The Good, The Bad

[Madturk]

I thought yesterday was one of our better efforts offensively thanks to the legs of Aaron Brooks and a game we should have won.

The Good

Aaron Brooks. His running ability and shiftiness set up most of our big plays. He probably saved us at least 3-4 sacks with his shiftiness. Really abused Jared Allen on one scramble.

OL. Didn't allow one sack which is somewhat deceptive because Brooks bailed them out with his legs but I thought we did a nice job of run blocking in the first half, controlling KC's line as well as the clock.

Ron Curry. Why we don't use him more is beyond me. The guys just makes one big play after another. He should be the go to guy in the seams.

Rashard Lee. Really starting to like this guy. Did a nice job of picking up KC's blitzers and had a few nice runs.

The Bad

Tom Walsh. Same old same old second half with a big goose egg. Let's face it, most of the offensive production was the result of Aaron Brooks improvising. Did we throw one quick hitter all day? I'm almost happy that Walter didn't play.

Run Defense. Let's face it folks, our run defense just isn't very good. I realize we were up against LJ but it was obvious that KC was not going to expose Trent Green but we still could not key in on LJ or Michael Bennett. Once LJ hit the hole, our backers were no where to be found.

Randy Moss. It's obvious the guy has given up on his team. I would just inactivate him the rest of the year and find someone who'll take this P.O.S.
after the season.

Art Shell. Ok Art, you made your point about Jerry Porter but either use the guy or bench him already.

 

[hawaiianboy]

The Good:

Ronald Curry:

Clearly our best player on offense.... Kudos to him for not bitching when he hasn't been getting the game snaps his skill merits...

Nnamdi:

Give up a play on a perfectly thrown ball to Kennison, but he's doing damn well for himself... That corner blitz that he got the sack on was Woodsonesque...


The Average:


Aaron Brooks:


Our standards have been suffiently lowered... Only in a season like this would Raider fans be somewhat pleased with the 13-22 180 yard performance of Brooks... To top it off, he broke the cardinal QB rule of never throwing late across the middle... His ability to make plays with his feet currently make him the necessary evil as a starter ::makes the sign of the cross::


The Bad:

Schweigert:

Still waits for the ball carrier to come to him... It's okay to actually come up and fill once in awhile...


The D-line:

Had a lot of trouble disengaging blocks, and when they did, seems like they couldn't find Larry Johnson half the time... That said, giving up 150 to LJ on 30+ carries was hardly unexpected, like Tomlinson he'll usually get his... Giving up 17 at Arrowhead should be good enough to win...


Freddy B., Tom Walsh, Art Shell, Al Davis:

Whoever the hell is making the decisions regarding out offense and personnel... Isn't it obvious by now that we actually manage to look halfway decent when we have Ronald Curry working the middle of the field?... Who cares if he probably runs a 4.7 at this point?... Christ Almighty... why we had this guy on the sidelines watching Moss and Whitted just about the whole season, and why we played Jerry Porter for one play yesterday just boggles the mind... Stupid, stupid, stupid...

This offense basically died on the vine from the jump... Trade Gabriel AFTER Porter puts himself in the doghouse and then not slide Curry into starters reps?... I'm just sick of it already... Bad planning, bad decision making, bad performances, bad offense, awful win loss record...

At this point, with the injuries suffered to Gallery, Jordan and with Moss being a total sangina, the best thing we could do is put the QB in the shotgun on every down, go three wide with either Porter and Curry in the slot and send either Moss or Whitted deep on every play... Moss may not be good for much, but at least he can clear the safety so that Curry and Porter can work underneath... Split the backs wide of the QB and run inside handoffs and shovel passes to either Crockett or Fargas....


Me:

Don't know if I've ever been as unoptimistic as I am now... Seems like we've taken one huge step up defensively and 12 steps back on O... I managed to keep optimistic through the Turner years, but a lot of what I've seen this year has just sapped the strength from me... I used to get pissed at every loss, but now I just accept it in a lifetime Cardinal fan like fashion...

 

[Freakshow]

another game, another loss. these are not easy times fellas (and gals). life in the nfl is cyclical and things will improve eventually. stay strong! it makes April's draft more interesting. OK - here's my good and bad:

The Good

1. Our young secondary. Aside from a few missed tackles on agruably the best running back in the nfl, we played very well. tight coverage all day long and no long passes or td's allowed through the air. this unit will be strong for a long time.

2. Our running game. We ripped of chucks of yardage yesterday unlike any game so far this season. Of course, we ended up getting away from it like usual but at least we proved we can move the ball on the ground if we want to.

3. Ronald Curry. The guy just makes plays when we need them. Far and away our best receiver and hopefully his achilles situation and our coaches will allow him more playing time.

4. Special Teams. I know it's boring, but this is one of our strengths every week.

The Bad

1. Linebacking. This unit didn't get off the blocks at all yesterday. Maybe this is more of a reflection of our d-tackles but L.J. ran roughshod.

2. Pass-rush. Did Green get sacked at all yesterday? Seemed like on the few occasions they had to throw he had as long as he wanted. Very few pressures. This is unacceptable when K.C. is without their two starting tackles from last year and Brian Watters - arguably their best interrior lineman.

3. Second-half shutout. What's up with this crap. We've been shut down in the second half in almost every game this year. It's rediculous. All signs point to Walsh and his god damn eggs benedict offense.

4. Injuries. Gallery and Jordan. yes- these guys are not top-flight players but we can't exactly afford to lose anyone at this point.

5. Moss. Send him packing. Worthless p.o.s.

 

[Madturk]

Don't know if I've ever been as unoptimistic as I am now... Seems like we've taken one huge step up defensively and 12 steps back on O... I managed to keep optimistic through the Turner years, but a lot of what I've seen this year has just sapped the strength from me... I used to get pissed at every loss, but now I just accept it in a lifetime Cardinal fan like fashion...

How sad is that? Unfortunately, I feel the same way. My bad for not giving props to Scrabble. I think he has a shot at making the pro bowl this year.

 

[Stanny]

Offensive line played better due to the fact that KC did not blitz a whole hell of a lot maybe because Brooks was the QB? The line were in more one on one situations and played better but as stated Brooks bailed them out a few times.

Ronald Curry is becoming stronger and stronger each game. Kid is having fun and making some great plays. I loved seeing him on the sideline yesterday after he makes a play and he just stands there right next to coach with a big smile on his face. Meanwhile you have Captain Half Ass moping around, breaking off routes not doing shit! I mean this past weekend was a joke and I will be shocked if his team doesn't call him out on it. I watched two consecutive run plays where we hiked the ball and this fucking guy started to jog to wards where the huddle "would" be for the next play. Ty Law just sprinted past him to wards the run and would have been there for the tackle both times if Fargas would have cut back. The last play of the game was a joke too. Guy showed no effort to break up the pass or anything. Number 18 must get the boot. I would bench the dude and get Morant and Porter into the game. Porter needs time so that if they ship his ass at least they have exposed him or auditioned the guy.

Fargas is running hard, real hard. He lacks patience and doesn't set up his blockers well. He outruns everyone most of the time and it hurts him but hey the kid is showing heart and explosiveness.

Gallery played well yesterday, the injury was pretty gross when watched in slow-mo, surprised he didn't end up with a compound fracture. Grove played one of his better games and usually I am all over this guy. Boothe was decent and the rest of the gents given the circumstances of filing in and playing out of position on the road. ie Badger, Hulsey and Slaughter.


Walsh is beyond disturbing....in the second half as KC attempted to blitz we provided no quick hitches, screen passes, etc...In the first half the guy had some nice shifts/motions going. He sent the backs in motion, he lined up the TE in the backfield then sent them in motion....second half the same formations over and over and the shifts/motions disappeared. We had the WR's running the same fucking routes and running in the same areas as I've discussed in the past. Hell even Gannon mentioned it in the game, it's a joke.


On Defense....over-pursue/no gap containment...you can't do that with a Larry Johnson. They played themselves right out of position time and time again. Missed tackles by the LB's didn't help and Stu Schwag again showed terrible angle pursuit and missed tackles. Even though Johnson ran all over, they kept them in the game. I would of liked to have seen them stack the box more and I'm not sure why they didn't?

Better performance, but not good enough. The whole offensive side of the ball with the coaches just doesn't jive.

 

[Crossbones]

Turner must go. Turner must go.

Be careful what you wish for.

 

[poptart]

Regarding The Bad -- Randy Moss .......

I'm thinking that perhaps Moss' days as an 'elite' NFL receiver are over.

Prior to getting dinged-up v. SD last season Moss had played 111 NFL games and had 100 yds receiving in 43 of them.
38% of his games were 100 yd games.

Since that injury he has played 20 games and only gone over 100 yds twice.

The reason for his 'tude, IMO, is that it's easier to pass his lack of game off on the 'team' rather than having it be recognized that it is HE who is just not up to par.

His is a fairly common psychological reaction.

Oh, I'm not dismissing that the Raider offensive braintrust is at fault for the poor performance of the unit.
But you know, Mr Curry looks to be swimming along just fine.

The Raiders blew it by not trading Moss before the deadline.
Future-speaking, they're not going to be able to trade him and get the type of return that they think they ought to.
Either that or they're going to be STUCK with a guy who's not performing up to expectations ....... or salary.

Also, a lot of people are calling for Art to sit Randy down right now.
You do that and I think you REALLY diminish his future trade value.

It'll be interesting to see how it all works out.

 

[GRaider]

Regarding The Bad -- Randy Moss .......

I'm thinking that perhaps Moss' days as an 'elite' NFL receiver are over.

Prior to getting dinged-up v. SD last season Moss had played 111 NFL games and had 100 yds receiving in 43 of them.
38% of his games were 100 yd games.

Since that injury he has played 20 games and only gone over 100 yds twice.

The reason for his 'tude, IMO, is that it's easier to pass his lack of game off on the 'team' rather than having it be recognized that it is HE who is just not up to par.

His is a fairly common psychological reaction.

Oh, I'm not dismissing that the Raider offensive braintrust is at fault for the poor performance of the unit.
But you know, Mr Curry looks to be swimming along just fine.

The Raiders blew it by not trading Moss before the deadline.
Future-speaking, they're not going to be able to trade him and get the type of return that they think they ought to.
Either that or they're going to be STUCK with a guy who's not performing up to expectations ....... or salary.

Also, a lot of people are calling for Art to sit Randy down right now.
You do that and I think you REALLY diminish his future trade value.

It'll be interesting to see how it all works out.

You make some interesting points. Good post.

 

[Madturk]

The Raiders blew it by not trading Moss before the deadline.
Future-speaking, they're not going to be able to trade him and get the type of return that they think they ought to.
Either that or they're going to be STUCK with a guy who's not performing up to expectations ....... or salary.

Also, a lot of people are calling for Art to sit Randy down right now.
You do that and I think you REALLY diminish his future trade value.

It'll be interesting to see how it all works out.

I'm wondering if the damage has already been done and to sit his useless ass anyway. Hell it didn't hurt TO all that bad when Philly sat his ass down. I'd say showcase him but how can you showcase someone in this pathetic offense. There's going to be someone out there that will pay for his services but he's really hurt his value with this "me before the team" philosophy.

 

[Abelardo]

The defence is taking few points, that alone should be enough to consider them good. But suspiciously, the chefs only punted three times throughout the game, it means we're bending but not breaking. Ryan needs to scare the offences a little more.

From a preseason standpoint, Our best WRs are out of the scheme: Moss and Porter; the next two: one is catching passes from Tom Brady and the other is limited to third downs and other pass plays -Curry-. Players selection, play calls, execution, etc. Everything looks bad. Pass offence is the worst I've ever seen in Raiders uniform.

Brooks looked better than Walter showing an awesome scrambling ability. But this won't happen every sunday. Thank God he isn't to face Marryman next week. We all know Brooks ain't the answer to our problems. Specially because those stupid decisions he makes. That last INT wiped out all the good he did before.

Sad thing Jordan is out for the season. As for Gallery it doesn't mean much, Slaughter is more of the same.

At 2-8, players must be already thinking giving up. I mean, Moss did it already. Shell is encouraged by last two games display. On one side, the games were close, but on the other the offence is dug in deep shit. Without a question it is the worst in the NFL by far. This would be my subject, not the last two games scores as Shell wants to highlight trying to stay positive. Keep doing your stuff, Art, sometimes being stubborn is good, sometimes doesn't. Six games left, how many of them can we win... two?