Presented By

Raiders Mailbag: Who's going to be the biggest playmaker in the Meadowlands?

Nov 05, 2021 at 11:47 AM

Levi Edwards

Digital Team Reporter

@TrevorJBrune asks:

"You think Kenyan Drake lines up at WR at all this week or more than weeks past?"

No I don't. Kenyan Drake is a running back, and his current role will more than likely stay the same.

The past two games, Drake has been getting loose in the Raiders offense, racking up 152 yards from the line of scrimmage and three total touchdowns. With offensive coordinator Greg Olson as the head play caller, he's seemed content using the versatile, Swiss Army knife player at a high volume.

With that being said, while I do believe Drake will receive more opportunities to make plays in the passing game, those opportunities will probably remain out of the backfield with Josh Jacobs and Jalen Richard. I find it hard to regularly line him up at wide receiver with Darren Waller, Bryan Edwards and Hunter Renfrow still taking the majority of the snaps out wide.

@EdwardsEra_89 asks:

"How many snaps do you think Zay Jones is gonna get?"

Quick slide plug: Go check out my latest piece on Zay Jones to get more of an in-depth answer.

But yes, I believe he will get a lot more snaps moving forward. Since the release of Henry Ruggs III, he is listed on the depth chart as starting wideout. While he hasn't started very many games for the Raiders since 2019 when he was first traded to the team, he has proven himself to be a good option from a statistical standpoint when inserted in the starting lineup. In 2018, he lead the Buffalo Bills in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.

Additionally, he has all the confidence in the world from the players and staff, including his offensive coordinator.

"We always talk about opportunity, and it comes in a lot of different forms, and this is an opportunity for Zay," Greg Olson said Thursday. "Not the opportunity he was looking for, but we've always felt real strong about Zay Jones and his abilities as a receiver and his abilities to play the Z [receiver] position. And he's had a very good week of practice, but he's had good weeks of practice in the past. So, if you were to talk to not only just Derek [Carr] but the rest of the players on offense at every position, O-line, tight ends, running backs, quarterbacks; they've got all the confidence in the world in Zay and we do as well as a staff."

With that being said, it's fair to say that the locker room is very behind Zay Jones. Fantasy football owners should start to get behind him too.

Related Links

@caldwell_jim asks:

"I'm going to the game Sunday. What should I expect from the team?"

Well first off Jim, I hope you have a great time at MetLife this Sunday.

What should you expect to see from the team? Resiliency. That's been the key theme for the Raiders team this entire season.

The 5-2 Raiders have had a turbulent beginning to the season, yet they have found ways to battle through injuries and controversy – and are at the top of the AFC West. Despite whatever the team has dealt with, that doesn't take away the immense amount of talent of cohesion they have as a unit. A unit that had five players selected to PFF's Midseason All-Pro Team. Derek Carr is top five in passing yards this season, while Gus Bradley's defense is clicking on all cylinders.

So Jim, I know that is a very broad answer to your question. But to concisely wrap everything up – I expect to Raiders to come out and play with a very high level of intensity. Very high.

1 / 100

Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver DJ Turner (19) during practice at Intermountain Healthcare Performance Center.