There are important NFL players and then there are the players who shoulder the fate of their teams based on day-in, day-out performance during the season. These are the latter. Here are the 3 Players Who Will Make Or Break The Oakland Raiders' 2015 Season.
QB Derek Carr
2014 was a fantastic season for Carr by NFL rookie standards, but there were still plenty of mistakes from a pocket presence and progressions standpoint that need to be sured up for him to move into the upper echelon of NFL starting quarterbacks. He's got the talent and drive to do it and a new weapon to play with in Amari Cooper. If he can put it together and make the leap in year two, wins will follow.
CB DJ Hayden
Hayden has yet to put more than a healthy half-season together over his first two years with the team. While he showed flashes of #1 corner potential upon his return from injury in the second half of last year, Raiders management is banking on him both staying out of the doctor's office and becoming the shutdown defensive back worthy of his pure athletic gifts.
RB Trent Richardson
The Oakland Raiders took a low-risk flyer on the oft-maligned former Browns/Colts running back, and he'll have to battle for carries with explosive incumbent Latavius Murray and steady veteran acquisition Roy Helu Jr. Richardson is still just 24 years of age, but this still stands as a crucial tipping point in the career of the #3 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft. If he produces, the Raiders' offense will become that much more potent.
Follow our Oakland Raiders team page for the latest Raiders rumors!
Back to the Las Vegas Raiders Newsfeed