Archive for October, 2010

For the first time in two years the Oakland Raiders have won consecutive games and they’ve done so in style. An offense that looked dead in the water just three weeks ago has exploded, outscoring the last two opponents by a combined score of 92-17.   Sunday’s 33-3 annihilation of the Seattle Seahawks saw all of that dangerous Raider speed reach its full potential. It’s getting to the point where you can set your watch to Darren McFadden eclipsing the century mark. Run DMC did it again posting 111 yards on 21 carries and was a shoestring tackle away from another long [...]

Let’s get this out of the way right now. Yes, this Sunday is Halloween. And no, Raider Nation doesn’t need a designated day to get dressed up. There! You haters happy? Now quit reading so me and the rest of my Silver and Black brethren can chop it up. It has been nearly two years since the Oakland Raiders have won consecutive contests. But who can forget those two wins? Both W’s knocked the Houston Texans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers out of playoff contention and simultaneously ended Jon Gruden’s coaching career while jump staring Tom Cable’s. Since then Cable has [...]

Louis Murphy is out, Johnnie Lee Higgins hasn’t been right since 2008, Jacoby Ford hasn’t proven anything yet and Darrius Heyward-Bey is still a work in progress. Now is the time to let Nick Miller loose. Miller spent all of last season on the active roster despite being injured. A feat not even Javon Walker and his pay but don’t play contract could have accomplished. All Nick Miller does is make plays when given the opportunity. Period. Miller’s lone career catch – a beautiful 32-yard jumpball in Denver – is equal to DHB’s career long. Nick’s first touch as a punt [...]

There was more than Donkey pride that was wounded Sunday in Denver. During the Raider’s remarkable rout Louis Murphy suffered a bruised lung when he collided with Marcel Reece along the sideline. Murphy’s status is uncertain for the Halloween clash with the Seahawks but he seems unlikely to play. Rookie Jacoby Ford saw a lot of action in Denver and could get the nod over Johnnie Lee Higgins to take Murphy’s place. Now the wide receiver position is becoming as uncertain as QB and left tackle. How much longer until Chaz Schilens returns?

What Darren McFadden and the Oakland Raiders did to the Denver Broncos on Sunday was a revelation. Perhaps all the pent-up frustration that has been building ever since Rich Gannon’s 5 INTs in that painful Super Bowl loss finally came to a boil as Tom Cable engineered a 59-14 massacre. While it was Zach Miller’s 43-yard trot to the endzone followed by Chris Johnson’s pick-six that set the tone, it was Run-DMC that hammered the four most painful nails into the Donkey coffin. McFadden’s career day was highlighted by all the nuances of his game that Raider Nation has been [...]

Disclaimer: If you happen to be a Bronco fan and are a glutton for punishment, please continue to read. The following post contains material that should be considered derogatory for anybody desperate enough to root for the Denver Donkeys. Reader discretion is advised. If I’m dreaming then don’t wake me. If in fact this Sunday was just a dream then I’m hitting the snooze until Halloween. Sunday’s 59-14 demolition of Denver was a seemingly never ending nightmare for Josh McDaniels. A nightmare Denver’s very own linebacker turned Disney mouthpiece Tom Jackson described as “pathetic”. Pathetic is underselling this Denver debacle. [...]

As it stands, Tom Cable has yet to name his starting QB for this Sunday’s game in the Mile High City. But if you put him on the spot right now, he’d most likely say Jason Campbell. With this Situation still looking like a game-time decision, Cable was as non-committal as any head coach would be after watching his incumbent starter set the bar lower than JaMarcus Russell ever could even on his worst day. “I thought Jason was pretty close today so if it stays this way, I think (the starter) would be him. Again, (but) with no setbacks.”   [...]

Last year the Raiders entered into a contest with the Denver Broncos with third string thrower Charlie Frye at quarterback. Frye would eventually give way to JaMarcus Russell who actually led the Raiders to a dramatic victory on a late drive in the fourth quarter. Can lighting strike twice? Going into Sunday’s game in Denver the Raiders look like they’ll be trotting out third a stringer once again in Kyle Boller. If history repeats itself then Jason Cambell had better be ready to go. Two years running and the Raiders are a perfect 2-0 in the Mile High City. If that streak [...]

Let’s be honest, the QB situation in Oakland is a mess of Amy Winehouse proportions. Cutting JaMarcus Russell was supposed to be addition by subtraction. With injuries, poor play and constant change, the Russell move is looking more like multiplication by subtraction. As in cutting Russell has only increased the Raiders’ quarterback woes. How bad have things gotten? Yesterday Shane Lechler was taking snaps under center. Yes, the same Shane Lechler who punts footballs 50-yards downfield for a living. A former high school quarterback in Texas, Lechler is reported to have a “nice arm”. At least that’s what Chron beat [...]

Jason Campbell was supposed to bring stability to the quarterback position. He was the anti-JaMarcus, a hard worker with leadership qualities and just so happened to have an arm that could stretch the field.  How has that worked out so far? The answer is not very well if Tom Cable says there is “absolutely” a chance of Kyle Boller getting the start in Denver this Sunday. Bruce Gradkowski doesn’t look to be any closer to recovering from his shoulder injury and Cable will cite Campbell’s knee as a reason to consider Boller. However JC’s putrid performance against the 49ers is [...]