A New Committment: NFL Head Coach 09

[adembroski]

Mon 4/27/2009 (91 Days until Training Camp)

The 2009 NFL Draft is in the books, and the Oakland Raiders, like every other NFL team, feel pretty good about their selections. By far the most active team in the draft, the Raiders moved up and down the ladder throughout the draft, picking its targets and striking. Whether the results will translate into the win column come the regular season is yet to be seen, but there are lots of reasons to be optimistic.

The Raiders started out day 1 by trading down and picking up an extra second rounder. From the #11 spot, they selected Miami QB Kelly James, who'll be groomed as the quarterback of the future. He has a strong arm and good accuracy, as well as a good mind for the game. Some question his mobility, but he can move when pressed.

In the second round, Oakland filled a need by drafting right tackle J.R. Watts. He graded out on most draft boards as the best tackle available, but there are questions about whether he'll develop at the next level. The Raiders likely drafted him with this year in mind, so as long as he can step in and be productive immediately, I'm sure they'll consider it a win.

Tight end Drew Goldman two picks later and has universally been called a stretch. Other, higher rated tight ends were available there, and it really wasn't a massive need. Someone in the Raider front office must have seen something others didn't to take such a leap, as he probably would have been available a round later.

Northern Arizona RB LeRon James was a bit of a head scratcher considering the Raiders are insistent that Darren McFadden, last year's first rounder, is recovering well from his concussion. Regardless, James was widely considered one of the better sleeper picks, so perhaps the Raiders simply acted on opportunity.

Patrick Boma's a small school guy with little experience and a big heart. He's a lunch pail type of player who'll bring it every down, but he might be limited physically and mentally. He's only played 5 years of organized football, and at a small school level the last 4.

WR JaMarion Bellows and DT Patrick Lopez are two more of those upside picks. They could be pro bowlers 5 years down the road or out of football.

It's clear A.J. Dembroski likes playing the risk game in the draft. He made 4 trades, giving up his second and third next year to move up and get Goldman, but gained the 3rd back in another trade. Raider Nation likes what they see in his aggressiveness, but we're a bit worried about the boom or bust nature of his selections.

The Raiders also signed the following undrafted free agent rookies: LG Rex Frease, LSU; WR Clint Taylor, West Virginia; DT Jack Jones, TCU; LG Patrick Weaver, E. Carolina

Off-Season Week 11 Transactions

The Broncos sign CB Keiwan Ratliff

The Browns sign LB David Hawthorne, FS Dashon Goldson, and Gs Eric Robertson and Montrae Holland

The Cardinals sign LB Quinton Culberson

The Chiefs sign CB Jason David

The 49ers sign LB Randall Godfrey

The Giants sign DT Anthony Adams

The Jaguars sign DT Alfred Malone

The Jets sign DT Sam Adams and G Billy Yates

The Lions sign LB Scott Fujita

The Packers sign FSs Anthony Smith and Jamie Silva

The Panthers sign FS Vince Palmer

The Ravens sign WR Jabar Gaffney

The Redskins sign LG Robert Gallery

The Saints sign DT Hollis Thomas and LB Donovan Woods

The Seahawks sign DT Shaun Smith

[adembroski]

NOTE: The game sorta speeds through 3 months here, so I'm skipping forward to a point approaching training camp.

Mon 7/20/2009 (7 Days until Training Camp)
Camp is about to break, and the Oakland Raiders are still in a difficult position. While the NFL draft went as well as could be expected, the Oakland's going to be hard pressed to sign everyone with only about 5 million in cap room. That's not enough to even bring QB Kelly James on board. There's going to have to be some creative negotiation to make a good looking draft pay dividends.

One area the Raiders could look is releasing some of it's current high priced talent, but the huge signing bonuses that Al Davis handed over could make that difficult. Releasing QB JaMarcus Russell would open up about $8 million dollars, but would also count a stinging $30 million against next year's cap figure. At some point, the Raiders are going to have to pay for these past mistakes. Might as well do it now.

[adembroski]

Mon 7/27/2009 (12 days to Preseason Week 1, @ Denver)
With the NFL training camps in full swing now, teams are struggling to get their draft picks signed. The Oakland Raiders has been able to finalize deals with all of it's rookies save one; #11 overall draft pick Kelly James. Word is the parties were still pretty far apart the last time they spoke, but another session is scheduled for this week. While the Raiders would like to have James in camp, it's likely that Brian Griese is already slated to be the starter, and with Andrew Walter and JaMarcus Russell also in camp, it's doubtful there's a lot of urgency.

The Oakland front office probably breathed a collective sigh of relief when they started finding out what the other rookies were asking for. RT J.R. Wayne came with the biggest price tag, about $4.9 million over 4 years, with a $1.1 million dollar cap figure this season. This low priced rookie class is a godsend for the Raiders as they attempt to build a competitive roster.

[adembroski]

Mon 8/3/2009 (5 days to Preseason Week 1, @ Denver)
The Oakland Raiders charge full steam toward their opening pre-season game, and finally have all their guns holstered. Rookie QB Kelly James will, indeed, see his first NFL action against the Broncos, as he signed a 6 year deal worth around $25 million dollars. Word is in the past few days he's gotten the lions share of the snaps, but Brian Griese will indeed start, presumably, all four preseason games.

With training camp underway, here's a look at the Oakland Raiders training camp roster.

* Name, Overall rating (Keep in mind that for training camp invitees, overall changes dynamically depending on information available. I promise you nobody will be rated 0 or anywhere close to it once the preseason is over)

Projected Starters
Rookies

Quarterbacks
Brian Griese, 75
JaMarcus Russell, 71
Kelly James, 65
Andrew Walter, 58

Runningbacks
Darren McFadden, 87
Justin Fargas, 73
LeRon James, 70
Michael Bush, 63
Sean Coen, 56

Fullbacks
Justin Griffith, 79
Sedrick Ward, 55

Wide Receivers
Javon Walker, 82
Todd Watkins, 75
Clint Taylor, 74
Barron Gilchrist, 74
Ronald Curry, 73
Johnnie Lee Higgins, 66
JaMarion Bellows, 0

Tight Ends
Zach Miller, 82
Drew Goldman, 77
Cory Littman, 66

Left Tackles
Kwame Harris, 82
Mario Henderson, 73
William Dillon, 70

Left Guards
Rex Frease, 76
Patrick Weaver, 75
Isaac Snell, 73

Centers
Jake Grove, 78
Alex Stepanovich, 73
Jeff Nealy, 73

Right Guards
Patrick Boma, 88
Jack Webb, 76
Geoffrey Schwartz, 62

Right Tackles
J.R. Wayne, 86
Rashad Butler, 77
James Blair, 72

Left Ends
Jeff Charleston, 78
Jay Richardson, 76

Right Ends
Derrick Burgess, 84
Trevor Scott, 72

Defensive Tackles
Tommy Kelly, 81
Patrick Lopez, 78
Kyle Williams, 75
Jermaine Mills, 67
Jack Jones, 66
Aundre Nash, 59

Left Outside Linebackers
Chike Okeafor, 81
Rob Morris, 78
Walter Easley, 65
Torian Watts, 0

Middle Linebackers
Kirk Morrison, 87
Mike Fawcett, 77
Senario McCrary, 0
Earl Hills, 0

Right Outside Linebackers
Thomas Howard, 90
Lawrence Holmberg, 74
Isaiah Ekejiuba, 71

Cornerbacks
Nnamdi Asomugha, 92
DeAngelo Hall, 87
Brandon Carr, 72
LaRon Pryor, 71
Kennard Cox, 71
Cary Williams, 68

Free Safeties
Michael Huff, 81
Dennis Keyes, 74
Haruki Nakamura, 65

Strong Safeties
Gibril Wilson, 83
Tyvon Branch, 61
Moe Gabriel, 0

Kicking Specialists
Sebastian Janikowski, 79
Paul Ernster, 73

[adembroski]

Fri 8/4/2009 (4 Days until Preseason Week 1, @ Denver Broncos)


Adam Schefter
We've reached the first week of the pre-season and teams are beginning the process of trimming down their rosters. The first round of cuts came yesterday, and while there weren't a whole lot of big names sent packing, a couple of guys could garner some interest around the league.

Among the players looking for new homes as of last night; Tampa Bay kicker John Carney, Kansas City QB Brodie Croyle, Dolphins WR Greg Camarillo, Panthers FB Brad Hoover, and Raiders RB Justin Fargas.

None of these players are game breakers, but they've all got talent to offer someone. Expect most of them to be scooped up in the near future

[adembroski]

Broncos Shell Raiders, 45-0
Jay Cutler Shreds Raiders "D" in Win

Denver, CO 8/8/09
The Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos opened up the 2009 preseason at Invesco Field at Mile High. Jay Cutler lead the Broncos with two touchdown passes and 168 yards in the first half.

Oakland's rookie QB Kelly James looked shaky, repeatedly holding the ball for long periods of time and firing the ball into underneath coverage with little touch.

The scoring opened when Jay Culter hit Brandon Marshall for an 8 yard strike at the 6:52 mark of the first quarter, and then Champ Bailey returned an errant Brian Griese pass for 6 early in the second. That would touch off a 24 point second quarter for the Broncos, and the Raiders never challenged.

"It's disappointing," said Raiders head coach A.J. Dembroski, "You try not to concern yourself with the results of preseason games, but it always hurts when you lose that badly."

Broncos players down played the victory, pointing to two regular season meetings still to come.

The Broncos are 1-0 and host the New York Jets next week.
The Raiders are 0-1 and host the Philadelphia Eagles next week.

Passing (comp/att yds-tds-ints)
Oakland- K.James 10/17 99-0-2, A.Walter 4/5 50-0-0, B.Griese 4/9 37-0-1
Denver- J.Cutler 14/18 168-2-1, J.Harrington 10/11 109-1-0

Rushing (carry-yards-tds)
Oakland- D.McFadden 9-8-0, M.Bush 4-21-0, S.Coen 2-11-0, A.Walter 1-(-3)-0, L.James 1-3-0
Denver- A.Aldridge 14-78-2, S.Young 11-35-0

Receiving (rec-yards-tds)
Oakland- R.Curry 5-63-0, J.Bellows 2-21-0, Z.Miller 2-20-0, T.Watkins 2-17-0, D.Goldman 2-26-0, J.Griffith 1-21-0, L.James 1-(-5)-0, C.Littman 1-10-0, C.Taylor 1-5-0, B.Gilchrist 1-8-0
Denver- D.Patton 5-63-0, B.Marshall 4-32-1, E.Royal 3-56-0, G.Barnidge 3-34-0, D.Graham 3-38-1, T.Chambers 2-19-0, S.Young 2-16-0, A.Aldridge 1-10-1, B.Stokley 1-9-0

Defensive (tackles-sacks)
Oakland- K.Cox 5-0, J.Richardson 4-0, M.Fawcett 4-0, T.Watts 4-0, L.Pryor 4-0, T.Kelly 4-1, I.Ekejiuba 3-0, C.Williams 2-0, H.Nakamura 2-0, M.Gabriel 2-0, T.Scott 2-0, D.Keyes 2-0, K.Morrison 2-0, D.Burgess 2-0, M.Huff 1-0, C.Okeafor 1-0, Asomugha 1-0, W.Easley 1-0, E.Hills 1-0, R.Morris 1-0, B.Carr 1-0, C.Taylor 1-0, D.Hall 1-0
Denver- D.Williams 5-0, T.Crowder 5-1, B.Grimes 1-0, J.Moss 3-1, E.Dumervil 3-0, M.Jackson 3-0, D.Bly 3-0, K.Ratliff 3-0, B.McNamara 3-0, A.Gunleye 3-1, T.Ward 3-0, K.Johnson 2-0, D.Smith 2-0, M.Wilhelm 2-0, C.Bailey 2-0, D.Coffee 1-0, A.Kinney 1-0, M.Thomas 1-0, M.Cox 1-0, E.Royal 1-0, G.Watson 1-0, V.Leach 1-0

Turnovers
Oakland- Interceptions: 1 (N.Asomugha, 1 for 2 yards)
Denver- Interceptions: 3 (C.Bailey 2 for 26 yards and a touchdown, D.Bly 1 for 51 yards and a touchdown)

Kicking fgm/fga (long)
Oakland- none
Denver- M.Nugent 1/1 (25)

Punting att-yards-in 20
Oakland- S.Janikowski 2-88-0, P.Ernster 1-43-0
Denver- none

[adembroski]

Other NFL Scores

Colts 14 0-1, vs. Texans
Bills 20 1-0, @ New York Giants

Rams 7 0-1, vs. Lions
Buccaneers 27 1-0, @ Baltimore

Jaguars 17 1-0, vs. Packers
Cardinals 9 0-1, @ San Francisco

Bears 17 1-0, vs. Chiefs
Chargers 16 0-1, @ Pittsburgh

Panthers 0 0-1, vs. Bengals
Chiefs 17 1-0, @ Chicago

Giants 21 0-1, vs. Bills
Eagles 26 1-0, @ Oakland

Dolphins 17 0-1, @ Washington
Jets 28 1-0, @ Denver

49ers 0 0-1, vs. Cardinals
Lions 17 1-0, @ St.Louis

Falcons 12 0-1, @ New England
Packers 13 1-0, @ Jacksonville

Redskins 18 0-1, vs. Dolphins
Ravens 28 1-0, vs. Buccaneers

Steelers 16 1-0, vs. Chargers
Saints 10 0-1, @ Seattle

Seahawks 27 1-0, vs. Saints
Patriots 3 0-1, vs. Falcons

Bengals 3 0-1, @ Carolina
Texans 35 1-0, @ Indianapolis

Vikings 6 0-1, vs. Browns
Titans 23 1-0, vs. Cowboys

Browns 24 1-0, @ Minnesota
Cowboys 17 0-1, @ Tennessee

Rookie Watch

Javon Jackson, LT, Phi- 0 pancakes, 0 sacks allowed

Rakeem Jordan, CB, Mia 1 tackle

Jack English, QB, Bal 1-1, 8 yards

Jackson Hailes, DE, Cle DNP

Joey Keller, RB, Was 4 carries, 17 yards

Alain Dixon, DT, Az 1 tackle

Raevon Hines, DE, SF 1 tackle

Sammy Jackson, DE, Cin 1 tackle

Jesse Holloway, CB, NYJ 3 tackles, 1 interception

Chester Bryant, CB, Chi Recorded no stats

Kelly James, QB, Oak 10/17, 99 yards, 2 int

D.J. Crosby, WR, NO 4 catches for 72 yards and a long of 34 yards

Dennis Armstrong, WR, Sea recorded no stats

Will Barkley, SS, Jax DNP

Jason Cody, LT, KC 8 pancakes, 0 sacks allowed

Devin Mayo, LB, Hou 1 tackles

Tra McCoy, WR, Min 4 catches, 74 yards

L.J. Nelson, TE, Atl 3 catches, 53 yards

Dane Morrow, QB, Buf 2/11, 30 yards

Barry Nix, FS, GB 1 tackles

Mack Jackson, LB, Den 3 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 pass defensed

Rod Lewis, DT, SF 2 tackles, 2 passes defensed

David Glaser, DE, SD 1 tackle, 1 TFL, 1 sack

Blake Dexter, RB, Ten DNP

Rodney Atkins, RB, TB 3 carries, 8 yards

Cory Easley, FS, Pit 1 pass defensed

C.J. Branch, RB, NYG 7 carries, 22 yards. 1 catch, 9 yards

Daryl Hickson, DE, Phi 1 tackle

Biff Below, QB, NYJ 7/10 91 yards, 1 int

Dusty Parkman, WR, Dal recorded no stats

Juron Riley, CB, Ind 2 tackles


NOTE- I'm going to be fairly brief with preseason. I wanna get through it fairly quickly. I am playing the games, so yes, I did personally take that thumping from the Broncos, because I want to visually evaluate certain players, but I'm not going to put up game previews and go into detail with the other games. I'm going to concentrate primarily on the battles for rosters spots on the Raiders. I've decided instead of covering league leaders and giving standings for the weekly score updates, I'm going to give updates of how the first round rookies performed... figured, for preseason, that'd actually be more entertaining than knowing that Payton Manning completed 6/7 for 102 yards and a touchdown in a half of play.

Also, I'm working on some graphics to present the game stats better. I know the USA Today format I used is difficult to read and ugly, but, like I said, I'm doing these on the fly as I go. Hopefully I'll have something better by the end of preseason. I really know nothing about graphics... the 2 I did use are just screenshots of excel cut up in paint.net. The colors aren't perfect either, but I figure if the gist is there, ya'll get it.

Gah! Just noticed the arrows on TOP. Damn it:P

[adembroski]

Mon 8/10/2009 (5 days to Preseason Week 2, vs. Eagles)
NFL teams had their first cut down entering the first week of the pre-season, and the Oakland Raiders trimmed some fat themselves, releasing overpriced backup RB Justin Fargas. There has been speculation that QB JaMarcus Russell wouldn't make it through the pre-season, but he's survived the first cut. However, he was the only active player on the roster not to take a snap in the Raiders first preseason game, a 45-0 embarrassment against the Broncos.

Kelly James played about two quarters of the game and looked like you'd expect a rookie quarterback to look- shaky. He threw 2 interceptions, one of which was return for a touchdown, and threw into coverage on several occasions. He was also sacked twice on plays when he should have been rid of the ball already.

It's hard to take anything good away from that bad of a beating, but the Raiders pass protection, for the most part, was solid all game long. Both of the Broncos sacks came on plays when Kelly hung on too long, and all three Raiders quarterbacks were given ample time to find open receivers. They didn't, but they had time.

The Raiders most impressive rookie was outside linebacker Torrian Watts, who racked up 4 tackles, 2 for losses, in 1 quarter of play. He looked instinctive, quick, and wrapped up nicely.