The Daily Blitz: Derek Carr

Showing posts with label Derek Carr. Show all posts

Tuesday, August 29, 2023

New Orleans Saints 2023 Fantasy Football Projections

Our Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2023 fantasy football projections for the New Orleans Saints.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	512.3	331.5	3688.6	23.05	11.27	32.1	104.3	0.71	231.89
Jameis Winston	33.4	20.5	247.2	1.6	1.04	4.4	15	0.09	16.25

Derek Carr: Carr was fantasy's QB15 through Week 16 before being benched in Week 17 by Josh McDaniels last year. Now in New Orleans, Carr improves the outlook for the team's pass catchers (as an upgrade over Andy Dalton), but he remains little more than a solid QB2 in fantasy football. Since 2014, he has finished in the QB13-QB20 range every year except 2016 (QB10).

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Alvin Kamara	151.3	643	3.63	47.6	392.2	2.5	164.1
Jamaal Williams	149	610.9	4.54	23.2	171	1.1	123.63
Kendre Miller	64.2	279.3	1.48	16	120.7	0.7	61.08
Adam Prentice	3	8.3	0.08	2.5	18.1	0.1	4.97

Alvin Kamara: Eligible to play in Week 4 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Kamara will serve a lighter-than-expected three-game suspension to start the season. Kamara's production has dipped over the past two seasons — averaged only 3.9 YPC, rushed for half as many touchdowns (six) as "tight end" Taysom Hill (12) with a total of only 104 receptions after finishing with 80-plus in each of his first four seasons. Even so, he has finished as the RB16 (2022) and RB8 (2021) on a PPG basis (half-PPR).

Jamaal Williams: Coming off a career season, Williams carried the ball 262 times for 1,066 yards and a league-high 17 touchdowns. As long as both Kamara and Williams are active (after Kamara's three-game suspension), he'll be a complementary option to Kamara, but Williams could get the larger share of valuable goal-line opportunities.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Chris Olave	80.8	1126.3	6.7	0	0	0	193.23
Michael Thomas	59.4	659.7	4.2	0	0	0	120.87
Rashid Shaheed	36.6	462.6	2.8	5.3	47.7	0.4	88.53
Tre'quan Smith	14	173	1.1	0	0	0	30.9
A.T. Perry	2.9	38.2	0.2	0	0	0	6.47
Keith Kirkwood	2.2	30.2	0.2	0	0	0	5.32
Kirk Merritt	1.1	14.1	0.1	0	0	0	2.56

Chris Olave: Olave finished his outstanding rookie season with 72 receptions for 1,042 yards and four touchdowns. While he missed two games last season, he never finished with fewer than three receptions or 40 yards in the 15 games he played. The second-year receiver should benefit from the upgrade at quarterback and could take a big step forward in 2023.

Michael Thomas: From 2016 to 2019, Thomas posted better numbers in each successive season — 92/1,137/9, 104/1,245/5, 125/1,405/9 and 149/1,725/9, respectively. Since then, however, he has appeared in only 10 games over three seasons and totaled 56 catches for 609 yards and three touchdowns during that span. Few receivers have a wider range of potential outcomes than Thomas, who is entering his age-30 season.

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Juwan Johnson	42.9	482.7	3.2	0	0	0	88.92
Taysom Hill	9.3	100.6	0.7	49.3	271.2	2.47	64.138
Foster Moreau	18.9	217.2	1.4	0	0	0	39.57
Jimmy Graham	1.8	16.1	0.2	0	0	0	3.71

Juwan Johnson: Johnson had a career season with 42 catches for 508 yards and seven touchdowns in 2022. Depending on how much the Saints get from Michael Thomas, it may be difficult to repeat those numbers this season. Then again, Johnson and Carr have quickly established chemistry and he should be drafted as a high-upside TE2.

Taysom Hill: Hill will throw a few passes and catch a few, but most of his fantasy production will come from his rushing production. Over the past three seasons, he has a total of 253 carries for 1,406 yards (5.6 Y/A) and 20 touchdowns.

More New Orleans Saints pages:

More of our content:

Check out our mock draft databases:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Saturday, August 5, 2023

New Orleans Saints 2023 Fantasy Football Projections

Our Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2023 fantasy football projections for the New Orleans Saints.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	517	334.5	3696.6	23.01	11.37	32	104	0.7	231.76
Jameis Winston	30.6	18.8	226.4	1.47	0.95	4.3	14.6	0.09	15.04

Derek Carr: Carr was fantasy's QB15 through Week 16 before being benched in Week 17 by Josh McDaniels last year. Now in New Orleans, Carr improves the outlook for the team's pass catchers (as an upgrade over Andy Dalton), but he remains a solid QB2 in fantasy football. Since 2014, he has finished in the QB13-QB20 range every year except 2016 (QB10).

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Alvin Kamara	153.3	651.5	3.68	47.5	388.8	2.5	164.86
Jamaal Williams	146.5	600.7	4.47	23.1	169.5	1.1	121.99
Kendre Miller	64.1	278.8	1.47	16	119.6	0.7	60.86
Adam Prentice	3	8.3	0.08	2.7	19.9	0.1	5.25

Alvin Kamara: Fantasy managers now have clarity about Kamara's suspension (a negotiated settlement of three games), a positive development given it could have been twice as long. Over the past two seasons, Kamara has averaged only 3.9 YPC, rushed for half as many touchdowns as "tight end" Taysom Hill and had a total of only 104 receptions after finishing with 80-plus in each of his first four seasons. Even so, he has finished as the RB16 (2022) and RB8 (2021) on a PPG basis (half-PPR).

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Chris Olave	81.1	1116.6	6.6	0	0	0	191.81
Michael Thomas	59.4	658	4.1	0	0	0	120.1
Rashid Shaheed	36.9	462.6	2.8	5.3	47.7	0.4	88.68
Tre'quan Smith	14.3	175.5	1.1	0	0	0	31.3
Bryan Edwards	3.8	47.9	0.2	0	0	0	7.89
A.T. Perry	2.7	35.9	0.2	0	0	0	6.14

Michael Thomas: From 2016 to 2019, Thomas posted better numbers in each successive season — 92/1,137/9, 104/1,245/5, 125/1,405/9 and 149/1,725/9, respectively. Since then, however, he has appeared in only 10 games over three seasons and totaled 56 catches for 609 yards and three touchdowns. It's anyone's guess how much fantasy managers will get out of him in his age-30 season.

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Juwan Johnson	40.4	452.6	2.9	0	0	0	82.86
Taysom Hill	10.2	109.7	0.7	49.2	270.6	2.46	65.378
Foster Moreau	18.8	215.3	1.4	0	0	0	39.33
Jimmy Graham	1.8	16	0.1	0	0	0	3.1

More New Orleans Saints pages:

More of our content:

Check out our mock draft databases:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Saturday, August 27, 2022

Las Vegas Raiders Fantasy Football Projections 2022

Our 2022 Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2022 fantasy football projections for the Las Vegas Raiders.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	561.2	384.4	4293.2	25.82	10.66	42.3	126.9	1.06	272.74
Jarrett Stidham	42.2	27	291.2	1.77	1.31	3.7	3.7	0.04	16.72

Derek Carr: Perennially undervalued, Carr has been one of my favorite targets in 2-QB leagues given his relatively high floor as a second quarterback. Since entering the league in 2014, Carr has never finished worse than QB20 and he's finished as a top-half QB2 (QB13-QB18) or better in six of the past seven seasons with the exception being a QB19 finish in 2017. Reunited with his former Fresno State teammate (Davante Adams), Carr may not be drafted as a top-12 quarterback, but there's a good chance that he finishes that way.

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Josh Jacobs	196.7	816.3	6.39	29	213.2	1.3	163.59
Zamir White	129.2	555.6	2.58	12.8	98.6	0.8	92.1
Ameer Abdullah	57.2	237.4	1.14	29.6	224.6	1.3	75.64
Brandon Bolden	22.9	99.6	0.69	6.2	50.4	0.4	24.64
Jakob Johnson	2.3	6.9	0.06	4.1	29.8	0.3	7.88

Josh Jacobs: Jacobs set career lows in rush attempts (217) and rushing yards (872) but career highs in targets (64), receptions (54) and receiving yards (348) in 2021. Through three seasons, Jacobs has yet to finish worse than RB18 in half-PPR scoring, but a new coaching staff is likely to use more of a "situational committee" at the position.

Zamir White: The Raiders used a fourth-round pick on White, who would likely handle the majority of early-down work if Jacobs were to miss any time. Although Ameer Abdullah and Brandon Bolden will be part of a committee approach, White is a late-round sleeper worth stashing in all of your fantasy drafts.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Davante Adams	94.2	1180.5	7.4	0	0	0	209.55
Hunter Renfrow	80.2	873.3	5.2	3.2	14.4	0.03	160.25
Mack Hollins	24.9	316.3	1.9	0	0	0	55.48
Keelan Cole	15.4	185.7	1.1	0	0	0	32.87
Tyron Johnson	10.5	130.7	0.8	0	0	0	23.12

Davante Adams: In 30 games over the past two seasons, Adams hauled in 238 receptions for 2,927 yards and 29 touchdowns for the Packers. Adams has scored double-digit touchdowns in five of the past six seasons. While he's reunited with his former collegiate quarterback, the downgrade from Aaron Rodgers to Derek Carr and increased competition for targets means that Adams is now a WR1, as opposed to the WR1.

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Darren Waller	78.2	974.2	5.2	167.72
Foster Moreau	20	240.7	1.5	43.07
Nick Bowers	4.3	43.6	0.3	8.31
Jacob Hollister	2.1	22.9	0.1	3.94

Darren Waller: One of the most dynamic mismatches at his position, Waller had a massive 27.7% target share in his last full season (2020). While he missed six games in 2021, he has averaged 69.9 yards per game since 2019. Given the Raiders traded for Davante Adams this offseason, however, Waller's days of oversized target shares are likely over.

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Saturday, July 30, 2022

Las Vegas Raiders Fantasy Football Projections 2022

Our 2022 Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2022 fantasy football projections for the Las Vegas Raiders.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	561.2	384.4	4293.2	25.82	10.66	42.3	126.9	1.06	272.74
Jarrett Stidham	42.2	27	291.2	1.77	1.31	3.7	3.7	0.04	16.72

Derek Carr: Perennially undervalued, Carr has been one of my favorite targets in 2-QB leagues given his relatively high floor as a second quarterback. Since entering the league in 2014, Carr has never finished worse than QB20 and he's finished as a top-half QB2 (QB13-QB18) or better in six of the past seven seasons with the exception being a QB19 finish in 2017. Reunited with his former Fresno State teammate (Davante Adams), Carr is a legitimate threat to finish as a top-12 fantasy quarterback, even if he's not drafted as such.

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Josh Jacobs	192.1	797.2	6.24	29	213.2	1.3	160.78
Kenyan Drake	82.3	345.7	2.47	31.3	247.6	1.8	100.6
Zamir White	128.1	550.8	2.56	13.2	103.1	0.8	92.15
Jakob Johnson	1.1	3.3	0.03	4.1	32.1	0.2	6.97
Brandon Bolden	4.6	20	0.14	2.5	18.3	0.1	6.52

Kenyan Drake: Both Jacobs and Drake are entering contract years, and there's a good chance that neither will be on the roster in 2023. While the Raiders will employ a committee approach in the backfield, Drake has the versatility to be used in a James White-type role for McDaniels.

Zamir White: The Raiders used a fourth-round pick on White, who would likely handle the majority of early-down work if Jacobs were to miss any time. The Athletic's Vic Tafur wrote that "there is probably a decent chance" that the coaching staff "already think[s] White is better than them" (Jacobs and Drake). White is a late-round sleeper worth stashing in all of your fantasy drafts.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Davante Adams	94.2	1180.5	7.4	0	0	0	209.55
Hunter Renfrow	80.2	873.3	5.2	3.2	14.4	0.03	160.25
Demarcus Robinson	22.6	263.6	1.7	0	0	0	47.86
Mack Hollins	18.5	231.5	1.3	0	0	0	40.2
Keelan Cole	13.4	162.7	0.8	0	0	0	27.77

Davante Adams: Adams has been an elite producer in Green Bay, especially over the past two seasons. In 30 games over the past two seasons, Adams has 238 receptions for 2,927 yards and 29 touchdowns. Adams has scored double-digit touchdowns in five of the past six seasons. While he's reunited with his former collegiate quarterback, the downgrade from Aaron Rodgers to Derek Carr and increased competition for targets means that Adams is now a WR1, as opposed to the WR1.

Hunter Renfrow: Renfrow crushed previous career highs with 103 catches for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns on 128 targets in 2021. Carr and Renfrow have developed tremendous chemistry, but the addition of Adams should make repeating those numbers extremely difficult. On a positive note, however, Josh McDaniels has a history of very productive slot receivers from his days in New England.

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Darren Waller	79.4	987.9	5.2	169.69
Foster Moreau	18.7	226.9	1.4	40.44
Jacob Hollister	4.3	43.6	0.3	8.31

Darren Waller: Waller is one of the most dynamic mismatches at his position, who had a massive 27.7% target share in his last full season (2020). While he missed six games in 2021, he has averaged 69.9 yards per game since 2019. Given the Raiders traded for Davante Adams this offseason, however, Waller's days of oversized target shares are likely over even though he's still a top-five option, at worst.

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Las Vegas Raiders Week 8 NFL Power Rankings Roundup

Throughout the 2021 NFL season, we will compile a consensus NFL Power Rankings that averages the rankings of all 32 NFL teams.

Here is where the Las Vegas Raiders rank in terms of average, best and worst:

Average ranking: 11.0 (11th)
Best ranking: 11th (Multiple)
Worst ranking: 11th (Multiple)

Below you will find a Week 8 roundup for the Raiders in our consensus 2021 NFL Power Rankings.

ESPN -- Rank: 11

Prediction we missed: QB Derek Carr would thrive in his fourth season ... with Jon Gruden.

Carr was humming along in the Raiders' 3-0 start before hitting a couple of speed bumps in a two-game losing streak and Gruden's sudden resignation in the wake of his email controversy. The last two games, though, Carr has been sublime, especially in completing 91.2% (31 of 34) of his passes against the Eagles, the second-best such mark with 30 attempts in NFL history. New playcaller Greg Olson is seemingly giving Carr more freedom to get in and out of plays at the line, and Carr is responding. -- Paul Gutierrez

NFL.com -- Rank: 11

The Bisaccia Bump is real! The Raiders improved to 2-0 since Rich Bisaccia took over as interim coach, and you can argue that Las Vegas' best two games of the season -- their most complete efforts, anyway -- have come with Jon Gruden sitting on a couch in parts unknown. Derek Carr was simply brilliant against the Eagles, completing 31 of 34 passes for 323 yards and two touchdowns. The quarterback's dominance was even more impressive considering star tight end Darren Waller was scratched before the game with knee and ankle issues. The MVP field is lousy with superstars having career years, but Carr absolutely deserves to be in the conversation right now. He's been one of the best players in the league.

CBS Sports -- Rank: 11

They are 2-0 without Jon Gruden. This group seems to have rallied after Gruden's scandalous resignation. Derek Carr is playing well.

USA Today -- Rank: 11

They're humming post-Gruden, all the way to top of the AFC West, averaging 33.5 points and 434 yards past two weeks. And with six players already exceeding 300 yards from scrimmage, this crew's on track to be best Las Vegas team in NFL history. Ever.

The Athletic -- Rank: 11

Trick or treat: This is not a trick: Derek Carr should be in the MVP conversation, not just for his play this season, but for how he's held the Raiders together after Jon Gruden's resignation. On the field, Carr rebounded from a tough two-week stretch earlier this month to put up ridiculous passing numbers against Denver and Philadelphia, including a 91 percent completion rate in Week 7.

Previous updates:

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Saturday, October 23, 2021

Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Start'em, Sit'em

The decision on which player to start, or sit, largely comes down to the options on your roster (and/or possibly the players available on your league's waiver wire).

As an example, Derek Carr is listed below as a "start" for Week 7. And I'd certainly be comfortable going into Week 7 with him as my starting quarterback.

Then again, Carr may be a "sit" for your team.

In other words, if you roster both Patrick Mahomes and Carr, you should start Mahomes and, in turn, bench Carr.

For a more direct answer on whether we would start Player X over Player Y, check our Week 7 Fantasy Football Rankings. Instead of making those direct comparisons, the goal here is to highlight players that we like, or dislike, for the week.

Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Start'em

Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders (vs. PHI)

Bouncing back from a couple of modest outings, Carr threw for 341 yards and two touchdowns against the Denver Broncos in Week 6. It was the fourth time in six games where Carr threw for more than 340 yards and multiple touchdowns. Entering Week 7, Carr ranks second in the NFL in passing yardage (1,946, 324.3/G).

With his bounce-back performance last week, Carr has now finished as a top-12 fantasy quarterback in four games this season. Carr is one of just six quarterbacks to have as many QB1 performances this season.

Based on implied totals from Vegas odds, the Raiders are projected to score the eighth-most points in Week 7. Given that there are six teams on bye including top quarterback options like Josh Allen, Dak Prescott and Justin Herbert, Carr sits inside the top 10 of my weekly fantasy quarterback rankings.

Jalen Hurts, Philadelphia Eagles (at LV)

In back-to-back weeks and half of his games this season, Hurts has thrown for less than 200 yards. Despite a few lackluster passing performances, Hurts has finished as a top-10 fantasy quarterback in all six games played this season.

Here is the full list of QBs with six top-10 outings this season: Hurts. (End of list.)

Even if Hurts doesn't post gaudy passing statistics, his dual-threat abilities raises his fantasy floor. Among quarterbacks, only Baltimore's Lamar Jackson has more rush attempts (64) and rushing yards (392) than Hurts (53/300). Coincidentally, all five of Hurts rushing scores have occured in the weeks where he has thrown for fewer than 200 yards. In addition, Hurts has yet to run fewer than seven times in any game this season.

Ryan Tannehill, Tennessee Titans (vs. KC)

Derrick Henry has been as good as it gets this season. Tannehill has not.

Through six weeks, Tannehill has thrown for 216 yards or less in four games. In addition, he has thrown for multiple touchdowns in only one game (Week 3). Outside of the Week 3 performance (QB8), Tannehill has finished no better than QB17. Given the favorable matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs, however, Tannehill has a chance to get back on track this week.

Only the Washington Football Team have allowed more fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks this season than the Chiefs. Taylor Heinicke struggled last week, but before that, the Chiefs had allowed four consecutive top-four weekly QB finishes. In addition, the Chiefs have allowed the third-highest Y/A (8.41) this season.

Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Sit'em

Carson Wentz, Indianapolis Colts (at SF)

Wentz has 17 fantasy points in three consecutive games and five of six games this season. On the year, he has thrown nine touchdowns and only one interception. After throwing a league-high 15 interceptions last season, Wentz has a league-low 0.5 INT%.

Even though Wentz has been playing well, he has only one top-12 fantasy performance this season. While the San Francisco 49ers have faced some of the best quarterbacks in the league (Kyler Murray, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson, etc.), they currently rank eighth in NFL pass defense (216.6 YPG allowed).

Justin Fields, Chicago Bears (at TB)

Only three teams -- and one of them (Los Angeles Chargers) has a bye -- have allowed more fantasy points this season than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Combine the matchup with his dual-threat upside and I will throw a few darts in DFS tournaments with Fields this weekend.

That said, the rookie has been mediocre (last week) to outright terrible (all other weeks) as a starter. Through four starts, Fields has completed 53.57% of his pass attempts for 140.5 yards per game and 6.69 yards per attempt and has thrown only two touchdowns. More disappointing from a fantasy perspective is the fact that he has run only 15 times for 68 yards during that stretch.

Given that it's incredibly difficult to run on the Buccaneers and the Bears are 11.5-point underdogs, Fields should throw it more often than last week's career high (27 attempts). While the upside is there if you trust the Bears coaching staff to put him in a better position to produce fantasy points, Fields is an upside QB2 in Week 7.

Daniel Jones, New York Giants (vs. CAR)

Leaving Week 5 early with a concussion, Jones had completed only five-of-13 pass attempts (38.5%) for 98 yards against the Dallas Cowboys. In Week 6, the former Duke Blue Devil completed 29-of-51 for 242 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions against the Los Angeles Rams. He committed a fourth turnover with his lost fumble.

Jones was fantasy's QB6 through the first four weeks, but he will look to shake off some rough outings over the past two weeks. While I wouldn't call the matchup against the Carolina Panthers a plus matchup, they have allowed three consecutive quarterbacks to finish with 23-plus fantasy points -- Dak Prescott (27.02, QB7), Jalen Hurts (23.92, QB7) and Kirk Cousins (28.52, QB2), respectively.

As the QB15 in my rankings, Jones is best-viewed as an upside QB2 (like Fields) this week.

More positions:

Positional Fantasy Football Rankings:

Check out more of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: Follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook and/or Subscribe to our newsletter.

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Las Vegas Raiders Week 4 NFL Power Rankings Roundup

Throughout the 2021 NFL season, we will compile a consensus NFL Power Rankings that averages the rankings of all 32 NFL teams.

Here is where the Las Vegas Raiders rank in terms of average, best and worst:

Average ranking: 6.2 (6th)
Best ranking: 4th (USA Today)
Worst ranking: 9th (NFL.com)

Below you will find a Week 4 roundup for the Raiders in our consensus 2021 NFL Power Rankings.

ESPN -- Rank: 5

The question bandied about by both Derek Carr fans and detractors alike -- is Carr elite? -- might finally have an answer. Because if being in the top eight in QBR is indeed elite, then, yes, he is. For now. This is the most in command Carr has looked in Jon Gruden's offense, and it should be considering they are now in their fourth season together, right? With little to no running game early in contests to speak of and a makeshift offensive line held together by duct tape, the one-dimensional attack has thrived rather than suffered. -- Paul Gutierrez

NFL.com -- Rank: 9

Pro football in Las Vegas is thriving, and the Raiders are 3-0 for the first time since their Super Bowl season of 2002. Their 31-28 OT win over the Dolphins was a weird one: Miami scored the first 14 points, the Raiders ripped off the next 25, and then the 'Phins answered with the final 11 points of regulation to force OT. Derek Carr was nails once again in money time. His gorgeous, over-the-shoulder dime to Bryan Edwards went for 34 yards on second-and-15, the key play in the drive that ended with Daniel Carlson's game-winning field goal. Two home games with a crowd at Allegiant Stadium, and two classics for anyone lucky enough to be there. The Raiders are a vibe.

CBS Sports -- Rank: 6

At 3-0, they are one of the early-season surprises. They showed some fight rallying from down 14 early to beat Miami. Now comes a tough one with the Chargers on the road.

USA Today -- Rank: 4

QB Derek Carr has been off the charts, averaging 401 passing yards per game -- more than 150 better than his career average -- which puts him on pace for 6,817 over 17 games.

The Athletic -- Rank: 7

Surprise! The NFL's leader in quarterback pressures is ... Maxx Crosby? Crosby, the Raiders' third-year edge rusher, has 21 pressures in three games according to Pro Football Focus and TruMedia. That's five more than well-established pass rushers like Aaron Donald and Myles Garrett, to go along with 12 quarterback hits. His pressures have resulted in only two individual sacks, but his emergence as a consistent pass-rushing threat has given the Raiders' defense an element that's been missing since the Khalil Mack trade three years ago. Is Crosby's production sustainable? Maybe. If so, imagine what that would do for the Raiders' ceiling.

Previous updates:

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Monday, September 20, 2021

Fantasy Football Week 3 QB Waiver Wire

Every week, we examine players that may be available on your league's waiver wire that could help your team in the short and/or long term.

For a player to be listed, he must be rostered in 50 percent (or less) of Yahoo! leagues. The goal is to provide recommendations of players that have a greater chance of being available on your league's waiver wire. Of course, your league's size and settings could significantly impact whether these players (or better options) are available in your particular league(s).

With that said, here are some quarterback waiver-wire options to consider heading into Week 3 (Yahoo! % rostered in parenthesis):

[Note: Players listed below are sorted by our preference to add.]

1. Daniel Jones, New York Giants (19%)

Doing their part to surround Jones with more talent, the Giants' front office signed Kenny Golladay to a big free-agent contract this offseason and drafted Kadarius Toney in the first round. Neither Golladay nor Toney has contributed as much as one might expect given the capital required to add them to the roster and the team has also been without last season's target leader (Evan Engram, 109) as well.

Even though Sterling Shepard has been productive (16/207/1), Jones has had limited passing success against two difficult defenses. Throwing one touchdown in each of those two games, Jones has passed for 249 and 267 yards, respectively, against the Washington Football Team and Denver Broncos.

Even so, he has scored 21-plus fantasy points in back-to-back games to open the season and has more than 50 fantasy points through two games. Heading into MNF, he's the QB5.

One of the reasons why I was higher on Jones in the preseason (QB18) compared to the FantasyPros ECR (QB25) was his sneaky rushing upside (in addition to the upgrades to the receiving corps). Jones had the seventh-most QB rushing yards (423) in 2020 and he leads the Giants in rushing (15/122/2) through two weeks.

Not only should Jones get more help from the team's bolstered receiving corps, but he gets a couple of favorable matchups in the near future. The Giants face the Atlanta Falcons in Week 3 and the Dallas Cowboys in Week 5.

2. Trey Lance, San Francisco 49ers (39%)

Even if he doesn't play (like in Week 2), Lance's value increases weekly as we continue to move closer to a potential transition to the rookie as the starter. Lance took a few snaps and threw a touchdown on his only pass attempt in Week 1. Even though he gained only two yards on three carries, Lance has elite dual-threat upside that will allow him to become a weekly top-10 option once he replaces Jimmy Garoppolo as the starter.

The 49ers have a Week 6 bye, the earliest possible bye. Perhaps that makes for the most logical transition point. The only concern is the 49ers continue to employ a rotation where they use Lance on occasion, as the 49ers have one of the league's best rosters and Kyle Shanahan may prefer to keep the steady hand of a veteran quarterback until next season.

3. Derek Carr, Las Vegas Raiders (26%)

While Carr has historically lacked upside, he typically outperforms expectations. Not only was he fantasy's QB13 in 2020, but he has never finished outside the top 20 fantasy quarterbacks (yearly).

Upcoming matchups are difficult, but he has just faced the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers to open the 2021 season. Granted, these numbers included overtime, but Carr threw for 435 yards and two touchdowns against the Ravens and followed that up with 373 yards and another two touchdowns against the Steelers.

4. Sam Darnold, Carolina Panthers (15%)

In his first two games as a Panther, Darnold has scored at least 19 fantasy points each week. On the year, he has completed 50-of-73 (68.5%) for 584 yards (8.0 Y/A), three touchdowns and one interception.

Darnold and the 2-0 Panthers will take their show on the road to the Lone Star state as they face the Houston Texans on Thursday Night Football and then the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4. Both defenses provide the 24-year-old quarterback with an opportunity to post a couple of productive fantasy outings if you're in need of a streamer.

5. Teddy Bridgewater, Denver Broncos (17%)

If you're looking ahead to Week 4 (vs. Ravens) or Week 5 (at Steelers), difficult matchups face Bridgewater. But if you have your sights on what's directly in front of you, it's a soft matchup against the New York Jets for Bridgewater.

Even without Jerry Jeudy, who seemed poised for a breakout, Denver's signal-caller had another efficient outing, albeit against a fantasy-friendly defense in Week 2. Bridgewater completed 26-of-34 for 328 yards and two scores against the Jaguars. With back-to-back 20-point fantasy performances, Bridgewater has completed 77.1% of his pass attempts for 8.46 Y/A, four touchdowns and no interceptions.

More Fantasy Football Waiver-Wire Advice Heading Into Week 3:

Check out more of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: Follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook and/or Subscribe to our newsletter.

Wednesday, September 8, 2021

Fantasy Football Projections 2021: Las Vegas Raiders

Our 2021 Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2021 fantasy football projections for the Las Vegas Raiders.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	540.1	368.6	4104.8	23.22	9.45	40.5	121.5	2.63	266.1
Marcus Mariota	34.5	21.5	263.9	1.4	0.95	10.1	58.1	0.48	22.95

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 will likely outperform his current ADP and ranking -- he's never finished outside the top 20 fantasy QBs in seven seasons. That consistency makes him an under-appreciated late option for those in 2-QB or Super Flex formats.

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Josh Jacobs	252.3	1034.4	9.08	29.6	231.5	1.2	203.07
Kenyan Drake	118.6	515.9	3.85	45.3	371.3	2.4	148.87
Jalen Richard	23.6	106.2	0.41	14.8	109.2	0.6	35
Alec Ingold	2.8	8.7	0.03	4.9	41.5	0.4	10.05
Peyton Barber	11.8	38.4	0.47	1.8	13.1	0.1	9.47

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 rookie season (2019). 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.

Kenyan Drake: Lead backs for their respective teams in 2020, the duo of Josh Jacobs and Drake combined for a massive 570 touches last season, but that number will obviously drop significantly now that they share a backfield. Often going in Round 9 or later in fantasy football mock drafts, however, Drake is worth the risk as an RB4+ compared to the other backs currently going in that range.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Henry Ruggs III	51.9	771.1	3.8	11.8	67.9	0.24	134.09
Bryan Edwards	52.5	655.3	3.6	0	0	0	113.38
Hunter Renfrow	42.7	478.4	2.4	0	0	0	83.59
Willie Snead	18.1	209.7	1.1	0	0	0	36.62
Zay Jones	7.6	89.6	0.6	0	0	0	16.36

Henry Ruggs III: 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.

Bryan Edwards: The hype train has led to comparisons to Terrell Owens (by the head coach), Randy Moss (by a reporter) and Davante Adams (by the quarterback). Edwards is a name that you'll likely find on many breakout lists, but will the training camp buzz carry over into the regular season?

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Darren Waller	95.6	1103.1	6.4	196.51
Foster Moreau	23.4	273	1.8	49.8
Derek Carrier	2	21.8	0.1	3.78

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. No team makes their tight end the focal point of the offense more than the Raiders do with Waller.

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Wednesday, August 25, 2021

2021 Fantasy Football Projections: Las Vegas Raiders

Our 2021 Fantasy Football Projections will be viewable by both position and team.

Below you will find our 2021 fantasy football projections for the Las Vegas Raiders.

MORE: Fantasy football projections for more NFL teams

QUARTERBACKS

Player	Att.	Comp.	Yards	TD	INT	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Derek Carr	540.1	368.6	4158.8	23.22	9.45	40.5	121.5	2.63	268.26
Marcus Mariota	34.5	21.5	267.4	1.4	0.95	10.1	58.1	0.48	23.09

RUNNING BACKS

Player	Att.	Yards	TD	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Josh Jacobs	252.3	1034.4	9.08	29.6	234.6	1.2	203.38
Kenyan Drake	118.6	515.9	3.85	45.3	376.2	2.4	149.36
Jalen Richard	34.2	153.9	0.6	14.8	110.7	0.6	41.06
Alec Ingold	4	6	0.04	4.9	42	0.4	9.89

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.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Rush	Yards	TD	Points
Henry Ruggs III	52.7	759.1	3.8	11.8	67.9	0.24	133.29
Bryan Edwards	41	520.1	2.8	0	0	0	89.31
John Brown	35.1	458.1	2.5	0	0	0	78.36
Hunter Renfrow	35.1	387.3	1.8	0	0	0	67.08
Willie Snead	8.8	97.4	0.5	0	0	0	17.14
Zay Jones	3.9	46.5	0.3	0	0	0	8.4

John Brown: Brown is two seasons removed from a 1,000-yard campaign, but consistent weekly production is likely to elude the entire position group with Darren Waller dominating targets.

TIGHT ENDS

Player	Rec.	Yards	TD	Points
Darren Waller	95.6	1117.6	6.4	197.96
Foster Moreau	21.5	254.5	1.7	46.4
Derek Carrier	2	22.1	0.1	3.81

More Las Vegas Raiders pages:

More of our content:

Keep track of our site's updates: (1) follow us on Twitter, (2) like us on Facebook and/or (3) subscribe to our newsletter.

Pages

Tuesday, August 29, 2023

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Saturday, August 5, 2023

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Saturday, August 27, 2022

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Saturday, July 30, 2022

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Saturday, October 23, 2021

Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Start'em

Week 7 Fantasy Football QB Sit'em

Wednesday, September 29, 2021

Monday, September 20, 2021

Wednesday, September 8, 2021

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Wednesday, August 25, 2021

QUARTERBACKS

RUNNING BACKS

WIDE RECEIVERS

TIGHT ENDS

Fantasy Resources

NFL Draft Resources

More