WMBURK95's Comments & Raider Updates

[wmburk95]

Previous comments were posted on Black Jack's season long thread.

[wmburk95]

The Raider's and Al Davis deserve credit for going out and getting Seymour, one of the league's best defensive players. Yes they overpaid, but let's face it, people bash Al like a pinata, but give hime no credit for doing something which definitely makes the team better. The bashers includes myself.
The key for the Raiders is to start winning games against teams like Kansas City who are more comparable in talent rather than playing well and losing to superior teams like San Diego. So the road back starts this Sunday.

[Black Jack]

heartbreaking loss for the readers, it never seizes to amaze me how bad teams always find a way to lose, and good teams alwayss find a way to win.

[jaguilar]

nice update!!!!!!

[The Nac]

Oakland is heading in the right direction, but Jackass Russell needs to play better, period. All the hype surrounding this kid says he's legit and then some, but where's it been? The kid needs to establish himself as a leader on that field. Not just put up ridiculous numbers, but become the field general for that offense. When that happens, THEN the rest of the West needs to worry. But as it looks, we're still a year or two away from that unless he surprises us all this year. This is an honest assessment/opinion from a Broncos fan.

But, for the record, Al Davis is still a lunatic.

[wmburk95]

The Raiders came through and won the type of matchup they need to win. It wasn't pretty, but no matter. This week's game at home against Denver falls into exactly the same category -- another matchup with a team they can and therefore need to beat.
JaMarcus Russell: the QB comes in with a passer rating of 46.6 and only 158.5 yards per game -- ranked 30th in the league. He is missing open receivers consistently and putting his defense on the field too much. Eventually this will wear out the defense and lead to unnecessary injuries on that side of the ball. For the Raiders to get beyond respectability and into contention, he needs to start making at least the ordinary plays.

[jaguilar]

Originally Posted by wmburk95

The Raiders came through and won the type of matchup they need to win. It wasn't pretty, but no matter. This week's game at home against Denver falls into exactly the same category -- another matchup with a team they can and therefore need to beat.
JaMarcus Russell: the QB comes in with a passer rating of 46.6 and only 158.5 yards per game -- ranked 30th in the league. He is missing open receivers consistently and putting his defense on the field too much. Eventually this will wear out the defense and lead to unnecessary injuries on that side of the ball. For the Raiders to get beyond respectability and into contention, he needs to start making at least the ordinary plays.

I have seen enough of russell. I would like to see Bruce G. He is not a leader. From what i here on the local radio show my guess is that his teammates are not high on him either.
Quote To Note:

"We know he's still young. There's going to be some growing pains, but he acts as if he's doing OK, so you better hope that's how he feels on the inside and wants to get better."

—Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha on struggling quarterback JaMarcus Russell.

[wmburk95]

Raiders play poorest game so far.
Certainly the Raiders had a terrible showing against Denver with only 137 yards of total offense. For QB Russell it couldn't have been much worse. I continue to worry that the defense may give up if the offense continues to play the way they have. Right now they would probably be a better team with Gradkowski at QB. The question is whether to give up on Russell, at least for a while to see if they can make some kind of effort to stay in the race. Certainly Houston is not overwhelming. I think they should give B. G. a chance to get them back into it. If they get even at 2-2, they're still in it.

[wmburk95]

Raiders win a game they shouldn't:
The Raiders picked up a nice win last Sunday over Philadelphia. This comes after losing three straight, two of which were to teams they could have beaten. Today's game against the Jets moves surprisingly into the could win category mainly due to the injury to Chris Jenkins as well as the loss of two of the Jets wide receivers. The Raiders typically lay an egg in this situation.
On a different note, I would like to point out that Washington is at least as poorly managed as the Raiders, but their story is underplayed by comparison.

[wmburk95]

Raiders vs. Kansas City:
The great thing about a matchup of two bad teams is that we can be pretty sure that one of them will pick up a win this week. The Raiders will be getting some players back, while KC looks for addition by subtracting the unhappy LJ. Since I've been mostly wrong in my contest picks, I am taking KC with the 2 points, thus hoping to insure a Raiders victory.

[Steel]

The Raiders suck dick and they have the worst owner in football. They deserve no respect for anything they have done over the last 6 years. This team is a complete embarrassment to the NFL.

[wmburk95]

Raiders finally make the change.
The Raiders have announced they are going with Gradkowski. I advocated this change back in week four. While he has not shown himself to be a true NFL starting QB, he at least has some concept of running an offense. Although I did not pick them in the contest, I wouldn't be surprised if the Raiders play a competitive game today.

[wmburk95]

Raiders a better team with Gradkowski.
As stated in my previous post I am happy the Raiders finally made the change I've advocated since week four. Unfortunately they waited until week 11. Clearly they are a better team with BG. Previously they have been clobbered after each win, but I think they are a live dog with the 14 points against Dallas. I have picked them in the special Thanksgiving Pick 3, but not in the regular weekly contest.
The goal of improving on last years 5-11 record is a tall order, since they would have to go 3-3 in their remaining games which include Dallas, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore.

[wmburk95]

Raiders Lose and Don't Cover:
Well the Raiders never had a shot a winning in Dallas, but they definitely had their chances to back door cover the 14 point number. It doesn't get any easier this week going into Pittsburgh. The Steelers really need this game, so hopefully it won't get as ugly as it looks on paper. Regardless of who Pittsburgh starts at QB, Oakland's chances look about as good as New Mexico St. upsetting Boise on the blue turf.

[wmburk95]

Reverse-Razzle-Dazzle-Karma:
Well on 12-1-2009 I wrote that the Raiders had virtually nill chance to beat the Sleelers straight up in Pittsburgh. True to form the NFL sees the Raiders win, and then this week Cleveland beats the Steelers for good measure. So now Washington comes into Oakland. This is a game in which the Raiders figure to be competitive. So using NFL logic they could get blown out. Still Gradkowski now has a 2-1 record as a starter.