Looks Like a Long Season for Raiders Fans
The Raiders Post
If the last two preseason games are any indication of how the Oakland Raider’s season is going to go. Then it looks to be a long and painful season for Raider fans.
In the last two games the Raiders have not been able to run the ball, stop the run or stop the pass. The Raiders finished 31st against the run last season and are 32nd, last, after allowing an average of 201 yards per game and 5.3 per rush against the Dallas Cowboys and 49ers in their first two exhibition games. This is not a good sign. Allowing 275 yards against the 49ers, with only 7 of those yards coming from starter Frank Gore, is horrendous.
We need more output from the defensive line especially Tommy Kelly. What has he done so far for the Raiders? Besides from cashing in on that ludicrous contract he was awarded before last season. Even though he was coming off ACL surgery, Kelly reportedly landed a seven-year, $50.5 million contract, including $18.125 million guaranteed.
He was to replace Warren Sapp with a play-making presence on the defensive line. But Kelly had only 4 ½ sacks last season. When his name finally got mentioned after a play on the Coliseum loudspeakers Saturday, it was for making a third-down tackle (on a 10-yard gain).
On back-to-back goal-line plays after the two-minute warning, Kelly got faceplanted and driven into the turf by the Saints’ backup right guard, Tim Duckworth. That’s embarrassing. So was the score: 31-0 after a 1-yard touchdown run by P.J. Hill.
Sad, sad, sad what the hell is wrong with this team. I know we are just one or two key players away from being competitive again but we just haven’t been able to get there in the last several seasons and it is really starting to piss me off!
Raiders Head Coach Tom Cable goes Buddy Ryan on Assistant
Word is out that a little less than 2 weeks ago Head Coach Tom Cable went Buddy Ryan on his would be Kevin Gilbride and punched an assistant coach, Randy Hanson. Reports claim that Hanson has a possible broken jaw. Hey if the fights lead to wins like it did for the Oilers back in the day, then…
The always volatile Oakland Raiders are now fighting amongst themselves — in the coaching ranks, no less.
According to a report Monday on the Web site National Football Post, Raiders defensive assistant Randy Hanson was punched in the jaw by another member of the team’s coaching staff during an Aug. 5 altercation at Oakland’s training camp headquarters at the Napa Valley Marriott.
Multiple NFL and Raiders sources have confirmed the victim of the alleged assault was Hanson, a third-year assistant who is in his first season with the team under the title “assistant coach-defense.” Two NFL sources have told FanHouse the attacker was Raiders’ first-year head coach Tom Cable, and “that Hanson never saw it coming.”
Neither Hanson nor the coach who threw the punch were identified in a Napa, Calif., police report taken Aug. 6 at Queen of the Valley Hospital. But one well-placed NFL source told FanHouse of the attacker: “It’s a well-known coach. Very well-known.”
Pressed to confirm the identity of the attacker, the source said, “It was Cable who hit him.”
According to Napa Police Lt. Brian McGovern, police followed procedure in responding to the downtown Napa hospital when Hanson arrived to receive treatment for what was described as an injured jaw.
X-rays were taken. The results are not known, although one NFL source told FanHouse Hanson sustained a fractured jaw as a result of the punch.
Hanson told police the alleged assault took place at the Raiders’ training camp site the day before, but he refused to name the attacker, which is hindering a police investigation into whether misdemeanor or even felony assault charges may be filed. A jaw fracture could warrant felony charges, but the fact the victim is unwilling to pursue the matter criminally is not surprising, given the cloistered nature of the tight-knit NFL coaching fraternity.
The police report is not public record, McGovern said, because of concern for privacy rights of the alleged victim.
“The victim didn’t even want any police action taken,” McGovern told FanHouse, “but we were following hospital policy that authorities be contacted in cases where there may have been an assault.”
McGovern said Napa Police consider the matter closed at this point, “unless we are re-contacted by the victim, and the victim changes their mind that they want us to follow through and pursue an investigation. At this point we’re not doing anything else with it.”
Another NFL source told FanHouse that Hanson was in the middle of a conversation with defensive coordinator John Marshall when the alleged attack occurred.
Hanson previously served under former Raiders coach Lane Kiffin as an assistant defensive backs coach. The two clashed famously in Sept. 2008 when Hanson was suspended by Kiffin after the defensive assistant openly questioned the Raiders’ game plan following a 41-14 season-opening loss to the then-Mike Shanahan-coached Denver Broncos.
“It’s a good thing that Shanahan didn’t have our players,” Hanson reportedly blurted out in the presence of other coaches, “or else he would have beaten us 1,000-0.”
Kiffin suspended Hanson for five days, causing a rift among a divided Raiders coaching staff that caused owner Al Davis to intervene. By that time, Kiffin and former defensive coordinator Rob Ryan were openly battling over defensive philosophy. By Week 1 of the ’08 season, Davis already was compiling a dossier to document reasons to dismiss Kiffin. The Hanson incident was one more page for the report.
Asked about the Hanson outburst, Kiffin said last September, “Randy had some personal issues going on. Randy still did some work for us, but he spent some time at home to get some things straight in his personal life.”
Raiders senior executive John Herrera told the National Football Post that Cable would address the latest Hanson controversy following the team’s practice on Sunday, but that did not happen.
The Raiders have a single 3:30 p.m. PT practice Monday, after which Cable is expected to answer questions about the alleged assault.
Raiders Looked Good in First Preseaon Game
The Raiders Post
Sorry for the delay, but I must say the Raiders looked pretty good in their preseason opener against Dallas. I might have to revise my 6 and 10 regular season record prediction. But, not just yet, it is still early and it was preseason.
I must say Darren McFadden looked good working with the first team, he showed a bit of that explosive speed we know he has. But I was more impressed by the short yardage runs up the middle where he was stacked up but didn’t go down with the first hit. Perhaps he has worked on his lower body strength in the off season. If the first preson game is any indication then McFadden should have a much improved sophomore season.
Michael Bush also looked good on the snaps he took and hopefully we will see McFadden and Bush more this season and Fargas will be used in a more limited role. Nothing against Justin, I like his heart a lot, but Bush and McFadden have more upside and I would love to see more of them this season.
Bruce Gradkowski looked like he took the lead for the time being for the third string QB slot. He was on his game Thursday night with some really nice reads and passed.
Of all the players though I would say Chaz Schilens impressed the most on Thursday, he ran good routes caught the ball well and made a very veteran move by getting up and running when he wasn’t touched down. With his size and another camp and preseon under his belt he might actually make a decent redzone target this year to go along with Zach Miller who only reached the endzone once last year, I expect some where in the 4 to 6 TD range from this year.
For all that was good in the first preseaon game it still shows we need some help at DT. Hopefully a long player steps up or we sign a free agent that can step in and contribute. We need some run stuffing DTs from somewhere whether they are developed or brought in, we need them and we need them now.
Raiders Trade 2-Time Pro Bowl Defensive End Derrick Burgess
The Raiders Post
On 8/6/09 the Raiders traded hold-out DE Derrick Burgess, in my opinion the trade was so-so. Derrick wanted to be traded and was holding out in order to force his wishes to be fulfilled. With his recent drop in productivity, rising age and $2 million cap figure, I really can’t blame them for the move. I would have liked to have seen them get a little more than a 3rd round pick in 2010 and a 5th in 2011 for the trade. In reality they probably couldn’t have gotten any more this year. If they had decided to move Burgess last year they would have had more bargaining room. Last year they might have been able to get two 3rd round picks or perhaps a late 2rd round pick as compensation.
Derrick did give the Raiders 3 production seasons rushing Quarterbacks from the edge. The signing of Greg Ellis who might see some snaps lining up at DE on passing downs and the two young and developing ends in Trevor Scott and Jay Richardson should allow the Raiders not too lose much productivity at the position.
