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Make no mistake, the Oakland Raiders have work to do. And guess what? They are going to do it. There is an old saying:

“They said it couldn’t be done.”

Some of us in the Raider Nation shift the paradigm to say:

“All things are possible, if we only believe.”

Look at what has been done in order to establish a framework of what can be done:

Now focus on the win-loss chart for 2009:

Notice that at the beginning of the 2009 season both the Oakland Raiders and the San Diego Chargers oscillated between wins and losses. The Chargers stabilized from Week Six to the end of the season. Oakland, however, had some very pressing man power issues.

Now when you put this in a fuller context, you see that Oakland has dominated the Chargers in the past. There appear to be about five intervals in which Oakland dominated the Chargers.

Just as Al Davis supposedly studies before making decisions, the Oakland Raiders must also study their opponents.

This article is designed to spur the Oakland Raiders to do so. Each player must say, “I’ve got work to do.”

As a team, the Oakland Raiders must affirm that they have work to do. Then, the integrity of the players requires that they do the work. What they say must be aligned with what they do in 2010 and beyond.

Two key words drive my thinking as a B/R senior writer: intensity and integrity.

Many of us believe in intensity, strength, and determination. Many  of us believe in the ability to have a keen focus. We expect that and more from the Oakland Raiders.

Many of us believe in integrity. We back up what we say with data and an unbiased discussion. The display of the data for the San Diego Chargers and the Oakland Raiders is an unbiased discussion of what is and what was.

Now, the focus is transcending those dimensions to what can be and what will be.

Make no mistake, we are going to take back what the opponents (and media) have tried to snatch from us.

The Oakland Raiders represent the pulse of this nation. We are sick and tired of being unstable and bound down with losses. We are ready to rise up and win again—and again and again.

We are charging up to attack the San Diego Chargers. The shock of the performance of the Oakland Raiders in the Aug. 12 game was like a bolt of lightning.

Get ready for the lightning to flash, the thunder roar, and the hurricane of wins to devastate those who have tried to shackle the Oakland Raiders.

Let freedom ring and let the victories be manifest.

Go Raiders!

Source of Graphs: Graphs made by Damali using NFL data, Excel and Photobucket.

Data Source

Music: Isley Brothers’ “I’ve Got Work to Do” click here

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The Oakland Raiders played the Dallas Cowboys yesterday in a surprisingly exciting pre-season game.

The Raiders came out victorious 17-9 after scoring 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter.

While Oakland’s offense was somewhat lackluster, the defense was stout and impressive all game.

It held Dallas’ offense (which got 399 yards per game in 2009) to 263 yards.

This is a huge difference to last year’s Raider defense, which managed to rank 26th overall and allow 361 yards per game.

Major changes have been made to the defense this off-season, with Kirk Morrison getting traded, Gerard Warren getting released, and Richard Seymour moving to defensive tackle.

New starters include LaMarr Houston, Kamerion Wimbley, and Rolando McClain.

The defense clearly proved that Dallas’ first, second, and third string offense was no match for them.

The Raiders look poised to have a top five defense this season. However, there are some concerns and factors that need to be considered. Let’s take a look.

Opponents

The defense’s biggest concerns should be the Colts, Chargers, and Texans. The Titans also have a solid offense, but expect for Chris Johnson’s numbers to diminish a bit. The Raiders play the Colts in week 16. Most likely, Indianapolis’ regular offense will be not playing, so Oakland’s defense should have no problem holding them under 150 yards.

The Chargers have two key offensive players prepared to hold out most of the season: Marcus McNeill and Vincent Jackson.

Expect for LaMarr Houston to have plenty of sacks against them this season as they have no valid replacement for McNeill, who is a left tackle. San Diego has some good replacements at receiver, but Jackson is still a big loss for the offense. The secondary could still have some trouble against Phillip Rivers, though.

The Texans are a team on the rise because of their elite offense. Matt Schaub is becoming a very good quarterback, Andre Johnson is entering his prime, and the o-line is solid. This match-up could be a little tough for the Raiders’ defense, but I see them containing the Houston’s pass attack with Asomugha now covering the number one receivers on other teams.

Personnel

As mentioned earlier, a few major personnel changes were made once the season ended.

Rolando McClain and LaMarr Houston were both drafted to stop the run, which has been the defense’s major problem the past few years. They succeeded last night by holding Dallas’ potent rushing attack to only 66 yards on the ground.

The defensive line looks to be one of the best in the NFL. The Raiders are starting two young but promising defensive ends in LaMarr Houston and Matt Shaugnessy, while Pro Bowler Richard Seymour has moved inside to play alongside Tommy Kelly. This is a true all-star line that will only get better as the season progresses.

The Raider secondary is specifically intriguing.

Nnamdi Asomugha is still the best cornerback in the NFL, and there is a huge competition for who will be playing across from him.

Chris Johnson is currently the favorite, but Jeremy Ware and Stanford Routt are sneaking up. Tyvvon Branch continues to make a name for himself and Michael Huff is slowly improving. This group should keep getting better and might sneak into the top 5 after being ranked at seven last season.

Coaching and Scheme

John Marshall is a good defensive coordinator with a bright future in Oakland. He runs a strict 4-3 defense, something that owner Al Davis prefers. However, Oakland has brought in players who fit in the 3-4, hinting they could run a hybrid defense

. I also like what Coach Mike Waufle has done with the defensive line. Keep in mind he was the Giants’ line coach when they won the Super Bowl. The defense will benefit a lot this season if they start blitzing more. I don’t think coaching will be a problem like past years.

Conclusion

I think that Oakland will have a very good defense this season. However, with the new changes they have made I’m not sure they could gel together as quickly as I’d like. Also, the defense has two rookies starting.

Expect some mistakes from them as throughout this season as they learn and grow. A Top 10 defense is not out of the question, though.

Thanks for reading everyone. Tell me what you think and hit the like button! It’s a click away.

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The anticipation was mounting.

The Raiders fans have read about all this improvement of the offense. We’ve heard about Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Al Davis told us Jason Campbell was the next Jim Plunkett.

The concern about the Raiders was the offensive line. 

Apparently it was opposite day, because nothing was what we expected.

DHB got only one target, and that was on the first play of the game.

I actually opened my eyes to see what Jason Cole was talking about. While Cole did have an agenda when he evaluated, he was correct in his evaluation.

Darrius ran a curl route, and Terrence Newman read it like he was reading the same book for years.

It was partly Campbell’s fault for not looking off of DHB, but those are the catches he needs to make. And he needs to make them, against No. 1 corners.

Unfortunately, DB was not targeted the rest of the night. It was clear Campbell took a liking to Louis Murphy. I can’t blame him either. Murphy had two opportunities to gain big yardage, and was just a smidgen off each time.

Campbell did nothing to prove his critics wrong. On his first third down, he had plenty of time to find someone, and threw to his check down receiver.

The Raiders only led one sustained drive, and that was against the Cowboys’ second unit. 

With exception to one mishap by Samson Satele, the line looked solid. Hue Jackson didn’t run the ball many times, but looked okay running between the tackles.

Let me make it clear that this was only a preseason game, but the offense could have been much sharper than it was. Oh yeah, but when the most dynamic player on offense isn’t in the lineup (McFadden), it takes away from the development of the offense.

The defense, on the other hand, looked sharp. The defensive line destroyed the Cowboys’ first unit.

Both Matt Shaughnessy and rookie Lamarr Houston looked good. Both had two first-half sacks. Trevor Scott also had a couple of pressures.

Rolando McClain didn’t make many plays, but didn’t make any glaring mistakes, either.

Nnamdi was his terrific self as usual. On one play against Roy Williams, Nnamdi ran Williams’ route extremely well. Romo was lucky Roy played some good defense, and Nnamdi didn’t take that to the house for six.

One of the players that struggled was Tyvon Branch. Jason Witten beat him fairly on an out route.

The special teams looked decent. Long snapper Jon Condo was particularly impressive.

All in all, the Raiders first teams played well.

I’m expecting the rust to come off soon, as we get closer to the regular season.

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The Hall of Fame Game is in the books, and Week One of the NFL preseason starts Thursday night.

With three games on the schedule, it’s time for dynasty league owners to take the in-depth research and roster evaluation necessary to become a league champion to the next level.

With that in mind, here are the lucky 13 players who I’m keeping a watchful eye on during Week One’s opening night:

New Orleans vs. New England

Brandon Tate, WR, NE

It seems the Patriots are doing everything possible to get him into the No. 3 wide receiver role. It’s time we see if his practice dominance translates to reality.

Wes Welker, WR, NE

They really wouldn’t even risk it, would they? If Welker gets on the field, the worries about him missing the season opener are gone.

PJ Hill, RB, NO

With the season ending injury to Lynell Hamilton, the door is open for Hill to make his case to be the short yardage compliment to Pierre Thomas and Reggie Bush. Will he take advantage?

Oakland vs. Dallas

Jason Campbell, QB, OAK

Al Davis is saying he’s the next Jim Plunkett. Raider fans would take the next non-JaMarcus Russell.

Campbell has been great so far in practice. It would be nice to see him take the team to a score on the opening drive.

Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR, OAK

Many dynasty league owners have already cut bait on Heyward-Bey after last year’s disaster. Let’s see just how much progress he’s really made in the offseason.

Jacoby Ford, WR, OAK

Ford is one of DLF’s favorite sleepers. He was the fastest player at the combine with a 4.28 40, and is said to have run as fast as 4.126 in the past.

At the very least, he should look super fast in HD.

Kevin Ogletree, WR, DAL

Ogletree had a solid performance in the Hall of Fame Game, with two catches for 25 yards in limited action. He needs to build on that if he wants to make his mark before Dez Bryant returns.

Carolina vs. Baltimore

Hunter Cantwell and Jimmy Clausen, QBs, CAR

Matt Moore has the starting gig all sewn up barring an epic preseason meltdown, so the battle begins on Thursday for the backup job.

Most have Clausen winning this hands down, but we’re not jumping on that bandwagon quite yet.

Tyrell Sutton, RB, CAR

Sutton was one of the stars of the 2009 preseason.

Another year of promise shown and the Panthers’ future depth chart at backup running back could become more clear.

His opportunity starts Thursday night.

Brandon LaFell, WR, CAR

LaFell has been spending a lot of time with the first team in practice as of late. If he starts the game, it’s bad news for Dwayne Jarrett’s future and great news for LaFell owners.

Armanti Edwards, WR, CAR

Dynamic. Electrifying. Jaw-dropping.

There haven’t been a shortage of adjectives being thrown around when describing Edwards’ transition from small school quarterback to NFL receiver.

It’s time we had ourselves a look.

Anquan Boldin, WR, BAL

It’s going to be odd to see him in black instead of red.

It would be great to see some type of chemistry with Boldin and Joe Flacco during their one and only series they play together.

There’s a lot to look forward to in terms of player evaluation this preseason. It all starts Thursday night and dynasty league owners across the planet are ready for some football.

Some things never change.

Following optimistic statements about Jason Campbell and the Oakland Raiders by Al Davis in a recent interview on Sirius Radio, NFL. Network analyst Warren Sapp couldn’t resist the opportunity to accuse Davis of changing game plans at the last minute and being too involved in the coaching of the Raiders.

This comes amid some of the most optimistic media coverage the Oakland Raiders have ever enjoyed.

Why am I not surprised?

Sapp played for the Oakland Raiders for the last four seasons of his career. He averaged 32 tackles and 4.8 sacks per year. Not the Hall Of Fame numbers he put up in Tampa Bay, but solid nonetheless. However, it seemed he wasn’t all that thrilled about being in Oakland from the get-go. 

Since his retirement, Sapp has become a mediocre analyst for NFL Network and HBO Sports, and a fan favorite contestant on “Dancing With The Stars.” Mr. Sapp is using his fame and visibility to bash Davis and the Raiders in many of the numerous opportunities he’s presented with. 

The question posed by anchor Rich Eisen on Wednesday’s “NFL Total Access” was, “…are the Oakland Raiders a team that could be a surprise team in the NFL?”

Sapp’s fellow analyst, Marshall Faulk, laid out several reasons that point to the Raiders being a team on the rise. Faulk cited personnel upgrades and the regression of their divisional opponents to make his case.

Warren’s answer was filled with his negative feelings for the way Al Davis has done successful business for nearly 50 years, rather than the team’s chances of winning again. The only player he named was JaMarcus Russell and he’s not even on the team anymore.

To paraphrase Sapp: When you work on a game plan on Wednesday and Thursday, it’s locked in your brain, then you show up for work on Friday after Mr. Davis has a chance to see it and approve it, and there’s a whole new game plan. Until Al Davis stops “cooking the kitchen”, it will be a long season for Raider Nation yet again.

Although the statement of a new game plan two days before a game will contribute to losing is true, all we have to prove that game plans were ever changed, or that Mr. Davis is the one actually changing them is Sapp’s word. There is no other empirical data or first hand reports of this ever happening; only the word of a disgruntled former player.

I’m not sure I buy it.

This is not the first time Sapp has targeted Davis. He once referred to the Oakland Raiders as the most dysfunctional franchise in the history of sports. Really Warren? Are you referring to the current losing streak that started right around the time you showed up in the Raider locker room? Is that it?

Or, was it the previous 42 years in which the Raider won more games than any other franchise, including three Super Bowl rings? That doesn’t sound too “dysfunctional” to me.

In all that time, I don’t remember a single instance of Al Davis, or anyone from the Raiders’ front office publicly saying one negative word about Sapp when he put up a pedestrian 31 tackles and only two sacks in 2004.

It’s just not how true professionals air their grievances.

I truly respect what Warren Sapp did as a player, but this is not the guy I want to point out to my young players and say, “that’s a guy you should emulate.” He’s got a personal beef with Mr. Davis and he seeks opportunities to make Davis look bad, besmirch his name and the name of one of the most loved, (and hated) franchises is sport.

This is not the function of a journalist, which you claim to be.

I’m a big believer in the power of words, and this vendetta against the Raiders being carried out by Sapp goes against all the things I try to teach the next generation of player. One of my favorite sayings comes from my old high school coach, “If you win, the fans will respect you. But, if you conduct your life with dignity and respect for your opponent, the whole world will respect you.”

Apparently, Sapp never heard that one.

This is just a run-of-mill case of sour grapes. Mr. Davis and the Raiders’ organization have refused to respond to this blatantly bias media attention from Sapp. This, in most rational minds, puts them on the higher ground.

But, as Sapp and others have proven in the past, not all minds are rational.

So am I being too hard on Sapp? Not hard enough? Is Davis really changing game plans just days before game day? I’ll let you decide and post it in the comments.

Speak out Raider Nation!

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