Upon further review a few astute eyes noticed the Raiders were minus one player when Michael Huff snatched victory from the sky Sunday. That’s right. Oakland only had 10 men on the field for that dramatic conclusion…well 11 if you toss Mr. Davis into the mix. Now even if you don’t believe your heart then you’ve got to trust your eyes.

Check the video, count the number of Raiders and we’ll circle back after the jump.

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Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

The Cincinnati Bengals were warned.

They knew the Eagles were caught with a John Marshall sucker punch back in October.

They knew Bruce Gradkwoski had a previous history of hunting big cats in the wild.

What they didn’t know was that sitting in the sparse crowd at the Coliseum on Sunday were the two most inspirational members of Raider Nation. Watching from the stands were three-year-old Delaney Cooper and her mother Rebekah – the daughter and wife, respectively, of Marquis Cooper.

Cooper’s presence was felt in the Coliseum the same Sunday when the two touchdown underdog Raiders defeated the Philadelphia Eagles. Justin Fargas proclaimed a wayward pigeon to be the spirit of Cooper seeing his duties though as a member of the kick coverage team.

All that being said, this affair got off to the exact start Marvin Lewis would have scripted for his team.

The Bengals jumped out to a 14-0 lead early thanks to a Raider defense that yielded multiple third-and-long conversions. Meanwhile, the newly minted Bruce Gradkowski offense did its best JaMarcus Russell with multiple three-and-outs that kept a winded defense on the field.  

Finally, Nnamdi Asomugha got his troops to dig in and the defense stepped up the intensity. Marshall pulled from his bag of tricks and unleashed the Raider speed in the secondary. Tyvon Branch blitzed in to drop Carson Palmer and forced a fumble. Later, Stanford Routt blew past the Bengals to get to Palmer, knocking Cincinnati 18 yards back on a crucial Third and goal. That sack proved vital as Shayne Graham would end up missing a 37-yard kick.

Using the momentum of the defense, Gradkowski went to work methodically moving the Silver and Black downfield culminating in a TD pass to Zach Miller that brought the Raiders within striking distance at half time.

With the game on the line late in the second half, The Big Gradkowski engineered a clutch drive while Marvin Lewis suddenly realized he was watching Groundhog Day all over again.

Photo: Carlos Avila Gonzalez / The Chronicle

Gradkowski didn’t make great plays he just made the right ones. Executing the offense to perfection and finally hitting Louis Murphy inside the five-yard line. Murphy fought through a Bengal defender, reaching for the goal line, putting 6 on the board. A Sebastian Janikowski extra point later and this game was all even at 17-17.

What happened next is the kind of effort that Tom Cable has so desired from his team all year long.

On the ensuing kick off, rookie Brandon Myers stripped the ball from Andre Caldwell and then fell on the loose pigskin.

Janikowski came on to boot a 33-yard field goal through the uprights and the first place Bengals were left wondering how a two touchdown lead become a three point loss.

There were many heroes for the Raiders in the 20-17 victory. Gradkowski made just enough plays to give his team the best chance to win. The defense held the Bengals to just three points in the second half. Myers made the play of the game.

Marquis Cooper’s presence is still felt in the locker room and it seems hardly coincidental that the biggest play of the game came on kick coverage.

This win was for Cooper and his family.

Now it is time to take this inspirational show on the road and ruin a few turkey dinners in Dallas on Thursday.

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Schuyler talks, for the first time, about the tragic accident in the Gulf of Mexico

There really are no words to describe the feelings I had when watching Nick Schuyler detail the final moments he spent with his best friends after their boat capsized off the coast of Florida back in February. HBO Real Sports profiled Schuyler, the lone man to survive the tragedy that took the lives of three men.

Among the three who never returned from the trip was Marquis Cooper, a special teams contributor who was a mid-season signing of the Oakland Raiders in 2008. Cooper is being honored by the Raiders this year as each member of the Silver and Black proudly wears a #95 decal on their helmet in his memory.

Schuyler’s account of the last time he ever saw Cooper is haunting and saddening.

Throughout the piece, Schuyler discusses in detail the last time he saw Cooper, Corey Smith and his best friend Will Bleakley. He also describes his rescue and the guilt which he suffers each night, always pondering why he was the lone survivor.

Mistakes were made and perhaps this tragedy could have been avoided. During the night, the cold conditions and stormy weather took their toll on the men who fought bravely to survive. By the time morning came, only Schuyler and Bleakley were still clinging to the capsized vessel. Eventually it would be Schuyler alone who would remain atop the boat.

Today, Schuyler lives with a heavy heart. On occasion he will baby sit Cooper’s young daughter, helping to console a family that is now fatherless.

Schuyler’s survival in the Gulf of Mexico is truly amazing but he shuns being called a hero. He even goes as far to say, “If I’m a hero then I’d have one of them here with me now.”

Hopefully, none of us will ever have to live with the emotions that Schuyler deals with on a nightly basis. Truthfully, he has nothing to feel sorry for. He did all he could to help his friends and was forced to make some unbearably tough decisions.

Keep Schuyler and the families of the men who never returned home in your thoughts. Schuyler might not think he’s a hero but his bravery is the kind of stuff which heroes are made of. By surviving, he has become a living testament of the men who never made it back.