Gut Check

 Posted by at 1:00 PM  1 Response »
Sep 232011
 

After a week one win, on Monday night, against a division rival, the Raiders and the Raider Nation were flying high. The opening game curse was broken, the Prime Time curse was broken, Hue Jackson was 1-0 as a head coach, and the Raiders were back. Week 2 has brought everyone back down to earth a little. Welcome to the first, but probably not last time the Raiders have to look in the mirror and decide what kind of team they are going to be this year.

Hue Jackson had a lot of time this off-season to say what he wanted to say. Get his message across to everyone. The time for talk, however, is now in the past. This is a different Raiders team under Hue Jackson, but one win on Monday Night Football is not going to convince anyone. He has to get his persona to show through his players. That’s what good coaches do. Rex Ryan is able to get his attitude to show through his players on the field. Bill Belichick is able to get his players to always be right mentally. Mike Tomlin has his players always playing with a nasty edge.  Hue Jackson says he is “building a bully”  so he has to find a way to get that attitude to show through his players on Sunday or it’s just words. Gut check coach Hue Jackson, bullies get even.

The offense is playing with the “next man up” philosophy and have been impressive. Jason Campbell is playing his best football as a pro, making good decisions, trusting in his guys, being a leader, and most importantly throwing the ball well. Don’t forget that just about all his weapons on offense have been out at some point too. Darren McFadden, broken orbital bone. Michael Bush, not signed right away and arrived at training camp late. Jacoby Ford, broken hand and now out with hamstring injury. Louis Murphy, sports hernia surgery. Darrius Heyward-Bey, had a mysterious injury to start camp, and now has a knee injury. Chaz Schilens, suffered a knee injury in preseason. Kevin Boss, has a sprained MCL. Taiwan Jones, had hamstring issues that kept him out most of camp.

With all that going on Campbell has led this team and has played pretty well. That is a tremendous positive and should not be overlooked. The offense did what they had to do Sunday versus the Bills only to come away with a loss. The defenses will only get tougher the more film there is and the surprise factor is gone. Now the Raiders have to find a way to keep scoring and not start to breakdown like in years past. Gut check time offense, after putting up 35 in a losing effort, will you follow it up or take a step back?

The defense had a stats party week one. They shut down the run, had 5 sacks, they were creating turnovers, their blitzes were getting home and they felt invincible. That feeling carried over into the Bills game as well. At least for the first half. Then came one of the biggest drop offs on defense in recent memory. The Bills had the ball five times in the second half and scored five touchdowns. The Raiders had no answer. They had opportunities just like in week one, but this time, they didn’t cash in. They couldn’t get anything to go right, and at the end of the game they were left thinking to themselves “What just happened?” IT’S GUT CHECK TIME! The kind of games like the one last Sunday defines teams. They can accept that they were exposed or take it personally and make it right.

Winning is easy; losing teaches you about yourself.

Raiders Week 3 Fantasy Preview

 Posted by at 9:56 AM  No Responses »
Sep 232011
 

Alright fantasy football die-hards, if you are looking for information regarding the Raiders players, you’ve come to the right place. Each week we will break down the fantasy impacts of the Silver and Black in case you own any or most of them.

There were no major injuries to speak of when it comes to the skill positions and the only area where the injury bug has hit seems to be in the Wide Receiver position as was the case last week. Notable returns this week include the enigmatic Darrius Heyward-Bey and Tight End Kevin Boss, which will be discussed in our picks.

 

Running Backs

This week you need to start both Darren McFadden and Michael Bush. McFadden isn’t at the top of his game, but he has been practicing and will play. As long as he’s on that field, you better believe that he will be carrying the ball (and hopefully holding onto it). Expect him to put up similar numbers to last week, around 60-70 total yards. Since McFadden is a bit banged up, Bush will get more carries than usual, and most likely close to the end zone (hello six-point gimme). He’ll at least hit the 30 yard mark, if not more, depending on how McFadden is at game time. The Raiders staff is being overly cautious with McFadden during the week, thus the limited participation in practice, but he should be fine moving forward. Consider Run DMC a must-start in all formats and Bush to be a low-end flex starter in deep leagues.

 

Quarterbacks

Jason Campbell is clearly the better quarterback in this match up. His completion percentage is slightly higher than Mark Sanchez and he’s thrown less interceptions and only one less touchdown, but that’s mostly due to the fact that the Raiders have been running the ball. Look for him to throw about 200 yards and at least one touchdown.

 

Wide Receivers

Here’s the one area that many fantasy players will be curious to see. If you were lucky enough to nab Denarius Moore, this position will be in flux all year long. Currently, Jacoby Ford and Louis Murphy is battling injury and will not see action vs. the Jets. Darius Heyward-Bey, however is primed to go this week. As a savvy owner, I watched the situation last week and when DHB was a no-go, I inserted Moore into my WR3 and was handsomely rewarded. In fantasy, it’s all about opportunity and Moore is primed to breakout. This week, however, be a little bit more cautious. Coach Hue Jackson has expressed that Moore is locked into more playing time, but the matchup vs. the best cornerback tandem in Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie should give Moore owners pause for concern. Moore will not be sneaking up on anybody in this matchup and should be reserved. If anything, the return of DHB should justify you benching him for this week. Not the greatest of news for owners who were lucky enough to get him through the waiver wire, but after the Jets the Raiders will play the Patriots, Texans, Browns and Chiefs in Week 4-7. These are all WR-friendly matchups and he should reap the benefits then.

 

Tight End

Kevin Boss is in line to make his return this year and should be reserved this week on a wait and see approach. However, as the season progresses, he should be productive catching passes in the middle as part of the run-heavy, possession game the Raiders employ. Keep an eye on him this year as he could be valuable in Points-Per-Reception leagues.

 

Kicker

Sebastian Janikowski should be in line for a productive day as the Raiders square off against a formidable defense. If the offense stalls, look for Seabass to chip in from all over the field. If you own him, this is a no-brainer. Conversely, the Jets kicker Nick Folk could see plenty of action as well with the struggling Sanchez and ineffective Shonn Greene in the backfield.

 

Defense

The Raiders defense was gashed last week by the Bills and should be reserved in fantasy in favor for a better matchup. The Jets is a weekly play despite the opponent. My suggestions would be any defense playing against the Seahawks and the Chiefs, which would be the Cardinals and Chargers defense this week.

Davis Has Given Jackson Tools For Offensive Success

 Posted by at 12:00 PM  No Responses »
Sep 212011
 

Can you remember when the Raiders were without a real deep threat? On multiple occasions the Raiders had a roster filled with receivers who could only run in a straight line? The Raiders also had their fair share of divas at the position. Remember when Oakland’s pass offense revolved around dump offs and check downs? Remember when it seemed Justin Fargas was the only reliable weapon the Raiders had?

Do you remember all the years Zach Miller led the Raiders in receptions and receiving yardage? Do you remember feeling the entire Raiders team squawk after Miller signed with Seattle?

I am sure you remember the excitement in the media when the Raiders announced that Kevin Boss had picked Oakland over his other suitors. All the articles stated, “Well, he is a better blocker,” and Al Davis let a pro bowl tight end slip away. The Raiders were blasted for letting Miller go to Seattle and accused of taking Miller’s talent for granted. Kevin Boss has yet to play a snap and the Raiders haven’t skipped a beat on offense.

The Raiders offense has actually greatly improved since Miller’s departure. The Raiders are averaging over 370 yards and 29 points a game while averaging 5.9 yards per play so far this season. The Raiders boast the second leading running back in the NFL and even with four offensive players inactive, the Raiders still posted 454 total yards. If the defense can ever play consistently the Raiders will be a playoff team.

The truth is, with as many weapons as the Raiders have, even Brandon Myers would have the fans forgetting about Zach Miller. Did Al Davis know something we did not? Given an off-season with no workouts that his offense would gel together without relying on a premium tight end? Not signing Zach Miller saved Al Davis up to 20 million dollars and given the offensive production thus far that money can be put to better use on the defensive side of the ball.

Al Davis had faith in Jason Campbell. Davis gave Campbell the weapons and a coach to get the best out of him. Davis knows that Campbell, like Michael Bush, is in his contract year. Players generally perform their best in contract years. Even with a list of injures, the Raiders have playmakers. If rookie Denarius Moore receives the playing time he deserves he might have more yards than Julio Jones and A.J. Green combined.

Al Davis record of failures is long, but few give Davis credit for success. Give Davis the credit, he saw something in this offense and saved a lot of money by signing Kevin Boss instead of Zach Miller.

Studs & Duds From Week 2

 Posted by at 8:00 AM  2 Responses »
Sep 212011
 

The pain of defeat had a nasty sting to it Sunday when the Raiders blew a big lead in the second half and were downed by the Bills in the final minute.

This game, unlike the first game, had many more standout performances. Unfortunately for the Raiders, some of the performances were horrible. Fortunately,  many are correctable. Luckily, the team now comes home for five out of the next six games where they were 5-3 a year ago. Thankfully, the Raiders found out important things about their team in the process.

Studs

Denarius Moore

Yes, the rookie can play. He proved it Sunday. It’s going to be hard for the Raiders to keep him off the field. Who’s playing time does he cut into? It would be logical for him to cut into Darrius Heyward-Bey’s time, but that won’t be the case. Most of the damage done by Moore was from the Z receiver position. Jacoby Ford plays this position. Certainly the Raiders will not rob from Ford to give to Moore.

Moore is cut into the playing time of the Raiders third receiver. Chaz Schilens is holding down the third receiver role, but things get more complicated when Louis Murphy is healthy. That pushes down Derek Hagan even further on the depth chart.

Jason Campbell

Probably one of the best games of his career. He was comfortable with the Raiders receivers even with Ford, Heyward-Bey and Murphy out with injuries. Campbell is proving that when given time he can deliver. He was far from perfect, but it was the passing game that kept the Raiders second half meltdown on defense from looking even worse. Even Darren McFadden looked human with a critical fumble. Jason Campbell made the Raiders offense go on Sunday to the tune of 25 points.

Darren McFadden

143 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. He was overshadowed by the rookie Moore and his critical fumble. It wasn’t a great day rushing for McFadden as he rushed for just 3.6 yards per carry, but he proved yet again to be a versatile weapon contributing a 10+ yards average per reception. If McFadden continues to put up 150 yards per week he’ll continue being listed with the Studs. He’s vitally important to the Raiders offense.

Stanford Routt

Recorded his first interception on a great read of Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick. The Bills mostly stayed away from him after that. He’s playing well and was the only guy on the field that could cover Stevie Johnson. Naturally the Bills lined Johnson up on Chris Johnson and Michael Huff. Routt was the only stud on defense in week two.

 

Duds

Rolando McClain

Missing tackles are not something you want to see from your middle linebacker. McClain lead the team in tackles and made a nice deflection on a seam route pass that would have been a touchdown. It wasn’t all bad, but McClain needs to get better quickly. Poor angles, incorrect reads and missed tackles aren’t going to be tolerated for long. He’s a sophomore and he’s still learning, but linebackers unlike receivers are typically coming into their own in their second season. McClain needs to show he is coming into his own and soon.

I incorrectly assigned the blame for the game-winning touchdown to Rolando McClain. I had assumed the Raiders were in zone coverage. This was incorrect, McClain’s responsibility was the running back. So while it was a bad game from McClain it wasn’t as bad as I initially believed.

Chris Johnson

In fact, the poor coverage on the last Bills touchdown was the responsibility of Chris Johnson. Johnson also couldn’t cover Stevie Johnson most of the day. He was repeatedly beat in the passing game. Normally Johnson’s risk-taking way serve him well and he’ll give up plays, but make a few as well. That wasn’t the case Sunday. The pressure from the loss of Nnamdi Asomugha was placed on Stanford Routt, but in reality it is Johnson who was taking over at cornerback for the all-pro. Johnson immediately took to Twitter to take responsibility for his place and vowed to get better. The Raiders need him, behind him is youth and inexperience.

Pass Rush

What happened? Five sacks to zero sacks. The Raiders have Kamerion Wimbley, Lamarr Houston, Richard Seymour, Matt Shaughnessy, and Tommy Kelly and none could break through the Bills offensive front and put pressure on Ryan Fitzpatrick. As with many quarterbacks, Fitzpatrick can carve up a secondary with no rush. That’s just what happened Sunday in Buffalo. After obliterating the Broncos offensive line in week one the “vaunted” Raiders front four did nothing in week two. They should be hungry in week three and let’s hope they eat the offensive line and the quarterback and not a hot dog.

Nick Miller

Slip, slip, thud no way you should be a returner, bud.

 

No Time To Panic

 Posted by at 11:24 AM  No Responses »
Sep 202011
 

Sunday proved that the Raiders offense is good even with their starting receivers out. Jacoby Ford, Darrius Heyward-Bey, Louis Murphy, and Kevin Boss were all out. Surely they would struggle.  Jason Campbell showed that he may be  the Raiders quarterback for years to come. He made big throw after big throw. Rookie Denarius Moore had is coming out party in this game and could be the number one receiver the Raiders have needed for years. Once Ford and Boss are healthy, this offense will be explosive.

Nick Miller has proven nothing in the kick and punt return game. He should never return kicks again. Chris Johnson also proved that he can’t play man-to-man. He is no better than last year and gets worse every game. I would rather re-sign Lito Sheppard than continue to watch Johnson look like Demarcus Van Dyke did against the Saints. The defense looked great in the first half and looked they gave up the second half. They couldn’t stop the run or the pass. No pressure on the quarterback at all. The “bully” only showed up on offense. The Bills  offensive line bullied the Raiders front seven from the second half kick off till the final embarrassing drive.

What can Raiders fans take from this bad lost?

1. Denarius Moore is a legit receiver.

2. More zone and less man to stop the run.

3. Chris Johnson needs to play the slot and not the edge.

4. Darren Mcfadden is the best player in the west.

5. The offensive line is becoming a dominant force.

6.  Jason Campbell is for now our best option at quarterback for the next two to three years.

7. The defense needs to get into better shape; they appeared to be worn down late in the third quarter.

8. The path to playoffs just got harder, but not impossible.

9. The Raiders need to step up at home against the Jets and be 2-1 going into the Patriots game the following week.

10. If the Raiders can have 2-2 or 3-1 record after week four they will still have a great shot of making the playoffs. To do this though, the Raiders will have to end the bad streak of losing outside the AFC West. Can they do this? Only if the “Bully” shows up on defense for sixty minutes. If they don’t, it could be panic time after week four.

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