Raiders WR Henry Ruggs III named breakout candidate for 2021 season
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With the No. 12 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Raiders had their choice of every receiver in the class. As expected, this appears to be a historic draft class as we’ve already seen a number of players break records and the depth of this group is incredible.
As we know, the Raiders select Henry Ruggs III from Alabama with that choice due to his rare speed. However, his rookie season didn’t quite compare with the rest of the class as he totaled just 501 yards on 35 touches. But there is still a lot of optimism surrounding Ruggs and the Raiders.
In a recent piece by Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus, Ruggs was named a potential breakout candidate for the 2021 season. Here is why the site believes he could be in for a big season in Year 2:
“Somehow, despite Henry Ruggs III being drafted to add a deep threat to the Raiders’ offense, Nelson Agholor was the wideout who stretched the field. Meanwhile, Ruggs struggled to find a niche within the system. Agholor is a free agent this offseason, and the Raiders won’t sit idle while a weapon like Ruggs goes as unused as he was in Year 1. Ruggs was targeted only 43 times, but he averaged 17.4 yards per catch and 5.7 yards after the catch. His speed clearly still plays at this level, at which point all he needs is the right looks to do real damage in 2021.”
Ruggs did average over 15 yards per touch this season and did make several plays down the field. If he can stay healthy and find a bigger role in the offense, a 1,000-yard season on limited targets certainly isn’t out of the equation. We know how talented he is, but Ruggs has to stay on the field and become more consistent. If he can do that, the sky is the limit for the former Alabama star.
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