If you listen closely you can her the sound of the door being slammed shut on the Randy Moss trade.

The final connection to the Randy Moss era in the East Bay is gone. Yesterday the Oakland Raiders placed cornerback John Bowie on waivers. Today he cleared waivers allowing the Raiders to place Bowie on IR for the remainder of the season.

Bowie will forever be known as the man the Raiders drafted with the 4^th round pick acquired from the Patriots back in 2007 in exchange for Randy Moss. Bowie has been plagued with injuries and when he has played his performance has been less than impressive.

Already the Moss for Bowie deal is being placed in the discussion for worst trade in NFL history.

There really is no way to get equal value when trading a Hall of Fame talent like Moss. No matter what, getting draft picks in exchange for proven talent is a gamble.

Was Moss worth more than a 4^th round pick? Yes, but his attitude and overall performance in Silver and Black weren’t worthy of a player on the practice squad in Detroit. According to reports, the Pats were the only team willing to go as high as a fourth round pick. Therefore, they were the highest bidders.

Bowie is forever linked to Moss.

That ever lit fire of Raider Hatred was just given a heavy dose of lighter fluid with the Bowie roster move. Never mind that Zack Miller, Johnnie Lee Higgins, Mario Henderson, Michael Bush, Oren O’Neal and Jonathan Holland – all starters or contributors now – were part of that ’07 draft class. John Bowie, he of Cincinnati with his 4.36 40-yard dash, is the name that will be the most infamous member of the ’07 draft class unless one JaMarcus Russell continues down his path to oblivion.

Any how, Pats fans enjoy Moss now before he goes sour on you. Judging by how things are going these days, I’m guessing it is only a matter of time until he’s jogging routes and whiffing on blocks.

No doubt it will be hard to discuss the worst trades in NFL history without mentioning this one but I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out a few others that make this deal seem like a steal.

Flash back just over a decade ago and you’ll find the Minnesota Vikings gifted the Dallas Cowboys their 90’s dynasty by trading a boat load of draft picks in exchange for Herschel Walker. Not so long ago, the New Orleans Saints made that infamous move of trading away their entire draft just to select Ricky Williams. Most recently, the Dallas Cowboys paid it forward by trading a couple high picks for Roy Williams.

Of course, you could go do a little research and see what the Vikings got in return for Moss when they traded with the Raiders to begin this whole carousel. I don’t think Troy Williamson, Napoleon Harris and Adrian Ward did too much in Minnesota. Since Moss didn’t guide the Raiders to a perfect regular season, you won’t hear any mention of the original Moss trade being a bad deal for the Vikings.

The Moss trade is in the discussion, but it is only an appetizer for the seven course meal of some truly horrendous moves.

Al Davis has already gone on the record saying that Randy Moss was “great for the Raiders”. Therefore he must consider the John Bowie era a landmark moment in modern Raider history. Davis has seen his team win just 25 games since that last Super Bowl appearance six years ago. Hence, it is easy to understand why he’d consider Moss a “great” acquisition.

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March Madness is not isolated to the dreams of adolescent basketball players on hardwood courts across the United States this time of year. There is also a Madness that causes nightmares for countless owners, general managers and coaches in the profession of football.

The 2009 NFL draft is a stress filled conundrum that, with each passing day, poses more questions than answers.

Consider the fact that the Detroit Lions franchise, fresh off a 0-16 campaign, is in the market for dealing their number one pick. That is not exactly what one would call “consumer confidence” in the prospects that litter the 2009 edition of the NFL’s version of a casino – better known as the draft.

The message is clear for teams drafting in 2009: BUYER BEWARE.

For Oakland, sitting at number 7, the draft is even more of a gamble. The history of the Raiders and their relationship with the number 7 overall pick is contentious at best. There are but two entries in the Raider journal with regards to the number 7 pick. Both have been plagued with unfulfilled promise.

Just three years ago, the Raiders were in the market for a safety and turned to the University of Texas to fill the job opening. A man affectionately known in Austin as “Huff Daddy” was the Raiders choice with the number 7 overall pick in the 2006 draft. After two and a half seasons of missed tackles and bad field positioning that resulted in just one interception and one sack, Michael Huff was benched and his Raider days appear to be numbered.

Before 2006, you would have to go all the way back to 1964 when the Oakland Raiders picked seventh.  The Raiders selected a Los Angeles native who played running back by the name of Tony Lorick with the number 7 overall pick in the AFL draft. The former Arizona State Sun Devil would play six years of professional football, not once did he ever don Silver and Black.

Lorick was also selected by the Baltimore Colts in the second round of the 1964 NFL draft. Given the choice, he opted to play for head coach Don Shula in Baltimore where he teamed with backfield mate Lenny Moore and quarterback Johnny Unitas to win the NFL championship as a rookie.

The issues at number 7 are not isolated to the Raider franchise. In recent years that same pick has been either a boom or a bust with names like Troy Williamson, Ike Hilliard, and Andre Ware all being the latter, while Adrian Peterson, Champ Bailey and Sterling Sharpe have all disproved the bad luck of number 7. 

Once again, fate has brought the Raiders back to the number 7. This time around, the hope is that the third time will be a charm.

There are plenty of names floating around that most Raider fans have made an argument for.

The Raiders are in need of a playmaker out wide and some covet the big play ability of Texas Tech receiver Michael Crabtree. Others are attracted to the speed of Missouri return specialist Jeremy Maclin.

But what good does it do to have a standout receiver if JaMarcus Russell has no time to survey the field? Some Raider fans have argued for Baylor left tackle Jason Smith. Some see Virginia’s Eugene Monore as the true franchise caliber tackle. While some choose to ignore the recent warning signs thrown up by Alabama big man Andre Smith and feel he is the one.

Still, there are other voids to be filled.

The run defense is in shambles. Boston College defensive tackle B.J. Raji looks like the best defensive lineman in the draft. However, others would argue for the Raiders to select a Texas Longhorn at number 7 again. Brian Orakpo is a versatile athlete who just might become a better outside linebacker than a defensive end in the NFL. Either way, both OLB and DE are positions in need of help.

No matter the argument, all names involved are a gamble. Success in the NFL is as much related to “right place, right time” as it is to talent. Who knows what the number 7 pick will bring to Oakland in 2009.

Here is a thought. What happens if Detroit doesn’t select Georgia QB Matthew Stafford? What if Jason Smith is first to go, followed by Eugene Monroe? Next Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry is selected and then Crabtree, Raji and Orakpo come off the board.

Then what? Who do the Raiders select at number 7? Many scenarios have the Raiders selecting one of the aforementioned names. What happens if all those names are gone?

Who is the pick?

Maclin? Andre Smith? Michael Oher?  Aaron Maybin? Tyson Jackson? Malcolm Jenkins?

Tom Cable has intimated that he and Al Davis have a very precise plan for the number 7 pick. What is that plan? We’ll just have to wait another 26 days to find out.