank appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .

Coming into Week 18, there was a lot at stake for a few teams to see who would get the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. With the New York Giants winning against the Dallas Cowboys , the Las Vegas Raiders have won the draft oddsand will now have the chance at picking a franchise player with the top pick.

They will have a tough decision to make, and it will be interesting to see what direction they go in.

It has been a rough season for the Raiders, after expectations were high coming into the year. They went out and got an experienced head coach in Pete Carroll, and paired him with Geno Smith , a quarterback that he’s familair with after being with the Seattle Seahawks . They also used their top pick on more offense, drafting Ashton Jeanty .

Things were just not able to work on that side of the ball, and they didn’t have enough on that side of the ball to make plays and put points on the board. On defense, the same could be said, and Maxx Crosby seems to be at odds with the team after they shut him down to end the season.

Now, things are not looking good for Carroll after just his first season with the team, and it’s uncertain if he’ll be back for another year, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz.

“Sources: The expectation is that Raiders HC Pete Carroll will be one-and-done in Las Vegas — whether that ends up being a firing or a retirement. The Raiders’ coaching search is expected to cast a wide net, with Tom Brady involved,” Schultz wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

It looks like it could be another shakedown for the Raiders, and if they do fire Carroll, the first step in the process is finding a head coach that fits the vision for the franchise moving forward.