Archive for March, 2011

Projected Starter: Darren McFadden Before last season began a lot of folks were floating the dirty ‘bust’ word around about McFadden. By the end of the year a lot of those same people were complaining that Run DMC didn’t make the AFC’s Pro Bowl roster. What a difference a healthy year makes. McFadden was everything Al Davis dreamed of and then some. From his destruction of the Donkeys to the highlight reel in Jacksonville, McFadden carried this team at times. There is no doubt that when healthy McFadden is one of the most explosive players in pro football. With Hue [...]

Losing never felt so good. For a man with a brief history of injury problems the last thing Darren McFadden needed was to be voted onto the cover of Madden 12. EA Sports put together a March Madness style tournament to decide who will grace to cover of Madden 12. McFadden (a 16 Seed) lost out to crybaby Philip Rivers in round one. Thank goodness! Rivers can have the victory and the increased odds of missing the next season due to injury. If he can stay healthy, Run DMC is one of the most electrifying players in the game. So [...]

Signing a $30-million contract on the eve of a work stoppage is either the cruelest joke ever played or the best carrot ever dangled in front of an NFL player. Stanford Routt’s contract has raised more eyebrows than if Lawrence Taylor were asked to rewrite the BYU honor code. In Routt’s defense he did have one of the NFL’s biggest bull’s eyes placed squarely between the 2 and the 6 on his jersey playing opposite Nnamdi Asomugha last year. Being on the other side of Nnamdi is a little like being secret service for the President. You might not be [...]

 “The silver and black have attracted an unholy fan base of hell-raiders, gangbangers and inveterate knife-lickers, all of whom firmly believe that skipping town…”  -GQ Magazine in naming the Raiders the fourth-worst fan base in the country.  GQ Magazine ranked us #4? WTF does GQ know anyways besides what shirt to wear with your sensible loafers. I mean, Raider games aren’t half as bad as they used to be. The new “Code of Conduct” for fans is a step in the right direction. I wouldn’t take my kids to games in the past for fear of the unknown.  I hear [...]

Going about their business as if it’s business as usual, the NFL today officially announced the much discussed changes in the kicking game. After all the dust settled the only real difference is that kickoffs will be moved up five yards to the 35-yard line. Amazing how those five little yards can make such a difference. For the Raiders, it is a difference that both helps and hurts the special teams. Sebastian Janikowski and his mega leg will almost certainly see an increase in touchbacks. Already capable of splitting the uprights on kickoffs, another five yards assures there will be [...]

Here’s a riddle for Commissioner Goodell: If a locked out NFL player – who is currently a free agent – commits a crime during said lockout, is he subject to the new morality code? Questions like this remain to be answered. But if we get a new CBA Mario Henderson will be among those that will test the long reaching arm of the Goodell law. Early Thursday morning, Henderson was pulled over by a cop on foot patrol (I’ll leave the Rex Ryan jokes to Wes Welker) for violating a city ordinance by playing his music too loud. How Henderson was run [...]

Ask any Raider Hater where they feel the least secure on a Sunday afternoon in the fall and without fail they’ll say the Black Hole. Ask said hater of all things Silver and Black why they fear for their lives in the most notorious section in sports and they’ll respond with some pejorative term for Raider fans. Well, as it turns out it’s the Oakland Police Department you should fear, not Raider Nation. Yesterday the City of Oakland agreed to pay over $400,000 in damages to a 49er fan whose arm was broken by a police officer during a preseason [...]

Projected Starter: Jason Campbell It was an up and down first year in Silver and Black for JC. The man tapped to wash the stench of JaMarcus off of the franchise found it tough to overcome Tom Cable’s affinity for Bruce Gradkowski. By season’s end Campbell proved to be not only the best option but the healthiest as well. Campbell’s ability to sell play-action better used car salesmen flip  Honda Civics was among the most useful weapons in Hue Jackson’s offensive arsenal. While he still clutches onto the rock far too long, JC is the workaholic leader this franchise has [...]

So, here we are. Sitting idly as the NFL season slowly dissolves before our very eyes. Yet that hasn’t stopped the constant draft analysis and speculation. It’s almost sad in a way. We continue to move forward as if this whole lockout thingy is just a minor setback. As if it is a given all of this turmoil will resolve itself in a timely and convenient manner. Hey, if so, great! But my gut tells me we’re going to be crossing games off the schedule before being subjected to out-of-shape athletes competing in an abbreviated season. Again, this is just [...]

This is not one of those heartfelt diatribes about the suffering of the fans. Nor will his be the lament of a fan’s disappointment in the wake of union decertification and ensuing lockout. The fans will be fine. We’ll get on with our lives with or without the NFL. However, the owners and players won’t fare as well. Sure, our desire to discuss free agency, prep for the draft and anticipate the upcoming season will be tempered. But we the fans lose nothing from this mess. As for the owners, they stand to almost immediately lose revenue as angry fans [...]