The Raiders need a good Defensive Tackle rotation. When Richard Seymour is healthy and rested, he is as disruptive a force as there is in the NFL. What plagued him were a few things:

(1) Matt Shaughnessy's Week 3 injury. When Matt Shaughnessy went down, Seymour's primary backup, Desmond Bryant, began being used in the defensive end rotation. Seymour's plays went up. Initially, he was extremely effective, but as the season wore on, less so.

(2) Knee injury. Seymour's knee injury was noticeable. In weeks 6-12, the man was nowhere near what he was; he should have been inactive for the Minnesota game as he was not able to perform at all.

(3) The penalties. This just has to get cleaned up. The man is too good to be doing some of this stuff. The personal fouls and the offsides are the notable ones. I count on Dennis Allen and Jason Tarver to get this squared away.

Now with John Henderson gone, the Raiders definitely need to get another effective defensive tackle or two in the fold. Limiting Seymour's snaps (and Tommy Kelly also) should make him effective throughout.

This highlight pack shows why we need to keep him healthy and fresh. He has been just awesome at times.

- Ninja Goro -