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Showing posts with the label Defense

The Defensive Scheme Mystery

Tom Cable said in his day two press conferenc e that Lamaar Houston would play "end" in the Raiders scheme. What? A 305 pound end? Bigger than Desmond Bryant, Richard Seymour and Tommy Kelly, While it would be easy to pinpoint this as a clear 3-4 indicator, the Raiders would still be lacking the much needed Nose Tackle (Cam Thomas?) to run the 3-4 defense effectively. That isn't to say they may not play the 3-4, but Cable's unwillingness to commit to even playing the 3-4 at all is the real twist. Cable wants the media and fans to wait until mini-camp. Why he wants us to wait until then is a mystery. Is it like this year's version of the wildcat, but on defense? Why tip your hand so early if that is the case? I remember Rich Gannon specifically mentioning how much "single high safety" the Raiders were playing in a game last year and I didn't think much about it until now. Gannon went on to talk about how rare that was for the NFL. Single high safety i...

Game 5 Preview: Raiders @ Giants

The Raiders are 1-3. A single win that came against a bad team in a game in which the offense played poorly except for on the final drive. Embarrassed against the Broncos at home and on the road in Houston, the Raiders seek redemption. Typically you would hope for a game against the Rams or Chiefs coming off two blowout losses. Wouldn't you know it, the Raiders play the terrible Giants. Whoops. The 4-0 Giants. 1-4 and the season is basically over for the Raiders. The Giants haven't really played tough teams, but the Raiders don't qualify either. Sure no one expected the Raiders to contend, but I am sure the players feel like they should. Al Davis and Tom Cable feel like they should. If the players don't give it everything tomorrow, the playoffs are no longer even an option and that puts Cable's job on the line. Keys to the game: 1) Offensive line play: They must win the battles at the line of scrimmage, execute the zone blocking scheme effectively, avoid penalties a...