What is the NEW direction of the franchise?

The franchise had made a number of significant changes since the start of the season. it is clear that we are going into uncharted territory this upcoming season. What is your opinion on the direction we are taking and what direction do you think we should be taking? My opinions after the jump

Head Coach

Moss. ex-raider, part of the super bowl packers staff, in tight with Mckienzy. clear cut answer. hope we can get him

Offense

First of all it was clear that Hue and Carson were going to be tied a the hip during there tenor in oakland. However, the departure of Hue is bound to change things. The biggest one in my opinion is Carson's since of security. We all new that Carson was Hue's guy and was the clear cut starter as long as Hue was calling the shot. He new if he had a bad outing that his job was still safe. Now that he's gone is this still the case? i believe more or less it is. Carson was once an elite quarterback and showed signs that he could return to that form again. remember 7 of his interceptions came in two games. I think carson is our guy and has the ability to make the pro bowl next season (and thats not just biased fan talk).

Darren McFadden is our starter. But how many games will he start is the question. we need to make sure that we have a back up plan for when he misses the inevitable game or two. To me the Answer on this is not Michael Bush. I am a huge Michael Bush fan but the problem is he believes he is a Number 1 back, and so will a few teams in the league. It would cost too much to keep him. I like Taiwan Jones for his speed and play maker ability and i LOVE rock Cartwright for his intangibles. But we need a bruising runner, while i would love it to be michael bush again, it would be more beneficial to downgrade slightly and pay a whole lot less.

Nothing to say about the fullback position. Reese is a freak.

We have youth and talent in our young receiving group. and While the addition of a true number one would be great i don't think it should be a focus for our team. If one falls into our lap or we find one for a great value by all means to quote John Elway pull the trigger. But don't make it a point to find one. I think hey-ward bay is proving that while taking him so early wasn't so crazy ( while crabtree had better number he hasn't proven to be a supreme talent either) . i think Denarius Moore is our clear cut number 1 receiver and had the most potential of the group. i can see him having close to 1000 yards next season with Palmer behind center. PUT FORD BACK IN THE SLOT. ford is fast and crafty, put him in the slot, create mismatches. Chaz and Murphy are also good receivers and add good depth behind the top 3. and while i am not opposed to keeping ahold of TJ and not for it either, if he wants to stay let him, just dont pay him very much to do so.

While our tight ends are not full of supreme talent i believe we have some good situational players and an overall good group. Boss can block and has sure hands but not a playmaker. Meyer is a decent receiving option as well as a serviceable blocker. I don't know a lot about gordon, but he's a rookie and not overly expensive. lets see if he can develop. Ausburry is interesting. didn't see much of him this year but i want to see what he can become. AL has drafted great late in the last few years and i believe this guy may be another case of this.

Not horrible as a group this season but not dominate either. I like our young left side. Wiz is proving to be a steal and the big guy at left tackle is a crushing run blocker. thats where my love affair for this line ends. I thing that we need something new at center. that is my one must replace for this o-line. as far as the right side goes it also needs two new starters, but before we go and break the bank for free agents i think we should look in house. Bruce campbell needs to prove he is still worth the roster spot. put him in and lets see what he's got. Same goes for Barksdale. he's only in his second year and probably still a little rough but through him in there and lets see what they got.

Defense (3-4 conversion?)

To start are we converting to a 3-4 defense? i'm sure it will also depend on who we bring in for DC but so far all signs make it seem likely. our new GM recently helped put green bays 3-4 together and i think he may attempt to do the same thing in oakland.

To be clear i have always been a fan of the 4-3 and the 46. i have also always been against the 3-4. but in this scenario i think that the 3-4 would be a great idea. our personnel is near perfect, and Mckenzie has already he has proven that he can successfully make the transition.

as far as the d-line goes we have the best 3-4 defensive end over the last decade. Seymour made his name playing the 3-4 end and i see no reason why he can't still be dominate at the position. I believe that either Kelly or Houston could play the other end spot. i think kelly would be the best choice as starter and Houston would be a great young player with tremendous potential that could rotate in at both sides. DT is a key position in the 3-4 and we have one that would be a great fit in henderson, the only problem with that is his age and he has said publicly he wants to play in the 4-3. This is where we may need to make and offseason acquisition. i think Houston is also possibility here. EIther way this is a key position of the 3-4 and we need to be certain it is covered.

2 interesting players in this scheme change are shaughnessy and des bryant. i think Bryant could b a good end in the system. however im not sure where shaughnessy fits. he could possibly be a good end but he had to put on weight to a 4-3 end, he's a big dude but i'm not sure how he would fit. could he possibly play outside backer?

I think we have our 4 starters at line backer on roster. Wimbley is a prototypical 3-4 outside linebacker. with whats he's being paid and his pass rush ability he is a clear cut starter. another exciting factor in this system change is McClain. he may not have lived up to expectations in the nfl as of now. but could a system change change that? he excelled at bama in a 3-4, maybe the change could speed up his progression. Here is where i am taking a leap of faith. i think curry, another addition that is not living up to expectation in the nfl should be moved inside. his speed and instincts would be bennificial. the only downfall is that we would then have both our mike positions occupied by people who are not very well good in coverage. I would then put trevor scott at the other linebacker position, he has proven to be a good situational pass rusher. but can he live up to another position change and becoming a full time start. where does groves fit into the equation? i'm not really sure. if anywhere its outside linebacker. but i'm not convinced he can do the job. we would also need to ass depth through the draft or free agency.

With huff moving to corner we have a need at safety (and i'm not so sure that we gained a lot at the corner position) Giordano made some great plays this season but i'm not sure he is our starter at free safety. we could always put branch there but thats assuming he gets better in coverage and that mitchell is ready to start at strong safety. down fall is neither of the 2 are great in coverage. i've heard speculation that Chekwa could be moved to safety but that is by no means anything to bank on. At corner we are very good on one side with route even though his hands are overly active. i'm not sure DVD is the answer as a starter, he consistently disappointed me last season. i don't have much to say about lito. that fact is he's old. and even if he does start we still need to find some youth to invest in. Chris Johnson is serviceable, but by no means the answer. this is my biggest area of concern.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Returner: Ford

KIcker: SeBass

Punter: Lechler

alls good in the hood

DRAFT

first of all regarding the comp picks. I think we will be disappointed. i don't thin we will receive much for zach miller. i think we will get a 3 for Aso, and hard telling what we will get for gallery. probably in the 5th round range. as far as Higgins goes i don't think we get get anything. So i'm going to be conservative when predicting the draft

3rd round supplemental pick for aso

5th round

5th round supplemental pick for gallery

6ht round pick

6th round supplemental for miller

with our picks being so late Mckenzie has his work cut out for him. hopefully we can find some value picks focusing at the linebacker, dback position.

SHARE YOUR OPINIONS ON THE BOOK I JUST WROTE, ON WHERE IM WRONG, WHERE IM RIGHT, AND WHAT YOU THINK WE WILL DO REGARDING THE UPCOMING OFF-SEASON