For so long the Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders have had enviable talent that should have translated into more than two Super Bowl appearances (1983 and 2002) and one win (1983). It doesn’t help that the Raiders have had 12 head coaching changes since 1987, about one every two years.
May the incomparable AL DAVIS rest in peace, but he never was totally happy with any of his coaching hires from 1983-2011 and that was part of the problem but not nearly the whole story. Let’s face it, the Raiders are chronic underachievers no matter how much talent or money they have to spend on free agents, draft picks, or the players they already have. The 2012 season has got to be the season the Raiders realize that time waits for no man, and that they have the talent to be more than pretenders.
CARSON PALMER didn’t exactly set the world on fire in 2011 (199 of 328 for 2,753 yards and a 13 to 17 touchdown to interception ratio) but it was his first year in the Raiders’ offense and there had to be a time of adjustment. Now with JASON CAMPBELL out of the way (he is a member of the Chicago Bears now), Palmer has two talented but not nearly ready backups in RHETT BOMAR and TERRELLE PRYOR behind him at quarterback. Barring injury or catastrophic inconsistency, Palmer is the man at quarterback for the Raiders in 2012. This is his time to show that he isn’t washed up and that he can lead the Raiders to respectability.
Bomar is a talent but he is a backup for now. To date, he hasn’t thrown an NFL pass or played in a regular season game since he got drafted in 2009.
Punter SHANE LECHLER is a weapon for the Raiders and he always will be, enough said.
SEBASTIAN JANIKOWSKI is still an elite kicker and the Raiders need him now more than ever because teams on the brink of respectability, or even the playoffs, needs a talented kicker.
JACOBY FORD needs to be that occasionally exciting complementary receiver in what will be his third year in 2012. DERRICK JONES took a hard and circuitous route to get here (two colleges, he was not taken at all in the 2011 NFL Draft, and his 2011 season ended before it even started in training camp with an injury). I doubt he will go down without a fight to make the 2012 roster. Jones was a heck of a bailout receiver at California (PA) in 2010 for quarterback JOSH PORTIS. Jones needs to be that guy in pre-season practices and beyond in order for the Raiders to get know the true him.
Receiver EDDIE MCGEE didn’t play at all as a rookie in 2011 and he also needs a solid pre-season or attrition at receiver for him to make the Raiders team this year. He has great size, long legs, and speed that can test a cornerback, but he is a work in progress.
DENARIUS MOORE is one of the most talented receivers the Raiders have. He was third in catches (33) and second in yards (618) receiving as just a rookie in 2011. He made one of the better catches one will ever see – a touchdown from 50 yards out versus tight double coverage with his hands raised in the air versus the Buffalo Bills in Week 2. Moore stepped up as one of the steals of the 2011 NFL Draft (148th player taken), and he needs to continue the success he had last year and be even better in 2012 because the Raiders will need him.
LOUIS MURPHY fell off big time in 2011 as he was supposed to be the number one receiver for the Raiders. He played in 11 of the Raiders’ games last year and only started one of them. Not only that, he didn’t score once all year. The Raiders need for the old Murphy to be present in 2012 because he is a key player in their offense.
Gifted running back DARREN MCFADDEN needs to stay healthy. Enough said.
Defensive back RON BARTELL was just signed to help upgrade their cornerback position. It will some very good play from him to be an upgrade from the departed STANFORD ROUTT (Kansas City Chiefs), who was pretty good when he wanted to be. Bartell has always been this athletic and solid cornerback who at times you felt should be better than what he was showing, hopefully that isn’t the case in Oakland.
Running back and second-year man TAIWAN JONES is a great athlete and a potentially very helpful running back, but for him to succeed or get seen he needs for McFadden to stay healthy. Now is his time to show what he can do now that he has a year under his belt and that fellow running back MICHAEL BUSH was jettisoned this offseason.
DEMARCUS VAN DYKE is a stud cornerback in waiting in what will be his third year in 2012. Van Dyke is an athlete with good size. But the cornerback position is crowded with talent so he may have a hard time becoming a full-time starter any time soon, but he will play. MICHAEL HUFF has all the tools to have been a standout safety by now.
BRANDON UNDERWOOD had a non-descript career in Green Bay from 2009-2010 and he was sort of unemployed in 2011. The 2012 off and in-season practices and/or games is key for him. JEROME BOYD is part of a talented strong safety core that many teams would love to have. Boyd can defend the run and play space or as cover man but he is not going to beat out starter TYVON BRANCH. BRYAN MCCANN is a good athlete but he is a sub-package defensive back and he isn’t guaranteed to make the Raiders in 2012. He needs to find his niche for the Raiders this year.Branch was just franchised so that tells you how much the Raiders value his services. Branch is a two-tool defensive back meaning he can cover in space and defend the run. He is one of the better athletes on the Raiders roster. He led the entire team in tackles with 109 last year so that tells you how much responsibility a strong safety (SS) has in the Raider defense and its also indicative of how their front seven was abused versus the run (27th in the league in that area).
The fact that Branch was franchised is a two-way street for one MIKE MITCHELL, as he gets to learn from Branch how it’s done as a SS in the Raider defense. The other side is that he has to still wait his turn as far as being a starter or alternate in this defense for years to come. CHIMDI CHEKWA is a heck of an athlete, but he has a ways to go to be a big deal in the Raider secondary. Corner SHAWNTAE SPENCER was just signed after a footnote 2011 season in San Francisco. He will be challenging for a starting or second alternate job as a corner for the Raiders in 2012. The Raiders were also 27th versus the pass in 2011 so free agent signees like Spencer and Bartell must pan out or else.
RASHAWN JACKSON and LONYAE MILLER are Oakland’s big backs who aren’t supposed to be big breakaway threats or wow defenses, but only one of them can have that role as big complementary, goal-line, or short yardage backs. CURTIS TAYLOR has bided his time as backup cornerback and special teams player and that has worked for him. He is another sub-package defensive back who can do some things but he is not a full time starter type of player.
MANASE TONGA and MARCEL REESE will be in a heck of a battle for the starting fullback job this year as both are tough and cut out for this position. Defensive back TERRAIL LAMBERT has been around (five different teams) since 2009 and he is hungry for some action. But he’ll have to impress on special teams to make the Raiders this year. I’ve been watching linebacker TRAVIS GOETHEL since his days as a star linebacker at Vista High (San Diego, California) and plays with his heart on his sleeve and he is cut out for this game. But with the Raiders, special teams and injuries have been his niche since he entered the league in 2009 with the Raiders. Linebacker AARON CURRY got a fresh start in Oakland after a B, B-minus career in Seattle. Curry is a just-let-him-go-play type of linebacker and the Raiders have been smart enough to let him do that. But they need to really let him loose in 2012 because their defense needs it.
Linebacker CARL IHENACHO was a stud at San Jose State but he is a talented work in progress as of now. Inside linebacker ROLANDO MCCLAIN is on his way as he showed last year that he will never be just an inside the box inside linebacker with his 5 sacks. McClain position wise is an inside linebacker in an outside linebacker’s body. Long snapper JON CONDO not only likes to snap but he likes to hit.
STEFEN WISNIEWSKI is an intriguing player. Personally I think he could be a standout center but he is too active and too much of a running game weapon as a pulling guard to stay there. HALL DAVIS is an active and athletic player who if given the chance and he does what he is supposed to do, could be become a decent player on the defensive line for the Raiders. Offensive guard MIKE BRISIEL was signed to possibly start at right guard for the Raiders after a solid but unsung (outside of Houston) career with the Texans.
Fellow guard COOPER CARLISLE is in the twilight years of his career and its only a matter and he needs a solid 2012 to not only keep his right guard job for the next few years because Brisiel and young talent BRUCE CAMPBELL could be coming for his job soon. ALEX PARSONS is a work in progress. JARED VELDHEER has the ability and athleticism to keep his job at left tackle but there’s more to it than that. KHALIF BARNES is a decent tackle (right) who has one more year left on his contract. ZACH HURD is a huge man who can play either guard or right tackle. JOSEPH BARKSDALE is the main backup to Barnes at right tackle but he will have more backup competition there in the coming year. JAMIE CUMBIE is a young interior defensive lineman with potential who will only get better (even if he is cut) with what is available at his position (see below).
MATT SHAUGHNESSY is a pass rusher with a motor that won’t quit, but his development was zapped by injuries in 2011. Tight end RICHARD GORDON as a rookie was an extra tight end as he started one game too. Gordon is a physical specimen who now with tight end KEVIN BOSS gone, may get seen more than he thought in 2012.
BRANDON MYERS is a receiving threat but for much of his career, he hasn’t or the team(s) that have employed him haven’t been able to show that consistently.
DARRIUS HEYWARD-BEY to a certain extent showed why he was drafted so high back in 2009, as he led the Raiders in catches and yards with 64 for 975 yards. But scoring just 4 times isn’t going to cut it anymore, as with all that speed he has and the Raiders depending on him to be one of their deep guys he has to approach double digits in scoring plays.
DAVID AUSBERRY’s career at USC was a combination of stupendous underachievement by and his not being used right there. Ausberry is a big possession receiver not a tight end it’s just too bad the Raiders don’t know that or don’t care. DESMOND BRYANT is pretty active for a defensive tackle and one must be in the Raiders defense. He has 88 stops and 7.5 sacks since his rookie year of 2009. RICHARD SEYMOUR is long in the tooth but he is still an effective defensive end/tackle as he proved in 2011. He doesn’t have the burst that he used to have but he can still annoy running backs and quarterbacks.
TOMMY KELLY led the entire defense in sacks with 7.5 and he has been in the lineup for 32 straight games since 2010. Kelly is a high energy, highly motivated, and nasty beast when he has to be. Defensive end MASON BRODINE is a young, big, and athletic kid who I hope the Raiders find room for. TRAVIS IVEY is an active interior defensive linemen who has a lot of older cats to learn from in his attempts to make the team. LAMARR HOUSTON is on his way to being a solid cog for the Raider defensive line, and he is better than just the 1 sack he collected last year. In this defense he isn’t asked to be a terrorizer like he was at the University of Texas, but pretty soon he will be.
