The Raiders will likely transform their offense this season into a run first team and that suits the stable of running backs that they have assembled for 2008.  Justin Fargas was the main man last season and he will get a lot of action in 2008.  He’s strong and fast as he can break the big one if he finds a crease in the defense.  Fargas played in 14 games (7 starts) with the Raiders last season and he carried the ball 222 times for 1,009 yards (4.5 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 23 passes for 188 yards (8.2 avg).  Fargas will have to stay healthy which has been an issue in his career to this point to hold off Darren MaFadden for the feature role in the running game.  Fargas has now played in 66 games (14 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 480 times for 2,025 yards (4.2 ypc) with 6 TD runs.  He also has caught 50 passes for 358 yards (7.2 avg).

Darren McFadden is the golden boy of this year’s draft as he has a lot of the same skills that Adrian Peterson brought to the Vikings last season.  In his three years at Arkansas, McFadden averaged 1,530 yards rushing, 5.8 yards per carry and 13.7 rushing TDs per season.  He has the speed to go the distance on any carry and he has the power to run between the tackles.  Look for him to eventually snap the starting job away from Fargas but they should be able to share the job this season.

Michael Bush missed all of his rookie season while rehabbing from a serious injury in college (broken leg).  The Raiders will likely use Bush in short yardage situations this season if he’s healthy because he has more power than either McFadden or Fargas.  He is the secret weapon of the Raiders’ offense if healthy because he’s a very talented football player.

Adimchinobe Echemandu will likely be the #4 RB on the Raiders if they let LaMont Jordan go as most people think they will.  Echemandu played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Raiders last season and he carried the ball 20 times for 85 yards (4.3 ypc).  He also caught 2 passes for 11 yards (5.5 avg).  Echemandu hopes that he gets enough of a chance to prove that he belongs in the NFL this season.  Echemandu has now played in 19 games (0 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 28 times for 110 yards (3.9 ypc).  He also caught 5 passes for 36 yards (7.2 avg).

LaMont Jordan failed in his attempt to become a feature back for the Raiders after being a great backup for the Jets.  His time for the Raiders is almost over it appears with McFadden and Fargas likely to get the bulk of the carries.  Jordan played in 12 games (7 starts) for the Raiders last season and he carried the ball 144 times for 549 yards (3.8 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He also caught 28 passes for 247 yards (8.8 avg) last season.  Look for Jordan to get snapped up by some team if the Raiders release him as he still has something left, just not enough to beat out the backs in front of him in Oakland.  Jordan has now played in 97 games (29 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 792 times for 3,285 yards (4.1 ypc) with 24 TD runs.  He also has caught 158 passes for 1,301 yards (8.2 avg) with 3 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B+

The Oakland Raiders will get a glimpse of the future as they will be starting JaMarcus Russell at QB.  Russell has a lot to learn about playing QB in the NFL but he has the tools to be a really good one.  Russell has one of the strongest arms in all of football as he can easily flip the ball 60 yards on a line.  He also is mobile enough to buy himself extra time in the pocket to deliver the ball.  He must be more careful of trying to fit the ball into tight spots and getting intercepted.  Russell played in 4 games (1 start) for the Raiders last season and he completed 36 of 66 passes (54.5%) for 373 yards with 2 TD passes and 4 interceptions (55.9 QB Rating).  Russell also carried the ball 5 times for 4 yards (0.8 ypc).  The Raiders were smart in adding WR Javon Walker and RB Darren McFadden to the offense to give Russell some big time weapons.  It will be sink or swim with Russell as he will be thrown entirely to the wolves because the Raiders’ likely don’t trust his backups to do a good job.

Andrew Walter will be the #2 QB for the Raiders this season.  Walter has a strong arm but he’s a sitting duck in the pocket as he doesn’t move well.  He proved his toughness though a couple of years ago when he took an absolute beating behind the then horrible O-Line of the Raiders and he kept coming back for more.  Walter played in 1 game (0 starts) last season for the Raiders and he completed 5 of 8 passes (62.5%) for 38 yards without a TD pass or an interception (74.0 QB Rating).  He didn’t get a chance to run the football last season.  Walter would probably be able to do a much better job this season if forced into action with all of the new weapons the Raiders have added in the off season.  Walter has now played in 13 games (8 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 152 of 284 passes (53.5%) for 1,715 yards with 3 TD passes and 13 interceptions (56.3 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 14 times for 30 yards (2.1 ypc).

The Raiders have brought back Marques Tuiasosopo to hold a clipboard as the #3 QB.  He falls short in just about every skill a NFL QB would need except that he runs well.  He was the Jets’ #3 QB last season but he didn’t get to play.  Tuiasosopo has now played in 11 games (2 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 48 of 88 passes (54.5%) for 550 yards with 2 TD passes and 7 interceptions (48.0 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 15 times for 68 yards (4.5 ypc).

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  D

The Raiders picked Schilens because of his workouts which were impressive.  But, they should have watched more game film of Schilens as he isn’t that good of a player.  Schilens is a big guy at 6′4″, 208 pounds and that’s his biggest asset as he isn’t the fastest receiver around.  He played in 15 games at San Diego State and he caught 34 passes for 441 yards (13.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  He has the look of a practice squad player.

Trevor Scott is a high motor player but he’s a tad raw so the Raiders will have to coach him up.  Scott is a bit undersized at 6′5″, 256 pounds so he will likely only get to play in passing situations.  Scott played in 41 games (24 starts) at Buffalo and he made 99 tackles, had 28.5 tackles for a loss, 19 sacks, forced 3 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles.  Scott will likely be a backup as a rookie and he might help out on special teams.

If Arman Shields can stay healthy he can help the Raiders.  Shields is 6′1″, 187 but he’s a tad slow running a 4.5 40.  He is tough over the middle and he has great hands which will come in handy catching fastballs from JaMarcus Russell.  Shields caught 160 passes for 1,930 yards (12.1 avg) with 13 TD grabs at Richmond.  It will be interesting to see how well Shields handles the jump from Richmond to the NFL.  Shields was worth the risk in the 4th round.