Many Raiders get shot.....

[jatfly]

Many Raiders get shot to prove they can cut it


David White, Chronicle Staff Writer
Thursday, August 30, 2007

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2007/08/30/SP74RRJEC.DTL



Only the truly meaningful Raiders count tonight's final exhibition game as meaningless. Specifically, that means players like Derrick Burgess, Warren Sapp and any other starter who gets pulled after the first series.


As for those on the fringe - and almost anyone who isn't a starter is considered on notice - this otherwise innocent Thursday night trip to Seattle is their last call to make a lasting impression.
Raiders coach Lane Kiffin will hack 22 players off the roll to meet Saturday's deadline for a 53-man roster. In his short time in office, the 32-year-old has shown a penchant for dismissing players of all sizes and experience, with no regard to Raiders history.
"Understand, nobody's on scholarship here," Kiffin said.
Whether he knew it or not, that quip flies against an in-house saying about longtime Raiders players who are kept beyond their productivity because someone way up high in the organization loves them.
Kiffin displayed no sentiment in letting go of one such player in the offseason: 2001 first-round pick Derrick Gibson. In all, Kiffin has directed 25 players from last year's roster to the exits.
"It kind of comes from a college mentality," Kiffin said about his new saying. "Once you have a scholarship, you really can't take it away for football reasons. Well, it's different in the NFL.
"You gotta earn it. You gotta play, and you gotta be one of the best."
With no practice scheduled Friday, that makes tonight everyone's last chance, and each player knows it. Kiffin says "everything counts" all the time, but concedes that what players do in games is a little more equal than, say, 7-on-7 routes in Napa.
"I try to treat it like just another game," linebacker Ricky Brown said. "You try not to think about it, but yeah, this game is important."
The place to watch tonight could be special teams, where role players are known to find their niche.
Kiffin prefers players who can multitask, and kicks and punts are where that happens. Brown is that type of player, as are cornerback Chris Carr, linebacker Isaiah Ekejiuba and rookie fullback Oren O'Neal, each of whom is a positional backup.
"I'm trying to hang around, be around after them cuts," O'Neal said.
Few players can afford to take the night off, because nostalgia doesn't register with Kiffin. Several longtime players who started last year are fighting for their jobs, such as wide receiver Alvis Whitted, fullback Zack Crockett, center Jake Grove and defensive lineman Tyler Brayton.
Not even established players brought to Oakland by Kiffin are on sure ground. Strong safety Donovin Darius missed time with a calf injury, and some players openly criticized last week's signing of defensive tackle Gerard Warren. Safety Colin Branch didn't survive even the first round of cuts.
"The thing is crazy," running back Adimchinobe Echemandu said. The career backup from Cal leads the NFL with 153 rushing yards in three exhibition games.
"I have seen a starter get cut from training camp. I have seen a guy who just got signed maybe the second week of preseason make the team. You never know what can happen."
Kiffin gave the players this pointed instruction when they reported to training camp July 27: Make it hard to cut you.
They have four quarters left to do just that.
"I think at this point, teams pretty much have on their mind what their roster is going to be," Echemandu said. "When I get in, I can only do my best."

 

[R4Life]

Online Exclusive: RAIDERS
Raiders' talent pool in need of swimmers
By Jerry McDonald

Staff Writer
Inside Bay Area
Article Launched:08/29/2007 06:45:25 PM PDT

Someone on the inside finally said it.

A person in a position of influence with the Raiders acknowledged a problem as obvious as their 15-49 record the past four years.

Forget the myths put forth about how the club facility on Harbor Bay Parkway is a storing house for the best runners, the most punishing blockers, the most sure-handed receivers and the most impressive athletes the NFL has to offer.

It's been a knee-jerk reaction in some parts of the media for years. Coaches and opposing players refer to it on an almost weekly basis on conference calls.

Watch out for the Raiders, because you just never know when they'll put it together with all that talent.

And here comes coach Lane Kiffin to say it just isn't so.

It happened the other day when Kiffin was discussing his strategy about cutting players who might have a place on the practice squad, guys who don't quite have what it takes to make the 53-man roster but could get there with a little more work.

``You'd really like to be in a situation where you're cutting players who are really good players,'' Kiffin said. ``That's when you're really good. Those are good problems to have.''

Then came the admission: ``I don't think we have very many of those problems, unfortunately.''

It may not be a ringing endorsement for the 20 players who need to be trimmed from the roster by Saturday, but it speaks volumes for the mental health of the franchise.

The first step toward correcting a problem is admitting it exists. Kiffin has no illusions about the top-to-bottom makeup of his roster. He thinks he has some very good players, particularly on defense, and has enough functional players on offense to be competitive.

Contrast this with a year ago. Art Shell made no great claims regarding Oakland's talent, but he didn't have to. It was spelled out in his offensive philosophy on a daily basis.

Bringing the Raiders back to prominence would be as simple as turning the time back on a wristwatch. Block man-to-man. A no-frills running game behind that blocking. Pass protect for as long as it takes. Throw deep off play-action.

If it was good enough for the Raiders of the 1960s and 1970s, it was good enough for the 2006 Raiders.

Problem was, there were no Shells, Upshaws and Ottos on the offensive line. Ken Stabler wasn't the quarterback, sitting in rocking chair behind that wall and throwing the ball when someone came open.

The Raiders have had three good teams in the 12 years since they returned to Oakland in 1995. They were smart and ultra-competitive, but not dominant in the classic Raider way.

Al Davis tried to get back to the old style when he hired Norv Turner. When that didn't work out, the re-hiring of Shell was evidence he still believed the Raiders had the talent to dominate.

All it took was a 27-0 Week 1 loss to the San Diego Chargers to show how wrong he was.

You can thank that game and the painful 15 games that followed for bringing him to his senses.

When Davis hired Jon Gruden in 1998, he told the press, ``We have a ways to go. I'd rather say that then give people false hope.''

When Davis met the media on Aug. 1, he wasn't quite that frank, but he did profess concern over an issue which doesn't affect more talent-laden rosters.

``We've got a chance to show something, but I worry about injuries,'' Davis said.

Worrying about injuries is not a time-honored Raider tradition. Not when they've got so many good players they can just plug in the next guy who looked good getting off the bus.

That has long been the Raiders line regarding scouting — they want guys who look good getting off the bus. The biggest, the fastest, the strongest. Domination and intimidation were high up on the list of attributes.

Kiffin has made it clear he wants guys who can play football. He's not worried about track speed, only football speed. His linemen must be quick and agile, rather than huge and powerful.

His beliefs mean something because Kiffin's background in recruiting at USC was one of the reasons he was hired. Davis sought his input in areas other than simply X's and O's — he wanted another voice with regard to the acquisition of talent.

Long gone are the days when Davis, ahead of his time, could mine small, predominantly black colleges for players others either didn't want or couldn't find.

In the Raiders favor is the talent disparity in 2007 is nothing like it was before the salary cap and improved scouting made the playing field more level.

You can't have a few great players on a roster and then supplement it with 30 good ones. Instead, you get one great player if you're lucky, a handful of good players and then pick a supporting cast to best fit your system.

The Raiders aren't there yet, but they finally seem to know where they're going.

 

[R4Life]

Think KK is happy with the receiving corps? This was yesterday:

The Raiders worked out wide receiver Todd Watkins. He played at Brigham Young and was a seventh-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2006 NFL draft. He caught one pass for 13 yards against the Raiders in an exhibition game Aug.11.