Grading Raiders’ pick of N.C. State defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland

The Las Vegas Raiders landed a prototypical nose tackle in the seventh round, selecting N.C. State’s Brandon Cleveland with their final selection.

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Cleveland entered college as more of a versatile defensive lineman with the ability to move down the line in certain scenarios, but put on some weight and became a solid run stopper who lined up near the ball.

He’s willing to do the dirty work on defense that will free his teammates up to make plays.

The grade: A-

There is nothing spectacular about this pick and that’s OK.

The Raiders are moving to a base 3-4 scheme and while they won’t be aligned that way on every down, there was a need for a run-stuffing defensive tackle that can hold his own at the line of scrimmage.

That’s what Cleveland will do for them.

Still, he’s a decent athlete who was actually offered the option to play baseball during his time at N.C. State before he added about 50 pounds to his frame while in school.