Skip to content

ErinOak.org

Erin's Oakland Sport Picks

Archive

Archive for August, 2011
For Raiders fans of any age, mentioning the WR position either conjures up memories of Fred Biletnikoff, Cliff Branch, Tim Brown or for lesser duty, Ronald Curry in a snowstorm. The Raiders have a unique history, of either finding constant support in the WR game, or if needed, incorporating the TE into the mix, producing guys like Dave Casper or Todd Christensen on the fly. At times the Raiders have gone out to find veterans who can still perform, picking up Jerry Rice, or getting burned by unstable players like Randy Moss. For this year's WR group, two factors won't ...
Sometimes, being a Raider fan makes a person want to change the battery in a hearing aid. For multiple years, fans for the Silver and Black would hear how Al Davis had run the program into the ground, drafted poorly, had bad examples of player management, etc. Yet when free agency would come around, two examples of opposite thinking would occur. Players would sign deals to come here or players presently here would be highly sought, entertaining millions of dollars to leave the team. This year, the Raiders had to watch a couple key players leave, and while no team ...
The Oakland Raiders surprised a lot of people with their 8-8 season in 2010.The defense was a big improvement over the 2009 squad, thanks in large part to linebacker Rolando McClain and Richard Seymour.The offense also showed some flashes of brilliance behind running back Darren McFadden.So, it's finally time to admit that Al Davis is actually doing a good job in assembling this Raiders team (comical draft picks aside).Here are four reasons to believe in the Raiders in 2011.Begin Slideshow
Hue Jackson still has some very tough decisions to make this year at a couple of positions. Jackson is in his first year and Al Davis expects big things right away. With the aging Davis running the franchise, he expects greatness. The 2010 Raiders finished 8-8 and Davis fully expects a winning season in 2011. All position battles are based off the depth chart at raiders.com. Without further delay, here are the five positions that Hue Jackson will have to make a final decision at. Begin Slideshow
With teams like the San Diego Chargers and the Kansas City Chiefs headlining the AFC West, don't sleep on the Oakland Raiders in 2011. Only two games separated first from third last season in the AFC West and it should be very competitive in the division again this season. New head coach Hue Jackson has already come out and stated that he believes that this team can win the AFC West and even the Super Bowl. While talking about the keys to an AFC West title, we won't be looking at individual players. We all know football is a team sport and winning ...
The Oakland Raiders are a young, talented team still learning to play together under head coach Hue Jackson's system. Sure, everyone wants to win a game every time they step on the field, but don't be foolish enough to think that's the most important thing this preseason. If that were the case, the Raiders would have had their starting defense on the field every time the Cardinals had their starting offense out there. The preseason is mainly about finding out who you can trust to play the right way in your system. Therefore, the real winners and losers aren't the teams based ...
The Oakland Raiders have some players with pretty high potential.They have a big-armed quarterback in Jason Campbell, a dynamic running back in Darren McFadden and speedy wide receivers in Darrius Heyward-Bey and Louis Murphy.But, Campbell is inconsistent, McFadden is injury-prone and Heyward-Bey and Murphy have been disappointing in their first couple years in the NFL.So, will they be able to put it together and have a decent fantasy football season in 2011?Let's take a look at the Raiders' three best fantasy options for the upcoming season.Begin Slideshow
The Oakland Raiders are actually deep in a few positions, so this preseason is going to be important. The players in the positions the Raiders are deep in can be in or out of a job with one good or bad play. That's how close some of these roster battles are. The Raiders have only completed two weeks of training camp and played in one preseason game. But as of right now, I see some players on the roster bubble as a result of their own play and the play of others Turn the page to see who they are.Begin Slideshow
The 2011 season is not going well for the A's.And so, once again, it is better to look to the future.The 2012 season starts in less than eight months, and while it is going to be difficult to predict exactly who will take the field wearing the green and gold, I figure I might as well take a shot.I'm working under a couple of assumptions:The A's will bring back Coco Crisp, Josh Willingham, Hideki Matsui and Brandon McCarthy, while allowing Michael Wuertz, Rich Harden, Conor Jackson and David DeJesus to leave via free agency. (Realistically the A's will likely keep ...
The landscape of rivalries has changed over the years, but make no mistake, they still exist, and Major League Baseball's Oakland A's definitely have their fair share.When fans are asked who their respective team's rivals are, the following criteria usually come into play;  Blind hatred and geography. For example, if a New York Yankees fan was asked about rivalries, they would probably blurt out "the Sox," (actually, there is no probably about it). In this case, both criteria are in full effect.Webster's Dictionary has three definitions for the word rival. For the purpose of this article, I will use the following. "A person ...