2010 NFL Fantasy Preview: Oakland Raiders
June 23, 2010
The Raiders offer little for fantasy owners, but at least they got rid of JaMarcus Russell. They don’t have many weapons on offense, but Jason Campbell is a clear upgrade. Fantasy Playoffs Schedule : Moderate Five-Star Fantasy Options Four-Star Fantasy Options Three-Star Fantasy Options Two-Star Fantasy Options Darren McFadden—Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Even after two uninspiring seasons, I’m willing to give McFadden another shot at redemption. The backfield isn’t as crowded with Justin Fargas out of the picture. Plus, having a competent QB helps. I wouldn’t count on Run DMC as a starter, but he’s a low risk, high reward depth option at this point. Michael Bush—Bush is a tougher runner than McFadden, which could be more what Tom Cable is looking for. This is likely to be a true RB platoon, which means both RBs will suffer. Chaz Schilens—Schilens is probably a 1.75 fantasy star, but we’ll round up. He has good size (6′4″) and great speed. If he can prove that he’s healthy he can sneak up on some people. Consistency could be an issue. Raiders Defense/Special Teams—The Raiders were improved on defense last year, and actually were pretty tough against the pass. They don’t force many turnovers, but they do get a decent amount of sacks. One-Star Fantasy Options
The Raiders take on the Jaguars in Jacksonville in Week 14 and then the Broncos and Colts at home. Zach Miller is probably the only guy you can count on in the fantasy playoffs.
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Zach Miller—Miller caught 66 passes for 805 yards and three scores. Campbell displayed the ability to get the ball to the TE in Washington, and with Miller as his best option, expect him to put up good numbers.
Jason Campbell—It’s not that I dislike Campbell, but Al Davis has left the cupboard pretty bare as far as options in the receiving game go. He’s a low-end fantasy backup at best. At least he’s not negative stars like his predecessor.
Darrius Heyward-Bey and Louis Murphy— Heyward-Bey is fast, but so is Usain Bolt. That doesn’t mean I would want him on my fantasy team. Murphy showed some signs last year, but they were mostly few and far between. Of the two I would go with Murphy every time.