Players, teams, and even coaching/front office decisions surprise us weekly in the NFL, for good or bad.Week 9 certainly proved no different. There were blowouts, convincing victories in matchups between contenders, multiple big performances from unknown players, and shocking decisions made by head coaches involving two of the league's most high profile players.As the season's second half begins, it is vital that teams take advantage of every opportunity given to them, as each individual game and play will become more and more important. Some thrived in that vein last week, while others fell short, either enhancing or lowering their postseason ...
At the end of training camp, Oakland Raider's offensive coordinator Hue Jackson referred to the mind-set in Oakland by saying, “we’re trying to build a bully here.”
This bullying was not evident through the first six games of the season as Oakland compiled a 2-4 record. The Raiders ran into a red brick wall—the “red zone”—there was no production, whilst on defense opposing running backs were given the red carpet treatment.
But, following a 17-9 reversal to the 49ers, the Raiders had an epiphany somewhere between Candlestick Park and Alameda. This team was sick of losing.
The Raider Nation has suffered greatly ...
The Oakland Raiders are playing remarkably well lately. It appears that the team has finally come together and they are ticking like clockwork. RB Darren McFadden has been gaining a 100 plus yards a game while the Raider defense has become simply fearsome! Opponents are feeling the hits, the hurries, the sacks of a defense that has really come alive! As for QB Jason Campbell, well he is playing at a higher level but is still only second string. It should be noted that a good running game will make a QB look even better. I had listed ...
The fullback position has certainly died out in the new era of football. By the time I got into football, there were no longer football players like Larry Csonka, Marion Motley, Bronko Nagurki, and Jim Taylor.
Instead of using their brute strength to get the ball down field, teams rely on their power to block the players who use their speed to get down the field. That annoys me, personally. While I love to see players use their speed to outrun players to get into the end zone, I miss seeing running backs go mano-a-mano with a defensive player. I'm not ...
We are 4-4 heading into Week 9. It has been one heck of a roller coaster ride to this point. With the easy part of our schedule over and the always tough back nine looming, here is a look at the good and bad of our season.
Obviously we have found quite a few playmakers and answered some questions about some players. We have shown dramatic improvement from the last seven years and seem to be headed in the right direction. We should be 5-3 heading into this weekend, but we are 4-4. I’ll start with the offensive line.
Our O-line has shown ...
Look who's hit the waiver wire—Mr. Randy Moss.
As reported on NFL.com through former Raider executive Michael Lombardi, the Minnesota Vikings have waived wide receiver Randy Moss.
In a move that would be stranger than fiction, there is at least some possibility that Al Davis would consider bringing the former Pro Bowler and former Raider back to Oakland.
The fact is Oakland is desperately thin at wide receiver. The Raiders started the year needing a veteran wideout, but now they just need bodies. At one point in yesterday's game against the Seahawks I thought they would have to go recruiting split ends in ...
The Oakland Raiders have now won back to back games this year. That has been a rare occurrence in Raider Nation for the last seven years.
This talented Raider team stumbled out of the gate and looked to be headed toward another double digit loss season. After rock bottom loss to the 49ers, the Raiders have produced back to back blowouts.
This is a very talented Raider team.
All year, there have been players on the team that I expected to show up but haven't until the Bronco game. There have also been players that I didn't expect anything from that have performed very well.
This has led ...