Las Vegas Raiders 2020 rookie grades: Henry Ruggs III falls short
The Las Vegas Raiders had a top-heavy 2020 rookie class with two first-round picks but how did those picks grade out in their first NFL seasons?
There was a ton of excitement surrounding the Las Vegas Raiders in the 2020 NFL Draft as they were armed with two first-round picks (both in the top 20) in addition to three third-round picks. At the end of the day, they made seven selections in the first 140 picks and that was their rookie class that they hoped would help get them over the hump.
As we know, that didn’t transpire. The Raiders once again finished on the outside of the playoff picture despite a phenomenal season from quarterback Derek Carr. Jon Gruden’s plan for this team has flashed some promising results but we haven’t seen it come to fruition for a full 17-week season.
More troubling, though, the Raiders didn’t get many meaningful contributions from the rookies they were ultimately counting on. So with that in mind, let’s go through the seven members of the Las Vegas Raiders 2020 rookie class and grade them on their first NFL seasons.
Las Vegas Raiders rookie grade: Henry Ruggs III, WR (Rd. 1, Pick 12)
The worst-kept secret in the NFL is that the Las Vegas Raiders were going to use the 12th overall pick on a wide receiver. They had a desperate need and faced a rich class to choose from. So when they came on the clock and had their pick of every wideout in the 2020 draft cycle, it was a bit shocking that speedster Henry Ruggs III was the pick.
Ruggs undoubtedly had his moments in his rookie season, most notably the game-winning touchdown against the Jets when he used his burners to beat an all-out blitz in the waning seconds. However, he finished the year with only 452 yards and two touchdowns. That looks worse when you consider the years that Justin Jefferson, CeeDee Lamb, Brandon Aiyuk and many other wide receivers taken after him enjoyed.
Coming into the draft, I touted Ruggs for being more than just a vertical deep threat. However, he didn’t show that in year one. He struggled to separate consistently and was banged up for a lot of the year as well. For him to live up to where he was drafted, big strides need to be made in his sophomore campaign. Grade: C