Last week there was a lot of talk about the Oakland Raiders interest in free agent running back Cedric Benson.At the conclusion of the team's 2012 offseason program, general manager Reggie McKenzie told the media,"We don’t have that big back, but we’ve got a couple of backs that are playing fullback for us that can be that guy," adding, "We feel good about the versatility of Marcel [Reece]. About all of our fullbacks have the ability to run it. [Owen] Schmitt can run it short yardage. We’ve got some guys that I’m kind of anxious to see them during preseason. ...
If 2011 was an indication of things to come, the Raiders should have a prolific offense in 2012.Darren McFadden and Carson Palmer have yet to step on the same field and the Raiders have a nice set of receivers, a fullback and a solid offensive line to complement them.Predicting the stats of the offensive players is tough, but it can be done. The projections should be realistic and based on reality, but not short-change what these offensive players have done to this point.The defense is very different. It's a new scheme and a lot of new personnel, while defensive statistics ...
Five-tool player budding with talent? Check. Promising numbers and efficiency through first half of rookie season? Check. Long-term tenure with a small market team? Check. Ironclad to injury? Uh oh. The last thing a struggling A’s franchise needs is another Eric Chavez DL-saga. Yoenis Cespedes has certainly lit up the Coliseum with his eye-popping moonshots when he’s been in the lineup this season, but unfortunately for the 26-year-old Cuban defector, minor injuries have limited his play in 2012.Cespedes has already been sent to the dreaded disabled list in his young career, and both the A’s and the front office alike ...
Three games and three thrilling finishes in Oakland.In the finale, the A's finally ended up on the positive side.Rookie Derek Norris hit a two-out, walk-off three-run home run to give the A's a 4-2 win over the San Francisco Giants to salvage the finale of the Bay Bridge series at the Coliseum.For the A's, it was sweet justice, considering an egregious call on an apparent Seth Smith double left the score 2-1 until Norris' big blast.Sunday's matinee began with the same type of fireworks the first two games had.Buster Posey's monster two-run home run in the first off rookie A.J. ...
Ryan Cook has been almost lights out for the A's this season. Tonight was not one of those nights. The San Francisco Giants overcame a 3-1 deficit with four in the ninth to beat Oakland 5-4 and take the opener of the Bay Bridge series in Oakland. Cook took the loss, while Giants reliever Clay Hensley got credit for the win. Former A's reliever Santiago Casilla allowed Josh Reddick's 16th home run in the ninth, but picked up his 20th save.A's starter Jarrod Parker went six-plus innings, allowing only a single run on four hits and two walks while striking ...
The Oakland Raiders have the offensive talent to explode in 2012 with a full offseason of work for quarterback Carson Palmer, a healthy Darren McFadden and the emergence of young talent at wide receiver. But how will the depth chart look for Palmer and the passing game? Darrius Heyward-Bey is finally shaking the bust label after being a Top 10 pick by the Raiders, but can he be a true No. 1 wide receiver? Youngsters Denarius Moore and Juron Criner have potential as a No. 2, but the depth chart also features speedster Jacoby Ford and Louis Murphy—who would be ...
A whirlwind season for Terrelle Pryor had him questioning his desire to play the game in 2011.After getting busted by the NCAA for selling memorabilia at Ohio State, Pryor entered the NFL supplemental draft and was suspended five games for trying to skirt the rules of the draft before participating in zero official snaps during his first year.Pryor ended up being Al Davis' final draft pick and was reinstated two days after the death of the Raiders' iconic owner.Fast forward eight months and there is a new regime in Oakland that has taken control and everyone is asking about ...
Marcel Reece just may be one of the most underrated players in the NFL.Not only that, but according to an SB Nation blog, just last week ESPN named him one of the AFC's most versatile players.Reece is a threat both running and receiving the football.In 12 games during the 2011 season, the Raiders fullback caught 27 receptions for 301 yards. Nothing jaw-dropping, of course, but an excellent encore to his previous season with 25 receptions for 333 yards.The past two years he also has averaged five yards per carry—again, nothing special, but an excellent third option behind what was Darren McFadden and ...
Derek Norris, the top catching prospect who was part of the Gio Gonzalez trade, made his major league debut this afternoon. Look at this guy. He's what a catcher is supposed to look like. Stocky. Tough. Grizzled. Possibly angry. Just in terms of visual aesthetics, this bearded intimidating figure is what you want in a catcher.In his first game in the bigs, Norris threw out a base stealer in the ninth inning with the scored tied at one. The A's were criticized for trading away young pitchers like Gonzalez, Trevor Cahill and Andrew Bailey this offseason, reinforcing a ...
Welcome back indeed. Yoenis Cespedes hit a line drive three run home run in the bottom of the ninth and the Oakland A's completed an improbable sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 4-1 victory Wednesday afternoon. The home run capped a rally the A's offense started off of Dodgers reliever Josh Lindblom, who took the loss.For eight innings, it was a fantastic pitchers duel between Travis Blackley and the Dodgers' ace Clayton Kershaw. Kershaw's eight innings of one run ball was to be expected. He is arguably the best pitcher in baseball.But Blackley's performance was a revelation. Like ...