2022 Team Previews: Las Vegas Raiders

Las Vegas Raiders Fantasy Preview 2022

All ADP data is courtesy of Fantasy Pros.

** = target in drafts at this ADP

Top 120

Davante Adams, WR (ADP: 11): Adams has held the WR1 title belt for a few seasons, but his grip has loosened a bit by moving away from his longtime MVP QB Aaron Rodgers. I covered Adams’ move here, but the long and short of it is that Adams is probably going to be just fine. Adams excels at every route and all levels of the passing game, and while he has downgraded at QB, Derek Carr is quite underrated as we’ll see later on. Adams will have stronger competition for targets than he’s had in Green Bay for a long time, but his talent and stature mean he will still lead the team in targets, and be the primary option in the end zone. Adams is a great pick at this ADP.

**Josh Jacobs, RB (ADP: 45): Jacobs seems to be a player fantasy managers are cooling on, and that’s confusing. No, he’s not going to break off long electrifying runs like others at the top of the position, but Jacobs is a high-quality rusher who cleared 1,000 yards in his first two seasons, ranked inside PFF’s Top 15, and had his most prolific season yet as a receiver. In fact, only four RBs had more receptions than Jacobs last season: Najee Harris, Austin Ekeler, Leonard Fournette and De’Andre Swift. Las Vegas made no significant moves to bolster this group, so I am not sure why the arrival of Josh McDaniels to run the show means he’s going to go out of his way to not utilize the clear best option.

Darren Waller, TE (ADP: 48): One of the first things I tackled this offseason was unpacking what went wrong for Waller, and these were my findings. Last year’s clear TE2 off the board is now the fifth off the board, offering awesome value for managers who make it a point to secure an elite TE. Waller’s calling card at his peak was volume, which will go down a bit with Adams in the fold. Still, Adams’ presence should make life easier in the red zone for Waller, and volume should not be an issue for a team built to throw a lot, and a defense that figures to facilitate shootouts within the division. There are still some awesome WRs and RBs going in this range, so the real value is derived by how badly you want to secure a frontline TE. I’m probably going to wait a bit longer, but Waller can definitely justify this ADP.

Hunter Renfrow, WR (ADP: 82): Renfrow is a player I absolutely love, so it pains me to say that I think he’s being overdrafted at this ADP. Renfrow caught 103 passes for 1,038 yards and he scored nine touchdowns as one of 2021’s breakout players. But, he’s as pure a slot receiver as you’ll find, and while that offers major value in full-PPR formats, Renfrow is going to leave managers cold in 2022 when his touchdown numbers regress. Part of Renfrow’s breakout can be attributed to injury to Waller and the loss of Henry Ruggs III in season. He was hyper targets because at times, he was the only above-average option. While Renfrow is a really good player, Carr now has two superior options in the red zone who can do damage further down the field. Renfrow is a stabilizing player for rosters, but not a ceiling play.

**Derek Carr, QB (ADP: 105): Carr has as much pressure on him as anyone, because the Raiders went out and got him an elite WR so he can run with the AFC West big boys (Justin Herbert, Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson). As covered here, I believe Carr can keep up. He set career-highs in passing yards and yards per game despite having one WR inside PFF’s Top 85.  Now, he still has Renfrow as a safety blanket, but he also has a fully operational Waller back creating mismatches, and Adams dominating down the field, over the middle, or out of the slot. Yes, Adams can even be used there because Renfrow showed last season he’s viable on the outside facing man coverage. Carr also has a new, brilliant offensive mind running the show in Josh McDaniels, who can be trusted to bring out the best in Carr. It might be a little tough for Carr to be a truly ELITE QB1 because he doesn’t run much, but he does have the chance to be a legitimate QB1 on the strength of his passing alone with these weapons at his disposal. Carr is absolutely a player to target for those who wait and wait on the QB position.

Fantasy Relevant (121-200 ADP)

Zamir White, RB (ADP: 190): White, a fourth rounder out of Georgia, has a lot of hype this offseason. He scored 22 touchdowns in his final two seasons at George, and showed the consistency of a metronome in college, averaging 5.2, 5.4 and 5.4 yards per carry in his three seasons. The problem for White is that Jacobs is an elite rusher, and he never even caught 10 passes in a season for the Bulldogs, so good luck usurping that role from Kenyan Drake. White has talent, but he’s blocked, and I am not sure where this groundswell for him to replace Jacobs is coming from.

Sleeper Class (200 & later)

Kenyan Drake, RB (ADP: 214): Drake was a bit of a bust last season, barely making an impact as a rusher and appearing to be a strictly pass-catching back without much volume. Drake did earn an 82 receiving grade from PFF as a receiver, so we could see his volume increase in that capacity with McDaniels around, who loved to use guys like James White in that fashion. That could potentially ding Jacobs’ upside, but I’m not overly concerned for him, nor am I bullish on Drake.