Angry Pope
All Raider
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2006
- Messages
- 8,458
- Reaction score
- 541
7/2/2006
By Steve Corkran
Contra Costa Times
PERSONNEL ANALYSIS: New coach Art Shell wants his team to be far more physical than the Raiders were in recent years under Norv Turner and Bill Callahan. To that end, he is stressing toughness, dictating the action and being more aggressive. The thinking is that the Raiders will be more successful in forcing turnovers and making game-altering plays if they play a more physical brand of football. In recent seasons, Shell feels, the Raiders let their opponents dictate the action and that they were too passive in their approach, especially on defense. The Raiders finished last in the league in interceptions last season and tended to get outplayed late in games because they reacted to what their opponents were doing instead of forcing their will upon their opponents. Shell gained this philosophy during his Hall of Fame career with the Raiders, and he sees it as a key ingredient to their regaining the success and mystique that once made them such a feared team.
SCOUTING REPORT: Second-year CB Stanford Routt showed glimpses of the player he can be in this league last season when pressed into action after injuries to starter Charles Woodson. He is fast, aggressive and has solid instincts. The Raiders like his ability to play nickel back against bigger receivers, as well as matching up against faster receivers on the outside. Routt struggled with his consistency last season but that is to be expected from a rookie. He has worked hard with Hall of Fame CB Willie Brown to be more consistent in what to look for from receivers and how to avoid committing costly penalties and getting beat so often. He also has the opportunity to learn from veterans Tyrone Poole and Duane Starks. Look for Routt to get significant playing time as an extra defensive back, especially against three-receiver formations. He is a player with a bright future and the talent to develop into a starter in the coming seasons.
COACH UNDER PRESSURE: Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is entering his third season and has yet to mold his unit into a top-flight one. To that end, the Raiders used numerous high draft picks each of the past two seasons in hopes of giving him the personnel to accomplish what he wants. Ryan still hasn't settled on a base alignment that he can rely upon without fail. So, he still is tinkering with the idea of using a combination of the 3-4, 4-3 and 4-2-5. This figures to be the telling season for Ryan, now that he has had ample time to integrate the new players and see how everyone works best in his system. The Raiders have enough confidence in Ryan that they signed him to a contract extension during the offseason. However, he needs to get better results from his defense this season or a change could be in order.
INSIDE DISH: The Raiders figure to do more full-contact drills and live tackling drills during training camp this season because of a belief that they were too sloppy with their tackling in recent seasons. Turner and Callahan didn't place a high emphasis on full-contact drills for fear of getting players injured. However, that backfired as the Raiders missed far too many open-field tackles and let ballcarriers break initial contact and get past the line of scrimmage. Shell wants his players to get a feel for what to expect in games and not have to adjust on the fly.
TIGHT ENDS ANALYSIS: C. Courtney Anderson and Randal Williams are solid, if not Pro Bowl-caliber players, who do what the Raiders ask of them. Both need to improve their consistency.
By Steve Corkran
Contra Costa Times
PERSONNEL ANALYSIS: New coach Art Shell wants his team to be far more physical than the Raiders were in recent years under Norv Turner and Bill Callahan. To that end, he is stressing toughness, dictating the action and being more aggressive. The thinking is that the Raiders will be more successful in forcing turnovers and making game-altering plays if they play a more physical brand of football. In recent seasons, Shell feels, the Raiders let their opponents dictate the action and that they were too passive in their approach, especially on defense. The Raiders finished last in the league in interceptions last season and tended to get outplayed late in games because they reacted to what their opponents were doing instead of forcing their will upon their opponents. Shell gained this philosophy during his Hall of Fame career with the Raiders, and he sees it as a key ingredient to their regaining the success and mystique that once made them such a feared team.
SCOUTING REPORT: Second-year CB Stanford Routt showed glimpses of the player he can be in this league last season when pressed into action after injuries to starter Charles Woodson. He is fast, aggressive and has solid instincts. The Raiders like his ability to play nickel back against bigger receivers, as well as matching up against faster receivers on the outside. Routt struggled with his consistency last season but that is to be expected from a rookie. He has worked hard with Hall of Fame CB Willie Brown to be more consistent in what to look for from receivers and how to avoid committing costly penalties and getting beat so often. He also has the opportunity to learn from veterans Tyrone Poole and Duane Starks. Look for Routt to get significant playing time as an extra defensive back, especially against three-receiver formations. He is a player with a bright future and the talent to develop into a starter in the coming seasons.
COACH UNDER PRESSURE: Defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is entering his third season and has yet to mold his unit into a top-flight one. To that end, the Raiders used numerous high draft picks each of the past two seasons in hopes of giving him the personnel to accomplish what he wants. Ryan still hasn't settled on a base alignment that he can rely upon without fail. So, he still is tinkering with the idea of using a combination of the 3-4, 4-3 and 4-2-5. This figures to be the telling season for Ryan, now that he has had ample time to integrate the new players and see how everyone works best in his system. The Raiders have enough confidence in Ryan that they signed him to a contract extension during the offseason. However, he needs to get better results from his defense this season or a change could be in order.
INSIDE DISH: The Raiders figure to do more full-contact drills and live tackling drills during training camp this season because of a belief that they were too sloppy with their tackling in recent seasons. Turner and Callahan didn't place a high emphasis on full-contact drills for fear of getting players injured. However, that backfired as the Raiders missed far too many open-field tackles and let ballcarriers break initial contact and get past the line of scrimmage. Shell wants his players to get a feel for what to expect in games and not have to adjust on the fly.
TIGHT ENDS ANALYSIS: C. Courtney Anderson and Randal Williams are solid, if not Pro Bowl-caliber players, who do what the Raiders ask of them. Both need to improve their consistency.
