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Scouring the wires - Inside The Oakland Raiders - A look inside the world of the highly classified Oakland Raiders from the writers of ANG Newspapers
Quick hits from Lane Kiffin’s conference call press briefing Sunday night:
– Kiffin is expecting the Raiders to be on the lookout for potential replacements for fullback Oren O’Neal and wide receiver Drew Carter, both lost for the season with left knee injuries.
At fullback, Marcel Reece, although an intriguing talent who could have a place on the practice squad, is not ready for prime time on Sept. 8 in the backfield.
“We really only have one with Justin (Griffith),” Kiffin said. “The other guy is a project, he was a receiver a month ago.”
Aside from starting split end
Javon Walker and wide receiver
Ronald Curry, the seven receivers currently on the Raiders roster have combined for seven receptions for 66 yards. Six of those for 49 yards come from
Johnnie Lee Higgins, while Chris McFoy had one catch for 19 yards after being promoted from the practice squad last year.
Jonathan Holland, Drisan James,
Todd Watkins and of course rookie draft picks
Arman Shields and
Chaz Schilens have not caught a pass in the NFL.
“There’s not a lot of history there as far as guys playing in the league besides Javon and Ronald,” Kiffin said. “Really, none of those guys have really played before. Johnnie played a few, I think he had two or three catches last year so it would be tough to only go with two guys who have played before.”
– Veterans available include the perennially troubled but talented Koren Robinson _ whose best success has been on kickoff returns _ and veteran Joe Horn, who has talked his way out of his last two places of employment. Horn’s agent told ESPN.com’s Bill Williamson he expected to talk to the Raiders, but it’s not as if agents ever say, “It’s the darndest thing. No one is interested in my client.”
When it comes to players who aren’t currently employed, there is usually a reason why they’re not employed.
Not that the Raiders won’t be interested.
“There are always a few guys who have been veterans at every position that wait for things to happen like this, for teams to get injuries,” Kiffin said. “They stay in shape and they know their bodies so they know they can still come in late in camp and still contribute.
“That’s one option. There are a number of guys out there. Another option is to wait either until a couple of days for these first cuts or even more for the last cuts. The last cuts, some good people are getting let go on some of the good teams.”
– For the record, Mike Williams is available. So are Johnnie Morant, Doug Gabriel and Carlos Francis.
Never mind.
– As much as the Raiders like Shields’ skill set, his odds of making the 53-man roster appear slim.
“I wouldn’t want to put a ceiling on it but it would be pretty tough,” Kiffin said. “These guys have had so many reps of running our offense, he’s missed so much time. It would be difficult but you never want to count him out.”
Kiffin hopes Shields will be available to practice, although that has been a common theme throughout camp.
– When asked about players possibly in for tryouts, Kiffin could have said, “We’ve got some things going, but I’m not at liberty to say,” or something along those lines, because teams don’t often confirm tryouts.
Instead, (editorial comment to follow) Kiffin lent even more clarity to his current authority with regard to personnel when he said, “I have no idea.”
– OK, enough with the Darren McFadden as Jerome Bettis act. The end is apparently near, with the Denver Broncos on the horizon Sept. 8.
“All I can say on that is I have to continue to remind you guys that it’s preseason and you guys can figure out what that means,” Kiffin said.
– With
Ricky Brown apparently having sewed up the job as strong side linebacker and
Johnnie Lee Higgins looking to be the return specialist by default, the only real question left is starting center. Kiffin had
Jake Grove in the lead last week, but said he may have information regarding a depth chart this week.
–
JaMarcus Russell earned generally positive reviews for the third straight time. Russell went 14-for-28 for 140 yards, but missed out twice on potential touchdown passes _ the first when Zach Miller nearly came down with a ball in the end zone but was ruled out, the second when a pass into the back of the end zone glanced off the hands of Curry, who was being jostled by a defender.
On the Curry play, Kiffin thought it may have been worth a flag for defensive interference.
“He had one poor throw, the interception,” Kiffin said. “Other than that, he didn’t force things. He did well, especially under all the pressure he was under. He wasn’t back there setting his feet a lot. He had to move around a lot and made plays on the run.”
– Kiffin acknowledged that Fred Wakefield struggled when inserted at right tackle, where he played in place of Cornell Green for much of the second half.
– Safety Rashad Baker (ankle), cornerback
Nnamdi Asomugha (ankle) and safety
Hiram Eugene (hip) could all miss practice Monday.
Shane Lechler probably will not kick, meaning Glenn Pakulak may be retained on the roster through Tuesday cutdowns. Sebastian Janikowski could be available, meaning Aaron Elling could be seeking employment.
– Maybe “Super” Mario Henderson is the answer to the receiving woes. He lined up as a tight end on the left side, and was even announced as an eligible receiver. Michael Bush ran behind him to get a first down.
Kiffin said he was just giving opponents something to look at.
– In Oakland, Kiffin ran a two-minute drill for no apparent reason in the first half other than to get a look at it. He abandoned the run, went for a touchdown when normally would attempt a field goal and attached absolutely no significance to the supposedly most important week of the preseason other than the fact he lost two offensive players for the duration of the season.
Elsewhere, Tom Brady and LaDainian Tomlinson aren’t likely to play until the lights go on. Teams continue to charge full price for half-(bleep) games.
You’ll never hear me trashing Raider fans for failing to show up in August. It’s an instance where they’re showing their good sense. Even a lot of people buying season tickets aren’t bothering to show, because the 39,000-plus announced crowd was pretty much a joke.
The Raiders were offering up partial season ticket plans Saturday night, and seem to be actually making some headway in marketing which would really pay off should the team finally be worth watching.
Offer up a full season ticket plan in February that doesn’t include the preseason and then they’ve done something.
I know. Lots of money at stake. Can’t be done. Blah, blah, blah.
It’s never a bad thing to tailgate on a Saturday evening in the sunshine. But playing full price for the scrimmage to follow is an insult to the paying customers _ not just in Oakland, but throughout the league.
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