Archive for January, 2011

The Pro Bowl was played on Sunday and it blows. The NFL is the most popular sport in the United States and this is what we have to look forward to? I began to watch the first half and felt like I was watching a practice walk through. I’m lucky, I have a DVR so I could forward through most of the game. I mean really, the Pro Bowl is so played out.  Running backs jogging between “D” linemen. Receivers with alligator arms afraid of getting hurt. To top it off, Zach Miller, in his first Pro Bowl, gets snubbed. Not [...]

There are various reports circulating stating that shots were fired at a vehicle driven by Rolando McClain. The shooting occurred Thursday night in McClain’s hometown of Decatur, Alabama. Shortly after the shooting, McClain phoned 911 to report the incident. One round hit his SUV and thankfully no passengers were injured. A police investigation is still ongoing. No telling what the circumstances were surrounding this incident but it just furthers the dangers of being a high profile athlete. McClain, like most every pro athlete, is sure to have his fare share of jealous enemies lurking. Luckily there were no casualties or [...]

There will be one less Raiders in Hawaii. All-Pro corner Nnamdi Asomugha has been replaced by Champ Bailey on the AFC Pro-Bowl roster due to “medical reasons”. Perhaps it is the nagging ankle injury that effectively made Asomugha a free agent that will keep him out of the game. Despite having four players on the AFC roster, only two Raiders will be making the trip to Hawaii. Shane Lechler will still be handling the AFC’s punting duties and Zach Miller replaced Antonio Gates earlier. Both Richard Seymour and now Nnamdi will be watching from home.

For 13 years Steve Wisniewski was a fixture on the Raiders offensive line and now he’s looking to impart some of his knowledge on the current roster. Yesterday the Raiders announced the 8-time Pro Bowler as the assistant offensive line coach. The Wiz, who still resides in Oakland, spent last season at Stanford as a strength and conditioning intern. Spending his entire career in a Silver and Black uniform, Wisniewski was a two-time All-Pro and was named to the all decade team of the 1990’s. Clearly excited at the prospects of having The Wiz back in Silver and Black, Hue [...]

Hue Jackson is getting some of those cooks out of his kitchen as word spread that both Ted Tollner and Paul Hackett were among 5 coaches let go yesterday. Aside from linebackers coach Mike Haulchak, the rest of the newest coaching vacancies are all on the offensive side of the ball. Offensive line coach Jim Michalczik is returning to Cal while assistant line coach Chris Morgan is also no longer listed on the Raiders’ staff. Those that read JBB know there will be no love lost for Hackett. Among the most overrated coaches in all of football, Hackett’s tenure as [...]

You can set your watch to Shane Lechler being named to the NFL’s All-Pro team and it’s getting to the point where you could say the same for Nnamdi Asomugha. Yesterday, the All-Pro roster was announced with Lechler making his sixth appearance and Asomugha his second. You can see the entire roster here. Other Raiders receiving votes were Marcel Reece, Sebastian Janikowski, Jacoby Ford and Michael Huff. Showing again just how much talent Oakland owns in the defensive backfield, Huff is the third different Raider DB to receive an All-Pro vote in the last two years. Reece enjoyed a breakout [...]

Now that Al Saunders has his name on an office door in Alameda, it’s time to fill that vacant defensive coordinator position. Not that it will matter much who gets the gig. Either way we’re going to be watching the Al Davis scheme on Sundays. 4-3 base, heavy bump and run, one deep safety with minimal blitzing. That’s the Al Way and it ain’t changing anytime soon. Since we know no matter who the DC is they’ll be under the influence of Davis, the most important aspect of all will be the personnel. Davis made no secret of his reasoning [...]

He’s flirted with being a Raider for years now and as of yesterday Al Saunders finally became a member of the Silver and Black. As rumored for the past week, Saunders has been brought in as the team’s new OC replacing Hue Jackson who was promoted to head coach. While Saunders will be in charge of the offense during the week it is Jackson who will continue to call plays on Sundays. Saunders was among the men Al Davis interviewed during his last two head coaching searches. With many roots in California, Saunders has a football lineage tracing all the [...]

Zach Miller, pack your bags and don’t forget the sunscreen. You’re going to Hawaii! Yesterday it was announced that Miller would be replacing Antonio Gates on the AFC roster. Miller’s long overdue appointment to the Pro Bowl is a nice reward for yet another outstanding season by one of the NFL’s most dynamic playmakers at the tight end position. If you’re keeping score, Miller is the fourth Raider named to the Pro Bowl though he’ll only be the third making the trip. Richard Seymour has been ruled out due to injury and has since been replaced by Kyle Williams. Miller [...]

As I watched this weeks press conference with the Oakland Raiders,  I noticed that Hue Jackson stated he would be here for a long long time. Well Hue, don’t get too comfortable. Al Davis has gone through six coaches in the last eight years. Every one of these coaches has left on bad terms. It makes me ill thinking of the “What ifs”.  I look at teams like that Titans and see coaches like Jeff Fisher who will have been there for over 15 years. He has not had winning seasons all of his years coaching, yet he is still [...]