RB Latavius Murray, BUF (2 Viewers)

[Fireinside]

I think he was already bumped to top 20 rb easily. Now he's got a chance to be in top 10.

 

[LawFitz]

Would be funny and cool if this thread became

Latavius Murray, top 5 RB

at some point this season.

Crazier has happened.

 

[Coeur de Lion]

Hype train is officially out of control at this point. Unless I somehow missed Murray getting traded to Dallas. Oakland does indeed look like they're finally moving in the right direction, but they still only rushed for 1240 / 4 as a team last year. The Raiders are still a ways away from supporting a star FF RB, particularly with Helu in town to snipe a chunk of receptions.

 

[Jack White]

I think he was already bumped to top 20 rb easily. Now he's got a chance to be in top 10.

What are we talking here? Redraft PPR? Dyno?

 

[Jack White]

Hype train is officially out of control at this point. Unless I somehow missed Murray getting traded to Dallas. Oakland does indeed look like they're finally moving in the right direction, but they still only rushed for 1240 / 4 as a team last year. The Raiders are still a ways away from supporting a star FF RB, particularly with Helu in town to snipe a chunk of receptions.

I hear this alot.

Helu is a situational player, a third-down back at best. This is not a time-share.

Latavius could still get 2-3 receptions a game even if he never played on third-and-long.

 

[DocHolliday]

Hype train is officially out of control at this point. Unless I somehow missed Murray getting traded to Dallas. Oakland does indeed look like they're finally moving in the right direction, but they still only rushed for 1240 / 4 as a team last year. The Raiders are still a ways away from supporting a star FF RB, particularly with Helu in town to snipe a chunk of receptions.

I hear this alot.

Helu is a situational player, a third-down back at best. This is not a time-share.

Latavius could still get 2-3 receptions a game even if he never played on third-and-long.

It does seem a little crazy to mention Lat as a top 10 back. The Raiders are a little ways away from having a top 10 RB. There are still holes and questions on both sides of the ball. Tough to feature your RB when you are always playing from behind.

 

[Coeur de Lion]

Hype train is officially out of control at this point. Unless I somehow missed Murray getting traded to Dallas. Oakland does indeed look like they're finally moving in the right direction, but they still only rushed for 1240 / 4 as a team last year. The Raiders are still a ways away from supporting a star FF RB, particularly with Helu in town to snipe a chunk of receptions.

I hear this alot.

Helu is a situational player, a third-down back at best. This is not a time-share.

Latavius could still get 2-3 receptions a game even if he never played on third-and-long.

We agree on Helu, but those guys up thread are calling for possible top-10 (even top-5) numbers. That's not likely at all barring huge reception totals IMO. Not a great line, not a great offense, playing from behind most weeks, etc. Huge rushing and / or TD numbers look fairly unlikely, and IMO a solid passing down / change of pace guy like Helu does cap Murray's upside below FF RB1 territory -- at least until the offense as a whole gets significantly better.

 

[Jack White]

Hype train is officially out of control at this point. Unless I somehow missed Murray getting traded to Dallas. Oakland does indeed look like they're finally moving in the right direction, but they still only rushed for 1240 / 4 as a team last year. The Raiders are still a ways away from supporting a star FF RB, particularly with Helu in town to snipe a chunk of receptions.

I hear this alot.

Helu is a situational player, a third-down back at best. This is not a time-share.

Latavius could still get 2-3 receptions a game even if he never played on third-and-long.

We agree on Helu, but those guys up thread are calling for possible top-10 (even top-5) numbers. That's not likely at all barring huge reception totals IMO. Not a great line, not a great offense, playing from behind most weeks, etc. Huge rushing and / or TD numbers look fairly unlikely, and IMO a solid passing down / change of pace guy like Helu does cap Murray's upside below FF RB1 territory -- at least until the offense as a whole gets significantly better.

Based on early rankings, I'm looking at a decision between Latavius and Martavis as my second keeper (Jeremy Hill will be my other keeper).

I had assumed it would be Martavis, but RBs tend to be ranked higher than WRs.

 

[LawFitz]

Upgrades for Latavius since last season -

HC/OC

offensive system

QB progression

WR1

WR2

C, and possibly, RG, RT

TE;

Negatives -

continued durability concerns;

added competition at RB, if you still have any faith left in Trent Richardson.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

I was offered Hyde straight up in dynasty, non PPR.

 

[bumpman]

I was offered Hyde straight up in dynasty, non PPR.

I hope you jumped on that!

 

[Coeur de Lion]

I was offered Hyde straight up in dynasty, non PPR.

I hope you jumped on that!

Not sure why Hyde would be a significantly more attractive option than Murray. Murray was more effective last year with a lesser supporting cast, is a much better receiving threat, and the two teams appear to be heading in opposite directions. I'm not a massive Murray fan, but Hyde is HUGELY over rated IMO.

 

[Milkman]

Do not trade Murray for Hyde. Hyde sucks and now the 9ers just drafted a RB that's better.

Helu is better than people think and is a significant threat to take over 3rd duties completely which will cap Murray's upside. He's squarely in the RB2 discussion though and I could see him sneaking into the top 12.

 

[deancheated]

Helu is not that good

 

[BustedKnuckles]

he just needs a chance ...and the new coach will give it to him im sure

 

[Stompin' Tom Connors]

Going to be interesting to see if the new WRs and a pass-catching TE actually helps keep D's more honest and give Latavius more room. In the last few years, opponents have just stacked the box against the run and dared the Raiders to beat them with sub-par QBs and WRs.

 

[ldizzle]

Do not trade Murray for Hyde. Hyde sucks and now the 9ers just drafted a RB that's better.

Helu is better than people think and is a significant threat to take over 3rd duties completely which will cap Murray's upside. He's squarely in the RB2 discussion though and I could see him sneaking into the top 12.

lol @ that Hyde sucks and they drafted a better rb

 

[Chaka]

In a redraft I think he has to be considered towards the back end of RB#1s. Right now in my redraft I will probably start considering L.Murray right around RB 9-11.

In no particular order the RBs I see clearly ahead of him are:

Charles - KC

Lynch - Sea

Lacy - GB

ADP - Min

McCoy - Buf

Bell - Pit

Forte - Chi

Foster- Hou

At this point you really start to see question marks emerge:

Anderson (Den) - I think he is the man and Kubs is the coach-man for RBs but Ball and Hillman are there. I take him before Murray with confidence.

Murray (Phi) - Sure Philly paid him and Kelly likes to run but Matthews and Sproles are far better than Helu & TRich (worlds better). Durability will also always be a concern with him. I probably take him ahead of Latavius Murray but I could be talked out of it.

Gordon (SD) - Seems to me that he is in a very similar situation to L.Murray. He should be awesome but Woodhead, Brown, Oliver are better than Helu & TRich, aren't they? Everyone likes the shiny rookie but Murray is pretty shiny too. Since we know very little about either of them at this level I think these two will be flip/flopped on a lot of redraft boards this year.

Morris (Was) - He can't catch. Will Matt Jones eat into his opportunities? I would not confidently take him ahead of Murray.

Forsett (Bal) - Losing Kubiak should make everyone hesitate just a little. Landing Trestman is good news so I still like Forsett but a new system and a solid rookie in Buck Allen give me pause. Particularly around the red zone.

McFadden (Dal) - The offensive line and his talent (on paper) make him interesting but...come on who has faith?

Sankey (Ten) - Boy he sure didn't do much last year, did he? But he still looks to be solidly in position to be the lead back in Tenn this year. I take Murray over him every day of the week and twice on Sunday but I could see some people preferring Sankey...I guess.

When I look at the rest of the NFL I don't see many others who are in a position to receive as many opportunities as Latavius looks to be in line for. All of these other situations are either full blown time shares (moreso than what you can expect from Helu & TRich in Oak) or just have question marks all over the place.

Miami - Miller & Ajayi

NYJ - Ivory, Ridley & Stacy

Cinci - Bernard & Hill

Cle - Crow & West

Indy - Gore & Herron (and pass, pass, pass AND Luck is a TD vulture)

Jax - Robinson & Yeldon (and maybe Gerhart)

NYG - Jennings, Williams, Vereen

Det - Bell, Riddick, Winn & Abdullah

TB - Rainey, Martin, Sims & James

Car - Stewart may be the man but, like McFadden, who has confidence (plus Cam is a TD vulture)

NO - Ingram & Spiller

Atl - Freeman, Smith, Coleman

StL - Mason, Cunningham & Gurley recovering from an ACL

SF - Hyde, Hunter, Bush & Mike Davis

Ari - Ellington & David Johnson

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Nice breakdown by the guy who joined here 2 days before me.

 

[Shutout]

Hadn't thought about this too much but maybe he COULD be a top 10 guy. MJD did it on a terrible team in Jacksonville and who was the coach for that team?

 

[Chaka]

great work...I agree with almost everything although I would quickly take Demarco

Yeah DeMarco is a much more proven RB at this level, is definitely on a better team and they have good talent on the offensive line. But IMO there are still a couple legitimate concerns.

Health is a big one but he kept it together last year so why worry about it now.

Competition is better in Phi with Matthews and Sproles vying for touches, but Chip loves to run and the best talent should win out and that is DeMarco.

I think my biggest concern has to do with how Chip is steamrolling the team. Beyond the talent they have let go it just seems like Chip is running roughshod over everyone and with all the turnover (and the willingness to put anyone on the trade block) I wonder how that is playing among the remaining players.

Again, I take DeMarco over Latavius but I have enough concerns to have to think about it.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

great work...I agree with almost everything although I would quickly take Demarco

Yeah DeMarco is a much more proven RB at this level, is definitely on a better team and they have good talent on the offensive line. But IMO there are still a couple legitimate concerns.

Health is a big one but he kept it together last year so why worry about it now.

Competition is better in Phi with Matthews and Sproles vying for touches, but Chip loves to run and the best talent should win out and that is DeMarco.

I think my biggest concern has to do with how Chip is steamrolling the team. Beyond the talent they have let go it just seems like Chip is running roughshod over everyone and with all the turnover (and the willingness to put anyone on the trade block) I wonder how that is playing among the remaining players.

Again, I take DeMarco over Latavius but I have enough concerns to have to think about it.

I see your Philly concerns to be real. It's important that they get off to a good start, more that most teams for this reason.

Winning cures almost everything.

 

[James Daulton]

I'd move Forsett up into that first list. He will get fewer carries but should catch a ton of passes this year. Not much competition either.

 

[Chaka]

I'd move Forsett up into that first list. He will get fewer carries but should catch a ton of passes this year. Not much competition either.

I can totally see the argument in favor of that position.

I like the Trestman signing to replace Kubiak. Forsett seems to fit the multi-purpose back that Trestman favors, heck Forsett is practically a Charlie Garner clone physically and Garner had his best season in 2002 at age 30 with Trestman calling the shots. Plus Trestman really favors going with a primary back.

However I am very wary of older players coming off career years, particularly when they are changing from the system that allowed them to have their career year in the first place. I don't care how favorable the new system it isn't the one that allowed Forsett to flourish so it is a question mark. And despite Trestman favoring a lead back they did draft Buck Allen who is a young, big, physical 3-down type back (6'1", 220lbs which makes him physically identical to Forte) who had a monster year at USC (276 attempts for 1,489 yards, 5.4 ypa and 11 TDs with 41 catches for 458 yards, 11.2 ypr and another TD). He looks a lot like Matt Forte actually so while I like Forsett at the very least Allen is a threat to take the short yardage work from him and possibly more.

Still ultimately Baltimore is a better team than Oakland and should be in position to run the ball more than Oakland. Last year they had 111 more carries as a team, I think that gap will close but it should still favor Baltimore so I can easily see why someone would put Forsett ahead of Latavius.

 

[Faust]

Raiders' Latavius Murray 'has a chance at a huge year'

 

[Faust]

Raiders RB Latavius Murray making strong showing, should enter training camp as man to beat for job as lead runner:

http://www.ibabuzz.com/oaklandraiders/2015/06/10/raiders-rb-latavius-murray-making-strong-showing-should-enter-training-camp-as-man-to-beat-for-job-as-lead-runner/

 

[ShaHBucks]

He runs upright

 

[squistion]

He runs upright

So did Eric Dickerson. Just sayin...

 

[One]

If it weren't Trent it would be another RB. Let's be honest here...they were looking for someone to be their starter. They went after Demarco and got outbid. After that, they still weren't satisfied with just Latavius...so they got Trent. Now Trent is "Del Rio's guy"...hand picked by the head coach. We know how coaches like to bring in "their guys". We all know Latavius is more explosive than Trent...but we also know the ridiculous egos of head coaches in the NFL. Del Rio was never the smartest apple in the bunch...but now he has his guy. He'll give T-Rich every opportunity to get the starting gig. Whether Trent legitimately wins the "competition" or not, I think JDR will give him more than his fair share of opportunities since he was who JDR picked.

I don't think anyone knows how strongly the Raiders were going after DeMarco. I understand that they couldn't outbid Miami for Suh but I think they could have beat Philly's offer to DeMarco if they really wanted to.

It's been reported that they did offer more guaranteed money than Philly did, but Murray chose Philly.

ETA:

A source told the Philadelphia Inquirer the Raiders offered DeMarco Murray significantly more guaranteed money than the Eagles.

Murray gave the Eagles a discount so he could play in Chip Kelly's scheme, stick it to the Cowboys twice a year and avoid the annual train wreck that is the Raiders. He probably did Oakland GM Reggie McKenzie a favor. The Raiders should be building through youth, with exciting running back Latavius Murray a major part of that. Mar 24 - 9:56 AM

and yet another kick to Latavius Murray`s balls ...poor baastard never gets any votes of confidence from his team

It is curious that they don't seem to like him all that much.

They will like him plenty after camp and seeing him against the second worst running back in history trent richarson.....lol in fact they will love him

I read it more as a knock on his health. Agree it's not about them not liking Latavius. Missed his entire rookie season, then was off and on when playing late last season.

 

[Dezbelief]

If it weren't Trent it would be another RB. Let's be honest here...they were looking for someone to be their starter. They went after Demarco and got outbid. After that, they still weren't satisfied with just Latavius...so they got Trent. Now Trent is "Del Rio's guy"...hand picked by the head coach. We know how coaches like to bring in "their guys". We all know Latavius is more explosive than Trent...but we also know the ridiculous egos of head coaches in the NFL. Del Rio was never the smartest apple in the bunch...but now he has his guy. He'll give T-Rich every opportunity to get the starting gig. Whether Trent legitimately wins the "competition" or not, I think JDR will give him more than his fair share of opportunities since he was who JDR picked.

I don't think anyone knows how strongly the Raiders were going after DeMarco. I understand that they couldn't outbid Miami for Suh but I think they could have beat Philly's offer to DeMarco if they really wanted to.

It's been reported that they did offer more guaranteed money than Philly did, but Murray chose Philly.

ETA:

A source told the Philadelphia Inquirer the Raiders offered DeMarco Murray significantly more guaranteed money than the Eagles.

Murray gave the Eagles a discount so he could play in Chip Kelly's scheme, stick it to the Cowboys twice a year and avoid the annual train wreck that is the Raiders. He probably did Oakland GM Reggie McKenzie a favor. The Raiders should be building through youth, with exciting running back Latavius Murray a major part of that. Mar 24 - 9:56 AM

and yet another kick to Latavius Murray`s balls ...poor baastard never gets any votes of confidence from his team

It is curious that they don't seem to like him all that much.

They will like him plenty after camp and seeing him against the second worst running back in history trent richarson.....lol in fact they will love him

I read it more as a knock on his health. Agree it's not about them not liking Latavius. Missed his entire rookie season, then was off and on when playing late last season.

Sounds like Latavius Murray is the perfect back to fill McFadden's shoes.

 

[Warpig]

He runs upright

So did Eric Dickerson. Just sayin...

Didn't Eddie George run upright too? And Walter Payton? That's the track star in them. Knowing when to lower your shoulder to give/take a hit is what matters.

 

[Jack White]

He runs upright

So did Eric Dickerson. Just sayin...

Didn't Eddie George run upright too? And Walter Payton? That's the track star in them. Knowing when to lower your shoulder to give/take a hit is what matters.

Walter Payton was not an upright runner.

 

[Chaka]

Everyone runs upright...except Rob Schneider.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

He runs upright

So did Eric Dickerson. Just sayin...

Didn't Eddie George run upright too? And Walter Payton? That's the track star in them. Knowing when to lower your shoulder to give/take a hit is what matters.

While ShahBucks was obviously being sarcastic (being as he was the one that started this thread in the first place) all tall RBs look like they run "too upright". Payton didn't but Murray, George and Dickerson were all 6'1" or taller and they all ran "upright". Most RBs are 5'10" and shorter.

 

[Faust]

Latavius Murray continues growth, eyes Raiders' No. 1 tailback job

 

[Faust]

First Down: Latavius Murray, bright fantasy light in the Black Hole

 

[Faust]

Rotoworld:

Latavius Murray said he’s ready to be an every-down back.

"I’d like to think I’m a complete back, as far as knowing my assignments and protections," Murray said. "I know who to block. I can be a threat out of the backfield. As long as I’m improving, I think I’ll be fine." Murray shouldn't lose work to Trent Richardson, but needs to hold off Roy Helu for third-down snaps. The Raiders want Murray to be more consistent in practice and improve on inside runs before giving him a featured role. With Oakland moving to Bill Musgrave’s power-run scheme, Murray is one of this year’s top breakout candidates.

Source: raiders.com
Jun 27 - 4:24 PM

 

[Faust]

Is Latavius Murray a Fantasy Football Star in the Making?

 

[Faust]

Rotoworld:

Latavius Murray - RB - Raiders

ESPNs Bill Williamson reports the Raiders believe Latavius Murray is "ready to become a standout."

The Raiders waited until Week 14 to start Murray last year, but their offseason suggests hell return in at least a two-down role. Murray ran with the first team throughout OTAs. All signs continue to point to Murray being featured by run-heavy OC Bill Musgrave. A SPARQ superstar, Murray is a high-upside RB2.

Source: ESPN.com

Jul 25 - 6:27 PM

 

[Faust]

Rotoworld:

Latavius Murray - RB - Raiders

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, "everything so far at camp points to" Latavius Murray being the Raiders' "No. 1 running back."

It's no secret that Murray is getting the first crack at primary power-running duties in new OC Bill Musgrave's power-running offense. Questions surround the Raiders' effectiveness in 2015 -- their Vegas Win Total is a league-worst 5.5 games -- as well as Murray's ability to stay effective on a big workload. He's still a very small-sample-size player at this stage of his career. "Backup" Roy Helu is 6-foot, 220 with a career 4.44 YPC average, and could make things interesting.

Source: Vic Tafur on Twitter

Aug 2 - 8:36 PM

 

[Milkman]

Helu could absolutely win this job. Murray>Helu imo but Helu is no dog. I wonder who's better in pass protection? Murray should be decent at his size......

 

[Faust]

Pro Football Focus

Raiders Sign Roy Helu:

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2015/03/11/raiders-sign-roy-helu/

 

[Raiderfan32904]

Helu could absolutely win this job. Murray>Helu imo but Helu is no dog. I wonder who's better in pass protection? Murray should be decent at his size......

Pigs could sprout wings and fly.

 

[Fireinside]

Helu could absolutely win this job. Murray>Helu imo but Helu is no dog. I wonder who's better in pass protection? Murray should be decent at his size......

Pigs could sprout wings and fly.

Be careful with your words... in Italy, city called Verona, there is a soccer team called A.C. Chievo. Hellas Verona (rival team from the same town) fans used to mock them with words "when donkeys'll fly, we'll have a derby in Serie A". Well, it seemed impossible at the time, but nowadays the Chievo fans call themselves the "Flying Donkeys".

Just saying, stranger things have happened than a guy with 5.5. and 4.4 avg from last two season have shown that he is capable of being the #1 guy.

 

[Sabertooth]

Just look at Justin Forsett.

 

[Raiderfan32904]

Early camp reports for Latavius are very encouraging. He looks like a workhorse and it's going to be his job to lose. Barring injury, he's going to outperform his ADP easily. People are downgrading him because they assume the Raider offense will be awful. Take that discount to the bank on draft day and thank me later.

 

[Sabertooth]

I'm discounting him because he made two plays last season...two! They just happened to be very high profile. Also he hasn't been able to stay healthy. I think he's a perfect guy to get in a draft and trade away about week 4 when somebody panics.

 

[NFL-ons]

There is a lot of hype on this guy in my dynos and it seems to me that it is growing here. I know absolutely nothing about him. I looked at his highlights from last year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6dEZDvBQrI

and I am really unimpressed. He appears to have no wiggle and even though he looks like a beast, he goes down on first contact. He could very well be the starter this year but he won't be targeted by me.

 

[NFL-ons]

Didn't mean to double post.

 

[sontzu]

I'm discounting him because he made two plays last season...two! They just happened to be very high profile. Also he hasn't been able to stay healthy. I think he's a perfect guy to get in a draft and trade away about week 4 when somebody panics.

He made more than 2 plays last year. Not every play is going to be of the highlight variety. Sometimes the tough 4 yard run between the tackles is a good play. The injury issue is definitely a concern though