Can the Raiders Win with Al Davis at the Helm?
The Raiders Post
I have spoken with my fare share of Raiders fans and the consensus amongst them seems to be the Raiders will not be a winning team until Al Davis is no longer running the team.
Most people myself included believe that Al Davis is stuck in the past, and he thinks he can still win games with a vertical passing game like he did in the 70’s and early 80’s. This has proven to be ineffective, the last time the Raiders were productive they employed a West-Coast style of offense.
Al Davis has done a lot for the Raiders and the NFL, but it is time that he loosen the reigns and turn over the talent evaluation and football management over to someone else.
Recent history has shown a spotty track record in the last several drafts and off seasons. Oakland has made its fair share of questionable picks and free agent deals as of late.
Hopefully Al Davis will see the error of his ways and step aside, but based on his personality I doubt it.
So for us Raiders fans it looks to be an arduous few years.
The Raiders Receiver Woes
The Raiders Post
Should the Raiders go after a veteran WR, like Plaxico Burress or Marvin Harrison?
At this stage in the season and with the other players on the roster currently, I say no. I think the Raiders should focus on developing the players they have. Play them as much as possible this season and truly re-evaluate their receiving corps next year. If they still feel they need another WR they should see what next years’ crop of veteran WRs offers and possibly look to sign a veteran next season.
With Marvin Harrison not getting any looks, most teams must believe to be finished. Plaxico still has a couple years left but his legal troubles and fore-coming suspension need to be dealt with making him a buyer-beware proposition at this point in time.
Time will tell if he Raiders made a wise choice in taking Darrius Heyward-Bey (Personlly I think they made the wrong pick). It is also yet to be seen if Javon Walker has his head back in the game or if he is done for good. Johnny Lee Higgins showed some flashes of ability, the other WRs, well we still need to see what they have to offer.
What does the rest of the Nation think?
Raiders Top 10 Concerns for 2009
The Raiders Post
- Who is going to start at LT and can they perform? Whether it is Mario Henderson, Khalif Barnes or someone else questions are yet to be answered at this key position along the offensive line.
- Does JaMarcus Russell have what it takes to be an NFL QB? Though this is technically his third year in the league last year might as well been considered a rookie campaign; he still needs to learn to back better decisions and improve his work ethic.
- Can Darren McFadden stay healthy and improve on his rookie numbers? McFadden didn’t look to me the explosively quick back he was in college, whether it is the speed of the game or injuries that made him look pedestrian only time will tell. For my money Michael Bush looked like the best RB in the Oakland backfield last year.
- Will DHB show any sparks of potential? I am not asking him to come out and have a 1000 yard season but we need to see some flashes of talent, which will lend merit to him being taken so high in the draft.
- Will Tommy Kelly return to form of a few years ago? We need a stout DT to stop the run Tommy Kelly has the potential if he is in shape and motivated, he if underperforms again this year he needs to be cut.
- Who else can be rotated on the DT? The complete defensive line rotation lacked any real push last year especially in the middle, play from the DT position has been severely lacking. Gerard Warren played pretty well, but William Joseph and Terdell Sands really leave something to be desired.
- Who will emerge at WR? Johnny Lee Higgins, showed some flashes but still needs to develop. Javon Walker has been the man in the past, but is he washed up? Zack Miller is pretty well set at TE but we need some WRs to make some plays.
- Who will start at SLB? While MLB and WLB are set will Kirk Morrison and Thomas Howard respectively, SLB is still a bit of a question Jon Alston is penciled in but someone else could leap frog him.
- Will Michael Huff start at either safety position? The first round pick in ’06 lost his starting job last season and with the second round pick of Mike Mitchell and the Raiders keeping Hiram Eugene, Huff’s days as a starter might well be behind him in Oakland.
- Who will start at FB? The Raiders signed Lorenzo Neal but he is at the tail end of his career and I would be surprised if he gets cut in training camp, Oren O’Neal looked good in limited playing time but he still recovering from the injuries he sustained last year.
Raiders Sign Greg Ellis
The Raiders Post
I am not sure how much this guy can contirbute. This was a decent pick up, from what I see the Raider Nation thinks it was a good signing, time will tell.
Linebacker Greg Ellis has agreed to a three-year deal with the Oakland Raiders.Ellis was released June 2 by the Dallas Cowboys.
Ellis, the Cowboys’ first-round pick in 1998, has played in 162 games, all with Dallas, starting 156. He has 634 career tackles and 77 sacks.
He won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award in 2007, the same season he was named to the Pro Bowl.
He had 36 tackles, 8 sacks and 1 interception last season.John Clayton is a senior NFL writer for ESPN.com
Mel No Longer Motivation for Mitchell
The Raiders Post
I don’t know which Raider fans Mitchell (see ESPN article below) has heard from but every Raider fan I have talked to has echoed Mel Kiper’s sentiment 10 fold. All fans I have spoken with believe much as I do, that until Al Davis steps away from the football operations our team will continue to flounder and fail.
Posted by ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson
ALAMEDA, Calif. — Michael Mitchell has scrapped his Mel Kiper Jr. motivation plan.
The day after the Raiders shocked the league by taking Mitchell in the second round, the safety from Ohio University said he would hang a picture of the ESPN draft analyst in his Oakland locker for motivation.
Friday, after his first minicamp practice, Mitchell changed his tune.
“I was going to do it,” Mitchell said. “But I changed my mind. I’m not going to put his picture up. That story is dead and I’m moving on.”
Still, while Mitchell chooses not to remind himself of his draft-day experience, others surely will. Kiper was among those who sharply criticized Oakland for taking Mitchell so early. He said he had Mitchell listed as an undrafted free agent. I have since spoken to four teams that said Mitchell was a free agent on their board.
It doesn’t matter because Oakland liked Mitchell. He has great measurables and he was known as a ferocious hitter in college.
Mitchell couldn’t show all his wares in the minicamp because the Raiders didn’t wear pads.
Mitchell said the post-draft support he has received from Oakland fans has helped him in the transition. He said his Facebook account has been flooded by well wishers from the Raider Nation.
“They’ve been great,” Mitchell said.
