One of the big failures that Pete Carroll had during his one season as the Las Vegas Raiders' head coach, particularly as wins became more elusive, was a stubborn refusal to play younger players. So, a 3-14 season told whoever the next head coach is very little about most of the 2025 rookie class.
It was a rare young player that Carroll even publicly praised over the course of the season. Take out Ashton Jeanty, and any comments along that line were even more scant. Not that everyone was worthy of praise, but when he was asked, Carroll acted like the reporter was pulling teeth.
Second-round rookie wide receiver Jack Bech was in line for a solid immediate role upon his selection. Whoever was at fault, and Carroll would surely say that it was former offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, that didn't exactly happen until Carroll called for Bech to play more.
Bech played a lot over the next three games before the Raiders' bye, then his involvement went back down inexplicably with 32 snaps over the next four games. Then, over the final five games of the season, after Kelly was fired, he played no less than 56% of the offensive snaps.
Fantasy analyst lays out early path for Jack Bech to break out in 2026
From a fantasy football perspective, as a rookie, albeit expected, Bech only had one notable outing (11 full PPR points in Week 14 against the Denver Broncos). So, there's really nowhere to go but up in Year 2, if a notable role materializes under a new coaching staff.
Looking ahead to next season, at this early stage, finding a fantasy breakout candidate for the Raiders is difficult and also highly speculative. So, Justin Boone of Yahoo! went with Bech when he sought to name an early breakout candidate from each AFC West team.
"The history of receivers with limited production during their rookie season who go on to become quality fantasy options is far from extensive.
"Bech managed only 20 receptions for 224 scoreless yards in his first season with the Raiders, despite being part of a fairly wide-open depth chart in Vegas.
"However, the second-round pick did pop up in the box scores with stat lines of 6-50-0 and 2-43-0 over his final four outings, giving Raiders fans and fantasy managers some small glimmer of hope for his future outlook."
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Boone noted how the Raiders will have a new quarterback, which should be a natural upgrade from the Geno Smith disaster class from this season. But the bottom line, which led to Boone's breakout rating of three out of five stars for Bech, is clear.
"Bech remains a long shot to emerge as a meaningful fantasy contributor, but the 23-year-old still offers good contested catch ability and strong hands. If the Raiders can improve the overall environment on offense, we should see Bech develop into more of a playmaker than we saw this season."
The Raiders are unlikely to make a particularly splashy move to add a wide receiver this offseason, as general manager John Spytek will look to rebuild in more calculated steps. So, Bech is tentatively in line for a solid role next season, with inside-outside alignment versatility a new offensive coaching staff can find useful and a skill set that makes him a friendly target for a quarterback.
From the wide view so early in the offseason, before we know who the Raiders' head coach and offensive coordinator will be or if any wide receivers will be added, Bech is an interesting name to stash away in PPR leagues. As for a second-year breakout, time will tell if that path gets paved by his circumstances.