Ever since the NFL’s collective bargaining agreement in 2011, the rookie wage scale has had a tremendous impact on the game due to the salary cap requirements. Those rookie deals along with the rebuilding project in Oakland allowed the Raiders a few years of cap flexibility to add big names in free agency. Now with large contract extensions recently handed out and more on the horizon, Oakland must look to the draft more than ever.
Before 2011, NFL draft picks were paid a fortune; often accruing a majority of their contract in guaranteed money.