Silver and Black Pride's Sunday Community Poll: Raiders Postgame Preseason Game 2

is atrocious.

We gave up over 100 yards to a rookie running back, and we’re coming off last week where Felix Jones had his way with our D too. This needs to be fixed/upgraded to terror alert red status.

Russell: 13 for 20 for 126 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT in roughly 3 quarters of play. That translates into a QB rating of about 99.2. We can only hope for that kind of performance from Russell come the regular season. He has shown faster decision-making in his limited playing time, and will only get more opportunities to make an impact as the running game comes together and adds in play-action.

Run Defense: 402 yards allowed on 76 rushing attempts, translates to 5.3 yards per carry allowed. The Raiders defense just made Glen Coffee the preseason rushing leader in the span of 2 quarters. The entire front 7 of the defense looked awful stopping the run, with the defensive line getting pushed around and the linebackers in the wrong gaps and missing tackles.

Run defense has to be the bigger concern.

How did DHB get shut out of the stat line? I see there is no mention of him looking like a complete lame ass so he must not of done anything horrible, but what the hell, they couldn’t find a way to get him the ball once?

It just goes to show you how stupid that side of the bay is.

For a world class city, you have a high percentage of Sports Tards out there.

Fix our run D and we are good with a whole lot else!

disappointed also. WE didn’t run very efficiently

Per David White’s latest article:

“I think you have to at some point set your jaw and decide you’re not going to get your rear end kicked like that.”

Cable must not have a lawyer or publicist yet, because they would certainly have advised him against using a word like “jaw” in just about any context right now. Gave me a chuckle though.

If Jay Richardson was right and this is truly Al Davis’ defense, then a quick message to Al Davis: “Your run defense sucks!”

Switch to the 3-4 already, and run the zone blitz. End of problems, period. Should be a blitz on every play. No more 4-2 defense. It does not work. Itopnlyputs players out of position. 3-4 3-4 3-4!!!

First forget the win or lose on this, if we were in a regular season game we tie with the extra point and go from there. Next we all know our run defense is a work in progress, we controlled the middle and lost the outside, well if it ain’t one thing its another. I think we will be fine, a fumble, some sloppy plays, but all in all I think we are far better than last season at this point.

There will be plenty of work in the areas we are weak in and I commend Coach for his attitude right now, it will get worked out our new D Coordinator has to get his system completely in place, remember we have a new DC, so it will take a little time to get it together.

Raider Dave hit it on the nose, our second and third units lost a lot of ground, but all in all for a preseason game it did what it was suppose to. Don’t panic yet, its too early, we have made strides over last year so far and Denver and KC have lost ground.

come on raiders. i’m rooting for you this year. get back to prominence

We as a team are trying to get our defense where it needs to be, we are making progress, but it will take time and tweeking. With the new blitz packages, and other schemes it will be ok, our guys just need to get up to speed. It is good those weaknesses were exposed, that way we can work on them now and not when it counts.

This is what the preseason is for, to see weaknesses and work on correcting them to make them strengths. I am happy at the improvement so far, because it is improvement not the same old thing, we are progressing and during the preseason you want to see that. So good, they got run on, now we can work on correcting the why so it is not commonplace.

Well, as a life long Raider Fan who goes back before the Al Davis and Madden Days. I say this is going to be another long losing season. We are not good in the trenches. We can’t block nor can we stop anyone from running the ball. It doesn’t matter who QB’s this team. We are going to lose and we are going to lose huge. We have many talented players in the skill positions. The jury is still out on JR, but I haven’t seen any glimpse of leadership and the ablility to make something happen. We have those qualities in Garcia though. We still are not disciplined enough to avoid penalties and somtimes maybe not good enough not to commit them, IE HOLDING. Unfortunatley, we have been in a state of diseray for many years now and I don’t see an end to it anytime soon. We can’t keep a coach long enough to get any continunity and sustained direction. I am old enough to have watched all 5 superbowls, The QB’s were LaMonica, Stabler, Plunket, Plunket and Gannon. I am also an Eagles fan since I live in Philly, But when the Raiders and Eagles played, I was the only one in the house rooting for the Raiders, I was dressed in Silver and Back and when Kenny King caught that sideline pass with an unbelivable catch and sprint down the sidlines for that TD, it was just great. When I think of the Raiders being good in the past, I thnk of that play and when Jack Squirek picked off Theisman for a TD just before halftime in that 38-9 masacre. That was the game Marcus Allen had that spectacular TD run. Yes, I’ve watch every Raider game that I could being from the East Coast. I would say the Raiders downturn started after Flores left. Eventhough we made it to the superbowl in 2003 I didn’t think were were that good, just better than everyone else in the AFC. Tampa Bay showed us we weren’t. I know I rambled on here a bit but I have to remember the good times to put up with the times we have and will face. I want Al Davis to be the owner, I just wish he’d hire good people and let them manage the team. Once he does this or retires, we will be able to compete with the rest of the teams. Just so you know, We went from being the most winningest franchise in sports history to having the worst record in the NFL over the last 5 years. That’s pretty bad, it’s not the players, it’s how the team is managed or not managed and it has actually been embarassing for Raider Fans, believe me I know, I’m one of them. In 5 years we’ve won a pethetic 19 games and lost 61, do you know how bad that is ? The Lions who didn’t even win a single game last year won 26. That’s 26 in 4 years and we had 19 in 5. The 2nd worst record in that time frame belongs to the 49’ers who won 25 games, 6 more than us, and we’ve been playing a last place schedule. I don’t know what some of you have been watching these last five years but I have seen us get slapped around by every team we’ve played. I have read posts here that suggest we’ll be fine, this is only pre season. I seen posts saying that our run defense is that bad. It’s worse than bad and it’s been worse than bad for 5 years and this is going to be the 6th whether you choose to believe it or not. I saw a post saying this is our year. Anyone who believes that has rocks for brains. I hope to see some improvement this year but if this coach is not the coach for the next 5 years you can forget about getting better any time soon. It don’t matter to me about winning the Superbowl, I want the team to be consistently competitive and try to improve every year. If we do that the wins and loses will take care of themselves and so will being in the Superbowl. I am not just a Rah Rah lets go Raiders Fan, I’m a real Fan and know that our team hasn’t been good and hasn’t gotten any better than last year.If we win 6 games we’ll be lucky. I know Raiders Football and it has always been about attitude and I haven’t seen any attitude for a long time. We’ve been playing like a bunch of wussies. I want that to change this year. I want us to fight, not lay down. At least we have a coach that willing to fight and that’s a start. How many of you know that Tom Flores was the First QB the Raiders ever had ? That’s right, in 1960 when the Raiders joined the AFL Flores was our QB, I may be the only one here that actually seen him play. Al Davis didn’t join the Raiders until 1963. My worst memory as a Raiders Fan is the Immaculate Reception, When I see the replay of it, it still sickens me. Most of the time I just change the channel because I just can’t stand to see it or hear that Voice that say" It’s caught out of the air" god I hate that voice and everything about that game. Sometimes I watch it and hope Franco get pushed out of bounds before crossing the goal line butthat never happens. So I live with it, that nightmare that just never seems to go away, there always seems to be a show that brings back that dreaded memory. But hey, I have many memories of the Raiders that have brought both Joy and Pain and wouldn’t trade them for anything. Remember when Davis moved the Raiders to LA ? That was all about Financial gain for Davis. That stadium held over 100,000 fans but the fans were so far away from the field you needed binoculars from the first row. When watching a game on TV, the place looked empty. Although we won a superbowl as the LA Riaders I didn’t like that move Davis made and it kind of made me not like him as much as I once did. I was happy when they moved back to Oakland, that meant all my Oakland Raider stuff was meaningful again lol, no, I just liked the Oakland Raiders, I mean I’ve been a fan since the Beginning. About this year, It’s going to be like last year, I’ll be surprised if we win 6 games. I just want to see improvement, not just in record but in playing the game. I want to see the old Raider attitude. It not all about the players it’s all about attitude. I want to see a swarming defensive that punnishes people like we used to, I want to see creativity in both our offensive and defensive coordinators which we haven’t had and is one of the reasons we’ve been so bad.. OK, I’m done LOL

I have been a Raider fan since I have known what football is, my dad took me to Raider games when they played at Laney College, I also saw the Raiders play in San Francisco at Kesar Stadium. I don’t remember Tom Flores as a player, too young, though I was at the games just too young to know the players, my understanding came with Daryl Lamonica, Clem Daniels, Hewitt Dixon, Charlie Smith is from my neighborhood and we are friends to this date. I started playing football for the Oakland Dynamites Pop Warner team then on to Berkeley High School where I wore Jack Tatums number and did all I could to hit like him, and to college to do the same thing. As you I have a lifelong love for the Raiders and I know the history, I watched every Super Bowl as well, and remember where I was when I saw us get that game stolen from us by Franco Harris. I was pissed when the Raiders went to LA and that was the Oakland Raiders that won that Super Bowl, not LA Raiders, that was the Oakland Roster, the LA Raider roster never went to the Super Bowl.

As a football player I look for certain things especially in training camp. I know the Raiders have been really bad, they are indeed better, and KC and Denver are considerably worse. The problem with J-Russ is he has to do it on his own, the Raiders did have someone that could put J-Russ under his wing and Garcia is a joke, he is 39 injury prone and watch what I tell you here, he will not be a game changer for the Raiders. I would cut him and keep both Gradski and Frye. Regardless of his past, he is coming in not so the Raiders win, not to help build for the future, not to help J-Russ, he is only there for himself. We need to get through the next couple of PS games and you will see the improvement in the first team. The injury to C-Chill will hurt because he had emerged as the clear number one receiver, so that was a set back, but our running game is ok, and we do need line work but so do many other teams in this division.

 So, I try to be realistic about it, the Raiders if they play to their potential this year will have decent season. But they will need to play their best every game, unlike the old days the Raiders could have a terrible game but they would still win..lol Thanks for the post many of our really young guys don’t know the Raider history.

I also appreciate your post, I like to hear what a Real Raiders Fan has to say. A Fan that goes way back and knows their History. Not just a rah rah we are the best posters. We probably have jerseys older than they are. I know I do. My Marcus Allen Jersey is 30 years old and my Jim Otto Jersey is way older than that and still looks like new. No one player can make or break a team otherwise it’s not a team. We would have won those Superbowls no matter who was at QB or Who was the RB or WR. That’s because were were a good team with atttude. A winning attitude and that comes from the coach and what’s inside they players. I don’t think Garcia is a joke, he has the attitude, I’ve seen it in San Fran and seen it in Philly when McNabb got hurt. He brought them to the Championship game because he makes things happen. Playing to your potential has everything to do with preparation and being motivated along with your talent. Our players have not been prepared or motivated for a long time and that has everything to do with coaching and teaching. We had great teachers in Madden and Flores and even Shannahan but we fired him because AL didn’t like him. I wonder why he hired him in the first place. I wonder why he hired any of the last few coaches. It seems he just wants to hire puppets so he can manage the team on and off the field and if he can’t he fires people. Lane Kiffen is a good coach and he has attitude, I mean he hires him and then fires him because Lane wanted to do things his way. It’s certainly better than doing things Al’s way. It’s hard for players to be focused when you have all this crap going on and on and on and on. Teams need stability and we certainly don’t have that and haven’t had it for many years. The Steelers have Stability, so do the Patriots, Colts, Eagles,Titans and Giants to name a few. They have head coaches that have been there for years who have developed and sustained direction. Those teams have a plan. Teams don’t get good by accident and they certainly can’t stay good by accident. It takes the whole organization working together to achieve success, Including the owner. You certainly can’t get good by firing coaches every year and creating distractions. It takes way more than good players to succeed, every team has good players. It takes the whole organization that has a plan and works together to achieve their goal. Well, I don’t think Al Davis has a plan, He wants to win yes, but he doesn’t do what he has to do to get the job done. First you have to have a plan, then you have to get that plan into action. We are a team without a plan or direction which is why we are in the mess we’ve been in and this is why we can’t get any better. Al Davis is not committed to Excellence so how can the Raiders be excellent ? 19 wins in the last 5 years, that’s less than 4 wins a year. I don’t see any excellence in that. To think we are going to be any better this year under the circumstances in which this organization is in is a joke. Lets not confuse Reality with wishful thinking.

And I will say Garcias’ body of work speaks for itself, even at San Jose State he played with heart. Now, I understand what the Raiders have been, man do I, and Al and our coaching situation over the past few years well there can be no argument with you there. And yes, I have Raider gear that is 40 years old, lol and I knew the Raiders when they could have a terrible game but still win. Now, this is the first year in 5 that I finally see progress. Here is an example coming from a football player and not a fan. For starters Coach Cable did nothing but walk throughs the first week of practice, he worked on the mental aspect of players knowing where they are suppose to be. Quite frankly over the last 5 years the Raiders did not execute it was pitiful, meaning players were not where they were suppose to be, thus failure. If the Raiders just execute the plays properly that is 4 more wins. Last year games were lost because of stupid mental errors, and when you are paid like that, a mental error is the last thing you are suppose to have on a regular basis. And it was commonplace for the Raiders to give up leads and lose at the end of games. Now, you and I remember when we were the team that would beat you in the last minute of a game, and coming back on us, forget it. This Coach understands something Madden did, you have to know exactly where you are suppose to be every play to not get your ass kicked. Madden was a lineman and so is Cable, go figure. Look for a better team this year, I am not saying we are going to the Super Bowl or even the playoffs, I am saying we are going win more games than we lose this year based upon the mental aspect of the game being implemented in camp. Again if the players buy into it, 3 years and there is going to be hell to pay for opposing teams in Oakland again. I don’t fantasize about where we are as a team, however, this team is better than the last 5 for sure and this Coach understands first his players need to understand their assignments and know them clearly. Look for a better season this year kingofspades.

The quarterback position is the least of our worries. One of the problems we have had is the quick fix mentality where we want to bring in a veteran at the end of their career, instead of developing young talent. Finally we have a roster built through the draft and some young free agents, although there is still that tendancy to go after players on waivers as the season is about to start. Getting quality players in camp should be more of a priority. Last year we claimed Ashley Lelie just as the regular season started and made him a starter. Do you think any decent teams were grabbing other teams cast-offs and making them starters at the last minute? We are probably going to do the same this year with a defensive end. Who ever is in charge of personel needs to attract higher quality players to training camp and get them the benefit of knowing the system well before the season starts.
My other beef is offensive line penalties especially in the red zone. Some teams go the entire season without a holding penalty or a false start in the red zone, we can’t go one half without that happening. It doesn’t matter who the coach is, is it just poor quality players, lack of discipline, lack of competition for their position, any ideas? Who many times have you watched the Raiders self destruct in the red zone and wish the coach would just unload on the player for a penalty, send them back to the dressing room or something?

Here is our schedule. Show me 4 wins let alone 4 more than last year. I have 1 Win (KC at home) and 4 questionable, If we win 2 of those we’ll have 3 wins. This looks more like a first place schedule not a last place schedule. This is BRUTAL.

San Diego Chargers L
@ Kansas City Chiefs L
Denver Broncos ?
@ Houston Texans L
@ New York Giants L
Philadelphia Eagles L
New York Jets ?
@ San Diego Chargers L
Kansas City Chiefs W
Cincinnati Bengals ?
@ Dallas Cowboys L
@ Pittsburgh Steelers L
Washington Redskins L
@ Denver Broncos L
@ Cleveland Browns ?
Baltimore Ravens L

We can forget about attracting good free agents right now. I mean if you were a good free agent and wanted to play for a good team, Oakland would be the last place you’d want to go. Even the players we draft don’t want to play here and right now I can’t blame them. We are the laughing stock of the NFL. We will have to build through the draft and that’s not a bad thing. I agree we have had the quick fix mentallity with coaches, not necessarilly the players. It’s the coaching and teaching I have problems with because we’re not good at it. This is Al Davis’ fault. It sickened me when He brought Randy Moss here, what a terrible move that was. Dumping Kiffin was a bad move, Shannahan and Gruden were bad moves. I can go on and on but you guys know what I mean. Without some kind of stability you can’t compete. You can’t win with good players alone, every team has good players.

The games we should win Denver twice, KC twice both teams with new coaches and totally disfunctional offenses, with NO Quarerbacks, New York Jets, rookie QB new coach, Cleveland Browns, new coach Quarerback issues also, Washington Redskins, same issue, Quarterback problems and we out match them, by the way we can beat Dallas, they are ok, but they choke also. The Ravens have that D, but their running game has been missing and they still don’t score points, I wont just concede that game, same with Houston, they are improved but look at the match ups, again kingofspades this is all based upon Oakland playing to its potential. If we execute we can win games period, we have the speed and the talent to do so, but it still boils down to us executing our plays. That is the value of a week of mental football, also when you make a schedule today most teams are tough, but if we execute and not have the mental errors and start winning early, this could be a decent year. Nothing comes free, you and I are spoiled, now we have to earn it, our base is ok, they just need to make plays, also, I like the new offensive formations and how guys are getting open down the field now, so time will tell, I say we win 9 games this year, and the saga continues….

I can relate to you because we come from the same place, however, not to be a overly optimistic but, we have a Coach that hits people in the jaw, now between you and I that is the mentality we lived with as Raider fans in the 60’s and 70’s. Players will go where they get paid, on free agency if a player is available and we pay em he’s on the way. But watch what happens, if our team can execute we will win, and man we can run the ball, our backs are no joke, best tandum in the league.

This is not the Raiders of old, Al Davis is not the old Al Davis he is older, but I think we got lucky with Cable, he was off the radar and he gets it. My cousin call me about the Raiders when he saw they only worked the mental part the first week, by the way, he has two Super Bowl rings with SF 49ers and he said regardless of what people may think, if Oakland ever executes its plays, their speed will kill teams. We are blazing fast as a team, so I was pleased to hear that of course, but needless to say. Time will tell all.

You are overly optomistic, splitting with Denver and KC would be more Realistic, That’s been the norm for the past 48 years except for recently when we’ve been getting swept by both of them. There is no way we will sweep them and no, we won’t beat Dallas or Houston on the road. We will not win a game against the NFC east. The skins are much better than you realize. That leaves Cleveland, Cincinnati and the Jets as possible wins and I say that because they will be up for those games becuse we are one of the tems they can beat. I don’t know Rodney, you are sounding more like a Rah Rah lets go Raiders Fan instead of a realistic one. As far as executing plays are concerned, if every team exectuted their plays everyone would be 8-8 but that don’t happen does it ? You need to be good in the trenches to execute your plays consistantly and you know we are not good in that area, thus we are not good in any area. Like I said before, lets not confuse Reality with wishful thinking.

at this point we will get into the season and see, I will say this is the first in many seasons that I see the kind of progress that could mean wins. So I will leave it on that note. Had you read my post over the last several seasons, you and I would have sounded exactly the same, period. In no way were the Raiders going to win, and 5 games was a give me, they could have come closer to being a Detroit last season. This year offers something different and we will revisit this later during the season. Good or Bad, the Raiders will always be my team, though it is frustrating as hell, and I live in Indianapolis, IN lol, where they have the Colts and they are a good team go figure..lol. The Raiders will fair far better than last season..

In case anyone is interested:

Denver has won 8 of the last 10 games
KC has won 11 of the last 14 games
Lifetime against Bronco’s Raiders hold lead 54-39-2
Lifetime against KC. KC hold lead 51-44-2

It doesn’t matter who good or how bad either team is, they always play each other tough and sweeping either way is not the norm. I love these games