OAKLAND RAIDERS OFFSEASON THREAD
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I DON'T THINK MCFADDEN WILL BE AVAILABLE BY THE TIME WE DRAFT. LOOKS LIKE HE'S GONNA GO 1 OR 2 OVERALL.
THIS DRAFT IS GONNA BE SOLID. I'M STARTING TO LEAN TOWARDS VERNON GHOLSTON OR SEDRICK ELLIS. THAT'S WHO I THINK WILL BE AVAILABLE AND BOTH WILL BE IMMEDIATE IMPACT PLAYERS. DORSEY HAS TOO MANY DURABILITY ISSUES.
THIS DRAFT IS GONNA BE SOLID. I'M STARTING TO LEAN TOWARDS VERNON GHOLSTON OR SEDRICK ELLIS. THAT'S WHO I THINK WILL BE AVAILABLE AND BOTH WILL BE IMMEDIATE IMPACT PLAYERS. DORSEY HAS TOO MANY DURABILITY ISSUES.
Lots of talk about other teams' FAs, but little about the Niners' own batch. One guy I'm hearing about is tackle Kwame Harris, who might not be going very far. Word on the street is that the Raiders are interested. It makes sense -- Kwame loves the Bay Area.
-- Matt Barrows
LOL ^ Have fun with that!
-- Matt Barrows
LOL ^ Have fun with that!
Is 'Coach' Kiffin dancing toward Al's electric chair?
By Ann Killion, MEDIANEWS STAFF
Article Created: 02/26/2008 02:35:25 AM PST
The NFL scouting combine ends today, and the most intriguing question hasn't been who could cover 40 yards the fastest but whether the Raiders coach would go the distance.
Lane Kiffin was in Indianapolis, theoretically still the Raiders coach. Though he kept a low profile, he was spotted a few times, notably not wearing Raiders gear. One reporter saw him at a local nightspot dancing.
Was Kiffin dancing on his own grave? Speculation continues to rage that Kiffin's time with the Raiders might be measured in weeks. Al Davis always likes to test the NFL's limits: So can he field a team without a head coach?
This bizarre Raiders crisis has been festering for more than a month. The reports have been astonishing, even by the Raiders peculiar standards. Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was fired, except that he wasn't. Kiffin was asked to resign, and he didn't. Kiffin has been stripped of his power, either all or part. James Lofton was hired, perhaps to be a backup head coach, another Davis innovation.
( Blog: Kiffin shows up to combine sans Raiders logo )
It's just the way Davis prefers it. Mysterious. Strange. And probably causing untold damage to his team.
That's what Davis doesn't seem to get. Perception in the NFL is reality. And the perception is that the Raiders are a team in chaos. Again.
The perception
used to be that the Raiders were renegades. Cool. That they had a different way of doing things that worked.
Now the perception is that the Raiders are a mess. Incompetent. That their different way of doing things doesn't work. Randy Moss is Exhibit A, but almost every ex-Raider from recent years can attest to the sad state of the organization.
And now this. Heck of a way to enter free agency.
The RTB (Raiders True Believers) insist that this all is an invention of the media. They flood blogs with assurances that everything is fantastic in the Nation, ignoring the reality: where there is silver-and-black smoke, there's usually a fire that burns entire seasons. The people the Raiders like to dub "false rumor-mongerers" are usually dead-on in their reporting. ( Post your thoughts: Raiders Forum )
Tracked down by Jerry McDonald, my MediaNews Group colleague, Kiffin declined comment on any specific questions about his status. That doesn't exactly squelch the intrigue. All indications are that the situation remains at an impasse.
Two truths are being proven again. The first is that Davis doesn't value head coaches. He doesn't care if he publicly neuters his coach. He cares, to a pathological extreme, about control, and this incident takes his usual undermining tactics to a new level.
The other truth is that Kiffin is too young for this job. At 31, he thought he could take an untenable situation — one that has defeated far more experienced men — and turn it in his favor. He was naive enough to believe that working for Davis would be a smooth ride.
But Kiffin isn't the biggest loser in all of this. He will either shut his mouth and be humiliated for the sake of a paycheck, or he will be be gone; either way, he will land another job soon enough.
Davis isn't the biggest loser either. He will go on running his team in his own strange way, ignoring all the alarms and flashing red lights.
The biggest loser is JaMarcus Russell, the $30 million kid quarterback, who is finding out what it means to be a Raider.
Russell will either be working under a new coach, with a new offense, or he will be working under a lame-duck coach with no control or authority. He will expend energy trying to decipher the situation, and he likely will learn to distrust any coaching or advice. It will be a period of wasted time and false starts.
Give Davis credit, though. He's still an innovator. Sadly, his specialty is devising new ways to wreck his own organization
By Ann Killion, MEDIANEWS STAFF
Article Created: 02/26/2008 02:35:25 AM PST
The NFL scouting combine ends today, and the most intriguing question hasn't been who could cover 40 yards the fastest but whether the Raiders coach would go the distance.
Lane Kiffin was in Indianapolis, theoretically still the Raiders coach. Though he kept a low profile, he was spotted a few times, notably not wearing Raiders gear. One reporter saw him at a local nightspot dancing.
Was Kiffin dancing on his own grave? Speculation continues to rage that Kiffin's time with the Raiders might be measured in weeks. Al Davis always likes to test the NFL's limits: So can he field a team without a head coach?
This bizarre Raiders crisis has been festering for more than a month. The reports have been astonishing, even by the Raiders peculiar standards. Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan was fired, except that he wasn't. Kiffin was asked to resign, and he didn't. Kiffin has been stripped of his power, either all or part. James Lofton was hired, perhaps to be a backup head coach, another Davis innovation.
( Blog: Kiffin shows up to combine sans Raiders logo )
It's just the way Davis prefers it. Mysterious. Strange. And probably causing untold damage to his team.
That's what Davis doesn't seem to get. Perception in the NFL is reality. And the perception is that the Raiders are a team in chaos. Again.
The perception
used to be that the Raiders were renegades. Cool. That they had a different way of doing things that worked.
Now the perception is that the Raiders are a mess. Incompetent. That their different way of doing things doesn't work. Randy Moss is Exhibit A, but almost every ex-Raider from recent years can attest to the sad state of the organization.
And now this. Heck of a way to enter free agency.
The RTB (Raiders True Believers) insist that this all is an invention of the media. They flood blogs with assurances that everything is fantastic in the Nation, ignoring the reality: where there is silver-and-black smoke, there's usually a fire that burns entire seasons. The people the Raiders like to dub "false rumor-mongerers" are usually dead-on in their reporting. ( Post your thoughts: Raiders Forum )
Tracked down by Jerry McDonald, my MediaNews Group colleague, Kiffin declined comment on any specific questions about his status. That doesn't exactly squelch the intrigue. All indications are that the situation remains at an impasse.
Two truths are being proven again. The first is that Davis doesn't value head coaches. He doesn't care if he publicly neuters his coach. He cares, to a pathological extreme, about control, and this incident takes his usual undermining tactics to a new level.
The other truth is that Kiffin is too young for this job. At 31, he thought he could take an untenable situation — one that has defeated far more experienced men — and turn it in his favor. He was naive enough to believe that working for Davis would be a smooth ride.
But Kiffin isn't the biggest loser in all of this. He will either shut his mouth and be humiliated for the sake of a paycheck, or he will be be gone; either way, he will land another job soon enough.
Davis isn't the biggest loser either. He will go on running his team in his own strange way, ignoring all the alarms and flashing red lights.
The biggest loser is JaMarcus Russell, the $30 million kid quarterback, who is finding out what it means to be a Raider.
Russell will either be working under a new coach, with a new offense, or he will be working under a lame-duck coach with no control or authority. He will expend energy trying to decipher the situation, and he likely will learn to distrust any coaching or advice. It will be a period of wasted time and false starts.
Give Davis credit, though. He's still an innovator. Sadly, his specialty is devising new ways to wreck his own organization
Kelly breaks the bank
By Jerry McDonald - NFL Writer
Thursday, February 28th, 2008 at 11:46 am in Oakland Raiders.
Tommy Kelly has gone from an undrafted defensive end out of Mississippi State to one of the highest paid defensive linemen in the league.
According to Bay Area News Group Raiders beat writer Steve Corkran, the deal Kelly signed several hours before the start of free agency will pay him $18.125 million in guaranteed money. If Kelly reaches the end of the contract, it would pay him $50.5 million over seven seasons.
Kelly sustained an anterior cruciate ligament tear last season on Oct. 28 against Tennessee but was quickly off crutches and walking without a limp well before the end of the regular season.
Oakland’s other notable defensive end Chris Clemons, was still negotiating with the Raiders but could have a deal done before the 9 p.m. deadline (midnight on the East Coast). Free agency begins at 9:01 p.m.
By Jerry McDonald - NFL Writer
Thursday, February 28th, 2008 at 11:46 am in Oakland Raiders.
Tommy Kelly has gone from an undrafted defensive end out of Mississippi State to one of the highest paid defensive linemen in the league.
According to Bay Area News Group Raiders beat writer Steve Corkran, the deal Kelly signed several hours before the start of free agency will pay him $18.125 million in guaranteed money. If Kelly reaches the end of the contract, it would pay him $50.5 million over seven seasons.
Kelly sustained an anterior cruciate ligament tear last season on Oct. 28 against Tennessee but was quickly off crutches and walking without a limp well before the end of the regular season.
Oakland’s other notable defensive end Chris Clemons, was still negotiating with the Raiders but could have a deal done before the 9 p.m. deadline (midnight on the East Coast). Free agency begins at 9:01 p.m.
Chree you can't talk... what about the Niners signing that dude who got 1.5 sacks this past season? Isaac Sopoaga is garbage. He has 3 sacks in his whole career!!... he averages 1 sack a season and your squad just hooked him up. LOL....
So don't come in here talking about our squad signing one of it's key free agents. Isaac Sopoaga is the scrub!!
So don't come in here talking about our squad signing one of it's key free agents. Isaac Sopoaga is the scrub!!
