Derek Carr: Carr has averaged 253.1, 253.4 and 256.4 passing yards per game over the past three seasons, respectively. Finishing as fantasy's QB13 in 2020, Carr posted a career-high 7.94 Y/A and his 5.2 TD% was the second best of his career. Lacking the upside of many other QB2 types, Carr is likely to outperform his current ADP and ranking -- he's never finished outside the top 20 fantasy QBs in seven seasons. That makes him an under-appreciated option, especially for those in 2-QB or Super Flex formats.
Josh Jacobs: Improvements in durability, volume and red-zone efficiency helped to boost Jacobs' overall fantasy production (RB8 across scoring formats) despite an overall drop in efficiency from his 2019 rookie season. Despite a slight uptick in the passing game (2.2 receptions per contest) last season, Jacobs averaged only 4.26 yards per touch, a drop from 5.02 as a rookie.
Jacobs played 15 of 16 games, scored 12 touchdowns (compared to seven in 2019) and only Derrick Henry and Dalvin Cook had more touches than Jacobs (306). The addition of Kenyan Drake to the backfield should lead to fewer touches and especially fewer targets in 2021. Without a significant drop in Josh Jacobs' fantasy ADP, he will likely be a player that I avoid in drafts this summer.
Kenyan Drake: As lead backs for their respective teams in 2020, the duo of Josh Jacobs and Drake combined for a massive 570 touches last season. Obviously, that number will drop significantly now that they share a backfield, even if the Raiders plan to use Drake in a variety of ways including at receiver. With Drake often going in Round 9 or later in fantasy football mock drafts, Drake is worth the risk as an RB4+ that late.
Henry Ruggs III: No team makes the tight end a bigger focal point of their passing offense than the Raiders do with Darren Waller. While Ruggs was the first receiver off the board in the 2020 NFL Draft, he was often used more as a decoy than a featured part of the passing offense. As a rookie, Ruggs finished with a 26/452/2 line (17.4 Y/R). Better things are in store for Ruggs in 2021, but until Derek Carr starts taking more shots down the field, there will be a lot of boom-or-bust to the second-year receiver's game log.
John Brown: Two seasons removed from a 1,000-yard campaign, it wouldn't be far-fetched for Brown to lead the wide receivers in production. That said, consistent weekly production is likely to elude the position group with Darren Waller dominating targets.
Darren Waller: Waller set career highs across the board -- 107 receptions on 146 targets for 1,196 yards and nine touchdowns -- and was dominant down the stretch. Not only did Waller have a 13/200/2 game in Week 13, but he exceeded the 100-yard mark in four of his final five games of the season.
