Oakland, if you didn’t already know, is a mess. Rookie head coach Lane Kiffin is working hard to pick up the pieces, but the deck is stacked against him.
The biggest disappointment perhaps deals with Oakland’s running back rotation, something that the team figured they had used the offseason effectively to strengthen. Drafting Michael Bush late because of his injury could prove to be a shrewd move, but until then he’ll be stuck on the PUP list with the potential of missing the first 6 weeks of the regular season.
But the addition this offseason that made the most noise was the acquisition of Dominic Rhodes, the former Colts’ running back. Unfortunately, he’ll miss the first 4 weeks of the season with a suspension.
There goes the offseason.
All this leaves the Raiders where they were last season at the running back position: LaMont Jordan struggling while Justin Fargas does his best (without avail) to fill in.
But the worst part is, even Jordan is having back trouble. He’s day to day at this point while Fargas — a player with great explosion, but someone who just won’t make a defender miss — and Adimchinobe Echemandu (also referred to as “Joe” — you can figure that out) are the team’s temporary starters.
But when the regular season rolls around, the Raiders are going to need Jordan to step it up, at least for the first four weeks. Working in his favor (to a degree) is the schedule: Detroit, Denver, Cleveland, and Miami. Those four teams finished 21st, 12th, 29th, and 8th in the NFL last season in rushing yards allowed, respectively.
After the first four weeks, however, Rhodes should return to the offense. What happens then isn’t certain. According to reports, both are “dead even” in the race for the starting spot. The edge probably goes to Rhodes, but neither option is suitable to handle the entire load. With the offensive line still in shambles — Robert Gallery, the once picked number two overall left tackle, is being moved to guard; a big disappointment for someone of his expectations — neither player figures to be effective.
Unless in a very deep league, you’ll probably want to target Jordan and Rhodes as RB3s. Each should be a cheap (that’s important; don’t draft him early) RB3 though Rhodes might suffice as a flex player when he returns to the offense.
(Image courtesy FHM Online)
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