Quarterback Derek Carr
Fantasy football players who either drafted or picked up Oakland Raiders' quarterback Derek Carr last year benefitted immensely from the offensive break out he achieved, and heading into his third season, Matt Franciscovich of NFL.com named him as one of the must-own quarterbacks for the 2016 season.
"In his two NFL seasons he has accumulated 53 touchdown passes-second only to Dan Marino (68) in NFL history," wrote Franciscovich. "He improved in just about every category that is important to a quarterback, but the one that matters the most for fantasy football is his touchdown to interception ratio. As a rookie, Carr went 21-12. Last year he went 32-13. That's a huge step forward, and while some of it has to do with the talent the Raiders have surrounded their franchise quarterback with (Amari Cooper, Michael Crabtree), much of it has to do with Carr's raw talent."
By all accounts Derek Carr has embodied the persona of a leader and what it means to be a team player. Following a solid rookie campaign, Carr broke out last season with 32 touchdowns -- which was good for seventh in the NFL -- and limited his interceptions to 13, and in the process of his ascension grabbed the attention of Hall of Famer Brett Favre.
The young gunslinger came into his own last year with the addition of wide receivers Michael Crabtree and Amari Cooper, and with versatile weapons he could sling the ball to, Carr made strides in practically every statistical area.
After improving his completion percentage of 58.1 percent from 2014 to 61.1 percent Carr demonstrated that he is an accurate passer.
The Raiders' offensive line has battled up front in order to give Carr extra time to survey the field, and an extra second while in the pocket, can make a significant difference in a quarterback's decision making.
There's a surplus of quarterbacks any fantasy player could plug into their line-up, and Carr represents a young guy on the cusp of taking the next step.
