Oakland Raiders Fantasy Outlook: New QB, New Optimisim

In Oakland, the more things change, the more they stay the same, as the Raiders have failed to record more than five wins in seven consecutive seasons. Hope springs eternal, and in 2010 the optimism comes in the form of recently acquired quarterback Jason Campbell.

While Campbell didn’t light the league on fire with the Redskins, he is a capable signal-caller who suffered from the constant coaching changes in Washington. In Oakland, he represents a significant upgrade over JaMarcus Russell. Russell flamed out in extravagant fashion with the Raiders despite being forced into the starting lineup over head coach Tom Cable’s objections.

New offensive coordinator Hue Jackson takes over the play calling duties, and there is little doubt owner Al Davis’s instructions are to employ a deep passing attack. At receiver, the Raiders feature talented but largely unproven youngsters Darrius Heyward-Bey and Louis Murphy to go along with Chaz Schilens and tight end Zach Miller. Look for Schilens and Murphy to handle most of the intermediate and underneath patterns.

Darren McFadden and Michael Bush will share time at running back, with the hope that Bush’s inside running compliments McFadden’s ability to get to the edge of the defense.

Along the offensive line, the Raiders are hoping for improvement from within, given that the only change will be Khalif Barnes taking over for the departed Cornell Green at right tackle. This unit’s poor performance has hurt the team over the past couple of years, and it’s not a stretch to suggest it could happen again in 2010.

 

QB Jason Campbell

After suffering through the JaMarcus Russell era, the Raiders moved on with the acquisition of Campbell from the Redskins.

While Campbell failed to achieve much success in Washington, he has plenty of excuses to fall back on. The Redskins regularly changed offensive c...

About the Author