Fantasy Impact of Henry Ruggs III Drafted by the Las Vegas Raiders

The Las Vegas Raiders selected WR Henry Ruggs III with the 12th pick of the 2020 NFL Draft. He was favored at -280 to be taken before pick 15.5.
For a brief moment the ghost of Al Davis returned to the Raiders' war room and made this selection. No wide receiver has been hyped more this offseason than Ruggs. His 4.27 40-yard dash at the combine only accelerated the hype train. The Raiders need another pass-catching weapon to pair with Tyrell Williams, Hunter Renfrow and Darren Waller. Ruggs just feels like a Raiders pick.
Here’s why Shawn Childs ranked Ruggs as his No. 4 WR:
Ruggs brings elite speed (4.27 forty) to the passing game, but he only had 98 catches for 1,716 yards and 24 TDs over four seasons. He did score a touchdown once every four times he touched the ball. Ruggs is slightly undersized (5”11” and 188 lbs.), which will hurt him against press coverage out of the gate. His rhythm and route running will create plenty of chances at the next level. His hands will be assets while proving to be a player that can be used at all levels of the offense. Ruggs will be viable on bubble screens, slants, and deep end cuts where his speed creates impact plays. He’ll break tackles and yards after the catch.
Las Vegas Raiders stats to know
- Darren Waller broke through for an impact season (90/1145/3), posting an exceptional catch rate (76.9). Only Michael Thomas had more success catching the ball (80.5 percent).
- Derek Carr finished second behind Drew Brees (74.3) in completion rate (70.4) while pushing his yards per pass attempt (7.9) to a career-high level.
- Josh Jacobs scored all seven of his touchdowns at home.
- The Raiders’ defense allowed the highest number in yards per pass attempt (8.28).
- No wide receiver on the team caught over 50 passes.
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Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of Alabama Crimson Tide On SI, which first published as BamaCentral in 2018, and is also the publisher of the Boston College, Missouri and Vanderbilt sites. He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004 and is the author of 26 books including “100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die” and “Nick Saban vs. College Football.” He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.
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