Seriousness is overrated. Unless we are talking about the Raiders. SOB was kind enough to take me off cloud nine and realize that I got a sick feeling watching the games against the Niners and the Seacows.

Complacency.

Sure, it's only preseason. Barely even scrimmages, you say. But I saw in the game against the Niners, and to some degree, the Seamen, a level of complacency take over this team. After a brilliant drive in which DHB showed he has the potential to be the great WR we all thought he could be, the team seemed to drift into IDGAF mode. And if you don't know what IDGAF mode is, please stand in line for your next shot of sizzurp behind that fat guy with the orange jumpsuit on. And it stayed that way until the ultimate gaffe by Mario Henderson sent Jason Campbell's head snapping backwards before he was slammed to the ground by that ultimate sack machine...Travis LaBoy??

And then here comes Bruce Gradkowski. Damn, every time I watch him play I get a feeling in my gut that rises up to my heart and stops it so I'm not distracted from watching something special happen. And he usually does do something special. Like telling Mario Henderson to take his eyes off the damn scoreboard and play some damn football. Like coming out and torching the scrubs because JC has his job based off of a trade and Bruce being injured.

"Like thunder and lightning, goddamn it's so exciting". -Thin Lizzy

Bruce Gradkowski, in 1 preseason game, made Kyle Boller the weakest link. Goodbye.

Onto Seattle, home of Starbucks, Microsoft, the Mariners, Seagulls, and 100 other things that make you want to smash your head through a brick wall face first. Bruce comes out against the scrubs and wastes them in the first quarter. At one point the Raiders seemed to score on 3 straight plays. Called back thanks to Erik Pears. *Note to self-"finesse" blocking means you hold a lot* You know the team is rolling when Grads takes some time trying to convince his receivers to actually catch the damn ball. Brandon Myers, what happened? Then Boller comes in and waits until it gets close on the scoreboard to actually remember he was, at one point, an NFL QB. Either that or he's picked up some overly dramatic behavoir from his man-wife. For those who believe that she can't possibly affect his play please look up Warner, Kurt under "The Lost Years" for more information.

The point of this sleep-deprived rant? Bruce Gradkowski deserves a shot at the starting QB position. Not because he's statistically better than JC. On that, the stats don't lie. But they do. It seems contradictory but it's not. Some great passers had some horrible passer ratings. Bart Starr had a horrible passer rating, but he's in the Hall of Fame with 2 Super Bowl rings and not even the most stat-geeky douchestick would say he's a bad QB.

He also seems to fit our new scheme better. Bubble screens, short passes etc. behind a shaky line where mobility can come into play. And even Boller can follow the "hand it off to Bush" policy, so that won't be an issue. Dmac needs to get involved, and while Campbell seemed to be content to do what even that fat turdblossom could do by tossing it to Zach Miller, Bruce has shown he doesn't give a damn who's on the other end. Hell, Campbell only threw it to DHB because Action Jackson, Cable, and possibly even God himself (Al Davis) told him to. Just My humble opinion though.

Other thoughts? I like the idea of Hartwig being added, though that makes getting Veldheer in the lineup more difficult. Solution? Left to Right -Hendo, Gallery, Hartwig, Walker, Veldheer. Unless you happen to know a quality veteran tackle we can pick up on the cheap.

Antonio Bryant would be a good pickup to fill in for perennial All-Injured List 1st teamer Chaz Schilens. Chaz, I love ya, but you spend more time at the doctor than your old kinda-QB.

If Erik Pears is on the roster, I will have proof that there is a God, and he hate me. Like ikickedapuppyandrobbedachurchhadanabortionpeedonastatueofjesus kind of hate. Oh well. You and the horse you rode in on too. If you're going to hell, go head first.

7-9 looks to be a realistic outcome. If it's more, great. If not, you have to tell the kids we lost cable.

John Marshall is only here because he stood up for Cable in the infamous Hanson beatdown. Maybe he needs to grow a mullet. It was the only reason I liked Rob Ryan, might as well be the reason I like his sorry ass.