It’s time for the final edition of this year’s Las Vegas Raiders fantasy football tracker. Let’s assess how each player did in comparison to our projections from our season preview piece. It is safe to say that in no way did this season go as expected. All fantasy stats come from ESPN and are based on standard PPR formats.
2022 Las Vegas Raiders Fantasy Football Wrap-up
Derek Carr, Quarterback
Fantasy Projection:Â 296 points
Actual Total:Â 219.08 (14.6 ppg)
Yikes. Carr’s season certainly did not go according to plan. He posted arguably the worst statistical season of his career. It resulted in him being benched in favor of Jarrett Stidham for the last two games of the regular season. He is now being shopped around on the trade market. Carr has almost certainly played his final game in a Raiders uniform.
Carr has typically regressed in his first year in a new system. Some of that was to be expected. However, this was a much more extreme drop-off. Also, it came after the Raiders added Davante Adams. His performance fell far below even the most reasonable expectations. This is from a pure football standpoint as well as fantasy.
In fantasy football terms, Carr went into the season having hovered a little below 20 points a week for most of his career. He was always safely considered to be a reliable QB2. That changed this season as Carr’s average dropped below 15 points per game. Make no mistake, he still had plenty of his typical performances. However, this season was also riddled with single-digit clunkers. With how low Carr’s ceiling is, the lack of a consistent floor has made him a fantasy football pariah.
Josh Jacobs, Running Back
Fantasy Projection:Â 242 points
Actual Total:Â 238.3 (19.3 ppg)
While Carr failed to live up to expectations, Jacobs shattered them. Despite the addition of Adams, Jacobs was still the focal point of the offense. He also made Josh McDaniels rethink his running back-by-committee approach.
Perhaps Jacobs’ biggest surprise was his transformation into a PPR darling. While he has always been a competent pass catcher, he has never been thought of as a receiving back. Jacobs showed this year that he can do it all. On top of a high volume of carries, Jacobs was also good for a few catches each week.
Jacobs’ versatility allowed him to stay on the field longer, which helped his numbers. However, that increased volume increases vulnerability to injuries. Miraculously, Jacobs had one of his healthiest seasons to date. He did get banged up, but he managed to stay on the field. All of these factors allowed him to jump from a low-end RB1 to elite status.
Davante Adams, Wide Receiver
Fantasy Projection:Â 270 points
Actual Total:Â 335.5 (19.7 ppg)
Speaking of exceeding expectations, Adams’ first season in Las Vegas was better than anyone could have possibly imagined. Even though the Raiders’ offense stalled at times this year, Adams was basically Teflon. There were a few weeks where he did not do much, but those were outweighed by all of the times in which he went absolutely nuclear.
One thing that was a major factor in the pre-season projections ended up not having much of an impact at all. That was the fear that Adams would have to share targets with Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller. Both players ended up missing large portions of the season. Even when they were healthy, they were clearly secondary options in the offense behind Adams. However, it is not clear if those injuries helped or hindered Adams’ production.
All in all, one thing is clear: Regardless of what situation he is in, Adams is a monster. He will be a fantasy stud in any offense, with any quarterback, and with any supporting cast.
Hunter Renfrow, Wide Receiver
Fantasy Projection:Â 208 points
Actual Total: 79 (7.9 ppg)
2022 was a rough year for Renfrow. Coming off a career year in 2021, he was unable to build off that momentum. A big part of his struggles were due to being plagued by injuries for most of the season. An early-season concussion, coupled with an oblique injury that put him on injured reserve, limited Renfrow to just 10 games this season. However, Renfrow’s struggles went beyond just injuries. Even when healthy, he averaged less than eight fantasy points per game.
Obviously, the addition of Davante Adams did not help Renfrow’s production. Some regression in his volume statistics this year was inevitable. Nevertheless, it seemed like Renfrow’s play regressed as well. There were not a lot of moments where he was able to break people’s ankles like we had previously seen. That is not necessarily Renfrow’s fault. It didn’t seem like much of the offense was designed to get him the ball. By the end of the season, he even seemed to lose ground to Mack Hollins. It will be interesting to see what Renfrow does next year once he is fully healthy and has a year of experience in this offense.
Darren Waller, Tight End
Fantasy Projection:Â 240 points
Actual Total:Â 84.8 (9.4 ppg)
Like Renfrow, Waller’s season was also marred by injuries. Not including the Week 5 game in Kansas City, where he was injured after just a few plays, Waller really only played eight games this season. Unlike Renfrow, though, Waller still looked solid when he was available. While his production was far from the elite level that it once was, he was still a solid TE1 when he suited up.
The big concern for Waller is that injuries are becoming a trend for him. Over the last two seasons, he has played in just 20 regular-season games. When healthy, he is as good as any tight end out there not named Travis Kelce or George Kittle. However, the injuries are becoming difficult to overlook. At this point, Waller will be a risky pick next year, and whoever drafts him will likely have drafted a backup tight end earlier than normal.
Daniel Carlson, The Raiders’ Kicker
Fantasy Projection:Â 149 points
Actual Total:Â 159 (9.4 ppg)
Another year, another dominant season from Carlson. His total of 159 points left him just a field goal shy of the 162 he put up last season. However, it was still enough to tie Brett Maher for the fantasy scoring title among kickers. A big part of his success has come from long field goals. He hit 11 this year from beyond 50 yards. No other kicker made more than nine of these kicks. This was Carlson’s third consecutive season in which he scored 150 points. He should be the first kicker off the board in all leagues next year.
The Raiders’ Defense
Fantasy Projection:Â 80 points
Actual Total:Â 55 (3.2 ppg)
Man, this unit stinks. They are pretty bad in terms of actual football, but the Raiders’ defense is especially horrendous when it comes to fantasy football. They finished with the second-worst point total in the NFL behind the comically terrible Chicago Bears. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham did not make this group any better. They fell far short of their projected total of 80, which still would have put them in the bottom 10 in the league. The Raiders’ defense remains untouchable in fantasy football for the foreseeable future.
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*Top Photo: Scott Winters/Icon Sports Wire via Getty Images