Skip to main content

Henry Ruggs’ Fantasy Football Impact on Raiders

Author:
Publish date:
Video Rating:
TV-G
Video Duration:
2:25

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.

NFL Draft Exclusives: Sign up for Sports Illustrated’s newsletters and get the latest NFL Draft coverage, analysis and highlights - delivered right to your inbox.

Latest NFL Draft Coverage from Sports Illustrated