Oh man, these are the dog days of Booty. Everyone is just kind of twiddling their thumbs and waiting for the lockout to end. I imagine the teams are probably pretty busy doing things they aren't supposed to be, but they certainly aren't talking about it.
With that said, there are still a couple fine pieces to be had. Jump over....
Jerry McDonald runs down his list of most improved from last year, and then moves onto the guys that need to improve this year. He starts off with Jason Campbell, and you can't argue with that. After Campbell the guy whose improvement I think is going to be key is this guy:
Who will be this year’s `most improved?’
MLB Rolando McClain McClain asserted himself as a defensive leader and was lauded for his smarts and film study. He certainly doesn’t lack for confidence. The next step is going beyond simply being in the right place at the right time. It’s making the play and forcing turnovers once he gets there.
Thoughts from the Dark Side points out that the Raiders have yet to hire a QB coach.
Raiders still without a QB coach | July
The Raiders did nearly a complete coaching overhaul this offseason. Tom Cable is out and Hue Jackson is promoted to the head job. He hired a lot of new assistants to join him in his quest to bring the Raiders back to their winning ways. But among all of the new hires, quarterbacks coach was not one of them.
They mention they expect Hue Jackson to do it, but I am guessing these duties are going to fall much more on Al Saunders. Saunders certainly has the experience, savvy and system for it. We took a look at his system a while ago:
Al Saunders Helping 'SHAPE' Raiders and Jason Campbell - Silver And Black Pride
• Site: Did the QB recognize the pre-snap defense? • Hot: Did he direct the "hot" receiver where to go? • Alert: Did he correctly alter the play at the line of scrimmage? • Progression: Did he correctly read the defense and locate his options? • Execution: How were the mechanics on his drop and throw? What was the result?
The Oakland Raiders Should Sign This NBA Player - Silver And Black Pride
Now Robinson didn't say if he still wants to play offense, and he only said that he "might" try football. So who knows if will actually go through with it. But I do know if he does decide to give it a try the Raiders should be the first to bring him in. I imagine his football skills are a little rusty, but he is 27 and his body is trained to play elite level sports. Sign this guy up. He will be cheap, and I've learned better than to doubt that when it comes to sports Robinson can do anything.
Around the Lockout
NFL Labor Negotiations This Week Described As 'Productive' - Pride Of Detroit
Sessions the first two days of the week were productive, as the parties worked to close out language for necessary elements of a potential deal to end the lockout, which reached the four-month mark Tuesday. There were about 12 participants, including NFL outside counsel Bob Batterman and NFL Players Association outside counsel Jeffrey Kessler, in Tuesday's nine-hour-plus session.Of course, the progress the lawyers made isn't that big of a deal. Getting the language in place for a deal to ultimately be completed is an important step, but only so much progress can be made without guys like Goodell and Smith. The rest of the week is when the most important negotiations will take place. Time is running out to work through some of the main issues that exist if the NFL doesn't want any of the preseason to be affected, so the next few days will be crucial.
NFL Lockout: There is a New Expected End Date for the Lockout - Silver And Black Pride
I have no idea what happened in the world of the NFL lockout the last 24 hours, but whatever happened must have been good because the mythical July 21st due date for a new CBA has been pushed up four days. According the the good folks at Pro Football Talk the new due date is the 17th. While it hasn't been made official these exact target dates for the arrival of a new CBA leads me to believe that it will be coming to us via a C-section rather than a natural birth.