Reggie McKenzie made his first big splash as general manager of the Oakland Raiders on Thursday, sending starting cornerback Stanford Routt and his $54.5 million contract packing in order to save valuable cap room for a franchise that has completely mismanaged their football finances in recent seasons.A disciple of cap-wary Ted Thompson, the Green Bay Packers' current general manager, McKenzie likely isn't done trimming money from the roster. When departed head coach Hue Jackson said that McKenzie was going to "gut the place," he probably wasn't far off.McKenzie's focus from day one in Oakland has been to change the culture ...
The Raiders committed 10 or more penalties in four out of the last five games to finish the season with 163 for 1,358 yards, both NFL records. The Raiders also lost four out of the last five games and missed the playoffs. Every year, it is the same story for the Raiders when it comes to penalties. Just about every year, you'll hear about the Raiders leading the league or being among the top few teams in penalties. Different players with different coaches in different years, and the penalty problem remains.What could be the reason the Raiders rank towards the top ...
Jason Campbell is perhaps the most forgotten man in Free Agency this year.Whilst the National Football League is about to be inundated with a plethora of star quarterbacks available—Andrew Luck, Robert Griffin III, Matt Flynn, Peyton Manning—Jason Campbell needs to be remembered on that list also.If not for his injury, Campbell would have led the Oakland Raiders to the NFL Playoffs in the 2011-12 season. They were 4-2 after all before his injury and finished the season 4-6 without him.The many sides in the National Football League that are looking to Green Bay back-up Matt Flynn as a free agent ...
The release of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning will not be the first big splash of the NFL offseason. That move belongs to the Reggie McKenzie and the Oakland Raiders, who released cornerback Stanford Routt Thursday in the organization's first important personnel move since hiring McKenzie to be the team's first general manager after the passing of Al Davis. Routt, who signed a five-year, $54.5 million contract with the Raiders that kept him from becoming a free agent less than 12 months ago, spent seven years in Oakland and was considered a defensive cornerstone by the previous regime. Routt emerged as one of ...
The Oakland Athletics have been nestled in the eastern metropolis of the San Francisco Bay since 1968. They have been the green-and-gold standard of Bay Area baseball for several decades, winning four World Series titles, six American League pennants and 14 AL West division titles. The organization has reared several Hall of Fame players—names like Rickey Henderson, Reggie Jackson, Jim "Catfish" Hunter and Dennis Eckersley. But for all the successes and all of the elite offspring in nearly 44 seasons of baseball glory, the past few years have seen a strong desire by the current ownership to skip Oaktown and ...
The Oakland Raiders have a bit more free time to consider free agency than most NFL teams this year seeing as how they don't have a pick until the fifth round of this April's NFL draft, and one of the main decisions the new front office in Oakland will face is what to do about impending free-agent running back Michael Bush.The fourth-year pro played well in relief of the injured Darren McFadden in 2011, gaining almost 1,400 total yards and scored eight touchdowns, and there have been rumors that Bush is a candidate for the franchise tag this offseason, including ...
With limited picks in April's 2012 NFL draft, the Oakland Raiders will be looking to make a few big splashes in free agency to help solidify their status as a contender heading into 2012.With the secondary and the offensive line as the main priorities, let's examine a few affordable offseason targets that the Raiders should have their eye on when free agency hits...Begin Slideshow
Manny Ramirez is currently in talks with the Baltimore Orioles, the Oakland A's, and other undisclosed MLB organizations, but what fans may fail to realize is that baseball needs Manny Ramirez as much as Manny Ramirez needs baseball. The most exciting time in my life to be a baseball fan in Los Angeles was in the late summer of 2008, when the Los Angeles Dodgers traded for the Boston Red Sox superstar slugger after his falling-out with their organization. Immediately, Ramirez brought life to an organization in a major media market and gave fans from across the city a genuine ...
One of the timeless traditions of baseball is discussing who is the greatest player among any given category.And although the exercise can provide hours of enjoyment and fruitful conversation—often as older fans bring firsthand observation to bear against younger enthusiasts’ enlightened sabermetric analysis—it's ultimately futile because of drastic changes in the game over a century and a half and, of course, personal bias.Besides, what chance does a 105-year-old, fuzzy-memoried aficionado of Honus Wagner stand against a young Turk weaned on ESPN highlights of Barry Bonds? Still, debate will forever rage over who holds the top spot as a hitter: Babe Ruth ...
The best thing to happen to the Oakland Athletics in 2011 was the Oscar-nominated movie Moneyball, which hit theaters in September.By that point, the A's were well out of the AL West race and the team on the field hardly resembled the great teams that the movie was based on. It's no wonder the A's finished last in attendance.Nevertheless, a new season is upon us. Opening Day is less than two months away. When it comes, the A's will have as good a chance of making the postseason as any team in the league.It's still early, but here's a sneak peak at Oakland's outlook ...