WR Andre Holmes - possible FA target

[gettlemanjack]

PFF rates him as better than Crabtree:

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2014/12/25/2015-free-agents-wide-receivers/

Led the Raiders last year in both recieving yards and yds/rec

tall and fast: 6-4/210

2011 Combine: 4.51 forty

2011 Pro Day: 4.45 forty

age 23 (2011) - DAL - didn't use him

age 24 (2012) - DAL - didn't use him

age 25 (2013) - OAK - 431 yds (43.1 ypg), 1 TD - 17.2 yds/rec

age 26 (2014) - OAK - 693 yds (43.3 ypg), 4 TD - 14.7 yds/rec

Jerry Jones admits they were ‘impatient’ with him:

“That was the practice squad Andre we were counting on the following year,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said about Holmes’ performance Thursday. “We’ve seen him do that and have seen it a lot and a matter of fact, Tony [Romo] was talking about, ‘Man, we’ve got a receiver who is just outstanding and he’s probably going to be one who can help us.’ ... I guess we were just a little impatient, but he sure could get it.”

http://cowboysblog.dallasnews.com/2013/11/jerry-jones-on-former-dallas-cowboys-wr-andre-holmes-136-receiving-yards-for-oakland-raiders-i-guess-we-were-just-a-little-impatient.html/

Raiders love him:

Raiders coach Sparano compares Holmes' attributes to Brandon Marshall, a player he coached in Miami. "You like to have those kind of players," Sparano said. "The catches that he's made since he's been here have been those kinds of catches, contested catches, down the field, ball is in the air and he's jumping over somebody, he's making the really hard catch. So, that's been good to see and it's a comfort for the quarterback when he feels like he can throw it that way and that guy is going to come down with it."

...

"I definitely trust him, no doubt," quarterback Derek Carr said. "I like the size of our receivers also, the ones that play outside. I love giving them chances to go get balls. ... I definitely like giving those guys chances, especially when I know that they'll come down with it."

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/e1386340f8134a83945665a3451c0a46/andre-holmes-becoming-big-play-threat-raiders

Matt Tate @A_NewLookRaider Feb 13

As much as I like Funchness and DGB what seperates them from Andre Holmes ? Body? No. Routes? No ... Upside? IMO equal.

[gettlemanjack]

NFL @ nfl Dec 22

Top 5 Catches: Week 16

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-top-5-catches/0ap3000000448057/Week-16-Top-5-catches?campaign=Twitter_videos_top5catches

[TheRed]

Worth noting that he is an RFA, the Raiders will get the opportunity to match any offer sheet he receives from other teams.

[gettlemanjack]

NFL @ nfl Dec 15

Top 5 Catches: Week 15 - Holmes #3

http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-top-5-catches/0ap3000000444281/Week-15-Top-5-catches

NFL Network @ nflnetwork Dec 17

Top 10 Performances: Week 15 - Holmes #8

http://www.nfl.com/videos/performance-moments/0ap3000000445030/Week-15-Bridgestone-Top-10-Performance-Moments

[Nate Dogg]

I would like to have him to pair with Philly as our #3 and #4 receiver. I still think we need a legit #2 guy and idk if him or Moore could be the answer.

[t96]

He's staying in Oakland.

[top dawg]

Upside absolutely appears to be a difference anyway.

[gettlemanjack]

Coming into last season, USA Today rated him the #3 wide receiver sleeper you need to know, ahead of Kenny Stills, Rueben Randle, Jordan Matthews, Jeremy Kerley, etc calling Holmes "a huge, athletic target" that "is mature and has stood out" and "has our full attention."

http://fantasy.usatoday.com/2014/08/football-wide-receiver-sleepers

[top dawg]

Coming into last season, USA Today rated him the #3 wide receiver sleeper you need to know, ahead of Kenny Stills, Rueben Randle, Jordan Matthews, Jeremy Kerley, etc calling Holmes "a huge, athletic target" that "is mature and has stood out" and "has our full attention."

http://fantasy.usatoday.com/2014/08/football-wide-receiver-sleepers

 

I am not trying to make fun of this because maybe Holmes could finally break out, but just like in real life, Holmes has been wildly inconsistent in fantasy also.  Every time that you think that he has arrived, he fades back into obscurity.  Of course this could be because of the QB play (as well as the general organizational failures), but you'd think that a big receiver like Holmes would have staked his claim and made his mark by now. At the very least you would think that he would have created more buzz.  Who knows? maybe this is the year. But as has been pointed out, he will probably be a Raider.  At this point, it would seem like they would be the ones likely and willing to pay him the most. 

 

 

[gettlemanjack]

I am not trying to make fun of this because maybe Holmes could finally break out, but just like in real life, Holmes has been wildly inconsistent in fantasy also. Every time that you think that he has arrived, he fades back into obscurity. Of course this could be because of the QB play (as well as the general organizational failures), but you'd think that a big receiver like Holmes would have staked his claim and made his mark by now. At the very least you would think that he would have created more buzz. Who knows? maybe this is the year.

Holmes did lead the Raiders in both receiving yards and yds/rec last year and beat out Denarius Moore, putting Moore on the bench. And Moore is a guy you like a lot isn't it?

[Mol3m4n]

I want to know why we're even debating on which Raiders reject to take.

[gettlemanjack]

He's staying in Oakland.

I'm not even sure OAK wants to keep him. I believe they view him as their #3 at best, and OAK needs to upgrade their their top two recievers. Maybe they plan to spend big on someone like Cobb, or want to take someone like Cooper in the 1st R. And Raiders have a lot of needs, obviously, they might be saving money for bigger FA acquisitions. This article has the Raiders getting Jason Pierre-Paul, Nick Fairley, and Terrance Knighton in FA. It's not the names that matter, it's the idea that they might be spending big in FA

http://nypost.com/2015/02/09/the-top-25-nfl-free-agents-and-where-theyll-land/

[top dawg]

Holmes did lead the Raiders in both receiving yards and yds/rec last year and beat out Denarius Moore, putting Moore on the bench. And Moore is a guy you like a lot isn't it?

 

Touche! But just like you're being a Holmes' apologist, I am going to be a Denarius Moore apologist.  I can easily argue that Moore has been a victim of the Raiders' general organizational failure and lack of continuity.  Yahoo didn't even list Holmes' first year, unlike NFL.com, which is slightly amusing but they have both been in the league since 2011.  Moore has outproduced Holmes by a wide margin in regards to yardage, targets, receptions, and TDs.  His YAC is also better. He is faster, a little younger, and can return kicks.  Plus, he will likely be on the market, where Holmes won't.  

 

 

Moore:

Year Team G Rec Tgt Yds Y/G Avg Long YAC TD Fum FumL

2011 OAK 13  33   76 618 47.5 18.7 78     4.4   5 0 0

2012 OAK 15  51  114 741 49.4 14.5 58     5.3  7 1 0

2013 OAK 13  46   86 695 53.5 15.1 73      5.8  5 0 0

2014 OAK 10  12   27 115 11.5 9.6 28 3.6 0 0   0

Totals        51 142 303 2169 42.5 15.3 78   5.1  17 1 0

 

Holmes:

Year Team G Rec Tgt Yds Y/G Avg Long YAC TD Fum FumL

2012 DAL    7 2 2 11 1.6 5.5 7 2.5 0 0 0

2013 OAK 10 25 52    431 43.1 17.2 40     5.2   1 0 0

2014 OAK 16 47 99    693 43.3 14.7 77     4.4   4 0 0

Totals        33 74 153 1135 34.4 15.3 77    4.6   5 0 0

 

And, to me, Moore's highlights just look better and speak to Moore's higher potential for explosiveness. 

[Soul Rebel]

Would rather kick the tires again on Stephen Hill & Marcus Lucas. I really hope the FA that we go after is a true #2 flanker, and not 3/4 WRs like Ginn, Avant, etc.

 

I like what I've seen from Holmes, but like others have said - consistency.