August 13, 2012; Oakland, CA, USA; Dallas Cowboys defensive back Gerald Sensabaugh (43) runs with the ball after intercepting a pass against the Oakland Raiders in the first quarter at O.Co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE

Carson Palmer seems to be a natural leader. He spent his off season organizing workouts with widereceivers, meeting with new coaches, and studying his new playbook doing everything a rookie head coach would want. However leaders in the NFL don’t stay leaders for long when they throw more interceptions then touchdowns. Which leads to the question the Oakland Raiders have to be asking themselves, Can Carson Palmer lead in Oakland.

Its a little early to judge Palmer after only one preseason performance, but it isn’t very reassuring to start off the season with a overthrown pass into double coverage. One must wonder why the pass was even thrown. The intended receiver on the play was not Randy Moss, Calvin Johnson, or even Denarius Moore. The intended receiver was all of 5″9 Jacoby Ford who couldn’t beat out Mini-me in a jump ball battle. So is Palmer still the interception plagued quarterback that he was in his final years at Cincinnati? As scary as that thought is sports commentators seem to enjoy talking about it, sending a shiver up the spine of Raider Nation.

The Raider in me has faith that Palmer can get the job done in Oakland. He might not be able to compete with the likes of Tom Brady, but so long as he can play on Alex Smith’s level the Raiders should have a chance. Darren McFadden and the new and improved Dennis Allen Defense will take care of winning games so long as Palmer doesn’t lose them. Considering the Raiders have the rest of the preseason for Palmer to work out his interception ticks I’d say hes fine. Despite all of the positive things that have come out of the silver and black’s off season turnovers are the one thing that could wreck playoff chances in Oakland with a healthy McFadden which is why Palmer absolutely needs to be on time with his passes.

Worst case scenario Matt Leinart will have a second shot at clearing his name as NFL bust. The former USC Trojan spent Monday night looking more like a playboy model then a quarterback, the man looked damn good working on his back. Leinart completed 11 of 16 passes for 98 yards and no turnovers. This can serve as small piece of reassurance to Greg Knapp who always has valuable veteran as a backup if needed. Tomorrow night will prove whether Oakland can fix their mistakes and capitalize on their achievements. The preseason might not hold any post-season value, but it certainly will be beneficial to carry some momentum into week one.

Some things are just obvious regardless of the ultimate outcome just like I knew from the jump Hue Jackson made a horrendous error in failing to discipline Rolando McClain.

Jackson didn’t need to wait until an Alabama judge threw book at McClain to know the underachieving middle linebacker was guilty of any crime. McClain’s infamous arrest photo proved he was guilty of being selfish, ignorant and unconcerned. All of those offenses were worthy of some form of punishment outside of the court ruling.

It was Jackson’s haphazard decision to allow McClain to play that likely went a long way in his dismissal. During his first and possibly only season as a head coach Jackson displayed the makings of a leader without a sense of community. He routinely made decisions in a vacuum once Al Davis was no longer around, acting like a god of football when in reality he was a mere mortal.

Reggie McKenzie’s firing of Jackson combined with a lack of job prospects has hopefully taught Hue a lesson.

Sometimes winning isn’t everything even in the bottom line business of pro football. Sometimes doing the right thing for the team is better than doing the selfish thing for the head coach.

For the record Jackson’s decision to allow McClain to play both immediately after his arrest and for the duration of the season didn’t do much for the Raiders. Oakland still crumbled like a stale cookie with their McClain-led defense clearing the path to another .500 season.  The Raiders were no better with McClain than they would have been without him. And for good measure Jackson saw his playoff hopes vanish when he threw McClain under the bus for failing to cover All-Galaxy receiver Calvin Johnson at a crucial point in a critical game.

McClain never stood a chance at covering Megatron just as Jackson never stood a chance of coaching in Oakland again the second he threw his entire team under the bus once the season finished.

Now here are the Raiders at the crossroads with a player that won’t be playing for them for a period of time either due to a jail sentence or a league-mandated suspension. All the while the franchise folded its arms, happy to let McClain play despite his obvious shortcomings as a leader. Thanks for that, Hue Jackson. No wonder the Raiders set an NFL record in penalties on Jackson’s watch. The lack of discipline was just that bad.

Jackson didn’t need to wait for a judge to decide if McClain had done wrong. By being involved in a bad situation McClain had proven himself wrong and deserved to have his football privileges revoked.

For McKenzie it was a simple decision to rid the franchise of Jackson. Same should go for McClain. No need to wait for the appeals process to play out. We already know all there is to learn of McClain.

Oct 2, 2011; Oakland, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden (20) is tackled by New England Patriots defensive tackle Vince Wilfork (75) during the third quarter at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jason O. Watson-US PRESSWIRE

Every single Oakland Raiders fan who reads this title will probably cringe. I mean who can forget the lead we had on the Detroit Lions last year. Playoffs in the Bay! A possible rivalry game against Pittsburgh! Maybe a playoff debut for Daren McFadden! Ok, maybe the last one was a little far fetched. Unfortunately for the Raider Nation that was not how things played out. Late in the game our secondary folded at the hands of a team who typically sported fans with bags on their heads, and the Detroit Lions went on to become a playoff team for the first time since 1999. What did the Lions do to that Oakland could not? What was the missing piece?

The truth is there are many similarities between these two teams. The Lions and Raiders both sport defensive linemen who physically dominate the opposing side. The secondaries both yielded to starting and second string QBs (Raiders – Tim Tebow, Lions – Matt Flynn). The receiving corps of Detroit were anchored by freakishly athletic Calvin Johnson(Al Davis’s dream wide receiver), and significantly aided by veteran Nate Burleson and rookie Titus Young. Oakland had no Megatron, but a speedy Jacoby Ford and a coming out season for Darius Heyward-Bey didn’t hurt. Not to mention rookie Denarius Moore’s meeting of training camp expectations. What Oakland lacked and Detroit had was an offensive playmaker.

Darren McFadden has been fighting the injury bug for what seems like forever. However, if he can stay healthy for the upcoming season I don’t see why he cant do for Oakland what Mathew Stafford did for Detroit. Stafford was not only able to finally show the world what Calvin Johnson was truly capable of, but he also helped make up for the Lions poor running game. McFadden staying healthy, in my opinion, would have a similar effect on Palmer. Carson will have less attention on him, more time in the pocket due to the fact that Darren McFadden is amazing at pass blocking, less chance of being injured (for those of you who doubt his knee and elbow), and a great pass catching running back to throw to.

The 2012 Raiders will have an offense, barring any major injuries, ranking among the elite in the NFL. This offense might be just enough to claim a playoff spot, but if the New Orleans Saints taught us anything its that: it might cost a little extra but the defense makes or breaks Superbowl teams. If the Raiders don’t strike gold in the off-season they very well could be watching Peyton Manning win the AFC West. For now all we can do is win another Superbowl in Madden and ready ourselves for the moment Willie Brown announces our third round steal.