The Oakland Raiders shocked the world when they selected him with the seventh overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft, taking him over Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin. The pick was highly criticized, and rightfully so.
In Heyward-Bey's rookie season, he only caught nine passes for 124 yards and one touchdown. A very disappointing season for a top 10 pick.
He was determined to improve his play and worked hard in the offseason. His numbers improved as he caught 26 passes for 366 yards. Not great numbers, but it's a start. You should also keep in mind that the Raiders receivers don't normally get great receiving numbers.
Despite the improvement, Heyward-Bey has a lot to work on. He needs to be a better receiver past 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. Most of the catches I saw were on comeback routes where defensive backs gave him a lot of cushion. He needs to learn how to get separation on deep routes and how to find the open spot over the middle.
Until he can learn how to do that, the coaching staff needs to play to his strengths. What are his strengths? Speed.
A player with 4.2 speed can be used in a lot of different ways. Many would think to just have him run 40 yards down the field and outrun the defenders. That's hard to do when the player struggles to get separation when running routes.
There are so many ways the Raiders can get Heyward-Bey involved. For one, they need to get more creative and stretch the defense by giving him more running plays. They've done so in the past, but not enough. In his two-year career, he's only run the ball six times, but for 67 yards. It's clear that a player who averages 14 yards per catch and 11 ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
