RB Marcel Reece, Oakland Raiders

HT: 6-3, WT: 240, Born: 6-23-1985, College: Washington, Drafted: ---

2013 Projections

Average draft position

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

Overall: D Thomas (163), P Thomas (164), Marcel Reece (165), M Turner (166),
Position: D Thomas (163-RB60), P Thomas (164-RB61), Marcel Reece (165 - RB62), M Turner (166-RB63), R Turbin (168-RB64)
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PPR Average draft position

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

Overall: K Allen (175), Marcel Reece (176), T Eifert (177), M Sanu (178)
Position: D Thomas (164-RB62), Z Stacy (172-RB63), Marcel Reece (176 - RB64), M Turner (182-RB65), J Bell (190-RB66)
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2013 Schedule

2012 Game Summaries

Week 3 - Reece is one of the most versatile players in the league. A former college wide receiver, he is used by Oakland as a safe pass option that creates bad matchups. One of his catches saw him in space against a defensive end on a zone blitz. He was able to separate easily and make a first down.

Week 4 - With essentially no receiving options outside of Moore, Oakland looked to get the ball to Reece early and often on Sunday. Also receiving eight targets, Reece’s first catch was a perfectly designed screen, going for 31 yards. Reece slipped out into the flat appearing to seal the edge as Palmer looked downfield before finally taking advantage of a nice block from Brandon Myers and loads of open space. Reece was again targeted the next play, a quick four-yard strike. For such an uber-versatile guy, Oakland needs to do a better job getting Reece the ball in more ways than just screen passes, however. After the success of the first screen, Oakland went back two more times to the same play with absolutely no success. With only Hagan and two uninspiring TEs opposite Moore, this was the perfect opportunity to get Reece going down the field, but there just didn’t seem to be much variance/creativity for Reece. Yes Reece was targeted eight times, but all were within five yards of the line of scrimmage and three were the same screen play.

Week 7 - He lines up as a fullback, tight end, wide receiver, and is capable of making a big play at any time. Palmer found him down the middle for 10 yards in the fourth quarter, and Reece turned the short gainer into 35 yards, instantaneously getting the Raiders into field goal range. On the afternoon, he finished with 4 catches for 58 yards, on 6 targets. With Moore, McFadden, and Heyward-Bey all on the field, it’s easy to forget about the H-back. Reece would often be matched up against a slower linebacker, or an undersized safety when he was in the slot, resulting in an easy matchup to exploit for Palmer. Reece appeared to suffer a head injury in the fourth quarter, but re-entered the game. He continues to be an underrated, underused weapon for the Raiders.

Week 9 - Reece's first involvement came in the first quarter when he caught a screen pass from the wide receiver position and couldn't escape the attentions of the defenders. While trying to fend off a defender, he was being pushed sideways and fumbled the football. Fortunately for him it went out of bounds. Reece's second reception was a check down from Palmer in the third quarter when the quarterback was under pressure. Reece's biggest reception of the day came when he leaped over a defensive back down the left sideline. Reece led the team in receiving, but most of his targets likely were a result of the team's lack of a running game. When split out to the right as a receiver in the redzone, Reese beat the defensive back in single coverage again for an easy touchdown reception.

Week 10 - With Darren McFadden and Mike Goodson out this week, the door was wide open for running back production. Going into the game, it was thought to be a full-blown committee between Reece and Taiwan Jones. That was not the case. Reece received a vast majority of the playing time in the backfield with Jones relegated to sporadic snaps. In addition to his strength in the passing game, Reece lined up quite a bit as a traditional running back. Reece amassed 20 total touches on the day with most of his big plays coming as a receiver. Reece even lined up out wide and converted a third down on a wide receiver-like slant route. Reece showed that he operates best in space, but was able to move the pile on the interior on occasion. Look for Reece to be the main beneficiary and worthy RB2 in PPR formats, while other running backs are out as Taiwan Jones was not an integral part of the game plan.

Week 11 - Listed as a FB who often lines up as a TE, Reece looked like the best RB on the Raiders’ offense (both injured and healthy alike) on Sunday. Running behind what had been a ravaged, with injuries and criticism, offensive line, Reece wasted little time making an impact. Opening with consecutive runs, Reece picked up 25 yards on his first two runs. Reece did a nice job hitting gaping holes with power, but he showed some wiggle (especially for a man of his size) too. With Palmer clearly struggling early, Reece opened the 4th drive with a beautiful cut back, stiff-arming the initial tackler before breaking another as he rumbled for 13 yards. Always a playmaker in the passing game, Reece had the longest play of the day for the Raiders, a 56-yard catch and run which again featured a broken tackle. Reece caught the quick out and wasn’t even slowed as the much smaller Harper failed to bring him down as he caught the pass, not seeing contact until Malcolm Jenkins was able to angle him out of bounds. Reece lined up all over the field, including at FB, where he made a nice contested catch inside the red zone. Reece found a spot on the end of the line, too, working like a TE and running a quick out for 20 yards. Always impressive catching the ball, where Reece surprised was in how natural he looked running the ball. Reece showed some power (the aforementioned 13-yard run), some wiggle (on the cut back) and even showed some Arian Foster-like patience on a five-yard run. Reece took the carry and waited for the blocks to clear the lane for him on the run up the middle. As the touches piled up for Reece, he showed no signs of wearing down either, despite having essentially no history of a full workload in the NFL. With the game clearly at hand and 15+ touches smashed into his body, Reece was still running with tremendous determination and power. Getting consecutive carries to open a drive in the 4th quarter, Reece was met five yards beyond the line of scrimmage. However, Reece kept his legs churning and moved the pile another four yards. Surely a draining run, Reece took the very next carry another nine yards. A running game that has struggled all season, Reece transformed the rushing attack on Sunday, averaging 5.4 yards a carry. Reece also led the receiving attack as well, catching four of five targets (the only incompletion being a spiked screen that was sure to get blasted) for a team high 90 yards.

Week 12 - For a third straight week, Reece showed his worth as a traditional running back in addition to his soft hands in the passing game. His 19 total touches were his lowest since Darren McFadden and Mike Goodson were injured, but for the third straight game, Reece had over 100 total yards and a quality PPR performance. Reece looked comfortable in the backfield, showing some nifty moves and eluding the first defender on more than one occasion. He was also adept at gaining yards after contact. He was able to push the pile when there was little space inside and also show a second and third effort. Outside of one occasion where Reece did not get his head ahead quick enough in the passing game against the blitz, Reece was Palmer’s more reliable target against Cincinnati. Reece is at worst a quality RB2 while McFadden and Goodson are hobbled.

Week 13 - With Darren McFadden and Mike Goodson out again, the backfield was left to Reece and Jeremy Stewart again. Reece showed his well-rounded game with the ability to move the pile between the tackles, eat up yards on the perimeter, and make his usual contributions in the pass game. The Raiders offensive line blocked well on a majority of Reece’s carries with 3-4 yards available to him on many attempts. He nearly came down with a difficult seam reception, showing his tight end-like receiving ability. Stewart spelled Reece for large chunks of the second half before he reemerged for two late receptions in the fourth quarter. This was Reece’s fifth straight game of 10+ PPR points despite just 12 touches this week. He remains a viable starter in fantasy when McFadden is out.

Week 14 - Reece's first carry came in the third quarter after McFadden broke down the sideline for a 30+ yard gain. The Raiders went straight back to him after his first carry, but both went for next to nothing. Reece caught a pass out of the backfield when the Raiders were in shotgun at their own goalline. Reece took a draw play for five yards on first and 20.

Week 17 - Reece didn’t record a touch in the game, but that was partly his own fault. He had his hands on two different passes that both hit him in the hands, but dropped them both. The first would have been an easy catch for 10-15 yards over the middle but he tried to turn upfield without securing the ball. The second was thrown a bit behind him on a slant pattern. The ball bounced up in the air and was nearly intercepted, but fell incomplete.