2015 Oakland Raiders Fantasy Outlook

Key Fantasy Relevant Losses

• Darren McFadden
• Maurice Jones-Drew
• James Jones

Key Fantasy Relevant Additions

• Michael Crabtree
• Amari Cooper
• Trent Richardson/Roy Helu

Overview

Ever since the Raiders lost to the Buccaneers way back in Super Bowl 37 (my senior year of high school), the Raiders as a franchise have yet to make the playoffs.  It has been a black hole of losing (pun intended) for over a decade.  They’ve had players here and there that have contributed to fantasy teams such as Darren McFadden when he was healthy.  But they have also had players that have been horrible such as JaMarcus Russell.  But this season could be the first in a long time where there is genuine hope across the board for the Raiders offense.  With young players at all the major offensive positions, the Raiders could make some fantasy noise this season.

Quarterback

Derek Carr started as a rookie last season and had a decent year, going over 3000 yards passing with 21 touchdown passes.  He wasn’t a running threat last year with only 92 yards on the ground for the entire season, with 58 of those coming against the Texans in Week 2.  For a rookie he took pretty good care of the ball with only 16 turnovers (12 interceptions, four lost fumbles).  Towards the end of the year he got a more consistent running game and the defense decided to play defense and the Raiders finished with a 3-3 record the final three games.  With additions in the receiving corps and a full season of Latavius Murray at running back there isn’t a reason to think that Carr won’t improve on last season’s numbers outside of a possible sophomore slump.
Grade: C+

Running Back

Latavius Murray enters this season as the clear cut starter with the departures of McFadden and Jones-Drew.  His backups are Roy Helu and Trent Richardson and shouldn’t pose a threat to his position as the top back.  If Murray stays healthy he should be a 1,000 yard type of back this season.  He will also definitely score more than two touchdowns, which was his total from a year ago.  Murray has shown he is capable of being a receiving threat as well, but the addition of Helu could take away some of his snaps in obvious passing downs. Trent Richardson is Trent Richardson, nothing much needs to be said about him.
Grade: B

Wide Receiver

The Raiders will be sporting two new starters at wide receiver this year with free agent acquisition Michael Crabtree and rookie Amari Cooper.  Crabtree is a former top ten pick who definitely hasn’t lived up to that selection with only one 1,000+ receiving season since entering the league in 2009.  He’s going to have to have a strong season or his time as a starter in this league could be over.  Opposite Crabtree will be this year’s fourth overall pick, Amari Cooper.  Cooper is arguably one of the most talented offensive players in this year’s draft.  He should put up big numbers as a rookie in the Raiders offense.  He’s shown the ability to get downfield and has very good hands.  Andre Holmes and Rod Streater will also be in line for receptions as well.  Overall this is a group of receivers  that are unproven and underachieving talent-wise, but they have a huge opportunity to change that this season.
Grade: C

Tight End

Mychal Rivera is currently the only tight end on the Raiders worth giving a look at for your team, but he’s a late round pick at best and only if you want a backup tight end going into week one.  The upgrades at receiver may lead to him getting open more but as of now I only view Rivera as a bye week or injury replacement from a fantasy perspective.  He may be a starter in 14 team leagues but that’s about it.
Grade: C-

Summary

Overall, I feel that the Raiders offense has definitely taken a step in the right direction.  If the defense can play the way it did at the end of last season, that will help things as well.  But for right now there are too many questions around this team due to the youth at most of the major positions and no solid veteran presence at those positions to guide them throughout the season.  The ceiling is high here, but I think the Raiders are one season away from possibly having something big here.
Overall Grade: C

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