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Showing posts from 2008

Rousing Raiders Victory Will Be Memorable

The last game of the season is always flavorful. For playoff teams that don't win the Super Bowl, they are left with a sour taste in their mouths and are eager to return. For the Super Bowl Champions a sweet flavor of victory. For non-playoff teams that lose their last game a rotten taste and something to chew on the rest of the offseason. For a non-playoff team that is victorious, perhaps a cleansing gulp of water that washes down the bitter taste of another lost season. Cleansing renewal may have been enough for Cable to retain his job. Cable certainly made his case for the Head Coaching job over the past few weeks. Al Davis may observe simple things such as Asomugha and Lechler clearing out their lockers early. A few things are slowly emerging from the season long Raiders saga. At least one player said Kiffin quit on the team. That is news to me and certainly puts some validity to Al Davis' claim during the freak show that was the Kiffin overhead projector firing. Rumor has

Win It For Philly

I once heard a national writer talk about the best NFL fans. They mistakenly gave the Raiders #2 behind Eagles fans. In 2008 ESPN did an embarrassing one, but that is the four letter word, I'll save that for another off season rant. However, one thing he wrote stuck with me. Raiders fans are among the only fans Eagles fans actually respect. That means a lot considering most fan bases hate the Raider Nation. If you are going to give small props to other "nations" than the Eagles and Browns fans have to right at the top (WE ARE THE ONLY ORIGINAL NATION). The Eagles need us to beat TB. Not only will beating TB give Philly a shot, but it gives them a shot to take down the Yankees of the NFL, The Dallas Cowboys. Oddly Jerry Jones and Al Davis are tight which creates a strange love circle considering the rivalry between the Eagles and Cowboys. We need this one for other reasons, but giving the Eagles a shot is a nice consolation prize.

Raiders Crush Texans. Cable Seeing the Light?

You have to wonder how far off this team is. In my opinion, the talent is there, in a lot of places. There are certainly holes, there are certainly weaknesses. Henderson has been playing very well. Fans clamored for that in like week three. Turns out the fans knew more than the coaching staff. Fans wanted to see Chaz Schilens and JLH get more opportunities, coaches delayed it. Now they are making plays. Fans wanted McFadden to get the ball more, coaches finally do it. Fans correct again!!! Why is it that the fans can see what needs to happen before the coaches? Something is really wrong with this scenario. Today we witnessed what could happen when the young guys get a chance to make plays. Cable slowly has done what we all saw needed to be done, no matter how hard it was to actually do. I don't think Cable is exactly the best guy to be the HC, but I do think he is the right kind of guy to influence this locker room. He coaches with balls, which you have to love. He is willing to ru

Tom Condon vs Al Davis

What will become of Asomugha and Lechler? We simple cannot afford to keep them both. We can't afford it, and we can't prevent it. We can prevent Asomugha from leaving with the franchise tag or Lechler with the Transition or Franchise tender. With both guys represented by Tom Condon, it looks like Condon is going to use them both as leverage against the Raiders. If we tag Nnamdi, Condon will get full market value for Lechler. He likely would prefer this. He won't let Either sign a longterm deal before making the Raiders decide on a tag, because doing so would limit his leverage. So both won't be back unless we drastically overpay for both. The best option for Davis would be to attempt to trade one of them before he has to apply a tag. That we he can maintain the value, but teams aren't going to trade for a punter knowing there is a good chance he is going to be on the open market for free. What this means going forward is that the absolute best option would be tradin

Raider Nation = The Wounded Animal

Everybody knows how crazy Raider fans are. Everybody knows how die hard they are. Completely freakish and fanatical. In some cases even criminal. We have always been a group of nastiness. We are the bad boys of the NFL. This all developed because the Raiders used to be the bad boys of the NFL. Every teenage boy in the 1970s wanted to be a Raider. The rebel, the nasty bad ass mother. Raiders fans are wired different. We are the kind of fans that fly of the handle when a coach calls a fake FG run to the 290 lb kicker on 4th and 10, because we should be knocking around the other team so badly that we don't need to go for it in that situation. That is who the fans are and what the team used to be. My friends, that isn't the Raiders team anymore. They quit in the Atlanta game, they quit in the San Diego game, and they probably quit even more than that. Certainly it isn't every player, but when you are talking about the team, collectively they quit. McFadden has even caught the f

2nd Quarter Summary 1

Sproles easily makes it to the endOne on the screen pass. Pathetic. Kwame Harris strikes again. I hate him more than anybody now. Russell another turnover. Has he taken two steps back or what? We are losing this game more than they are winning it. Honestly I might stop watching at halftime if this keeps up. 9:49 to go in the 2nd.

1st quarter summary update

Stupid mobile blogging software is acting up. Two major things: Russell fumble was clearly a tuck rule. Tommy Kelly cost us a touchdown with his personal foul. I'd sit his ass down all game for that. So far a stinker but only die to a tuck rule and a stupid penalty. If we could magically correct those controllablea we might actually be able to stay in a game. Also, all black socks are back in the secondary. Last one we wore them we were killed at home by Denver on MNF.

Raiders Give Away the Game, Lose to Chiefs, 20-13

Talk about a sour taste. Losing to a one win team. Nasty taste. Losing a one win Chiefs, tastes like rotting, spoiled, sat in the sun on a hot summer day, chunky, vomit. Well, it wasn't all bad. The defense gave up just 13 points (7 was the fumbled fake FG). That gives the Raiders defense something to be proud of. The loss, doesn't hurt us that badly, because Denver won in New York and put us in too large of a hole to climb out of. I don't think anyone really expected us to make a run, but mathematically, it wasn't the longest of shots. Now it is and we can put that thought to bed. Last four games in pts allowed: 17, 17, 10, 13 This kind of defensive performance is more than enough to win most of the time. Unfortunately, the offense hasn't shown up in any game except in Denver. People need to stop whining about Ron Ryan. When we are able to consistently play man, we are an above average defense that flashes greatness. Fargas fumble hurt, because it came a crucial t

Breaking Down 11 Games, Record 3-8

After touting how competitive the Raiders were last season and how close we were to turning it around coming into the year, I couldn't help try to compare this season to last, to see if we indeed were making any progress. I will be breaking this down into three categories. 1 score games = 7 pt margin or less and + or - 1 competitive pt, 2 score game 8-14 pt margins, and 3 score games, 15+ pt margins. 1,2, or 3 competitive pts plus or minus depending on win or lose. The reason I decided to do this was because record isn't always the best indicator of how good a team is. Certainly it is a good indicator, but I am just trying to figure out if the team is progressing or regressing. I wish it were obvious, but among fans there is quite a disagreement. 2008 -3 +3 -1 -2 -3 +1 -3 -3 -2 -1 +3 11 Games = -11 (record 3-8) 2007 -2 -1 +1 +3 -2 -1 -1 -1 -2 -1 +1 11 games = -9 (record 3-8) +2 -3 -1 -3 -3 16 games = -17 In conclusion, we were more competitive last season through 12 weeks, but

10 things that will make the Raiders a playoff team

Some major homers think it is possible to make the playoffs this season. Some not so crazies think maybe next year. These things can be difficult to project, but I'm going to take a look at ten team needs. Fill these needs and playoffs aren't just a mirage. 1. Give Nnamdi a long term deal. 2. LT 3. RT 4. WR 5. WR 6. FS 7. OLB 8. DT 9. DE 10. LB 1. No brainer 2 & 3. Obviously, one of the glaring weaknesses is the OT spot. Finding replacements via draft and free agency will be important. Perhaps moving Kwame to RT could fill one of the holes. I don't like it, but you aren't going to fill all ten holes with a great or even good player. So finding a better protector for Russell's backside might be the best we can do. 4 & 5. There will be WR available in free agency and adding one in the draft could be a good idea, but not likely to make an immediate impact. We need this position to become a strength before the offense can become a juggernaut. 6. FS is going to b

Raiders Score 3 TDs, Crush The Broncos

It was a satisfying win. Sweet revenge after the week one debacle. As has been my practice recently, instead of tell you what you should think or what happened, which undoubtedly you watched it yourself or already know. I will just give you some of my observations. Feel free to add your own in the comments. I will post any good ones that I happened to miss. - The defense has been very good three weeks in a row. Against teams that have different strengths and weaknesses. No Hall, No zone, No joke. - Russell is looking very crisp with his reads and throws. The stats are reflecting the improvement. HE still hasn't been allowed to throw it a ton, but I do like that he takes care of the ball and has been able to get it deep into the secondary. - The lack of creativity on offense is bothersome. I don't think I am the only one who noticed that once the playbook was opened up, the offense started to roll. Hopefully we can keep the diversity in playcalling going into future weeks. - If

Bush Should Be Open to FB

Anyone should be able to understand Bush's feelings about being a fullback. Fullbacks are disappearing in the NFL. They are second class citizens as far as some personnel men are concerned. Most teams don't even use a fullback these days and are opting to spend the money on a third good receiver to spread things out. The last thing Bush wants is to get stuck playing fullback and be out of a job. In his mind, this is what a fullback is. However, getting Bush onto the field as a fullback could potentially put all three of our runningbacks on the field at the same time. Which is putting our best weapons out there together. McFadden in the slot and Bush and Fargas in the backfield, would be one running formation they might be able to use. Another would be the Wildcat formation with McFadden as the QB and Bush and Fargas behind him. Bush could potentially run some wildcat as well with Fargas and McFadden lined up on the field. There are a variety of ways Bush can get involved as a f

Losses Pile Up, Improvement Not Enough

I think we learned a couple things from last game. I just hope the team learned more than we did. We witnessed some improvement, but it wasn't even in line with the improvement we saw under Kiffin. I wasn't a huge fan of Kiffin, but I am a fan of consistency. Instead of a long boring post me telling you why I am God and my opinions mean more than yours (like the beat writers) I will instead just bullet some obvious, yet somewhat ignored facts. - Since releasing Hall,  we have almost played exclusively man coverage, and the defense has been much better for it. - Except at the end of games, and look what happens. Stop it Ryan! - Russell will be fine given offensive pieces to succeed. - Curry being deactivated doesn't make any sense. He can play. I am pretty sure it is Curry's attitude that kept him off the field. - Harris and Henderson are HORRIBLE, anybody can see that, this is priority #1 this offseason. - We are still a better team than we have shown, on any giv

Panthers Down Raiders 17-6

We found out some important things about this team today. Instead of writing long tedious paragraphs, that frankly no one wants to read because it was another loss, I will instead just use some bullet points. - The defense can still play well. - The defense didn't use an inkling of zone. Chalk that up to Hall being gone. - The offensive line is one of the biggest weaknesses of this team. Obviously. - The other weakness is, we have no playmakers at wide receiver. Obviously. - Russell is far from a bust, few QBs if any could succeed with the kind of talent he has to deal with. - Fargas still runs hard. - Walter might be a solid QB if he is ever put in the right situation. - This team didn't give up, which is an improvement over the past few weeks. - OTs are terrible, Harris and Green awful. - Henderson outplayed Harris, yet got less playing time. He drove Peppers into the ground on at least two plays. Which is saying something. - Peppers is the best defensive lineman in the leagu

2009 Coaching List: Possible to Unlikely

Jim Harbaugh - College Record 37-17 He has a mature relationship with Al Davis. Will that be enough to turn anything around? I think the good news is he would be a lot like Kiffin, but without the super ego and selfish throwing Davis under the bus mentality. Jim Fassel - NFL Record 60-56-1 - Crazy enough to take the job. Al Davis has looked at him multiple times in the past. Probably a pretty good coach in relative terms. He would do anything to get another shot. He has probably done a lot of thinking about what he did wrong and right in the past. Might be a good gamble. James Lofton - NO HC EXPERIENCE - Davis hired him to coach WR. Cable was given the job over him mostly because of Knapp and the other coaches. Davis couldn't afford to have half of his coaches walk midseason. He merits another interview, but I think Davis will hesitate considering the lack of WR production this season. Dennis Green - NFL Record 117-102 - Has been on the Davis radar for sometime now. I get the f

Blackout Confirmed. Miss Cleo I Am Not.

Something I speculated would happen two weeks ago has come true. No I am not Miss Cleo. In fact I think it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out. It has become so painful to watch no one is going to buy tickets. Few people would even consider watching the game on TV. Just too painful. It is sad because even the most die hard Raider fans have gone from fanatic to apathetic recently. We can no longer watch such miserable football. What will it take for this thing to turn around? Sadly, I think Al Davis has lost it. It has been over 20 years since Davis was able to do it himself. He needs someone to help him an he needs to let go of the control. Then maybe he will live to see the Raiders win their fourth super bowl. Posted with LifeCast

Aso, Wilson Upset By Hall's Release

The day Hall got his ticket out of town, Asomugha made sure every media member showed up at his locker after practice. He had something to say, and it wasn't pretty. Asomugha is a smart guy. He is one of those rare guys that will probably move on to bigger things after football. Asomugha didn't think Hall got enough time to prove himself. Asomugha didn't agree with the Huff and Curry benchings, or maybe more how it was handled than the benchings themselves. Curry and Huff were benched for poor play, but no one ever really talked to them about getting benched, they just simply were told they were no longer the starters by positional coaches. If Cable had any kind of control or influence in that locker room, the moves wouldn't have been questioned at all. However, the players know that Davis is in control. The evidence of this is that Asomugha is going to have a meeting with Al Davis and not Tom Cable. Cable also told the team captains that Hall was getting released, but

So who are the other 15?

Hall - Obvious Walker - Obvious Curry - Obvious Kelly - Interesting, but not surprising Huff - I say put him at CB, but not surprising at all. Harris - Revolving Door Green - Backup material Lelie - Cut by the 49ers. Sands - Paid like a starter, but plays like a backup or worse. Eugene - Backup starting Warren - High pay, poor run D, inconsistent, but interesting Sam Williams - Scholarship runs out. I got 12, I am sure there are plenty of other guys that could be cut, but these are the only guys that really get on the field with any regularity. My bet is most of them would go after the season unless they are a problem in the clubhouse or their contract would make them better to let go now.

Hall out? 15 others gone by year end?

PFT , NFL Network , and our own hometown papers have reported that DeAngelo Hall could be gone as soon as tomorrow. Wow. Simply Wow. Good for Al Davis if this is true. He is is admitting mistakes. Call this the purge year. Purge Kiffin, purge all these guys that Kiffin wanted to bring in. That is how Davis is going to spin it anyways. Hall is a cover 2 guy, he isn't fit for this system, get him out while you still can. Pay Asomugha. That guy is gold. Curry should be cut, Walker also. Kelly maybe. Harris? Sands? 15 is a lot, but it may not be immediate, you have to field a team after all. Maybe Hall will be a message to some guys that you either play well or say farewell. I think Huff is somebody we aren't too happy with, but for some reason I think maybe a move to CB in this system could benefit him. Call it a hunch on my part, but I wouldn't be disappointed if he was cut as well. He always seemed to play better up on the line against Gates than anytime he had to sit back

Black Monday: Blackout Looms After Another Debacle

- Wilson thinks we practice like a Super Bowl team and play like a laughingstock and doesn't understand it. We wish you could figure it out and tell us, we don't understand it either. Do something about that will you? - Asomugha isn't happy we can't stop the run. He dominates his side of the field only to have the rest of the defense sit on their hands, of course he is upset. Is he calling out his teammates? I hope so. First things first you need to call out Mr. Hall. - Hall had his ex-Atlanta teammates over to his house Saturday BEFORE the game. DeAngelo, you have to play against those guys the next day. Talk about sleeping with the enemy. Sunday night after we win, then you invite them over. Jackass. Oh, and you might want to learn to play a little cornerback too. Did you leave your playbook on the coffee table? -Kirk Morrison is a captain..."Captain Positive." At some point Kirk, you are going to have to call out some guys for not getting the

Week 9 Preview: Falcons @ Raiders

Often times the so called experts and others "grade" teams at the half way point. Although officially the half point for the Raiders comes next week, I thought it would be interesting to look at how we stack up against the NFL and "grade" the four major areas of the team for this week's preview. Before you stop reading, note that I wont do this based on any opinion. Simply put the grading will be A-F and split evenly based on ypg (which is a pretty standard statistic) in each area. To be conservative, six teams get an A, B and C and seven get a D and F. So that would be two A+, two A and two A- or two F+, three F, and two F- (I know there isn't technically an F+ or F-, but for the sake of these rankings there will be). I will do a more comprehensive analysis with other stats and position analysis next week after the Raiders officially reach the half way point. Also included is the Falcons rankings in each area to see how we stack up. OFFENSE Overall: F+ (ATL

Raiders Crushed by Ravens 29-10

Brace yourselves for blackouts local fans. 2-5 is hardly the kind of product that people are going to pay $100 to watch. With the most recent installment of Raider Football ending in a complete destruction what can you expect. It was a game moslty bad, as always I will attempt to find whatever hint of a silver lining there may be. QB: Russell didn't have a fantastic day, but considering the offensive line's struggle to keep defenders out of the backfield or even make their line calls in time, he did what he could. There was only a couple of errant throws and I'd say all but one came before we had to throw on every play. I think he is growing, but the Ravens defense were in his face all day. Can't really blame Russell much for this loss. His WR didn't exactly get open either. RB: Fargas & Bush got nothing against the Ravens. That isn't a surprise to me. You have to wonder why McFadden was inactive. I think the coaching staff finally realized he isn't goin

Cable Learning On-The-Fly

It was in heart-stopping fashion, but Cable has his first win. Sebastian Janikowski booted a 57-yard field goal late in overtime. We did everything possible to lose. Daring Brett Favre to beat you isn't the strategy I would take. Favre had two opportunities in the fourth quarter and three in overtime. To the defense's credit, they managed to only give up three points on the five possessions, but letting the Jets get into field goal range starting from their five yard-line proves how far we still need to go. There were some positive signs. We actually threw a few passes to wide receivers, the defense was pretty stout on the day and Asomugha got moved around the field in an attempt to confuse Farve and get some passes thrown his way. The latter still didn't happen. Some might argue that the Jets ran the ball well, but when you are getting yards on third and long, you aren't too concerned. Bottom-line is we gave up only ten points. The offense wasn't exactly dynamic. H

Raider Magnets

I have an extreme dislike of Raider Magnets. If your going to brand your vehicle put a sticker on the window. I give the fans credit to come see this team, but if you want to gain Raider Nation Cred put a sticker on your car.

Week 7 Preview: Russell to Chaz "Michaels Michaels" Schilens

Well well well, Schilens is starting over Curry. This is a great thing. Schilens size and speed make him a better outside target and Curry thrives in the slot. Too bad we have Yvonne Walker still will start, catch two passes, and find his divot mark on the bench. I like Schilens and I am glad he is getting his shot. It has been a while since I posted, my apologies, I had two weddings back-to-back weekends so I was sparred the agony of the New Orleans defeat, or I was live anyways. The Saints were underrated going into last week. It was my hope the short week/long week thing would go in our favor, but it turns out the Saints took out their Monday night frustrations on us. Too bad. I don't think anyone is noticing how poorly our offense has been when McFadden isn't full strength. Provided he is back to 100% soon, our offense will start rolling. If it wasn't for some late game collapses, this team could be 3-2. We aren't, but it is important to notice this, because clearly

One Important Note

We have a new coach, who wants more balance and not "run, run, run, punt." This is a good sign. This isn't like we have to revamp the entire staff. Besides Kiffin, the entire staff is in place. We shouldn't let our emotions take over and begin to drink the media Kool-Aid about "adjusting to a new head coach." How hard is it to continue to do your duties at work when you have a new boss two levels up, but all your coworkers and managers remain the same? Not much really changes. Nothing that should negatively impact the team. This is one very important game. For Al Davis, for the Raiders, and for Tom Cable. The most important factor in the game will be this: Raiders coming off a bye, Saints coming off a short week. This gives us a distinct advantage in preparation and health. I wonder if the team is watching the game tonight? The matchups to watch: Thomas Howard vs. Reggie Bush Raiders Secondary vs Drew Brees Fargas, McFadden, Bush vs. Saints D Line

The Truth: Read Between the Lies

If your looking for the truth in all of this, your not going to find it. Who is telling the truth? Are they both lying? Is it possible both are telling the truth? Well, this post is going to directly deal with the truth as I see it. It is neither pro Davis, or pro Kiffin. I always try to write pro Raiders, and I'll do that here. It all started with the draft last year. Davis and his scouts loved Russell. Kiffin liked Calvin Johnson, Quinn, or others. I believe Davis told the truth about that, because it makes so much sense and rumors at the time supported this. Kiffin came to Davis with his recommendations in the draft. This is where the men first had conflict. Davis said we are drafting Russell, and Kiffin didn't like it. I'm not sure what he said directly to Davis, but whether directly or indirectly Kiffin communicated to Davis that he didn't believe he could win with Russell. If you know anything about Al Davis, you know making excuses about why you can't win is

Davis Rips Kiffin

Wow. I am stunned. I don't think anybody knew how bad this was. You know what. I believe Al Davis. People called me crazy for siding with Al Davis in this whole mess a few weeks ago. USC didn't throw Kiffin a going away party, we did. Ours wasn't such a nice party. It says a lot that Cable was willing to take this job, even though he was brought in by Kiffin. No one can really defend Kiffin here, except Kiffin himself. We will see what kind of words he has tomorrow. What I can say is that a few things are most likely true and not my opinion: -Kiffin went after the job at Arkansas (Jerry Jones helped Al with this one) -Kiffin was never sent a resignation letter (Confirmed by multiple sources) -Kiffin lied about not talking to Davis (Why Kiffin would say that he hadn't talked to Davis is a stupid mistake). -Kiffin didn't want JaMarcus Russell -Kiffin tried to fire Ryan, and Davis didn't let him. Kiffin lacked a couple things: Tact and Diplomacy. It tur

Mobile Blogger Error

Because of an application update, my mobile blogging solution is no longer functioning. I've come up with another solution, and I'll be using that. I'll try to re hash my comments of those posts in future posts, but the majority of them had to to with the developments over the past couple hours in regards to Kiffin firing. I'm trying to see if I can get a source to get me audio access to the press conference. Stay tuned...

Kiffin out. Cable in

I've got to say, this reminds me of the Shannahan Shell situation, even down to the fact that Davis is going to try and stiff Kiffin. I do think Cable is one of the better choices Davis could have made considering he was hell bent of firing Kiffin. Cable has worked miracles with the offensive line. I suppose Knapp will call the plays now. Cable and Knapp interviewed for the head coaching job even before Kiffin was officially fired.They were hired on recommendation of Kiffin, but perhaps the offensive coaching staff wasn't that thrilled with Kiffin, or why would they agree to interview for his job? Why would they agree to replace him? This must not be the case where Cable and Knapp are Kiffn's guys, but rather that Kiffin was handicapped with them by Al Davis. Al Davis surrounded Kiffin with great coaching talent including Lofton. After all Kiffin didn't get to fire Ryan, so why would we give him credit for Cable and Knapp? Obviously Davis is the hire/fire guy. I

Kiffin Finally Out?

Multiple news sites are reporting Al Davis has interviewed Cable, Knapp, and Hackett to be the next Head Coach. Obviously Knapp and Cable told Kiffin. Those two were probably who Kiffin had to persuade into coming. I have to go with my gut here and say that Cable and Knapp were not interviewed for the coaching job but rather asked if they would stay on under Hackett or wished to be released with Kiffin. That is my gut instinct. I think it is the wrong move for this franchise, especially if Cable is lost in the process. Perhaps Davis decides against the move if he loses Knapp and Cable, but maybe he moves forward if they are willing to stay. Logical isn't exactly a word anybody would use to describe Al Davis. This brings me to another observation I had. The reason Gruden worked wasn't because of Gruden. It was because of Bruce Allen. He was the closest thing we had to a GM. As quasi GM he was a perfect mediator between Davis and Gruden. Allen was even able to have success in his

Chargers Defeat Raiders, 28-18

My reaction to today's loss is quite different than last week. Last week I was enraged by what I believed to be a mismanagement of the game in terms of use of the clock and playcalling on both sides. Today, we just got beat. I know we lead by 15, but when the Chargers defense finally reacted to our offensive playcalling, we couldn't move the ball. It reminds me a lot of last year, because we didn't have any game-changing talent on the offensive side of the ball. We drafted McFadden to be that guy, but I believe his speed and effectiveness is being hampered by his turf toe. We will see what he is like two weeks from now after his toe has time to heal. The defense gets worn down at the end of these games. They play very hard the first three quarters, but when the offense can't get them off the field, they tire. Again, the defense tired and gave up a 12 point fourth quarter lead. We just can't keep on giving the defense leads to protect and expect that will happen with

Situation Overblown

Jerry McDonald just confirmed via live blog that he did indeed receive a copy of the Kreidler article. He knows of three others that were asked if they wanted a copy. Here is the quote directly from Mr. McDonald after I asked him who received a copy: "I got one. Three others that I know of were asked if they wanted one. It was not "distributed" or "passed out" to anyone who happened to come into the room. I believe that's the area John has a problem with. This being made into a much bigger deal than it actually is, in my opinion. That's what happens when something goes on video." There were some media outlets that took something small and ran with it. They should be ashamed of themselves. I'll let you guys figure out which media outlets to trust.

Press Conference Antics

It is classic. This is the National F*****g Football League I thought. However, I'm not going to automatically side with Tim Kawakami just because he was the bigger man. Fact is, there are few people who can confirm Kawakami's story. The one Herrera so boldly protested. I'll be the first to call out Kawakami (Not defending Herrera), although I am seeking to confirm my assumptions. Publishing a story about Herrera passing out Kreidler's article in the press room is a lot different then Herrera giving a single copy of the article to one reporter. This is one instance where a member(s) of media have stretched the boundaries of responsible journalism. Herrera took offense to the story, because he believed it to be untrue. It wasn't untrue, but it was stretched and sensationalized. Herrera being upset is somewhat justified, he just didn't handle it professionally. Kiffin calling Kawakami is a nice gesture. Herrera should have been the one to call. His actions were

Kiffin gets another day

For reasons still a mystery Al Davis is dragging his feet on the firing of Kiffin. Not very Al Davis like to be so indecisive. My guess all along was that if it happened he would do it on the bye. My guess is still winning cures all qualms when it comes to Al Davis. I thought 2-2 would be enough for Kiffin to survive the bye week. It still might. I would think a decisive home victory against the Chargers would do it. 2-2 at the bye I could see Davis go either way. I think some people miscategorize Davis. He cares about winning first and foremost. If Kiffin wins, Davis' problem with him is pushed to the back burner until that time he stops winning. Right now Kiffin isn't winning, and he is making rookie mistakes. Davis would prefer Kiffin win, so Davis can say, " I told you so," when it comes to personnel. If he wins Davis also isn't forced to fire Kiffin and pay two head coach salaries. Davis just wants winning not whinning. The sooner he gets that the better Kiff

Kiffin Fired Reports Unconfirmed

Jay Glazer of Fox Sports and Espn both are reporting Kiffin will be fired or "removed" from the head coaching position. I don't like the situation. Do I love Kiddin? No. Do I love Davis for making a coaching change every year? No. It feels like a lose lose to me. Some could say it is all Al Davis' fault. Partly they are correct. It is hard to believe Kiffin didn't know exactly what he was getting into. Why would he overstep his bounds and pick a fight with a maverick old bulldog? I think the problem is likely that the two men are more alike then not. Huge egos that never would admit they overstepped their bounds or were the problem. Problem is one has all the power and the other no power. You so the math.

Final: Raiders 23, Bills 24 = Kiffin Fired

The most unbelievable loss I have seen in years. Two timeouts and you don't ice the kicker. If ever Kiffin played this one not to lose, he did it, and it is going to cost him his job. How you cannot call one of your two timeouts to at least ice the kicker? Absolutely ridiculous! I'm in total shock on this one and I would be amazed if Kiffin lasted another week. Al Davis can't be happy. This is worse than week one loss. Lose a heartbreaker is the same as a blowout, unfortunatley these feel much worse. Today we snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. I'll post more when I call down, I nearly broke my TV.

Third Quarter: Raiders 16, Bills 7

It looks like they took my advice and McFadden is running without the need of hard cuts. Defense is looking stellar. I guess Morrison and Howard petitioned Ryan to be more aggresive. Boy has it paid off so far. Offense is playing not to lose, but at some point we are going to have to chew up clock and move the ball.

Halftime: Raiders 9, Bills 7

McFadden is still having trouble cutting. Bush has been far more effective running the ball. Maybe we need to get McFadden going north south. A small let down is settling for three field goals, but the defense has been good so far. Warren continues to anchor the line, but all of them playing well. Field positions has been key and we've dominated all three phases so far minus a big kick return by McKelvin. It remains to be seen if we can make good halftime adjustments and stay in this one in the second half. Stay tuned...

1st Quarter: Raiders 6, Bills 0

It looks like McFadden is having a tough time cutting on his foot. Perhaps it's just the turf, but he hasn't been seen since. Raiders defense is giving the Bills fits. Can't help but love the returns by JLH. Playcalling lacking creativity has resulted in two field goals and a punt. I do like that they have let Russell throw a more. Hopefully we can keep up this level of play.

Could it be, Al Davis?

Could it be Al Davis loves negative press? Michael Silver's article today highlights the culture that is Al Davis. Is he right? Well, he is if you buy into a lot of the stuff he says. He is if you buy into the notion that Al Davis doesn't care about winning on the football field. I find that laughable. Al Davis remains the ultimate maverick owner with no sign of becoming a backseat owner. Perhaps he takes a back seat when he is buried under six feet of bay sludge. Tim Brown speaking today on Sacramento's KHTK, said Kiffin is making a huge mistake by picking a fight with a pit bull. He said you don't pick a fight with Al Davis and win. "Even if you win, you lose," he said. I couldn't agree more with Tim Brown. I do think the players like Kiffin and I do think he has done a pretty good job, but he is making a mistake going after Al Davis, unless he wants to get fired, which Brown, Kreidler, and myself all agree upon.

Keep Kiffin Website

It has come to my attention that a certain keep Kiffin website has garnered national attention. Numerous emails from Raider Nation made it possible to get the exposure from places such as profootballtalk.com. ESPN is likely next. It isn't always the popular thing, but I won't be signing the online petition. Wanting to keep a 5-13 head coach is truly and utterly a commitment to mediocrity. He whines about not having control. Like I've said in the past few days, he wasn't hired to be GM. Has any other coach, including Gruden, been such an open critic of his employer? It's unproffesional behavior. If Al Davis is truly as bad a Kiffin seems to think, why does he sink to Davis' level and also risk losing his pay? Kiffin is acting like a guy that wants to be fired. If he wanted to keep his job he could fight this battle in secret. That way Al Davis shoulders the entire blame. I am getting very tired of the situation. I still estimate it won't be long before it'

Team Rep Hands Out Kreidler Article

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.

Control What You Can Control Pt. 2

People may be missing my point. I'm not saying we are all the sudden more successful than the teams who haven't been to the Superbowl. We have on fact been the worst. The point of including that was to point out to people that Al Davis was able to lead us to a Superbowl five years ago. People think he has lost it, but Madden didn't seem to think so just last season. People that talk to him don't believe that to my knowledge. The fact is Davis runs HIS team a certain way and his coach, who has yet to prove he can win in the NFL, doesn't get much say. The villian is Davis because people love to make him the bad guy, but Kiffin is no angel. Davis owns the team and has won in the not so distant past. Kiffin has yet to prove he can win on a regular basis and we didn't exactly have to pry him away from USC. They didn't even care. Who is to say we get better if Davis gives more control to Kiffin? No way to know. I'll trust the guy with an NFL track record. Feel

Control What You Can Control

Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, but I don't think Lane Kiffin is the saint many people in the Raider Nation think he is. Lane Kiffin hasn't really been a company guy. In any other profession he would have been fired some time ago. It's not like 5-13 performance is enough to justify keeping a non-company guy around. I don't think many unbiased outsiders can admit Lane Kiffin's behavior is justified, even considering the circumstances. We haven't seen a coach do what Kiffin has and its my belief if Davis gets enough evidence against Kiffin to not pay him, we will have another Shannahan situation, only Kiffin wont come back to haunt us. Its hard to argue that we haven't been better since the arrival of Kiffin, but really could we have gotten the same result without the public criticism by the coach? Recently, Kiffin has refused to call Al Davis by his name instead calling him, "the Owner." Similarly, which I am unsure anyone has caught, is his

Tommy Kelly Arrested?

Profootballtalk reports that Tommy Kelly was arrested for DUI. I've yet to confirm the story. It's not really a surprise to me that any person is stupid enough to get a dui, but we make far too huge of a deal about it. There is a system for punishment for those of us that choose to put our lives and others on the line. Let that system work. I'll be chatting with Jerry McDonald to see if he can confirm the story.

Meeting Scheduled Tonight

Davis reported will ask Kiffin to attend a meeting with him tonight, reports Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. As I stated earlier, Davis usually doesn't travel so there must be a reason he made the trip to KC. It isn't as if KC is a nice place to visit either. I don't really care what happens, but I wouldlike the speculation to stop. Hopefully we will hear more on Monday.

Raiders 23 Chiefs 8 Final, McFadden, Fargas Hurt

It looks like Fargas and McFadden got hurt. We wont know the extent of Fargas' groin injury for sometime, but Lane Kiffin said McFadden had a toe injury that looks like Turf Toe. Turf toe is a three week injury. So for all of you who drafted McFadden and Fargas in Fantasy Football, pick up Michael Bush. Players of the Game: Besides the obvious, my gameball goes to Gerrard Warren on defense and Mario Henderson on Offense. Warren was all over the place and the main reason Larry Johnson had a 1.8 ypc day. Mario played extremely well protecting Russell's blindside and in the run game. It was a tremendous win. After the adrenaline rush of the game clears my system, I'll have a more comprehensive review, but as it is now, we dominated every aspect of the game. A much stiffer challenge awaits us in Buffalo. Buffalo is 2-0 and beat a good Jacksonville team today. I'm not trying to stir up any animosity or anything, but there is something to be said for Al Davis making a road g

Halftime: Raiders 6, Chiefs 0

It looks like the defense has tightened up. Hall sure looks better and Huff is a factor. Warren is dominating in the run D and Burgess is getting pressure. The offense isn't running on all cylinders right now and Fargas looks like he may have pulled his groin so expect to see Mcfadden and Bush. Curry's hands of stone isn't helping Russell. It isn't domination on all ways, but as I expected a much better game. If Higgins runs sideways one more time ok going to go to KC and snap jim like a twig. Tough fumble for McFadden, but it was a tough spot there and didn't look like it will continue to be an issue.

Week 1 Reflections: The Days of Our Lives

Its been five days since the Raiders 41-14 debacle at McAfee. I've chosen to reflect a lot and listen this week to what fans and the media are saying. Its mostly Armageddon in the media and with fans. Seriously, its just one game. Was it embarrassing? Yes. Was it horrible? Yes. Did we get abused in almost ever area of the game? Yes. HOWEVER I must remind everyone that a loss, is a loss, is a loss. The fact remains that a one point loss it the same as a 50-point loss. We shouldn't go over the top and quit on the Nation. After all, if you quit, you're never allowed back in, at least not completely. I've heard numerous people say that if Lane Kiffin loses this week he will be fired. Do I think that Lane deserves that? Maybe. Do I think that Al Davis will fire him if we go 0-2? Maybe. Nothing would ever surprise me with Al Davis. However, I think Mr. Davis doesn't want to give Lane Kiffin that money to do nothing. That said, I think Kiffin has until the buy week to pro