2020 Preview: Las Vegas Raiders
Will the Raiders thrive in a new home?
The 2020 NFL Season is almost upon us, and the Fantasy Life App Blog has you covered. We’ll be previewing each of the league’s 32-teams and predictions for the 2020 season daily beginning with the Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs on Tuesday, August 4. Check back each day for a new team preview!
The NFL is making history this Fall with a team calling Las Vegas home. The Oakland Raiders made the decision in the spring of 2017 while the league and other owners approved the move in March. The Oakland Raiders are dead and a new life is born in Las Vegas. It will take some getting use to saying the term Las Vegas Raiders, even seeing Raiders players have the LV instead of OAK next to their names on mock drafts make it strange. I think this move is a great decision. Raider Nation still loves their team even though they left the Bay Area and this will attract new fans for the Raiders. I firmly believe this move will give some new energy into the franchise. The team building the brand new gorgeous stadium is something to look forward to for the players. I am sure the other team facilities are state of the art as well. With that being said lets take a look at the Las Vegas Raiders roster and preview the 2020 season.
Jon Gruden enters his third season as the Raiders Head Coach. Last season they started the season 6–4 and had the playoffs in sight. They finished the season 1–5 missing the playoffs for the third straight season. I am curious to see how Gruden handles this years team with the move to Las Vegas and rival Kansas City Chiefs being the defending Super Bowl Champions. Gruden made a few controversial trades shipping out Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper for multiple First Round draft picks so now this is the time to see if those decisions will pay off as they have had quite a few draft picks.
Off-Season Changes
The Raiders had a busy off season by adding some solid pieces to their roster via free agency and the draft.
The Raiders signed Linebacker Cory Littleton from the Los Angeles Rams. Littleton has averaged 129 tackles the past two seasons for the Rams. He will be a very nice addition to the Raiders defense. Quarterback Marcus Mariota signed with the team after the Tennessee Titans committed to Ryan Tannehill long term. Mariota bring in competition at the QB position with Derek Carr. Carr has under-performed since his breakout season in 2016. The signing of Mariota could bring some added pressure for Carr to perform better creating a good situation for the Raiders. This competition will bring the best out of the two quarterbacks, who both have something to prove. The Raiders also brought in a great veteran presence in Jason Witten at TE. The Raiders have a stud at TE in Darren Waller, who broke out last season, but with the addition of Witten he will be a reliable target for the QB in the Red Zone and be able to bring that leadership that the Raiders will need. The Raiders drafted stud wide out Henry Ruggs III out of Alabama. Ruggs had a great career at Alabama and he will be a great addition to this Raiders offense as he is a dynamic weapon to have. Ruggs had 25 total TDs and 98 catches in his career at Alabama and what makes him so dangerous is his average YPC as he averaged 17.5 yards per catch.
Fantasy Impact
TheRaiders have some fantasy football studs. Lets begin with their RB Josh Jacobs. He was an absolute stud for them last season as a rookie. He racked up a total of 1,316 yards and had seven touchdowns. You could not have asked for more from a rookie running back. Jacobs is trending as a Second to Third Round pick in fantasy drafts. I expect Jacobs to be a workhorse for the Raiders this season and, with the additions of Ruggs, Witten and Nelson Agholor, it should open up some running lanes for him to have a great year.
Waller exploded onto the scene last year for the Raiders. In his previous three seasons he averaged 60 yards A SEASON with only a total of 18 catches in those three years. Last season he had 90 receptions and 1,145 yards, which is fantastic for a TE. The only knock on him last season was just the three touchdowns. I expect him to continue to get the targets in the middle of the field and expect him to find the end zone more.
The quaterback position is a risky one to invest a draft pick in as we expect Carr to be the QB but Mariota will provide competition. Whoever the quarterback is will provide a streaming option early on until we see consistent numbers from them to be a reliable starter. Ruggs is a for sure stash on rosters as his talent is there, but as we all know rookie WRs take a year or two to get acclimated in the league.
Prediction
The Raiders will be a team to watch going into the 2020 season. They have a great mix of talent on both sides of the ball. Will Gruden be able to unlock this talent and get some wins and compete with the Chiefs in the AFC West. I see a 8–8 or 9–7 season for the Raiders competing for a Wild Card spot as long as their top players stay healthy. I expect the offense to rely on the running game as Jacobs should be able to handle a larger work load. I really do believe Jason Witten’s presence in the locker room will be valuable for a lot of the younger players. As for excitement this team is on the top of the list with the move to Las Vegas a lot of fans and experts will be looking forward to their performance on Sundays.
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