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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 Raider...

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...

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David White of the San Francisco Chronicle reports that a team administrator handed out copies of Mark Kreidler's recent ESPN article. Wow! This is getting ugly. Kiffin is gone very soon in my estimation. Not to mention McFadden is wearing a boot and Fargas may miss significant time with a groin injury.

I was at the game, so this is from a live perspective this time around. I should attend a number of games this season, although I don't forsee another pre-season game in me. I got to see the rotations and I paid very careful attention to the RB rotation. Fargas played only against the starters, and struggled a little bit, but he ran hard and it wasn't as if we were tipping our hand as far as running plays go. Solid. He had a couple nice gains. I find it hard to believe Fargas isn't going to get banged up and hurt again the way he runs, but at least we have some nice young backs to back him up this season. McFadden got a few carries against the starters and looked really good. It wasn't flashy, but he only got one outside run the whole game and never lined up as a WR nor was he thrown a screen pass. He runs hard and fast and its only a matter of time until he breaks some big ones. McFadden also got rotated with Bush against the second string defense (With second string o...

Breaking Down Fargas contract to find the hidden Raiders agenda and what it means for our cap situation going forward. 2008: According to Jason Jones, Fargas is due $6 million in 2008 . According to Jerry McDonald and the NFLPA, his base is $605,000 This means he is going to be paid $5.395 million in bonus money in 2008. Talk about a nice payoff. 2009: This is where it gets interesting. His base in 2009 will be just $2.5 million. 2010: $1.5 in base. I've confirmed Fargas base salaries with the NFLPA. Rotoworld reports all $6 million of the guarantees will be in the first year. I can't confirm this anywhere else. This is a clear cut sign that Fargas contract is a three year deal that could be reduced to one or two if need be. $6 million guaranteed in the first year ($605K of it being base) +$2.5 + 1.5 = $10.605. Where are we getting $12 from? How can he make all his guarantees in the first year and have those base salaries? Likely to be earned incentives could bridge the gap to...

According to Jason Jones, Fargas' deal is worth $12 million over three years with $6 million in guarantees. The contract could escalate to $14 with incentives. $6 million is also due to him in 2008. What does this mean Raider Nation? I see this signing in one of two ways. First off, the length is on the shorter side, with many people expecting it to be three or four years. Also, the deal is only worth $4 million per year, which isn't a huge number. $6 million in 2008 means just $3 (or $4 with incentives) due in 2009 and 2010. When I receive news of how the base and signing bonus is split I will let you know. It might mean a lot if we were to want to make him a backup in a year or two or cut him. The front-loaded deal does mean a couple things. Jordan and his $6.9 million are 100% gone. Also Rhodes and his $3.5 ($5.5 with incentives) is also as good as gone. This is where it will be subject to some debate. Does this mean for sure McFadden is not on our radar? I don't think...

Ouch. This hurts for McFadden supporters. The terms of the deal will be interesting. One would guess this makes McFadden a lot less of an option, but never rule anything out with Al Davis. Bump up the likelihood the Raiders are going for a defensive lineman. Dorsey, Ellis, Long all now become tops on our list (or so it would appear). McFadden's receiving ability may still make him a darkhorse, especially if Dorsey and Chris Long are off the board. If ever there was a year to move down, this would be it. My guess is we could move down to 8 and still get Ellis. That would mean a #22 pick or so if we are going down from #3 or a #50 pick if we are moving down from #4. Then we could possibly acquire a SS and WR.

This will be the first of my posts analyzing the possible 1st and 2nd round draft selections and our positional needs. Please note that other RBs could come into play in the second round that aren't covered here. Before I go into McFadden, let's look at our other options. Justin Fargas (FA): However, Fargas is not the long term answer. Fargas has only had one completely healthy season and he didn't play that much. The more carries he gets, the more he seems to get hurt. I LOVED what he did for us this year. I like him. However, this is football team and our team needs to be smart about spending and what is really best. Also, keep this in mind. Despite Fargas success, he had just 4 TD. He also wasn't that consistant, with only four 100 yard games in 11. There was still a reason Jordan started over Fargas at the beginning of the year whether we want to admit it or not. I just don't understand spending the money on a 28 year-old RB with a long injury history. Also, Far...