Miami Dolphins at Las Vegas Raiders review: Studs and Duds
Duds: Andre James
We hate to keep picking on Andre James as we know he is new to playing the position, but he is still making some potentially costly errors on the center-quarterback exchange. He had a high shotgun snap against Baltimore, a poor snap under center against Pittsburgh that Derek Carr recovered, and another high shotgun snap against Miami that led to an 18-yard intentional grounding penalty.
We know that the Raiders invested heavily in him and believe that he is the future at the position but if he is struggling with the basic mechanics of the position, it may be time to consider playing Nick Martin.
Martin spent four years as the starting center with the Houston Texans and also played center at Notre Dame so he is very familiar with the mechanics of the position. He also operated heavily out of the shotgun with Deshaun Watson and could do the same in Las Vegas with Derek Carr.
The veteran is not perfect as he had two fumbles recorded with the Texans but that is in 4 years, not 3 games. We don’t want to suggest ruining the confidence of a young player still learning the position after transitioning from tackle to center but at some point, one of these poor snaps may cost the Raiders a lot more than just a few yards.