Crossbones
Same shit. Different day.
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2005
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Okay...I'll give this a shot. Don't expect Rupert like analysis but I'll give you my opinions of what we have and where we might go with it.
Bobby Hamiliton - I thought Hamilton did a pretty good job this year. With all the changing of personnel it's difficult to get a good read on a player like Bobby as he's in and out sometimes faster than the eye can see. But his age aside I think Hamilton can be part of a fairly good defensive line given the right scheme. He seemed to hold up well against the run and had a few flashes at getting after the quarterback. his age dfoes remain a factor.
Warren Sapp - Sapp came back this year with a vengeance. He must have been happy to see the Raiders finally scrap the 3-4 alignment and get his chance to move back insif=de where he has been awfully good since coming to the NFL. Sapp is the perfect UT as he is strong and relatively quick able to shed blockers at the point of attack. Whether Warren is in the Raiders plans is somewhat open for discussion. but his play before his injury showed that he still has something left in the tank.
Derick Burgess - Well the man finally stayed healthy for an entire season and what happens? He leads the league in sacks and sets an all time Raiders record for sacks all in one season. Wow. Impressive. Burgess was really the Raiders only consistent pass rusher this season. In fact in those games when Derrick wasn't on his game the pas rush was lack luster and opposing quarterbacks went wild having lots of time to pick apart the Raisers secondary. I mean defensive backs can only cover for so long. anyhow, Burgess was used in the perfect role of situational pass rusher most of the year. It allowed him to be fresh and didn't subject him to the rigors of taking 40-50 snaps a game. Good move IMO.
Ted Washington - Big Ted as he's know. He looks bigger evey time I turn on the TV. He's still effective but I guess the burning question is for how long. I think Ted is going to turn 37 this coming season. That's pretty old for a guy carrying that much weight and a guy who has taken a pounding for this many years in the NFL. Can he go another year? -- probably but it's likely a decision he'll make and not the Raiders. Washington is one of the best at clogging up the middle and causing havoc in general.
Tyler Brayton - I n=know he played OLB but to me Brayton is a defensive end and is completely mis-cast at the linebacker position. In his rookie season he did a darn nice job playing De. He's not going to be a 12 sack guy in this league but he's good against the run and does have a knack for getting after the quarterback at times. The problem now is his mental state. He's been jacked around the last two seasons and is probably wondering what happens next. He's taken off some weight and it really hasn't helped in the linebacker role. I'd like to see him bulk back up and have his hand on the ground from now on. I think he can be an effective player for the Raiders but the coaching staff has to stop the madness with this guy.
Tommy Kelly - What a find, huh? Kelly has shown a lot of versatility. He's been playing DE and filled in at tackle at times. Again the DL doesn't seem to have an identity and Kelly is another player being shuttled around. Personally I like Kelly inside at the UT position. He can start there and let Sapp spell him. I think Kelly can be a beast at UT while I think at DE he doesn't have the quickness needed to be dominate.
Anttaj Hawthorne - Well what can be said about this guy except a big ft incomplete. At one time his stock had risen very high while he was in college. A sure first round pick dropped all the way to the sixth round. Even cleared waivers to get to the Raiders pratice squad. Not sure what that tells us except there are issues here. Kid apparently has all the tools if he can get his head into the this thing. Hard to count on a guy like this but his upside is enormous.
Ryan Riddle - Saw this guy do a few nice thing in 2005 but again really didn't get the kind of playing time necessary to really evalute his future potential. At least for me that is the case. I thin kothers may be able to bring better insight to Riddle tha I can at this point.
Terdell Sands - Guy impresses me as being very strong. He's done some good things in limited playing time. I look for him to get better and possibly play more especially if Mr. Washington is out of the picture.
Ed Jasper - My impression of Jasper is that he's pretty dedicated. He wants to play and tries hard out there on the field. I don't know exactly where he fits into the scheme of things next year but I hope he's around for quality depth.
So my dream scenario would be to draft Mario Williams and complete what I think would be a pretty good defensive line. Williams could be that one stud pass rusher the Raiders haven't had since Greg Townsend. With Burgess filling his role and Kelly, Sapp, Washington, Sands and Hamilton rounding out the rotation they could be nails. throw in Tyler Brayton as a DE and we might have something. The key here is the constant pressure that group could bring. The addition of Williams would complement the DL and almost assure the Raiders would have pressure most times. As it is now, if Burgess isn't in the play we're in trouble.
Sadly as I look at the draft I'm not sure Williams will last until the sixth pick. I'm hoping he will.
Bobby Hamiliton - I thought Hamilton did a pretty good job this year. With all the changing of personnel it's difficult to get a good read on a player like Bobby as he's in and out sometimes faster than the eye can see. But his age aside I think Hamilton can be part of a fairly good defensive line given the right scheme. He seemed to hold up well against the run and had a few flashes at getting after the quarterback. his age dfoes remain a factor.
Warren Sapp - Sapp came back this year with a vengeance. He must have been happy to see the Raiders finally scrap the 3-4 alignment and get his chance to move back insif=de where he has been awfully good since coming to the NFL. Sapp is the perfect UT as he is strong and relatively quick able to shed blockers at the point of attack. Whether Warren is in the Raiders plans is somewhat open for discussion. but his play before his injury showed that he still has something left in the tank.
Derick Burgess - Well the man finally stayed healthy for an entire season and what happens? He leads the league in sacks and sets an all time Raiders record for sacks all in one season. Wow. Impressive. Burgess was really the Raiders only consistent pass rusher this season. In fact in those games when Derrick wasn't on his game the pas rush was lack luster and opposing quarterbacks went wild having lots of time to pick apart the Raisers secondary. I mean defensive backs can only cover for so long. anyhow, Burgess was used in the perfect role of situational pass rusher most of the year. It allowed him to be fresh and didn't subject him to the rigors of taking 40-50 snaps a game. Good move IMO.
Ted Washington - Big Ted as he's know. He looks bigger evey time I turn on the TV. He's still effective but I guess the burning question is for how long. I think Ted is going to turn 37 this coming season. That's pretty old for a guy carrying that much weight and a guy who has taken a pounding for this many years in the NFL. Can he go another year? -- probably but it's likely a decision he'll make and not the Raiders. Washington is one of the best at clogging up the middle and causing havoc in general.
Tyler Brayton - I n=know he played OLB but to me Brayton is a defensive end and is completely mis-cast at the linebacker position. In his rookie season he did a darn nice job playing De. He's not going to be a 12 sack guy in this league but he's good against the run and does have a knack for getting after the quarterback at times. The problem now is his mental state. He's been jacked around the last two seasons and is probably wondering what happens next. He's taken off some weight and it really hasn't helped in the linebacker role. I'd like to see him bulk back up and have his hand on the ground from now on. I think he can be an effective player for the Raiders but the coaching staff has to stop the madness with this guy.
Tommy Kelly - What a find, huh? Kelly has shown a lot of versatility. He's been playing DE and filled in at tackle at times. Again the DL doesn't seem to have an identity and Kelly is another player being shuttled around. Personally I like Kelly inside at the UT position. He can start there and let Sapp spell him. I think Kelly can be a beast at UT while I think at DE he doesn't have the quickness needed to be dominate.
Anttaj Hawthorne - Well what can be said about this guy except a big ft incomplete. At one time his stock had risen very high while he was in college. A sure first round pick dropped all the way to the sixth round. Even cleared waivers to get to the Raiders pratice squad. Not sure what that tells us except there are issues here. Kid apparently has all the tools if he can get his head into the this thing. Hard to count on a guy like this but his upside is enormous.
Ryan Riddle - Saw this guy do a few nice thing in 2005 but again really didn't get the kind of playing time necessary to really evalute his future potential. At least for me that is the case. I thin kothers may be able to bring better insight to Riddle tha I can at this point.
Terdell Sands - Guy impresses me as being very strong. He's done some good things in limited playing time. I look for him to get better and possibly play more especially if Mr. Washington is out of the picture.
Ed Jasper - My impression of Jasper is that he's pretty dedicated. He wants to play and tries hard out there on the field. I don't know exactly where he fits into the scheme of things next year but I hope he's around for quality depth.
So my dream scenario would be to draft Mario Williams and complete what I think would be a pretty good defensive line. Williams could be that one stud pass rusher the Raiders haven't had since Greg Townsend. With Burgess filling his role and Kelly, Sapp, Washington, Sands and Hamilton rounding out the rotation they could be nails. throw in Tyler Brayton as a DE and we might have something. The key here is the constant pressure that group could bring. The addition of Williams would complement the DL and almost assure the Raiders would have pressure most times. As it is now, if Burgess isn't in the play we're in trouble.
Sadly as I look at the draft I'm not sure Williams will last until the sixth pick. I'm hoping he will.