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Remember Brian Schneider? I bet most of the Raider Nation does, because Schneider coached the Raiders special teams in 2007 and 2008. Schneider was considered by many to be a great special teams coordinator for the Raiders. What was so special about Schneider’s special teams units? Was it kick coverage or return yardage? Is John Fassel worse? He’s certainly hasn’t received the praise like Schneider did during his time with the Raiders. Both punting and kicking seem to be more dependent on the kicker and punter. Obviously, the Raiders have two of the best. One thing you can get from punting and kicking is blocks and return touchdowns which is more indicative of coverage and coaching. In 2007, Brian Schneider’s first season as a coach for the Raiders, the return units were near the bottom in return yardage and had no return touchdowns. The Raiders allowed punt return touchdowns, but were middle of the pack in regards to kick coverage. Schneider’s fortunes turned in 2008, with five re...

Per a source and as speculated, receiver Yamon Figurs has been released to make room for offensive tackle Erik Pears. Keeping Figurs on the active roster was a mistake because his contract is now guaranteed for the entire season. In the end, his ball security issues may have been his demise and his talents are somewhat redundant. He also failed to take accountability for his fumble on the opening kickoff. While Figurs had a point, that's not what you want a player to say.

One of the major problems with the 2009 Raiders was the struggle in the return game. Fullback Gary Russell became the primary kick returner when Nick Miller was injured for the season. Johnnie Lee Higgins was the primary punt returner, but showed little of the promise in 2009 that he did in 2007 and 2008. The Raiders ranked 32nd in the league in kick return average in 2009 with just 18.2 yards per return and 29th in the league in punt return average with just 4.9 yards per return. There are three phases of the game: offense, defense and special teams. The Raiders have two of the best legs in the game to kick and punt, but in 2009 the worst return game. A lot more goes into the return game in the form of blocking than we can cover here and the personnel are so fluid at this point it isn’t worth the effort. One way the Raiders can improve drastically is to give the return duties to a new player. Gary Russell’s lack of speed and agility really hurt the return game. Warren Sapp at one poin...