Kenyan Drake’s Raiders Fantasy Outlook After Josh Jacobs Injury vs. Eagles

AP Photo/Rick Scuteri

The burden is once again on Kenyan Drake in the Las Vegas Raiders backfield.

Josh Jacobs left Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles with a chest injury, and the team confirmed he’ll be unable to return.

Jacobs missed the team’s victories in Weeks 2 and 3 due to toe and ankle injuries. Because of that, fantasy football managers already have an idea of what to expect from Drake in a larger role.

Through six games, he has run for 91 yards and one touchdown while catching 15 passes for 177 yards and one score.

When both players are healthy, the Raiders clearly see Drake as a pass-catching complement to Jacobs, who had 53 receptions through his first two years.

Prior to signing with them, the 27-year-old showed he could be effective on the ground as well. He went for 1,598 yards and 18 scores in 23 games with the Arizona Cardinals. While he wasn’t as productive with the Miami Dolphins, his 4.6 yards per carry in South Beach were slightly higher than his average (4.4) in Arizona.

His success on the ground in Arizona hasn’t carried over to Las Vegas.

When Jacobs was injured in September, former head coach Jon Gruden used a question about Drake to hype up Peyton Barber as another replacement for the 2020 Pro Bowler:

Barber was among the Raiders’ inactives for Sunday’s game.

And even assuming he and Drake will have some sort of split in the running game, the latter should still see his value rise with Jacobs unavailable because of the targets he’ll collect from Derek Carr.

At the very least, Drake warrants flex consideration in standard leagues, and his stock grows stronger in points-per-reception leagues.