Jalen Richard

While little else went right for the Raiders offense in its first year with Jon Gruden back at the helm, Richard thrived. He more than doubled his career totals in targets, catches and receiving yards, and his 81 targets tied him for seventh among running backs with Todd Gurley and Nyheim Hines. Short but not small at 5-8, 205, Richards is capable of moving piles thanks to his low center of gravity and strong leg drive, and he also possesses outstanding elusiveness and footwork. His 4.7 YPC in 2018 was actually the lowest of his career, but 11 fumbles the last two seasons (including a few on special teams) put a dent in his argument to see more work on the ground. Richard's skills as a receiver are his bread and butter, and with rookie Josh Jacobs replacing Marshawn Lynch at the top of the Oakland depth chart, the setup isn't likely to change much. If anything, Richard could see a bit more work in his fourth NFL season if Jacobs has any trouble adjusting to the pros or struggles with a larger workload than he saw in college. The inconsistent and aging Doug Martin returns as Richard's primary competition for backup snaps.

Through the early part of 2017 while Marshawn Lynch struggled to regain his form, Richard looked like he might be headed for a big season. He ripped off 109 scrimmage yards in Week 2 against the Jets on only eight touches, and his combination of speed in open space and elite elusiveness seemed to be a great fit alongside the veteran. Lynch gradually re-asserted himself, but Richard's workload mostly suffered due to his own failings with ball security - he lost three fumbles on offense (and another five on kickoffs and punts) - and he understandably didn't get more than six touches in a game in the second half of the season. If he had the change-of-pace role to himself and learned to protect the ball better, Richard could be consistently productive in the Oakland offense, but with DeAndre Washington competing for the same snaps it's hard to see either back making more than an occasional impact, especially with the Raiders now trying to rehabilitate Doug Martin as well.

Few backs did more with less last year than Richard. The undrafted free agent set the tone for his season by rushing for 84 yards and a touchdown on only three carries in Week 1, and while that ended up being his only rushing TD of the year he still finished in the top 10 in the league in yards per touch, percentage of carries he turned into gains of 15 yards or more and total return yards. Richard runs with both speed and surprising power given his smallish frame, but he may not get much opportunity to build on his successful rookie campaign. While Latavius Murray left for Minnesota in the offseason, he was replaced by Marshawn Lynch, who came out of retirement to play for his hometown team. If Beast Mode is still beastly, Richard will once again be competing for a change-of-pace role with DeAndre Washington.

Richard went undrafted out of Southern Miss, but earned an NFL contract by impressing the Raiders at their rookie minicamp. Since then, he's earned glowing reviews from team personnel throughout Oakland's offseason program as well as during the onset of training camp. However, Richard remains firmly behind Latavius Murray and DeAndre Washington on the team's RB depth chart, and faces heavy competition from the likes of veteran Taiwan Jones and George Atkinson for the teams No. 3 and No. 4 tailback jobs. Jones could have an edge on Richard due to his competence on special teams, so if it comes down to Richard vs. Atkinson, and Richard does win out, he still isn't guaranteed a roster spot since Oakland may not even carry four tailbacks on their active roster heading into the regular season. Furthermore, that very role isn't projected to handle much of a workload anyway. Bottomline, barring injury, Richard doesn't appear destined for a fantasy-relevant 2016 campaign.