Raiders vs. Browns Fantasy Outlook

 Posted by at 8:33 AM  No Responses »
Oct 152011
 

Quarterback

Jason Campbell had a very average game last week, throwing for 190 yards. His games have been alternating pretty steadily from the 100s to 300s. If the trend continues this week, look for him to get somewhere in the 300s for yardage. He is averaging two touchdowns and is low risk when it comes to interceptions. Plan for at least one or each for Campbell when choosing which QB to play.

Running Back

Last week was Darren McFadden’s worst all season with only 51 yards and no touchdowns. In that particular game, the carries he did make were crucial, but that doesn’t always translate into fantasy points. This week he should get somewhere around 100 yards with at least one touchdown. Michael Bush also had his worst game last week with a just 9 yards. This will not happen again. The whole running game was a bit off last week, but this week the team is at home so look for Bush to get his standard 30 yards and maybe vulture a touchdown. Cartwright’s yards came on special teams so you can’t count on him for fantasy points. Taiwan Jones is in the same boat. He’ll likely get you no points.

Wide Receivers

Darrius Heyward-Bey, one of Al Davis’ latest controversial and bold moves, came through last week in a big way vs. the Houston Texans. In fact, DHB has 11 catches for 214 yards in the past 2 weeks, making him a viable pick-up in fantasy circles.  Coach Davis has gotten a lot of flak for reaching for freakishly athletic talents with blazing speed. DHB was the first the first WR taken in the 2009 draft ahead of supposed can’t miss stud WR Michael Crabtree for this very reason. The reason pundits and analysts look down on DHB was his route-running and questionable ability to catch the ball. Coach Davis lives by the mantra you can teach ability, but you can’t teach speed and knew that all DHB needed was good coaching and the belief his team has in him to deliver. And in his third year in the league, Coach Davis’ vision for DHB is finally coming into fruition. The time has come for many fantasy owners to buy his stock and DHB is a strong WR3 start this week and viable WR2 option vs. the Browns who may be missing top cornerback Joe Haden.

Additionally, the Raiders are also looking for the return of Louis Murphy back into this offense. Fantasy-wise, this doesn’t bode well for Denarius Moore or Jacoby Ford. After a fast start, Moore put up a zero last week vs. the Texans despite his high snap count and targets. After DHB, Moore makes for a strong sneaky flex start if you need his services. This Hue Jackson-led offense is looking Moore’s way and is counting on his big play ability to take the pressure off Darren McFadden. Look for Ford to return kicks and be a viable threat in that front.

Tight End

Kevin Boss was not productive last week vs. the Texans in an emotional game. Look for Boss’ role in this offense to fluctuate, making him just a fantasy prospect at this point. The tight-end position is deep this year and you can look elsewhere. Looking across the sidelines, Ben Watson is a solid plug and play candidate for fantasy as he is getting a ton of work with Colt McCoy actively looking towards the tight ends this year.

Kicker

Seabass – Nothing to see here. He’s a weapon from this team, making the Raiders that much better in close games knowing that Janikowski tied a league long 63 yard field goal earlier this year.  I would suggest even keeping him on your roster during the Raiders’ bye week in Week 8 and trying to find a kicker without dropping him.

Defense/Special Teams

Savvy fantasy players will mostly play defenses by matchups. If you employ this strategy, the Raiders D/ST is a viable option this week vs. the Browns. Nothing about this offense scares you as the team is looking for its identity after its bye. Coach Pat Shurmur has said that he is going back to feeding Peyton Hillis the ball. While he is a bruiser, the Browns is not likely to put up 30 or 40 points this week. The Raiders’ special teams also have upside with Jacoby Ford returning kicks for potential scores.

Recipe for Domination vs Browns: Run

 Posted by at 11:05 AM  No Responses »
Oct 142011
 

The Raiders identity on offense relies on power in the running game and speed outside. Last week, Darren McFadden had a total of 51 rushing yards. McFadden has had a grand total of 126 rushing yards a 63 yards per game average over the last two games. The first three games McFadden had 393 yards and averaged 131 yards per game. To dominate opponents the Raiders need to get back to the bread and butter of their running game.

The Raiders are most explosive on offense when they run the ball effectively. The Raiders offensive line dominated the opposing defense and the running attack demoralized opponents over the first three games and Jason Campbell was able to stay upright and the passing game exploded a times. The Raiders are facing a Cleveland Browns team on Sunday that may be missing starting cornerback Joe Haden and will certainly be missing pass rushing defensive end Marcus Bernard. The Raiders offense will be given every opportunity to get the running game up and rolling against the Browns.

Jason Campbell needs to make Cleveland pay for loading the box to keep the Browns from keying on the run. Campbell needs to connect with Kevin Boss and other receivers on mid level patterns, seam routes and work the middle of the field. Boss has been underutilized as a receiver and had zero receptions last week in the game against the Texans. Not only will working the middle of the field open up running lanes for McFadden and Michael Bush, but it will also open up deep play action throws down the sidelines to the Raiders speedy receivers.

O.co Coliseum will turn into a memorial for the great Al Davis on Sunday. There is little doubt the Raiders will dedicate this game and the rest of this season to Al Davis. Al Davis would have liked nothing more than victory, but  he always preferred complete domination. The Raiders can kick-start this three game home stand with an explosion and domination of the Browns by running the ball effectively.

Studs and Duds From Week 4

 Posted by at 11:24 PM  No Responses »
Oct 052011
 

This a little late this week as it took an extra night to watch the game for the second time.

Studs

Darrius Heyward-Bey 

He made a great hands catch and already has nine receptions for 164 yards in three games which surpasses his entire rookie season.

Kevin Boss

4 catches for 78 yards. He’s proving to be every bit the weapon Miller was in the passing game and he blocks well also.

The Offensive Line

Without singling out a single player, these guys have been the surprise of the season. Campbell has all day to throw and they are opening holes for the backs as well. Jared Veldheer, Stefen Wisniewski, Samson Satele, Cooper Carlisle, and even Khalif Barnes. Sprinkle in a little Joe Barksdale. No stars here, this group is getting it done together.

 

Duds

Richard Seymour

Penalties, penalties, penalties. Complain if you want, but the penalties can’t happen. Giving free yards to Tom Brady is a recipe for disaster. To cap it off, Seymour didn’t have a very good day putting pressure on Brady. It’s Seymour’s defense and they got waxed on Sunday through the air and on the ground.

Joe Porter

I’m not sure who thought it would be wise to put Joe Porter on Wes Welker for most of the afternoon. That didn’t work out. I feel bad for putting Porter here because he was put in an impossible situation, but he still played poorly.

Rolando McClain

The Patriots ran all over the Raiders. Rolando McClain needs to be responsible for the running game as it is his primary job. There are many factors that go into stopping the run, but McClain is not getting it done. McClain has his own issues as a player and he can’t make up for others deficiencies. He doesn’t get much help and he’s not capable of overcoming others mistakes. He must play better for the Raiders to have a chance.

Tyvon Branch

A few rather poor angles and tackles in the game Sunday. Pretty uncharacteristic day for Branch. He’s always putting in the effort and that is admirable, but he didn’t play well last Sunday.

Jason Campbell

The first interception was killer and the second the final nail in the Raiders coffin. If the Raiders score a touchdown on that drive things could have gone very differently than they did.

Week 4 Raiders Fantasy Outlook

 Posted by at 12:41 AM  No Responses »
Oct 022011
 

Quarterback

In one of the toughest match-ups, and one of the most historical, on the Raiders’ schedule, Jason Campbell has a lot on his shoulders. The vast majority of the sports world has Brady in the top NFL quarterbacks of all-time, let alone this season. However, their D was shown up by the Bills’ offense, and they’re on the road. Campbell has been steadily improving, but when it comes to Fantasy numbers, this won’t be his best week. The Raiders like to run the ball, which they will do a lot, but this means most of Campbell’s passes will be short tosses to McFadden. He’ll put up standard numbers (150-200 yards) in a fairly low scoring game. Look for some consistent points from him this week, but nothing earth shattering. Belichick has said they studied the Raiders very hard since the teams haven’t met in four years, which means Campbell may need a few tricks up his sleeve.

Running Backs

Play Darren McFadden! Unless you’ve been living under a rock, this is obvious. The Patriots’ run defense is ranked tenth in the NFL, but he’s the number one rusher overall in the league. He’ll get decent yardage, but the big points will be scored on short passes, which he’s been working on this week in practice. The tightness in his groin from Sunday will be nothing to worry about. Michael Bush is a good number three running back on your roster, if you need one for your WR/RB. He’s been getting carries, but once converted to Fantasy points, it’s nothing to write home about.

Wide Receivers

Denarious Moore is a star in the making. The question coming into Week 4 is how he will grow into the role with Jacoby Ford back in the fold. Know this about Moore: he is the second offensive playmaker behind Darren McFadden. If you own Moore in one of most of your leagues and are fretting about his depth chart position or targets, take comfort in the fact that many teams will try to limit Run DMC’s effectiveness and that can only benefit Moore. In my eyes, he is a low end WR2 and a WR3 with a ton of upside. If you’re looking for that extra punch in your lineup plug and play him without hesitation.

The other Raiders WRs are better left alone for now. If you drafted or invested early on in Jacoby Ford, monitor his progress closely this week against the Patriots.

Tight Ends

Kevin Boss’ role within this offense will continue to grow. However, this week there are better options in fantasy. This year especially, the TE position is fairly deep and you can gain value in how other teams are utilizing their tight ends. Boss helps the run game tremendously and his pass-catching abilities will be slowly introduced.

Defense/Special Teams

I would caution against using the Raiders D/ST this week against the Patsy Patriots. QB Tom Brady will put the points on the board with relative ease the same manner that Ryan Fitzpatrick did in Week 2. There are great options out there such as Tampa Bay vs. the Colts on Monday night. Curtis Painter gets the start in that game, enough said.

Kicker

Nothing to see here, Sebastian Janikowski is a fantasy must start every week the Raiders play. No dirt this week bumps his value up just a little more.

Studs and Duds From Week 3

 Posted by at 3:38 PM  1 Response »
Sep 272011
 

The Raiders victory over the Jets has the coach and the team riding high. Even the national media is catching on as the Raiders are now making the top 10 in the mostly ridiculous power rankings.

Tom Brady comes to Oakland in week 4 so the Raiders don’t have much time to think about their early season victory. The Raiders need more studs on defense if they are to beat the Patriots.

Studs

Samson Satele

I sometimes have a hard time believing he is the same player as he was last season. I heard Satele was dealing with headaches and dizzy spells last season. I’m not sure how much this impacted his on-field performance and how much his production has to do with having Bob Wylie and Steve Wisniewski as offensive line coaches. It doesn’t matter now as Satele has done a great job this season. Early in Sunday’s game Sione Pouha got the best of him on one running play and Satele dominated at the point of attack from that point on.

 

Darren McFadden

I’m pretty sure he’ll be on the list every week. You already know his stats 171 yards, 2 touchdowns.

 

Hue Jackson & Chuck Bresnahan

The Raiders made the Jets defense look silly most of the afternoon. Bresnahan switched to zone coverage when youngsters were forced into action and it worked in the second half. Coaching staff pulled all the right strings and called all the right plays. Credit to them.

 

Jason Campbell

Took care of the football. No turnovers and didn’t force throws into the Jets secondary. Stepped up into the pocket and delivered a strike to Michael Bush down the left sideline that lead to the game sealing field goal.

 

Kevin Boss

First game in Silver and Black looked pretty good. Made a key catch on the Raiders opening touchdown drive and a key block that sprung McFadden for over 70 yards. He’ll make everyone forget about Zach Miller if he stays healthy.

 

Chimdi Chekwa

Coming out party for the rookie? He entered the game when Chris Johnson went out with an injury and had tight coverage on Plaxico Burress most of the day. If the Raiders secondary remains banged up the Raiders will need Chekwa and Joe Porter to play well and Demarcus Van Dyke to get healthy.

 

Duds

Special Teams

It didn’t really burn them on Sunday, but the coverage units did terrible covering kicks on Sunday. John Fassell is really missing Hiram Eugene. Rock Cartwright can’t cover kicks alone. Lechler had a rare off day and Jon Condo had a few sub par long snaps. Seabass kept the special teams from being a complete disaster, but even he missed one. Taiwan Jones and Denarius Moore didn’t stumble and fall down like Nick Miller, but hardly improved the return game. Big difference between a muff and a forced fumble.

 

Rolando McClain

He had a solid game, but he makes the duds list for his weak arm tackle on Tomlinson’s long reception. When he properly diagnosing runs he’s at his best. He’s been solid in coverage, but far too many missed tackles and bad angles.

 

Matt Giordano

Plays too tentatively. He always seemed to be watching players run by him. He’s a ticking time bomb in the secondary, but until the Raiders young cornerbacks relieve Michael Huff from cornerback duties Giordano will keep playing. 

Khalif Barnes

The weakest link on a much improved offensive line. It shouldn’t be long now because Joseph Barksdale is starting at right tackle. He’s already been promoted as evidenced by Stephon Heyer’s deactivation on Sunday. The only pressure on Campbell came from Barnes inability to handle the speed rush. He’ll continue to have a role as a sixth lineman in jumbo sets, but his starting job is very much in jeopardy.

 

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