LaMont Jordan

Jordan's role on the team is unclear as his status on the roster remains in limbo. He would be third running back on the depth chart, but the Raiders are still attempting to trade him to another team. His outlook for next season will depend on which team acquires his services.

Jordan had a disastrous 2006, sinking with the rest of the impotent Raiders offense. Jordan averaged the same 3.8 YPC as in 2004 and 2005, but he caught 60 fewer balls and scored nine fewer touchdowns last year. Tom Walsh's unimaginative offense and Jordan’s injury - he missed the final six games with a torn knee ligament - can be partially blamed for the suppressed numbers, but there's more to worry about here. Jordan looked too slow and indecisive on the field last year, and Oakland brought in a new coaching regime, which has no previous ties to him. Dominic Rhodes also signed through free agency, and Michael Bush was drafted, making Jordan nothing more than a late-round flier for fantasy purposes.

Jordan’s first season as a feature back did not go as smoothly as he, or his fantasy owners, hoped. His 1,025 yards fell short of expectations, hamstrung by an anemic 3.8 YPC, and the Raiders offense as a whole stubbornly remained less than the sum of its parts. He doesn’t go off the charts in any one area, but is big enough to plow through defenders and fast enough to outrun his share of them. He displayed far more ability as a pass catcher in 2005 than he ever had with the Jets, more than doubling his career reception totals with an impressive 70-catch, 563 yard performance. He also did a reasonable job in the red zone, converting opportunities at a 22.0 percent rate (11-for-50). What held Jordan back last year was the team around him, but Oakland enters 2006 with a new, more mobile quarterback in Aaron Brooks, a new coaching staff and a presumably healthy Randy Moss. Jordan’s not quite good enough to make a significant impact on his own, but a healthy Moss distracting opposing defenses, or a gameplan more tailored to his strengths should see him improve on last season’s rushing totals.

Jordan’s signing by the Raiders last March was somewhat lost amid the excitement of the Randy Moss trade, but fantasy owners should pay attention. At 5-11, 230 pounds, Jordan is a heavy load with good speed and the ability to run over defenders at the point of attack. He’s not going to shake the league’s quicker linebackers in the open field, but if they don’t wrap up, he’s liable to break tackles. And he has enough straight ahead speed to hit the home run if he gets through the second wave of defenders. Jordan is also an underrated receiver with good concentration and soft hands. While Jordan hasn’t ever put up good counting numbers due to his role as Curtis Martin’s backup, his per-carry stats bode well for him as a full-time starter. Jordan averaged 5.2 yards per pop a season ago, and for his career, a robust 4.9. He’s only converted 4-of-12 goal-line carries into scores over the last two seasons, but Jordan is a prototype short-yardage back, and we’ll chalk that up to the small sample size. The Raiders should be able to move the ball down the field in big chunks with a dangerous vertical passing game, so there should be a fair number of red zone and goal-line opportunities for Jordan. And opposing safeties aren’t likely to play close to the line of scrimmage with Moss and Porter on the field. In short, all the ingredients are present for Jordan to have a big season, though keep in mind that other backs who performed well as part-timers (Amos Zereoue and Kevan Barlow come to mind) floundered when given full-time jobs.

The Jets refused to acquiesce to Jordan’s demand to be traded and promised a larger role. Think Moe Williams circa 2002. In addition to goal-line carries, Jordan offers an exciting speed/power/hands combination if Curtis Martin ever gets hurt.

As Curtis Martin's backup in 2002, Jordan carried 84 times for 316 yards and showed a nose for the end zone with three short-yardage touchdowns. Once again, he enters the season as one of the NFL's better backup running backs and as the mandatory insurance policy for Martin owners. The Jets would love to get Jordan more touches this season and he may also see time as a fullback.