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2008 Team Report: Oakland Raiders
Quarterbacks
Starter: JaMarcus RussellBackup(s): Andrew Walter, Erik Meyer [R], Jeff Otis [R] Starting QB: The Raiders have to be considered a work in progress and a team in transition. They've had four coaches over the past five seasons, which has led to four different quarterbacks leading the team in passing in those five years. Former top overall draft pick JaMarcus Russell takes the reins with his cannon for an arm and his 6-foot-6, 265-pound frame. Russell struggled some in his only start last year, but the team added some playmakers that should help infuse the offense with a jolt of energy. Russell will be under pressure to produce immediately, but chances are he will be erratic as he learns the speed of the NFL. The youth movement, team speed and raw talent should give Raider Nation hope after the team nailed down just 19 total wins since their 2002 Super Bowl appearance. If Russell can actually throw the ball 80 yards in the air as has been rumored, the Raiders have the receiving corps to get downfield to haul in Russell's deep bombs. Backup QB: Andrew Walter struggled quite a bit in his crack at starting in 2006. At times, he looked completely confused and overwhelmed. His best attribute will likely be that he was around last year and has learned some of the system installed by head coach Lane Kiffin. Undrafted free agents Erik Meyer and Jeff Otis look to battle for the third QB spot in training camp unless another veteran is added to back up Russell.
Running Backs
Starter: Darren McFadden [R], Justin FargasBackup(s): Michael Bush, LaMont Jordan
Fullback(s): Justin Griffith, Oren O'Neal Starting RB: Oakland selected the consensus most explosive offensive player in the 2008 Draft in Arkansas RB Darren McFadden. The Raiders have indicated that they hope to utilize McFadden more like Reggie Bush was used in his rookie season than in the manner Adrian Peterson was used last year for Minnesota. McFadden averaged 5.8 yards per carry in college while scoring almost a touchdown per game. Still, the Raiders may hear about burning an early pick on a running back given the success Justin Fargas had when given the opportunity last year. He churned out 883 yards of offense over the last eight games of the season and scored four times over that stretch. Just like the quarterback position, the Raiders have had a different player lead the team in rushing in four of the past five seasons. Backup RBs: Michael Bush did not have a chance to get on the field last year because the Raiders opted to place him on injured reserve. He was once thought to be a potential first or second round draft pick before badly breaking his leg at Louisville. His chances of having a significant role this year plummeted after Oakland selected McFadden. It's hard to believe that LaMont Jordan has fallen from being an elite fantasy running back to fourth on the depth chart in the span of only three seasons -- with the possibility of getting cut before the season starts. Jordan has taken pay cuts to keep his spot on the roster and will need to show something in camp if he hopes to stick with the team. Fullback: Justin Griffith came to Oakland after four seasons in Atlanta and helped the Raiders increase their team rushing output by over 500 yards compared to the prior season. He rarely carried the ball but did see a few dump-off passes now and then. With McFadden now in the fold, Griffith should help pave the way for a rushing attack that should break into the top 10 this year. Oren O'Neal returns but played sparingly in 2007.
Wide Receivers
Starters: Javon Walker, Ronald CurryBackups: Drew Carter, Johnnie Lee Higgins Starting WRs: In typical Al Davis fashion, the Raiders targeted and landed free agent WR Javon Walker, giving him a humongous contract and opting to ignore his injury history. Walker was once a top-five fantasy receiver, but he missed huge chunks of time in two of the past three seasons with knee injuries. There's no doubt that a healthy Walker would be a great asset, but the Broncos had some questions on his overall durability and opted to release him. The Raiders rid themselves of Randy Moss and his huge contract last offseason only to wind up paying Walker more than Moss got from New England. Walker is a solid complement to Ronald Curry, who comes with his own long history of serious knee issues. If healthy, the tandem could wreak havoc on opposing defenses with their speed and agility. And like the QB and RB positions, the Raiders have had a different player lead the team in receiving yards four of the past five years. Backup WRs: Drew Carter is another new face after playing three seasons with the Panthers. His numbers increased each year with Carolina, and the 6-foot-3, 200-pounder makes a decent-sized target for QB JaMarcus Russell. Given the propensity of the starters to miss time, Carter could see more playing time than expected. Johnnie Lee Higgins has 4.4 speed and had a huge season his senior year at Texas-El Paso. With some seasoning, Higgins could help give the Raiders a potent stable of receivers for years to come.
Tight Ends
Starters: Zach MillerBackups: John Madsen, Tony Stewart Zach Miller came on late in the season and looks promising for the 2008 campaign. The Raiders did not get much production out of the tight end spot the past few years and selected Miller with a second-round pick in 2007. At 6-foot-5 and 265 pounds, he has almost the same proportions as his quarterback -- and many times the tight end is an inexperienced quarterback's best friend. John Madsen saw a few balls each of the past two seasons but is too undersized to be an effective blocking tight end. Tony Stewart filled that role last year and will return for 2-TE and short-yardage sets.
Place Kicker
Sebastian Janikowski : 2005 was a year to forget for Janikowski, with career lows in field goal percentage, long range field goals, and kickoff distance. 2006 was a year to forget for the Raiders offense. With the limited scoring opportunities, Oakland finished last in kicker scoring with 70 points. 2007 was a little better, but still left plenty of room for improvement. Janikowski hit only 23 of 32 (71.9%) field goals, although many of the misses were from long range (50B, 46WR, 57WL, 52LU, 64RU, 58SH, 35WL, 44WR, 49WR). Although he missed quite a few, he did use his leg strength to make some, with a career high six field goals from 50+ yards last year. Janikowski also tied a career high with 22 touchbacks on kickoffs.Kick and Punt Returners
Kick Returners: Tyvon Branch; Johnnie Lee Higgins; Darren McFadden; DeAngelo Hall; Lamont Jordan; Louis Rankin Fourth round draft pick DB Tyvon Branch is the early favorite to win the lead kickoff returner role. During his senior year at Connecticut he averaged 28.9 yards on 27 returns and scored twice. WR Johnnie Lee Higgins averaged 19.9 yards on kickoff returns during his college career at UTEP, but did not have any for the Raiders during his rookie year in 2007. First round draft pick RB Darren McFadden averaged 27.7 yards on kickoff returns and scored once during his career at Arkansas, however the Raiders coaches have suggested they don't want to overburden him with special teams work. A possible backup is speedy free agent acquisition CB DeAngelo Hall (16 returns, 22.4 avg. in 2005 for Atlanta). RB Lamont Jordan returned kicks periodically for the Jets (14 returns, 20.3 avg. in 2004). Undrafted free agent RB Louis Rankin averaged 23.6 yards on kickoff returns and scored once during his career at the University of Washington. Punt Returners: Johnnie Lee Higgins; Tyvon Branch; DeAngelo Hall; Louis Rankin Johnnie Lee Higgins became UTEP's main punt returner as a junior, and scored twice as a senior. He had trouble hanging onto the ball and hanging onto the lead punt returner role with the Raiders last year (20 returns, 5.2 avg.). Neither Tyvon Branch nor Louis Rankin returned punts in college; however the Raiders are practicing them in that role in their quest to find a dual-threat return specialist to replace the departed Chris Carr. DeAngelo Hall served as the primary backup for Atlanta (8 returns, 10.3 avg.) in 2005. Oakland has not finished in the top ten in fantasy returns since 2003.Offensive Line
Projected Starters: LT Kwame Harris, LG Robert Gallery, C John Wade, RG Cooper Carlisle, RT Cornell GreenKey Backups: Jake Grove, Paul McQuistan, Mario Henderson Commentary coming soon.
Team Defense
After a fairly strong showing in '06 the Raiders defense was supposed to turn the corner last season. It didn't happen. Instead they slumped to #31 versus the run, 26th in points allowed, totaled only 27 sacks and a modest 26 takeaways. Instead of entering the top 12 Oakland finished among the bottom dozen in most leagues. Lack of depth, injuries and poor play along the DL were a big part of the problem. Warren Sapp appeared to finally run out of gas, Tommy Kelly was injured early on, free agent pickup Gerard Warren was no more than adequate and no one else stepped up. Strangely the club did very little to address the shortcomings up front. Instead they set out to further improve their one strength, a 9th rated pass defense. A trade brought DeAngelo Hall over from Atlanta, giving Oakland arguably the best corner tandem in the game. Safety Gibril Wilson was added via free agency to sure up a safety position that wasn't all that bad to begin with. The help up front comes in the form of a healthy Kelly and the addition of three veterans Kalimba Edwards, William Joseph and Greg Spires. All three have at some point been marginal starters for their former teams so at least they have added veteran depth. If they stay healthy in the front 7, Oakland should improve on last years value but they likely remain a player or two away from becoming a top 12 unit.Defensive Line
Starters: DE Derrick Burgess, DE Greg Spires, DT/DE Tommy Kelly, DT Gerard Warren, DT Terdell SandsBackups: DE Kalimba Edwards, DE Jay Richardson, DE Trevor Scott [R], DT William Joseph Starting DL: Since leading the league with 16 sacks in '05, Burgess has seen his production slip a little each year. Some of that may be due to the lack of a supporting cast. Warren Sapp finally ran out of gas last season and the Raiders have been slow to make an investment in another stud lineman at either tackle or end. They gave Tommy Kelly a lot of money this off-season in hope that he can be one of those guys. Kelly is a versatile player who switched from tackle to end last season where he started 5 games and was playing well when injury cut his season short. The addition of former Tampa Bay starter Greg Spires gives the coaching staff some options. With a career best of 7.5 sacks and just 11.5 over his past 42 starts, Spires is a serviceable player but he doesn't pack much punch. Gerard Warren missed time with injury in '07 and didn't have a big impact on the defense when he did play. Terdell Sands and William Joseph will likely see a lot of action and one of them would become a starter if Kelly starts at end. On paper this unit is average at best with Kelly being the key. If he can be the bookend to Burgess this unit could be much more successful than expected. Backup DL: One thing the Raiders have going for them this year is veteran depth. Kalimba Edwards spent several years with the Lions bouncing back and forth between starter and rush down specialist. He was only moderately successful in either role. Much of Williams Joseph's 4 pro seasons have been spent battling injury. He finally managed to play a full schedule in '07 when he was relegated to backup status in New York. If he can stay healthy Joseph has a good shot at starting which would make it much easier for the coaching staff to keep Kelly at end. Injury forced Jay Richardson to see a lot more playing time than planned last season. The experience was helpful but he remains a project. Sixth round pick Trevor Scott is also a project type but he will have an opportunity to earn a little playing time early.
Linebackers
Starters: MLB Kirk Morrison, WLB Thomas Howard, SLB Sam Williams, SLB Robert ThomasBackups: OLB Jon Alston, OLB Ricky Brown, OLB Isaiah Ekejiuba, MLB Edgerton Hartwell Starting LBs: Kirk Morrison has established himself a very good NFL middle linebacker. He has led the club in tackles in each of his three pro seasons and with 4 picks in '07, has become a playmaker. In fact both Morrison and WLB Thomas Howard stepped up huge in the big play department with Howard adding a league best among linebackers, 6 interceptions. The Raiders officially list Sam Williams as the starter on the strong side but it was Robert Thomas who saw most of the action as the injury prone Williams once again spent much of the season on the shelf. It will be no surprise if Howard opens the season with the job in '08. This is a speedy group but they took some flack after last year's run defense went in the tank. If the guys up front can do a better job this year, it will make the linebackers a lot better. Backup LBs: Strong as the starting lineup may be, an injury at LB could create a lot of problems for Oakland. Heading into last season Robert Thomas was supposed to be top backup at all positions. Heading into this season he's probably a starter. That leaves Brown, Ekejiuba, and Alston who between them have 46 tackles at the NFL level, and Edgerton Hartwell who was cut by a Bengals club in '07 that ended up starting 2 street free agents late in the year but still didn't call him back. If he even makes the team it's only because the Raiders are so thin. If Sam Williams doesn't stay healthy enough to contribute his days may be over.
Defensive Backs
Starters: CB DeAngelo Hall, CB Nnamdi Asomugha, SS Gibril Wilson, FS Michael HuffBackups: CB Stanford Routt, CB Tyvon Branch [R], CB Michael Waddell, S Hiram Eugene Starting DBs: The Raiders finished last season with 18 interceptions and the 9th rated pass defense but that didn't stop them from improving it over the off-season. A closer look actually tell us why Oakland felt the need to go get DeAngelo Hall and Gibril Wilson. Only 5 of those 18 interceptions were recorded by defensive backs. Hall and Wilson Accounted for 9 between them in '07. In Hall and Nnamdi Asomugha the Raiders have a pair of veteran cover men that rival any pair in the league. With a hand in 20 turnovers during his four pro seasons Wilson's big play production is an obvious plus, but his leadership may actually be an even bigger contribution to a unit that seemed to lack chemistry last season. Wilson will be plugged in a strong safety allowing Michael Huff to move into the free safety role that probably better suits his skills. Drafted in the first round in '06, Huff was selected for his speed and big play production at Texas. So far that hasn't translated to the pro game. Maybe the shift in positions will free him up enough to make a difference. All in all this is a very talented group that will be the strength of the team. Backup DBs: Depth in the Raiders secondary could be a problem. At least at corner. '05 second round pick Stanford Routt works as the nickel corner and could step right into the starting role if called upon, but beyond Routt there are questions. Rookie 4th round pick Tyvon Branch will compete with former Titans backup Michael Waddell for the 4th and 5th slot in the pecking order. Hiram Eugene replaced an injured Stuart Schewigert at FS last year and played well enough to keep the job after Schweigert returned. The addition of Gibril Wilson makes Eugene the top backup at both safety positions and made Schweigert expendable. Last modified: 2008-06-01 16:23:58
