RB Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders

HT: 6-1, WT: 211, Born: 8-27-1987, College: Arkansas, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 4

2013 Projections

Average draft position

Current as of May 6th. [Full ADP list]

Overall: A Johnson (31), D Wilson (32), Darren McFadden (33), L Fitzgerald (34), P Manning (35)
Position: F Gore (28-RB17), D Wilson (32-RB18), Darren McFadden (33 - RB19), R Bush (41-RB20), D Sproles (44-RB21)
Click here for a comparison of these players.

PPR Average draft position

Current as of May 6th. [Full PPR ADP list]

Overall: R White (27), S Jackson (28), Darren McFadden (29), S Ridley (30), R Cobb (31)
Position: D Murray (26-RB14), S Jackson (28-RB15), Darren McFadden (29 - RB16), S Ridley (30-RB17), D Sproles (34-RB18)
Click here for a comparison of these players.

Latest News

Raiders | Rookie RB Murray 'mirrors' McFadden (Sun May 12, 09:09 PM) - CSNBayArea.com thinks rookie RB Latavius Murray (Central Florida) 'mirrors' Darren McFadden's skill set. Murray will compete with veteran Rashad Jennings to be the primary backup behind McFadden in 2013.

Our View: Our Cecil Lammey and Sigmund Bloom watched Murray during the week of practice for the Texas VS The Nation Game earlier this year in Allen, TX and came away impressed. He's a swift runner who reminds some in the scouting community or Demarco Murray (Cowboys) or Chris Brown (former Titans). McFadden has never played more than 13 games in a regular season during his career. The backup RBs are likely to play at some point this year.
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2013 Schedule

2012 Game Summaries

Week 1 - McFadden had one of the oddest games you’ll see a player have. He had 28 offensive touches, but just 118 total yards. He showed outstanding hands on several receptions, but also dropped a few easy ones with nobody around him. He showed great burst running the ball out of the backfield early on, but averaged just over two yards per carry when all was said and done. And with the main concern being the injury worries, the Raiders put him on a pace that would result in nearly 450 touches for the season if he keeps it up. McFadden was the focal point of not only the Raider offense, but also the San Diego defense. Just about every play was designed to go to him in some way, and several times he appeared one or two moves away from taking it the distance. He had ten offensive touches in the first quarter and seventeen in the first half, as Oakland simply used him non-stop – almost comically. The Raiders had a total of 53 offensive touches, and McFadden accounted for 53% of them. It became very apparent early on that McFadden was going to be the go-to guy, and San Diego had planned accordingly. The defense swarmed to him every time he got near the football, leading to several negative rush plays that really hurt his overall stat line. While the running lanes were tough to come by, he had a lot more success in the passing game. The Charger defense did a good job containing him, because he looked like he could break one for a big gain at any moment. He showed great hands on a leaping catch of a bullet pass thrown over his head, snatching it out of mid-air for a minimal gain but possibly saving an interception. But he also allowed a couple of passes to bounce off his hands, perhaps due to some fatigue over the heavy workload. He gave his owners a scare early in the first half when he was hit hard near the sideline and was shown crouching and being looked at by trainers. But he returned a few plays later looking no worse for wear. He came close to scoring late in the first half when he took a third down and 15 checkdown and picked up a full head of steam towards the goal line. He ended up about a yard and a half shy due to some excellent tackling by the Chargers, and he never came as close to scoring the rest of the way. On a side note, McFadden wisely passed up several opportunities to lower his shoulder and fight for yardage, instead opting to take the safe route and step out of bounds. While the heavy workload might cause him to break down more quickly, the out of bounds option may save him some of the punishment he usually seems to seek out.

Week 2 - Mcfadden simply had nowhere to go on this day. He ran hard, smashed into the line, and continued to try and make things happen, but nothing ever seemed to go right. On one play, Mcfadden tested the right sideline, broke a few tackles, ran all the way to the left side of the field, stiff-arming and twisting away from defenders for a 3 yard gain, on a play where he broke 7 tackles. Outside of that, the only real scoring opportunity was a pass near the goalline that, while late, should have been caught. The Raiders also didn’t stick with the run, as Mcfadden only received 11 carries. The game wasn’t out of reach until the middle of the 3rd quarter, but 48 rushes to 13 designed runs is anything but balance in the running attack. Perhaps the Raiders felt that Miami was going to refuse to let Mcfadden beat them, but regardless, you have to get your best weapon more involved.

Week 3 - After two very mediocre rushing performances, McFadden finally broke loose in this game. On his very first carry, he took the ball off right tackle, bursted through the line, and went the distance for a 64-yard touchdown. He showed great acceleration and long distance speed to reach the pylon. After that carry, he struggled on his next few to find any space. His next seven carries went for six yards total. It wasn’t until the second half that he made another impact. He carried for 16 yards to open the drive and nearly had his second touchdown of the day. It was ruled a TD on the field, but replay showed his elbow was down with the ball just short. On the next play, Oakland tried to let him finish it, but he was stuffed by the Pittsburgh defense. The drive later ended in a passing touchdown. While he still had some difficulty with the zone blocking scheme, the team called plays that allowed him to run downhill and get to the second level of the defense – where he’s at his best. The impact of Denarius Moore’s return can’t be understated here either. With both of the team’s top two receivers on the field, defenses can’t completely key on McFadden. Monitor Darrius Heyward-Bey’s concussion in the near future.

Week 4 - After rushing for 100+ yards in week three (albeit the majority on one play), McFadden and the rushing attack struggled once again on Sunday. The game was quickly out of hand, but even in the first half when it was never more than one score, DMC never got anything going. Where the zone-blocking scheme has turned a relative no name like Arian Foster into a star, it appears to have had the opposite effect on McFadden. One of the best backs in the NFL, DMC looks average running the ball. A back that has always run with power and conviction looks tentative, never really exploding and is easily taken down when contact is made because of the lack of forward momentum. McFadden’s long came on the 2nd play of the game, but was only an eight-yard gain. Oakland did a nice job not abandoning the run totally, but it was clear Denver did not respect the rushing attack in the 2nd half as play fakes did little to slow the Bronco pass rushers. McFadden was also invisible in the passing game, getting only one target and picking up four yards on the play. The Oakland passing attack is predicated on a successful running game and Oakland had neither on Sunday. Oakland heads into their bye week with some glaring issues, but none more relevant than their struggling running game.

Week 6 - The Raiders said they spent their bye week tweaking their running game, as they've been criticized for not converting their zone blocking scheme back to a power scheme. Today, it was clear that whatever tweaks were made didn't work. Credit the Raiders for sticking with the run and their best player, Darren McFadden, throughout the game. However, a player with McFadden's talent shouldn't have a line of 27 carries and only 70 rush yards against a softer run defense. This was due to two things: bad playcalling and terrible blocking. Most of DMC's runs were up the gut, and up the gut runs don't work when an offensive line is overmatched and a defense is swarming. The Falcons clearly gameplanned to stop McFadden, but he did have success on a few outside bounces and stretch runs. There was also opportunity for draws and screens on the day, but the Raiders rarely utilized this. DMC's day was salvaged by his short touchdown scamper on the goal line. He also displayed some really solid intangibles. On a sack-strip of Palmer, DMC streaked down the field and tackled the defender who recovered the fumble at the 2 yard line to save a touchdown. The Raiders defense then held the Falcons to a field goal, which meant his tackle saved his team 4 points. He also had an amazing blitz pickup on a defender that would have surely sacked Palmer for a safety, allowing Palmer a completion out of his own endzone. McFadden also had 3 catches for 28 yards, and if the run game isn't working, it's clear the Raiders need to incorporate him more in space.

Week 7 - Another week, another game stacked up at the line for McFadden. On a handful of plays, the Raiders did ditch the zone-blocking scheme and ran some traps, with pulling guards. But they repeatedly ran into the teeth of the Jags line, with Tyson Alualu and Terrance “Pot-Roast” Knighton stuffing such tries. There were also a few tosses and passes in an attempt to get McFadden into space, where he becomes one of the most dangerous runners in football. In those instances, it took great individual plays by a defensive back or linebacker to limit McFadden to a short gain. Ultimately, he finished with 19 carries for 52 yards, and added 4 catches for 28 yards. Even on an ineffective day, he still tallied 80 yards from scrimmage, but it is concerning that the majority of carries he took were runs into the line that yielded a minimal gain.

Week 8 - The Raiders’ most feared and, at this point in the 2012 season, most frustrating playmaker, McFadden benefited from sheer volume to have a solid outing against the Chiefs. Getting his name called a whopping twenty-nine times, McFadden rushed for one hundred and fourteen yards. . The former Arkansas Razorback added four catches for twenty-eight yards. McFadden would have double those receiving yards and a He was Carson Palmer’s favorite checkdown target in the passing game. Expected to have a bigger day against the Chiefs’ bottom-third run defense, McFadden had trouble finding daylight – the holes provided by the Raiders’ offensive line were not there. On several occasions, McFadden found himself tackled behind the line of scrimmage, before he could even get into gear. While he failed to crack fifty rushing yards before the first half, McFadden got going in the second half, ripping off runs of nineteen, twenty-one, and twenty-eight yards. It is obvious McFadden and the Raiders are still having difficulty transitioning from a power running game to a zone-blocking scheme, but DMC got better as the game progressed. On his big runs, McFadden exhibited the dangerous skill set he possesses that makes him one of the league’s best runners – panoramic field vision, the ability to slip and shake tackles, a stymieing stiff-arm, and fearlessness running into contact. On his shorter runs, McFadden appeared timid and unwilling to run into contact. The Raiders’ offensive line hindered him more than helped him, given that the Chiefs met McFadden in the backfield several times. Still, there is reason here for fans and fantasy owners alike not to give up hope on a (thankfully) healthy Darren McFadden.

Week 9 - McFadden was bottled up before leaving the game with a leg injury. His longest run of the day came with his first carry when he gained the edge on a sprint to the left. He did well to evade penetration in the backfield before using his acceleration to sprint forward for seven yards. Things were looking good initially for McFadden as he sidestepped pressure in the backfield and scampered forward for another five yards on his second carry, and followed his blocking for another five on his next. From that point onwards however, McFadden was swarmed upon by the Buccaneers' defense. McFadden had very few yards on the day, and he earned all of them himself.

Week 14 - McFadden started the game and dropped Carson Palmer's first pass over the middle against single coverage. After that however, McFadden was very active and looked 100 percent healthy after returning from injury. He had a few plays for medium gains, before catching a touchdown pass on a well designed screen from Carson Palmer to walk into the endzone. That was his last touch in the first half, and his next touch in the third quarter was even more impressive. Running a counter to the right, McFadden evaded Champ Bailey in space before sprinting down the sideline for a 30+ yard gain. He obviously still has a lot of talent and can be very effective when healthy, but this team's offensive line is killing any consistent production for the offense no matter what they do. At the very least, it is clear that the Raiders want to feature him as much as possible.

Week 15 - Darren McFadden was the workhorse of the offense for the entire game. He tended to bounce his runs outside a little bit too often, sometimes resulting in losses. However, for the most part he was crisp in his cuts, decisive and showed off his excellent perimeter speed. McFadden fumbled the football in the third quarter when, after a short reception, a Chiefs player ripped it out. This was the only blemish on an otherwise efficient performance. The game was a statement by McFadden that, when healthy, he is the Raiders offense.

Week 16 - To label this performance as being bottled up would be an understatement. The Panthers’ rush defense was solid, granted, but McFadden seemed to lack any urgency or spirit in his runs. Bereft of burst, he trundled his way to the line of scrimmage as the Raiders relied more on the power-based runs (Power O, counter OF, lead), but found little success. A red zone touchdown was called back by a holding penalty, and penalties were a theme of the Raiders’ offense in this contest. It was a disappointing performance by McFadden, who should have made more of his touches.

Week 17 - After a whopping 28 touches in the first meeting between these teams, it was assumed that McFadden would get another heavy workload (especially Terrelle Pryor was making his first career start at QB for Oakland). McFadden did see a lot of work, but as has been the case for most of the season, there wasn’t a great deal of space to work in. He gained a tough 57 yards with a long run of just eight yards, despite hitting the hole hard and looking healthy all game. On one particular run, he showed a terrific individual effort on what should have been a huge loss. He kept moving, fought through several tackles, and somehow turned it into a six yard gain. In other words, McFadden’s poor stats in this game are hardly a reflection of his abilities. Late in the game, TE Brandon Myers caught a pass that took the Raiders to the 2-yard line. On the next play, McFadden was given a chance to score on an inside handoff but only picked up a yard. He may have been given another chance, but the Raiders were whistles for a false start which backed them up. QB Terrelle Pryor threw a touchdown pass on the next play.