Las Vegas Raiders shut out of PFF’s top-50 players for 2021
By Brad Weiss
The Las Vegas Raiders have some quality players on their roster heading into 2021, but they were shut out of PFF’s top-50 players for 2021.
Making the playoffs only once since the 2002 NFL season can have a long-term effect on a team in terms of how they are viewed by the national media. For the Las Vegas Raiders, they are a team that has been trending upwards in recent years but have still fallen short of the postseason every year since 2016.
Heading into 2021, they have the pieces in place to make a run, and with a 17-game season, and a seven-team AFC Playoff for the second straight year, the opportunity is there. Last year, they had the right offensive firepower to clinch a spot, but the defense was atrocious, and that led to another late-season collapse.
However, they have brought in a new defensive coordinator in 2021, revamped that side of the ball, and hopefully put the pieces in place to make a run. Still, there are those from outside of the organization that feels there is no elite talent on the roster, and that was proven by Pro Football Focus.
Raiders snubbed once again by Pro Football Focus
In their recent ranking of the top-50 players in the NFL heading into the 2021 season, Pro Football Focus did not name a single member of the Las Vegas Raiders. In fact, the list was loaded with other AFC West teams, and despite the Silver and Black having some elite players, they were shut out.
One of the biggest snubs was Darren Waller, widely considered one of the top three tight ends in the league, and someone who is just entering his prime. The other top two tight ends, Travis Kelce and George Kittle were ranked in the top-10 in the NFL, though Waller was nowhere to be found.
You could also make the argument that Josh Jacobs should have been on this list, after back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons, and making his first Pro Bowl in 2021. While these rankings do not mean anything when it comes to this franchise winning some games this season, it does show how the team is viewed on a national level once again.