Darren McFadden Smart To Sign Early

June 7, 2008 at 9:53 am | Article by Paul Hickey |

The Raiders inked fourth overall pick Darren McFadden to a six-year, $60 million contract late Thursday night, with more than $20 million of it guaranteed. It may not seem like that big of a deal, but this move bodes well for his fantasy potential in 2008. We can’t physically look inside the minds of players to tell just how focused they are, but we can analyze their actions and the actions of those around them. The fact that McFadden didn’t beat around the bush and kick and scream like last year’s first rounder JaMarcus Russell, tells us his head is in the right place.

Now, you may be thinking it’s a no-brainer anyway to take a deal that large, and it is. But the point I’m trying to make is that no time was wasted here. There was an effort put forth by McFadden to get a deal done early. He didn’t care about the attention that comes with a holdout, he just wanted to get on the field - and the Raiders wanted him on the field.

Even if you take the “focused to get on the field” thing out of it, the fact of the matter is that McFadden will be nowhere but the Raiders facility this off-season as a result of this deal. He won’t be dicking around at home during the day, playing video games with his friends while his teammates work their butts off in July and August. He’s in for training camp, which is a great thing for all rookies, but especially ones that expect to see large work in their first NFL season.

Guys like Cedric Benson (fourth overall pick by Chicago in 2005 who didn’t sign until August 28), Curtis Enis (fifth overall pick by Chicago in 1998), Lawrence Phillips (sixth overall pick by St. Louis in 1996) and Tim Biakabutuka (eighth overall pick by Carolina in 1996), missed part of training camp during their rookie season due to contract negotiations. Look what happened to them. McFadden has wisely chosen to avoid being mentioned in the same breathe as those fine failures.

McFadden also finds himself in a unique situation in that he is the most talented running back in a very talented stable of rushers, including 2007 1,000 yard man Justin Fargas and former collegiate star Michael Bush, who has a lot to prove after missing the last two seasons (one in the NFL and one in college) with a broken leg. Now that he’ll be in early, he’ll have a much better shot at earning a featured back role outright. The foregone conclusion that Fargas would be the team’s Week 1 starter, isn’t so foregone anymore. D-Mac definitely has a chance at that role now, but regardless of whether or not he gets it, expect a breakout fantasy campaign from him in just his first season in the league.

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