Heart......

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am impressed. On a day that boys became men, our team pulled out an improbable win against one of the best teams in the NFL. We beat the Steelers.

Carson Palmer showed why all of the pundits who say the trade was not worth it  can stick their foot in their mouth and shut the fuck up. How about 23-33 for 209 and 3 TD's you bunch of haters? Kiss his ass and move on to Tim Tebow. Carson showed why his leadership will take this team to the promise land.

How about McFadden? 18 for 113 and a 64 yard TD! He ran hard. He ran tough. He ran with authority. He ran with a purpose. Great job learning on the fly.

The biggest key, the O-Line. They kept Palmer on his feet against a tough scheme from the Steelers. You know Dick Lebeau was going to mix it up on the blitz scheme, but our players moved together and held strong to control the line of scrimmage.

There was a somber moment when an illegal helmet to helmet hit to DHB in the chin brought out the stretcher and took the wind out of our sails for a moment. Please Nation, pray for him and send him a tweet to show him you are thinking of him ......  https://twitter.com/theDHB85



















A special moment pre game for Al Davis and the Nation, Marcus Allen officially ended the feud. Thank you Marcus. Always a Raider!

And just as Al would always hope, Jano, his prized possession, did what Al brought him to Oakland to do..... Put it between the cross bars!

Thank you to the players for answering my call. Thank you for answering the call of the Raider Nation! You came out and fought to come back down 10 into the 4th quarter and never took your eyes off the prize.

It was a war but you made plays. You got the ball on turnovers. You showed the Heart of a Champion. I and the Raider Nation are proud of you!


On to Denver!

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It's Better To Reign In Hell!!!!

I was working out yesterday morning, listening to some System Of  A Down, and I just so happened to glance at a book in the bookshelf right in front of me. "It's Better to Reign In Hell, Inside the Raider Nation" by Jim Miller and Kelly Mayhew. I had this sudden feeling come over me reminding me of something. 

Fuck Your Team! Pardon the language, all of you who are squeemish and do not think it belongs in any type of journalism, but this is my blog and I will speak how I want. Thats right, I said it, Fuck Your Team! This is the Raider Nation baby. I would rather Reign In Hell as a die hard Raider fan than to bow down and be a bitch ass fan of your sorry ass team. It may hurt to lose and yes, it has been some time since we have been to the promise land, but tomorrow will come and to the next team up, I feel sorry for you. In this case, today for Miami.

So to the Raider Nation, I say, renew your oath...... Today wherever you are........ Represent with pride and poise. Represent knowing that today is our day..... Represent knowing that we have the pride of our team that Al Davis always talked about. Let these idiots in the media talk all of the shit they want. Let these fans who think their team is better than ours talk that crap. I would rather Reign in Hell in Silver and Black than to be in Heaven in Choker Blue and Gold. 

Let's go make some noise! It's time to roll! 

 

RAIIIIIDDDEEEEERRRRRRRRSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Thats Better......

I have to admit, I was starting to second guess our team going into the Official Dress rehearsal, Game 3, against the Lions. But I have to say, I have seen the light and it speaks of a great season. Let me explain.

Defense, defense defense. What can I say? The Lions may suck at running back, but they are an NFL team and those players get paid to play, regardless of draft position.  65 rushing yards allowed people. Only 65. Against any team, that's good. But so you know it is not a fluke, we rank 3rd in the Pre-Season in Team Defense, 4th against the rush with 82 yards per game allowed, 3rd in Total yards allowed and 5th in pass yards allowed at 153 per game.

I mean this is the Lions. They are a team on the up and up with star players on their team in Stafford and Megatron. Yet Stafford only went 8/10 for 68 yards and Johnson only caught one ball for 7 yards. Not to mention that the Lions only had 14 first downs, 1 by rushing and 13 by passing.

I am putting my money down in Vegas. Mark my words people......... Top 5 Defense this year.

Some of the key players to watch:

Miles Burris - He runs sideline to sideline and looks like a 3 down backer. He has good strength and plays with a very low pad position which will show in his tackle numbers.

Lamar Houston - He is beginning to play more D-Tackle at times and looks like he is going to be a severe challenge for any Guard. He is in the backfield disrupting plays and forcing runners back into his help. If he can play consistent, he will have a career year. 8 sacks min.

Mike Mitchell- He has been playing later in the game in backup for Branch and Huff. I know, you think well that's lower on the totem pole so why worry about him? Well, he will be coming in to rest these guys out and he has been showing that he has slowed down in his pursuit on the ball and is making better decisions on his angles. I like what this staff has done for him thus far, if he can pull it together, he can be the next Jack Tatum. Come over the middle punk asses, I dare you!

Philip Wheeler- This guy has to be the Pre-Season Co-MVP along with Darren. He hustles to the ball, is a sure tackler and has been playing dominant football.

On Offense, I am going against the grain and popular opinion. I think Palmer had a great game. He was on time with most of his throws, made great decisions with the ball and moved the ball up and down the field. The two turnovers were the responsibility of the wide outs who have not played very consistent all pre-season.
He only went 17/26 for 187 yards. I think with a few more games under his belt, our scoring is going to go out of the roof.

Prior finally solidified his spot on the teams depth chart as the 3rd QB. He is quick, has finally shown his touch on the ball, but he is hanging on by the hair on his chinny, chin chin.

Players to watch for:

Rod Streater - Talk about someone fighting for a position. He may have just won himself the 3rd receiver spot. Ford continuously rides the pine with one injury or another, Denerius Moore can't seem to stay healthy either, so I see this guy as the starter on the opposing side of DHB. I think Palmer likes him and I see at least 65-75 catches and 600-700 yards for this guy. Consider him the TJ Houshmenzadeh to Chad Johnson combo Palmer used to throw to in Cincy.

Taiwan Jones - Mr. Freshlegs may be exactly what we have been looking for. He is in his sophomore season and in his first game back showed some flashes of brilliance. If he can pick up 600 yards in a back up role, I would be stoked.

DHB - I think you can finally remove the veil of question on this Al Davis choice. He is starting to pay dividends. Love the acrobatics on the deep ball reaching over the former Raider Justin Miller. He is showing that mentality that he is going to go after the ball, and it is something we have not seen since Tim Brown. 

Criner - He is the red zone answer. Bottom line!

Special Teams-

I will leave it at this, something needs to happen in the next few weeks to get this aspect of the team together. They have played like crap and someone needs to be accountable to staying in their gaps and making tackles. We can't put the defense in the situations they have had to play in. Always backed up to our end zone.  Its bullshit and needs to be fixed PRONTO!

The last game against the Sea Chickens will be a fight for those last few players that will make the 2nd and 3rd stringers and the practice squad. See you Friday. Check back for updates and post game video.

Chaotic View

200 Million Reasons Why.... Its Time For A Road Trip

Yeah Yeah Yeah....... I have heard all of the stories about how the Raiders are Oakland and how Oakland is the Raiders. I understand. I get it. By now, I am sure you get it too. Butttttttttt....... Raider Nation may be packing their bags and making a road trip down south pretty soon.

The NFL Owners just agreed to a 200 Million dollar grant to the San Francisco Forty Niners to move the team to Santa Clara and build a stadium. Niners officials are saying that the team will be ready to relocate for the 2015 season.

Question is, will the Raiders partner with them? Well, without Al Davis in the mix, Tommy Boy has some choices to make. Here is how the deal would work.........

The stadium site will be owned by the city of Santa Clara, who will lease it to the Santa Clara Stadium Authority under what is called the "ground lease". The Santa Clara Stadium Authority will then lease the stadium to the Forty Niners Stadium, LLC, in what the term sheet calls the "stadium lease". The Forty Niners Stadium, LLC will lease the stadium to the San Francisco Forty Niners, LTD in what is referred to as the "team sublease". At their discretion, Forty Niners Stadium, LLC can also lease the stadium to the Oakland Raiders, the "2nd team sublease". 

You dizzy yet? Here is a picture of how it all works....

The Ground Lease, Stadium Lease and Team Sublease all have the same term: 40 years minimum, with 5 options to renew for another 4 years - bringing the maximum lease period to 60 years. Forty Niners Stadium, LLC has the option as to whether they want to exercise a lease extension or terminate the leases. The 2nd Team Sublease, while controlled by the Forty Niners Stadium, LLC, is supposed to be subject to the same terms as the Stadium Lease, but presumably that does not include the 40 year term. Section 16.2 of the term sheet even talks about a temporary 2nd team sublease of up to 3 NFL seasons while the Oakland Raiders wait for a new stadium to be built.  

My thoughts.......Raiders Get Screwed....As Subtenants.....

Word is that as of October 2011 the 49ers were far enough along on the stadium to have reportedly already sold over a quarter of the luxury suites, which means the Raiders would be forced to be secondary tenants. This would be similar to the Jets being the tenants of the Giants, after they moved into Giants Stadium from Shea Stadium in 1984. How about it Raider Nation? Want to walk into a home game and enjoy the plush Red and Gold carpet greeting you?

I say hell no! PLAN B!!!

This ladies and gentlemen, is Plan B! Farmers Field.

 Welcome to the $2.5 Billion dollar LA Live owned by AEG (Anschutz Entertainment Group )! The City Of Angels.

Here you have 5,600,000 square feet of apartments, ballrooms, bars, Nokia theatre, restaurants, movie theaters and a 54-story Ritz Carlton hotel and condominium tower, on a 27-acre site. Oh and not to forget, the Staples Center Home of 16 time World Champion Los Angeles Lakers, Home Of The Los Angeles Clippers Of Anaheim and The Los Angeles Kings.

This is not the Los Angeles you may remember. The City has been revamped (I know because I have completed 10 of the major renovation construction projects in Downtown LA myself), the element has changed and the environment is more family friendly. Hell, who am I trying to convince? 

I ask you to think of it this way though, overall, do you want to be a stepchild or do you want to own your own home!

Plain and simple, Santa Clara does not want the Raiders. The Whiners don't want anything but a split in the costs and revenue and what do the Raiders get? The Visitors locker room.

I say get ready to pack your bags Raider Nation of the North! Pack lite, its nice weather in Southern Cali!



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Diamond In The Rough.......

So it has been a quiet few weeks.... No real news to write about except that Paul Guttierez ran into Reggie McKenzie at the airport and asked him how everything was going. Mentioned a few names about possible coaching candidates and even got specific about Jon Gruden. Reggie just laughed and said there is a possibility that we could have our man by this next Saturday. I say, hold your horses..... There is someone that has not been named this year with any link to the coaching search and I believe it would be a mistake to not even look into the thought. His name...... Kevin Gilbride.....

You ask, who the hell is Kevin Gilbride? I say..... lets dive into it......

He went to Southern Connecticut State University, where he played both quarterback and tight end. He would later coach at his alma mater for five seasons starting in 1980 and compiled a 35-14-2 overall record. He was an assistant coach at American International College (AIC) in Springfield, Massachusetts.From 1985 to 1986 he served as an assistant with the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League.

NFL Experience.... Gilbride served as the San Diego Chargers head coach from 1997-1998. Sure they didn't win a lot of games, but the Chargers roster sucked. Can't blame him.

Since 1990, Gilbride has served as an assistant with a number of NFL franchises, working as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator. Those franchises include the Houston Oilers (1990–1994), Jacksonville Jaguars (1995–1996), Pittsburgh Steelers (1999–2000), Buffalo Bills (2002–2003), and currently is the offensive coordinator with the New York Giants, with whom he earned a Super Bowl ring.

Speaking of the Giants.... They are now in the Superbowl for the second time under Kevin's offensive tutelage. Pretty impressive that no one has approached him before.... Oh wait.... In 2008, the  Raiders received permission to interview Gilbride for their vacant head coach position. We ended up hiring Tom Cable. We see where that took us....

Here is who he worked under in the NFL...

Tom Coughlin - Ney York Giants and Jacksonville Jags.

Bill Cowher - Pittsburgh Steelers

Jack Pardee - Houston Oilers

Gregg Williams - Buffalo Bills

With the exception of Pardee, I would say not bad pedigree huh?

So you ask, why Gilbride? Look at the stats and schedule from this last year...

Wk 1 - Loss to Washington 28-14

Wk 2  - Win Vs. Rams  28-16

Wk 3 - Win Vs. Eagles 29-16

Wk 4 - Win Vs. Ari. 31-27

Wk 5 - Loss to Sea. 36-25

Wk 6 - Win Vs. Buff. 27-24

Wk 7 - Bye

Wk 8 - Win Vs. Miami 20-17

Wk 9 - Win Vs. Pats 24-20

Wk 10 - Loss to SF 27-20

Wk 11 - Loss to Eagles 17-10

Wk 12 - Loss to New Orleans 49-24

Wk 13 - Loss to GB 38-35

Wk 14 - Win Vs. Cowgirls 37-34

Wk 15 - Loss to Washington 23-10

Wk 16 - Win Vs. Jets 29-14

Post Season

Wild Card Win Vs. Atlanta 24-2

Division Round Win Vs. GB 37-20

NFC Championships Win Vs. Whiners 20-17

BETWEEN THE NUMBERS

OFFENSIVE RANKINGS

Overall Ranking (League Rank) 8th

Pts Per Game (24.6) 9th

Yards Per Game (385.1) 8th

Passing Yards Per Game (295.9) 5th

Rush Yards (89.2) 32nd

How did they stack up against Hue Jackson's Offense?

Overall Ranking (League Rank) 9th

Pts Per Game (22.4) 16th

Yards Per Game (379.5) 9th

Passing Yards Per Game (247.6) 11th

Rush Yards (131.9) 7th

I am thinking the rush yards is most likely a talent issue. Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw are good backs, but they are not Darren McFadden and Michael Bush. The receiving corps are identical. A bunch of no namers who are making a name for themselves. Personally, I see it as an even draw with talent with the exception that the Raiders have a better backs, only making Gilbrides job easier.

If Reggie McKenzie is serious about making us a contender, he needs to bring in a coach who can use the vast majority of the talent we have in place and a mindset of our offense putting its foot on the throat of our opponent and not letting up on the pressure. Its a must! Pedal to the Metal baby! We can still instill that mindset of building a bully that Hue started, this time with a new defensive coordinator to equal out the field and make us a power house.

Reggie and Tommy Boy, this is your man! Cause I said so! You get this guy, Al will be proud and so will the Raider Nation.

Chaotic View

Week 6..... What To Expect

Vs.

Game time 1PM PST

Here is my Analysis of the Game, based strictly on stats and film I have seen:

Offense -

AP Photo

The Raiders have a 60 yard per game average advantage. Being that the Browns are currently 4th in the NFL in defending the pass, I look to see Darren McFadden running circles on these guys. Look for Darren to set the tempo and Michael Bush to pound the rock down their throats. I am looking for minimum of 150-175 yards on the ground, based on Cleveland's commitment to contain the run. We do have close to 100 yard advantage based on season averages, with the Raiders averaging 161.8 vs Cleveland's average of 85.8. Based on this, it could be a long day for the Browns. The Raiders need to stay committed to it though, regardless of the down and distance and the timing of the game. We have been getting away from our run more and more over the last 2 weeks, and it is critical that we re-establish our dominance.



AP Photo



Passing yards are pretty similar, with the Browns averaging 235 and the Raiders 219. I don't see the passing game being something that we will push this week, because you can tell that that aspect of our offense has not gotten completely on the same page as far as timing and Jason Campbell has overthrown a lot of the routes to Moore and Ford. Putting the ball in his hands also opens us up for interceptions and I believe that Campbell is better off just managing the game, rather then having it in his hands to win it for us.

Defense-

AP PHOTO

There are way too many similarities in this game with regards to defensive match ups. Its our big boys up front against the struggling line of the Browns, who have yet to establish any sense of continuity that will make all the difference. The Browns are banged up with Joe Haden missing the weeks practice sessions, and not likely to be involved in the game, and really they have lost one of their two games to a poor team in Indy and barely eeked out a win in Miami against the Fins, who are not exactly a contender at 1-4.

So what are the keys to this game outside of stats? Well let me break it down for you.

AP PHOTO

Tommy Kelly, Richard Seymour and John Henderson.

These three must keep Peyton Hillis to his season average of 50 yards. Bottom line. They must also run some disguise blitz packages against Colt McCoy in obvious passing downs. Last week, if you noticed, the Raiders ran more blitz packages and zone blitz schemes, getting burned on a few, but pressuring Schaub enough to force some throws that I am sure he wanted back. Schaub was obviously shaken in the final 2 quarters, as many of his throws ended up on the floor in front of the receivers, or hurried for fear of being sacked and minimal gains. This is obviously not the same defensive scheme that Al Davis would have preferred, but I think that now that he is no longer at the helm, Hue Jackson and Chuck Bresnehan can mix things up and start to run some unique looks that will make opposing teams think twice around staying pass happy. You should start to see our average of 299 yards in the air go down progressively over the next few weeks. Don't forget that Bresnehan established a good quality team in Cincinnati of late, and his defense was ranked in the low teens for quite some time. I see the same happening here with a little bit of freedom to call his game. The key to victory is getting off the field on 3rd down, keeping the Browns out of manageable third down situations where they have a 37% average for the season, and putting the hits on McCoy and Hillis.

This is a winnable game for us, and not so much of a let down scenario as many have been saying, but we have to stay aggressive and become the bully that Hue has been talking about, riding the wave of emotion of Al's passing.

AP PHOTO

Now is our time!

Raiders 35 Cleveland 10

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Gradkowski or Campbell???? The Burning Question!

After hearing Tom Cable in his press conference on Monday so confident that Bruce Gradkowski is our quarterback for the team once he is healthy, I can completely understand his stance.

He made the change when Campbell wasn't playing to the expectations of the team. So I ask myself, as a football junkie and someone who understands the game, why would Cable answer that question with so much confidence for a hurt quarterback, when this team has put up back to back 500 yard games, the most points in team history with 59, and almost blanking the Sea Chickens 33-3 at home.

My simple answer - The Playbook.

Its obvious that Gradkowski has more of the coaches ear because he understands the expectations of  Cable more. He has been in this system for 3 years now, and knows what Cable and Davis expect from the quarterback position. Campbell, doesn't. Its evident in the play calling and execution of the plays and the consistency they play with. Tough thing though is I am not on the field to see what is going on during practice, so we don't see the progressions like Cable and the staff do.

After digging through the teams throwing attempts trying to find the answer I may have found it.

The Vertical Offense.

 Gradkowski has thrown more balls beyond 20 yards versus Campbell, who came from a west coast system of dinking and dunking and has the arm  but not the mindset to get the ball down the field. That is until recently.

Simply put, Campbell doesn't understand the entire concept of stretching the field vertically which will open up more lanes for the running game to smash through to the second level, because opposing teams can not keep 8 in the box.

I know for a fact that this type of West Coast Offense frustrated the hell out of Davis during the Gruden era, because you can tell based on the fact that Gruden was traded to the Bucs for a draft pick, even with his success.

Ahhhh These were the days!

Some input from the Raider Nation:


BSPN-

"Well deserved. 27-47, 514 yards, 4 TD's & 0 INT's last 2 weeks. Lets hope he can continue this great play vs KC."


Inside the Oakland Raiders-

"Bo Schembechler Jackson Says:
I trust Cable/Hue/Hackett to choose the correct starting QB. I also trust Cable to stick to his tagline about Grads so that the topic does not blow up in the media. Smart."

"inonewordraider Says:
Grads didn’t even get snaps in last weeks practice so Campbell should go this week, if he continues to play like the last two games ride him, Grads is the kind of guy that could step in at moments notice and Campbell has the higher ceiling and let’s not stop him from possibly reaching it"


Twitter-

CCRaiderNation Oakland Raiders News

Jason Campbell. He has proven himself after the lull. Bruce is a perfect backup. Bruce is a player J Cam is the QB

BuckTaylor64 Andy Buckley-Taylor
Campbell, has more tools. He reads the defense better. Greater accuracy. Better game brain, 5 different offense schemes in 5 yrs.

Moss1212 Curtis(Yung Swag)

I Say Campbell,Go With The Hot Hand.He's Playin Turnover Free Football.If He's Playin Bad,Throw Gradkowski In At Halftime.

 Thanks for the great insights, Raider Nation. Always look forward to hearing back from you. Don't forget to leave a comment or two.

As always, just a

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