6 players the Las Vegas Raiders cannot afford to see opt out

6 players the Las Vegas Raiders cannot afford to see opt out

Darren Waller, Tight End

Darren Waller is a player which took the NFL by storm last season, as he committed himself to turning his life around, and has become a dominant figure in the NFL. He became the No. 1 target for Derek Carr last season, leading the Raiders in targets and receptions.

He was open about how he didn’t take playing football seriously when he was drafted by the Ravens but took this second chance by the horns. Whatever he did, I hope he keeps doing it.

Waller caught 90 passes of 116 (78.3%) targets with 1,147 yards with a 12.7 yards per reception in his breakout 2019 campaign. To put this into perspective, he caught six passes on six targets all of 2018 with the Raiders.

Waller was so impressive the players voted him on the Top 100 Players of 2020. Waller is nightmare for coordinators to covers since he’s 6’6″ and played receiver in high school and college. His best game of the season came against the Green Bay Packers where he caught two touchdowns, and 126 yards on eight catches with 3three key first-down catches in crucial areas of the game.

This is a guy who is so important because he opens up the holes for the other receivers. A team will have to put a linebacker or a safety on him, or a nickel corner, which leaves rookie Henry Ruggs III 1-on-1. This also gets Jacobs matched up with a linebacker, and then Hunter Renfrow and Tyrell Williams in single man, so someone is bound to get open with that offense. Carr had a quarterback rating of 109 when targeting Waller over the course of the season.