One of the reasons why the Raiders were able to be so competitive last season despite a lackluster defense was due to the passing game. Specifically, the play of Davante Adams allowed the Raiders to compete with playoff teams like the Chiefs, Chargers, etc.
But will that change now that Derek Carr is gone and Jimmy Garoppolo is under center? Or will the Raiders get significantly worse production out of Adams in Year 2?
In a recent article by Kevin Patra of NFL.com, he ranked the top nine QB-WR pairings in the NFL going into the 2023 season. The combo of Jimmy Garoppolo and Davante Adams came in at No. 6 despite never playing together. Here is a snippet of Patra’s thoughts on the new pairing:
Garoppolo thrives over the middle and gets the ball out quickly, and he can use Adams’ otherworldly ability to win off the line of scrimmage to generate chunk yardage.
Playing in Josh McDaniels’ system should fit the quarterback like a glove, and his ability to complete passes under pressure will be key behind a questionable offensive line. According to Next Gen Stats, Jimmy G’s 118.3 passer rating when under pressure in 2022 was the highest mark for a single season in the NGS era (since 2016).
Patra believes that Garoppolo should be an excellent fit with Adams as no one in the league has been better at dealing with pressure. While Garoppolo isn’t as polished throwing the ball down the field as Carr, he is far more accurate in the middle of the field.
It’s certainly going to take some time for these two to build chemistry, but there is some optimism that they can produce elite numbers together this year.
