Q: Reggie expressed yesterday that they were pretty pleased Khalil Mack fell to them at No. 5. How much gratification was there when Derek Carr fell to you at No. 36?
Clinkscales:"I think we were pretty excited. At the point in time of the draft, Derek was the highest rated guy on the board. So, we were pretty comfortable taking him."
Q: Derek was mostly in the spread offense the last couple of years. Was that a concern? Did you go back and look at his previous years?
Clinkscales:"We did a lot of extensive work on him. We went back a couple of years and looked at tape when he played under center more. But, we felt like at that point we stayed true to our board and he was the best player available."
Q: With the way it plays out, it seems like you guys have gone all-in on Matt Schaub. It seems the best-case scenario would be for Derek to sit and learn the NFL offense behind Matt.
Clinkscales: "Right. Again, we stayed true to our board. We think Matt Schaub is our starter – we are confident in that. Derek will come in and he will learn and wherever he fits in, he fits in. But, we're comfortable with the pick and knowing that he'll come in and develop the way we would like to see him develop."
Q: Do you believe that he is the future of this franchise after Schaub is gone?
Clinkscales: "We took him in the second round. We would like to think so. With that being said, you never know what will happen in the future. But, we're excited that he is here and he'll have a chance to compete. Who knows what will happen?"
Q: He handled the media pretty well. Is he a high-character guy? And is that one of the reasons you guys chose him as well?
Clinkscales: "Very much so. He is a very mature kid. He's had a lot of life experiences that the regular 22-year-old hasn't had. He's got a family, he's married, he has a child. So, we're excited to get a guy like that in the program."
Q: When you look at him, do you think of his brother at all?
Clinkscales: "Not at all. I don't think you evaluate one guy and think about the brother. I think the lineage is good. I think the fact that his father has been around football, and I think the family has been around football, I think that's a plus."
Q: David tried to sell himself as kind of a package deal. Have there been any discussions about that?
Clinkscales: "We drafted Derek, so we're excited about Derek."
Q: Did you have Derek at the top of your quarterback board heading into yesterday?
Clinkscales: "Derek was the top quarterback on the board today."
Q: Is he at a point where he could play if he needed to?
Clinkscales:"That remains to be seen. He's a young quarterback. We aren't expecting him to walk in the door and be the starter. We have a starter. Whenever that time occurs, then we're confident the kid will be ready to play."
Q: Are you surprised that he fell to 36?
Clinkscales:"We were surprised that he was there at 36, yes."
Q: There were a lot of good receivers on the board in the second and third rounds. Would you say it's more because you're happy with the corps that you have now, or that you didn't like the receivers that have gone thus far?
Clinkscales:"I think it's a combination of both. Again, we stayed true to the board. We were able to draft Derek and then we were able to move back, get a player that we liked in Gabe and pick up a fourth-round draft pick."
Q: What was appealing about Gabe?
Clinkscales:"Gabe is a big, powerful young man. He gives the physicality that we're looking for in the run game, he's athletic enough in the pass game to move. We're excited to have Gabe."
Q: Did you guys think about moving down in the second round or when Derek was on the board, were you pretty set?
Clinkscales:"We considered it. We're open to moving up and back. The fact that Derek was there, we thought it was a good opportunity to help upgrade our football team."
Q: Did that change your strategy about when you wanted to take a quarterback, given that Carr was there?
Clinkscales:"A little bit, from the standpoint that, again, we stayed true to the board. At the time of the pick, he was the top guy on our board. We were excited to get that player."
Q: What was your take on Derek's performance against USC in the bowl game? He didn't play very well in that game.
Clinkscales:"That was one game. Again, we've all had bad games, we've all had bad days. I don't think one game can really determine the totality of his playing career."
Q: How raw of a player is Jackson right now? Is he a guy you envision playing as a rookie if you needed him?
Clinkscales:"I think he could come in and play pretty early for anybody. He's a powerful, physical young man. When you're building a guard, physically, that's what they look like. Once he gets on the field and competes with the other guys, then we'll see how that turns out. I am pretty confident that Gabe will come in and compete and be tough and be exactly what we expect him to be."
Q: You said you had to think about taking offers for that 36th pick. Did you have to turn people down?
Clinkscales:"We fielded a lot of calls, quite a few."
Q: Was there any thought to trade up?
Clinkscales:"No, there was really no discussion from our standpoint of moving up. We had that option if we wanted to do so, but we were pretty comfortable there."
Q: In terms of depth, where is your biggest needs are moving forward in the draft?
Clinkscales:"I guess there is a point in time where the draft becomes a need, but right now we are still following the board. We're going to follow the board and take the best player available. At a point in time when it becomes a need draft, we'll go down that line."
Q: What's your favorite thing about Mack?
Clinkscales:"He's physical. He's tough. He's able to rush the passer, obviously from standing up, with his hand in the dirt. He gives you speed. The versatility, I mean I could go on and on. I love the player and I love the pick."
Q: When you look at Mack and Carr, they're both hard workers. Jackson was a two-time captain, which was probably intentional for the types of players you're drafting.
Clinkscales:"Absolutely. Jackson is a 50-game starter in the SEC. That tells you a lot about what kind of guy he is, he hasn't missed a start. When you're building a foundation of a football team, I think it's important that you get the right kind of guys. I think we've tried to do that throughout the offseason and with the players we've drafted so far."
Q: It seems like you guys have been lucky with the guys you've wanted so far.
Clinkscales:"I'm excited about the players. The Raiders need a little luck just like everybody else so we're excited about that."
