Oakland Raiders Fantasy Football Analysis – Week 5

Week 5 – vs Denver – L 10-16

QB: Carr an average game and had trouble with the pass rush in this one.  Wasn’t protected well and had little to throw to outside of a lot of short stuff.

RB: Murray a below average game and did nothing to impress against tough D.  Match up was bad so not his fault.  Line couldn’t do much for him.

WR: Crabtree and Cooper covered well and held to average games.  Neither could get much space.  Another bad match up so they should be fine.

TE: Rivera a few catches but just an average fantasy game.  Would like to see him get a lot more targets but it just isn’t happening.

OL: Couldn’t handle elite pass rush.  Not a shocking outcome there.  Did nothing for run game.  Continues to be a pretty bad run blocking unit.

Def: Stout against terrible run game and O line.  Pass rush disrupted a good passing team.  Played pretty well overall considering match up.  Gave up good game to #2 WR.  Held rest in check.  Finally shutout TE but I would continue starting all TEs against.

Oakland Raiders Fantasy Football Analysis – Week 4

Week 4 – @ Chicago – L 20-22

QB: Carr an okay game but expected far better.  Just couldn’t seem to make throws in this one.  Looked good at times but couldn’t sustain it.

RB: Murray an average game in a good match up.  Wasn’t getting a lot of space and isn’t capable of doing too much on his own.  World of difference in talent between he and Forte on the other side.

WR: Cooper a good game making a great TD grab.  Still looks like a stud and worth the start every week right now.  Crabtree a nice game but looked shakier in this one.  Should be okay but worth noting.

TE: Rivera still not getting much.  Probably the most talented not-usable TE in fantasy.

OL: Didn’t play well against weak D.  Really bad sign as far as how they looked in this one.  Could force a downgrade of all the fantasy players on this team if they continue blocking like this.

Def: Made some plays but still looked pretty awful, overall.  Couldn’t hang with elite runner.  Coverage was atrocious on TE, again.  Not much of a pass rush.  Gave up good games to basically everyone.

Oakland Raiders Fantasy Football Analysis – Week 3

Week 3 – @ Cleveland – W 27-20

QB: Carr a nice game and was protected well.  Makes good throws and is accurate.  Has too many good targets to throw to to ignore him.

RB: Murray a big game and is okay if given space but doesn’t do a ton for himself.  Outside of one big run, he was three yards and a cloud of dust in this one.  I still don’t see what people are seeing in him.

WR: Cooper a big game and is an absolute stud.  Big enough to be a red zone target, really fast, and is catching virtually everything catch-able.  Crabtree held in check but still looked okay.  Will be hit and miss, especially when run game and Cooper have big games.  Roberts a TD but I’ve already seen him drop a ton of throws.  Hands are terrible.

TE: Rivera nothing and barely involved.  Can’t be considered for fantasy despite his obvious talent.

OL: Protected extremely well and run blocking was decent.  Certainly doesn’t dominate when it comes to the run but did open nice holes in this one.

Def: Great pass rush and made a lot of plays.  Held run game in check but lead limited runs.  Still getting obliterated by TEs, even no name ones.  Also gave up good games to WRs and receiving RB.

Oakland Raiders Fantasy Football Analysis – Week 2

Week 2 – vs Baltimore – W 37-33

QB: Carr a big game and was pretty accurate making some great throws both short and long.  Starting to look like he could be a stud with the right match ups like this one.

RB: Murray a good game but really did nothing overly impressive.  Just gets the ball and runs into the pile.  I just don’t understand what people are seeing in him right now.  Really doesn’t do much on his own.

WR: Cooper and Crabtree had huge games with similar numbers.  Cooper is definitely a superstar on his way and Crabtree may have found a nice home.  Really looks maybe his best ever.

TE: Rivera still getting ignored in offense.  Just can’t trust for fantasy.

OL: Looked strong, especially in pass protection.  Wasn’t blowing D away on runs but doing enough for RBs to get a few yards every time.

Def: Far from good.  Wasn’t great against the run and was torched by passing game.  Really can’t cover even remotely well.  Gave up huge games to #1 WR and TE.  Good games to RBs and #2 WR.  Start everyone against until they do something.

2015 Fantasy Football RB Rankings

Here are the running backs.  Again, the ADP was pulled from Fantasy Pros and they will change over time.  Here are some notes on a few.

UPDATE: With the injury to Arian Foster, he moves to around 30 at this point.  Alfred Blue moves up to 25 for me.  And as I stated in my off-season moves post, Chris Polk should be kept in mind by anyone targeting this backfield.

Why I’m much higher on…

C.J. Anderson: Two words: Gary Kubiak.  Everyone saw how the Ravens’ run game was terrible in 2013 and then Kubiak turned Justin Forsett into a fantasy star in 2014.  Don’t be shocked if Anderson ends up #1 at season’s end.

Mark Ingram and Lamar Miller: Both just looked awesome at times last season and Ingram will now be running behind what should be an improved O-line.  Miller is now the workhorse in an Eagles-type offense and might finish top 10.

Joseph Randle: I’m utterly baffled at his ADP right now.  Off the field issues aside, he could be a monster this season behind that O-line.  McFadden is no threat to Randle’s talent.  Dunbar is too small to be the workhorse.  This is Randle’s time to shine.

Doug Martin: Will be running behind a better line and a better QB.  Should be a solid flex with the potential to be a #2.

Stevan Ridley: Ivory managed to stay healthy last season but the history is there.  If the door opens for Ridley, he could play his way into strong flex consideration and maybe more.

Why I’m much lower on…

DeMarco Murray: Too many mouths in Philly, an injury history, and worked to death last season.  I won’t be drafting him this season.  Pick with a ton of caution.

Frank Gore: O-line in Indy just isn’t good enough and Herron could steal plenty of touches.  I’m having a hard time believing he’s a RB2 in a 10 team league.

Melvin Gordon: Not a great line in San Diego and some red flags over his strength of schedule in college.  I’m not believing it until I see him do it.  And Brandon Oliver might get more love than people are expecting.

Latavius Murray: I wasn’t that impressed with him last season and think people are putting too much into his one game against KC.  Don’t be shocked if this backfield is a mess with him sharing a lot of time with Helu and a trimmed-down Richardson.

Oakland Raiders Week 17 Fantasy Analysis

Week 17 – @ Denver – L 14-47

QB: Carr struggled as pass rush was getting to him more than usual and some drops hurt.  Still looks like a good QB but needs a new OC.

RB: Murray a good game, mostly as a receiver and half his yards coming on one play.  Still not sold on him but he does look like the starter for next season.

WR: Jones and Holmes did little although Holmes could have had 2 TDs and Jones looked good.  Depending on coaching changes, both could be good values next season.

TE: Rivera targeted on the stat sheet but a lot weren’t catchable.  Did little and should still be getting more targets because of his talent.

OL: Wasn’t great.  Average run blocking against tough D and wasn’t handling good pass rush too well.  Needs some improvement but still not a terrible unit.

Def: Gashed badly on the ground.  Couldn’t contain stars except TE.  Gave up good games to RB and WRs.  Backup TE scored garbage-time TD.

Oakland Raiders Week 16 Fantasy Analysis

Week 16 – vs Buffalo – W 26-24

QB: Carr protected well against tough D and had decent game.  Took some chances down field but receivers didn’t make a lot of plays.

RB: Murray a good game against an elite D but still doesn’t look overly impressive.  Doesn’t look much different from Asiata except he runs with less power.  Line helped him here.

WR: Thompkins a good game but no reason to buy into it.  Holmes decent hitting one long one but nearly had a TD as well.  Jones a short TD catch and nothing else.  Should be getting more throws than that.

TE: Rivera ignored again.  Just baffling that team doesn’t involved him more.  This is why they’re bad.

OL: Strong game, especially the run blocking, considering the opponent.  Probably because it was home game but still impressive.

Def: Shutout limited runs.  Got thrown on for a ton.  No pass rush.  Gave up good games to QB and all receivers including RB.

Oakland Raiders Week 15 Fantasy Analysis

Week 15 – @ KC – L 13-31

QB: Carr an okay game but seemed confused by the D and took some coverage sacks.  Was  inaccurate with throws as receivers had to make a lot of plays on the completions he did have.

RB: Murray an okay game but still doesn’t look like much of a game-breaker.  Not buying into him yet.

WR: Holmes and Jones good games and made some great plays on balls.  Just don’t know why they haven’t been getting more down field throws in the latter part of the season.

TE: Rivera a good PPR game and should get this every week.  Too good of a pass-catcher to not get close to double-digit targets or more every week.

OL: Run blocking getting better.  Pass blocking was very strong as sacks came because of coverage.  Gave QB a ton of time to throw.

Def: Burned by some big plays in the passing game.  No pass rush.  Wasn’t really stopping the run.  Gave up big games to QB, backup RB, WRs, and TE.

Oakland Raiders Week 14 Fantasy Analysis

Week 14 – vs SF – W 24-13

QB: Carr a big game and threw the ball confidently.  Got a lot of time and took advantage.  Is really starting to look like he’s going to get the chance to develop into a star.

RB: Murray a decent game and looked good when blocking was there.  Still doesn’t appear to be a superstar but definitely could be a strong runner.  Reece a big game receiving and is getting more involved but still not usable.

WR: Holmes and Jones did little.  Just didn’t get many looks in this one but have to believe they will come in time.

TE: Rivera another big game and still baffling why he isn’t more involved every game.  Possibly a top 5 TE in terms of talent but not in usage.

OL: Great pass protection again and pretty good run blocking considering opponent.  Might be getting better in that area with the better runner.

Def: Really strong performance against weak passing O.  Pressure was getting to QB all game.  Run D still terrible.  Gave up no good games except PPR games to WRs.

Oakland Raiders Week 12 Fantasy Analysis

Week 12 – vs KC – W 24-20

QB: Carr average and struggled a bit with accuracy.  Was protected well again but didn’t take advantage.

RB: Terrible blocking most of the game.  McFadden did little as he had no room.  Murray a monster game on just 4 carries.  Still doesn’t look like a superstar and wasn’t getting carries late.  Wouldn’t trust for now.

WR: Jones a big game getting a TD and still looks good.  Holmes a decent game and appears to still be #2 WR.  A good play but definitely boom-or-bust.

TE: Rivera disappeared.  Just don’t know why they don’t throw him the ball more.  Makes no sense.

OL: Same as most games.  Awful run blocking and really strong pass blocking.  Doesn’t seem to change.

Def: Run on for plenty but D-line was dominating in short yardage situations.  Bent but didn’t break.  Pass rush was good and disrupted passing game some.  Gave up big game to RB and decent games to QB and TEs.  Held bad WRs to little.