So, I saw this headline from Pro Football Focus with their ranking of every NFL team’s rookie class by ‘most productive‘. My first thought was if the Raiders might take the top spot. I clicked.
Nope, they weren’t in the top spot. That went to Washington. But with six Raiders rookies who started most of the season, surely they were not far down.
2. Jaguars
3. Chiefs
4. Giants
5. Saints
Wow, so they weren’t even top five. But surely with Josh Jacobs as the odds on favorite for the Offensive Rookie of the Year and Maxx Crosby as a serious candidate for Defensive Rookie of the Year, this Raiders class had to be popping up on the list soon.
Scroll. Scroll. Scroll… Scroooooll.
Ok, so we’re through the top ten and still no sign of the Raiders. This is getting just silly now. But surely with all but two of their 8 draftees higher than the 7th round making significant contributions, I’ll be seeing them any moment now.
Scroll,… Scrooolll… THERE they are. All the way down at 13th. Basically middle of the road.
Seriously, how is it PFF always seems so far off of what makes logical sense with these kinds of things? Here’s their breakdown of the Raiders’ class.
Why they’re ranked here: The Raiders had four selections inside the top 40 picks of the draft, and whenever that happens, a team is expected to come away with its fair share of talent. However, it took edge rusher Clelin Ferrell and cornerback Trayvon Mullen some time to hit their stride, and safety Johnathan Abram missed nearly the entire season with injury. That held the Raiders down this list despite strong debuts from running back Josh Jacobs (PFF’s second-highest graded running back, though his value isn’t as high because he was drafted in Round 1) and late-round picks Maxx Crosby and Hunter Renfrow.
How their top pick fared: Ferrell (No. 4 overall) made big steps forward in the latter part of the season, improving his PFF grade from 50.4 (105th) prior to Week 12 to 82.3 (8th) over the remainder of the season.
Best value pick: Renfrow (No. 149 overall) had a solid debut season. There were three rookie wide receivers with more than 2 receiving yards per route run: A.J. Brown (2.67), Terry McLaurin (2.11) and Renfrow (2.01). He easily beat out his fifth-round value as a rookie.
So, it was the injury to Johnathan Abram and the late contributions of Ferrell and Mullen? Ok…
No debate at all with Abram. That’s just a fact. He can’t contribute as a rookie if he’s not on the field. And I get the downgrade the Raiders got for Ferrell. Deservedly so, even if he did seem to play better late in the season, his rookie season was not nearly what you want from the 4th overall pick.
I disagree on Mullen being a knock thought. He stepped right in when Gareon Conley was traded and the position didn’t suffer for it. He started the final ten games. That’s not late, that’s right on time.
They mention Crosby and Renfrow like they are afterthoughts in their reasoning when they absolutely should not be. Crosby had 10.0 sacks and had more run stops (23), forced fumbles (4), and pass breakups (4) than either Nick Bosa or Josh Allen.
Renfrow was just what the Raiders hoped he would be in the slot. And, yes, I know they said he was their best value pick. He was the lowest pick to contribute at all, so that’s not exactly a stretch (Although I still probably would have given it to Maxx Crosby).
PFF didn’t mention Foster Moreau at all despite Moreau showing he is a complete tight end and starting seven games.
If they’re going to knock this class for expectations of four picks in the top 40, they should also be counterbalancing that by giving credit for having three starters in the 4th round and below. But I digress.
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