Raiders WR Jacoby Ford expected back Week 4
Alex Dunlap, Rosterwatch.com 

Raiders Wide Receiver Jacoby Ford, who missed a majority of the preseason with a broken hand and was again set back in Oakland’s Week 2 victory over Denver with a tweaked hamstring expects to be back in the Raiders line up for NFL week 4.

Fantasy Football owners should take notice of this development for a few reasons.

1) The organization is extremely high on Jacoby Ford’s abilities. In visiting with a Raiders Special Teams assistant at Raiders training camp, I posed the question- “Are you still going to have Jacoby Ford returning kicks this year- or is it too risky to put your 2nd most electric player in harm’s way on special teams?” (I was referencing Darren McFadden as the obvious assumption for Oakland’s most electric player)
He didn’t answer my question, but his response was very telling:

“He’s not our second most electric player. He is our MOST electric player.”

2) Denarius Moore has been a thrill to watch, and fantasy football owners that had the guts to start him in weeks 2&3 in their 3rd WR  slot as we recommended here at Rosterwatch.com were handsomely rewarded for their foresight. Jacoby Ford will cut into his production. They are different kinds of receivers, and clearly the two have room to co-exist efficiently in the suddenly exciting Raiders offense, but Ford’s return makes Denarius Moore much more of a hit and miss-type flex play. Jacoby Ford is the #1 in Oakland, and we don’t see that changing due to Denarius Moore’s exemplary performance thus far.

Jacoby Ford was all the buzz coming into camp as a player poised for a breakout year after showing signs of big play potential on offense down the stretch last season in the Raiders successful campaign to sweep the AFC West after moving into the WR role. He spent his first 6 weeks in the NFL as solely a kick returner. He had two games with over 300 total yards, while scoring seven touchdowns. He scored a touchdown in each of his last 3 games of 2010 and was looking absolutely beastly.

He is worth an immediate pick up if available in standard leagues, and will be more valuable in leagues that take return yardage and special teams scoring into consideration.