Oakland Raiders: Roy Helu a great, underrated signing

I recently felt compelled to defend the Oakland Raiders decision to take a flier on Trent Richardson, who has been nothing short of awful through his first three seasons in the league, but there’s no need to “defend” their wise decision to nab former Washington Redskins No. 2 back Roy Helu. Even though his deal was completed nearly a month ago, it’s still interesting to review one of the team’s best moves of the offseason, even if it was a quiet, minor signing in the grand scheme of things.

Held to just 102 carries in the past two seasons behind star workhorse Alfred Morris, Helu has quietly established himself as one of the NFL’s most reliable change-of-pace backs, and while Jack Del Rio stated that the RB competition will likely be between T-Rich and Latavius Murray, Richardson would have to really shed his bust status in order to earn more touches than Helu.

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Even though it’s hard to draw much from a sample size of just 40 carries, Helu clearly made the most of those rushing attempts, averaging a whopping 5.4 yards per carry. Per Pro Football Focus, 3.43 yards per carry came after first contact, and he also somehow managed to force 17 missed tackles in those 40 carries. That’s insane, and he had five more missed tackles than Darren McFadden, who carried the rock 154 times last season. Yes, that’s more than 100 more carries than Helu.

Throw in six runs of at least 15 yards, and you have some exceptional numbers on the table for those 40 carries. While Helu wasn’t nearly as successful in his 62 carries in 2013 as he was with his 40 carries in 2014, he still managed to average a solid 4.4 yards per carry with four touchdowns that season.

Of course, his main asset is his pass-catching ability, and he was easily one of the league’s most impressive pass-catching backs last season with 42 receptions for 477 yards and two touchdowns, averaging a whopping 11.4 yards per reception. Some wide receivers, such as Hakeem Nicks, didn’t even average that many yards per catch.

Despite only being 20th in targets among RBs, Helu was fourth in receiving yards and first among all RBs with at least 20 targets in yards per reception. Add in the fact that he dropped just two passes, and Helu, who forced nine missed tackles on his 42 receptions, showed both playmaking ability and reliability out of the backfield. This was especially huge for the Washington Redskins, as they needed someone who could operate as a safety valve and make something happen after the catch in the backfield given their issues at QB.

In college, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr showed a willingness to spread the ball around to weapons in space, as that’s what his spread offense was based on. Carr can obviously succeed in a pro-style offense and did so early in his college career, but it would still be huge for him to have a guy like Helu who can average over ten yards per reception, find the end zone, and make defenders miss in the open field.

Helu isn’t a star player by any means and probably won’t be a No. 1 back for the Oakland Raiders or any other team, but he does have potential due to his hands, low-4.4s speed, agility, vision, and consistency in the ground and through the air. Richardson has been a talking point ever since signing, but the big addition for the Raiders at running back this offseason was Helu, who is the most proven commodity on the team at the position (although Murray is the most exciting one of the three).

The scary thing about Helu is the fact that he’s only 26, and yet he’s already spent four seasons in the league. He brings both youth and experience to the table, which is a unique and important combo for the Raiders. And outside of a 200-touch (200 on the nose) rookie season, Helu has never 100 touches in a season, meaning that he has no tread on his tires.

If Helu’s upside, pass-catching ability, underrated performance on the ground in 2014, and youth weren’t compelling enough, then take a gander at his team contract. The Raiders got an absolute steal here, because they will pay him just $4.1 million over the next two seasons. Yeah, and the Dallas Cowboys thought they were getting a good deal with Darren McFadden. Well they did because he’s even cheaper, but Helu is most likely the better player.

It’s amazing how cheap Helu came for the Raiders, because he received interest from the New York Giants, New England Patriots, and New York Jets. The Raiders are getting one of the league’s most versatile backs for the yearly price of someone like DeAngelo Williams or Bilal Powell. And yes, Helu is making less money per year than veterans Fred Jackson and Reggie Bush, even though he is a 26-year-old on a two-year deal.

Nov 16, 2014; Landover, MD, USA; Washington Redskins running back Roy Helu (29) rushes the ball against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the first half at FedEx Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

The fact that the Raiders have two years of team control on Helu is a boon, especially since they will only give him $1 million in guaranteed money.

That’s actually a healthy sum of money for a player who has never been a feature player in an offense, but we’re talking about a pass-catching back who was second in the league in PFF’s yards per route run last year. He’s making less guaranteed money than Williams will with the Pittsburgh Steelers, so that’s a net win in my book.

Helu has $100,000 workout bonuses for each of the two years of his contract, and his $1 million in guaranteed money comes as a roster bonus for the 2015 season that is basically unavoidable.

Maybe I’m too high on this signing, but the Roy Helu addition was probably the Raiders shrewdest move of the offseason. This is a guy who will undoubtedly have a role as a change-of-pace guy in the offense, and he’s a darkhorse to start after putting up sneaky-efficient numbers last season.

Can he hold up as a starting back? Well, he has the size at 5’11”, 215 pounds to go with the the three-down ability and speed, so Helu is something worth watching closely in the build-up to the 2015 season. I mean, at the worst, the Raiders will have an excellent pass-catching back and No. 2 RB for the next two seasons.

I’m not expecting greatness or even a three-down role for Helu, but I am expecting the Raiders to look back on this deal favorably in two years. He’ll slot in comfortably as a great change-of-pace guy, and he is one of the best and most under-appreciated pass-catching RBs around.

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