Fantasy Football Rankings: Raiders Players You Should Draft, Avoid This Season

Editor?s note: To help you prepare for your fantasy football draft, NESN.com will profile each NFL team and analyze which players are worth picking and which players aren?t worth your time. Today, we look at the Raiders.

The Oakland Raiders are a team on the rise in the AFC West, and their players could help you contend in your fantasy football leagues.

In advance of the upcoming fantasy season, we took a closer look at the Raiders players you should draft, avoid and peg as sleepers.

DRAFT-WORTHY
Derek Carr, Quarterback: Carr finished the season as the 13th-best quarterback in standard scoring fantasy leagues, and he could be in line for an even bigger season in Year 3. He’s going as the 14th QB drafted in the 11th or 12th round, and we believe that’s a good value selection if that’s where you get him. He’s still more of a QB2 than anything else, but a good backup is a nice problem to have.

Amari Cooper, Wide Receiver: Cooper’s skills immediately translated to the big stage in his rookie season, and he finished as the No. 24 receiver in standard leagues. If Cooper remains healthy, which was an issue in 2015, expect those numbers to go up. He’s going much higher than last season’s numbers indicate — 29th overall as the 13th WR off the board. There’s some great receivers being taken behind him at the position (Brandin Cooks, Keenan Allen, T.Y. Hilton, Demaryius Thomas, Kelvin Benjamin and Julian Edelman are the next six receivers being drafted), so if you feel the need to pass for another player (like quarterback Russell Wilson, currently going 30th), don’t fret in doing so.

Michael Crabtree, Wide Receiver: Crabtree had a bit of a revival last season, his first in Oakland, and forms a nice 1-2 punch with Cooper. He was slightly inconsistent, though, and we really believe Cooper will overtake Crabtree as the No. 1 option. Still, his 82 catches, 922 yards and nine touchdowns are nothing to scoff at. He’s going in the ninth round as the 34th wide receiver off the board, and that’s a good spot for him. He’s a solid bench/flex option.

Latavius Murray, Running Back: Believe it or not, Murray actually finished as the 11th-best back in standard leagues last season. He’s going as 54th overall as the 21st running back, and that’s probably a bit high for him, even in standard leagues. Rookie DeAndré Washington will look to ease Murray’s workload, which could be bad news for fantasy owners.

AVOID
Raiders Defense/Special Teams: They finished in the bottom half in scoring last season, thanks in part to only one defensive touchdown and no return TDs. There are better options, even as weekly streamers.

Sebastian Janikowski, Kicker: He has seen better days. After missing five field goals last season and finishing as just the 21st-best scoring kicker, he’s not worth a pick.

SLEEPER
DeAndré Washington, Running Back: Taken in the fifth round, this rookie very well could play his way into at least a third-down role, which could be more beneficial to PPR users. As a senior at Texas Tech, Washington caught 41 passes for 385 yards and two touchdowns, in addition to his terrific rushing numbers: 233 rushes for 1,492 yards (6.4 average) and 14 touchdowns. Raiders coach Jack Del Rio already has said he sees Washington as a full-time player, not just a third-down option, and given Murray’s ridiculous workload last season (third-most touches in the NFL), don’t be shocked to see Washington steal some snaps. He’s currently going undrafted.

Click for all fantasy players to draft and avoid this season >>

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