Sunday, September 21, 2008

A Shameful, Illogical Way to Lose

Why the painfully soft defense in the 4th quarter? It wasn't working, so why keep doing it? What on earth was the point of that? Also, why didn't we use our two timeouts at the end so that we could have a chance to score? We have Johnnie Higgins ripping off huge runbacks, Sebastian Janikowski's big leg on the sideline and the likelihood of only needing a field goal to come back in the last seconds, yet we allow the Bills to run the clock down to one second? What a shameful, illogical way to lose.

Rob Ryan has survived three head coaching changes, so I imagine he'll survive this. In fact, at this rate, he'll be promoted soon. I've got a feeling he'd survive a nuclear winter in Alameda. Why, I have no idea.

In the last minute, the Bills weren't using their timeouts to stop the clock (except to use one to stop the clock with three seconds left after purposely running down the clock) . Shouldn't that have been a hint to someone on the other sideline that it's to the Bills' advantage to let the clock run down? Is it possible that I find myself yet again explaining kindergarten-level clock management to professionals?

At the end of the game, we let 43 seconds expire between first and second down, then 25 seconds between second and third down. On third down, they kicked the field goal with three seconds left (at which point, Kiffin attempted, and failed, to call a timeout!). If we'd called our timeouts properly, third down would have come with about a minute left instead of three seconds left. Yes, they would have run another play instead of kicking on third down, but we still could have had time for a runback and a few plays to get into Janikowski's field goal range. Instead, we just sat there without timeouts in our pocket, opting not to compete until the bitter end.

156 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I re-itterate:

Memo to Rob Ryan:
Only thing "prevent defense" does is prevent you from winning.

Memo to Lane Kiffin:
3 pass attempts in one half is offensive version of the "prevent".


RaiderMike

1:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Rob Ryan is the worst defensive coordinator in the NFL. It's sad Kiffin will pay the price for his horrible schemes at the end of the game.

Moonshine

1:21 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I don't even know what to think...our D gave this game away after playing 3 excellent quarters.

Roy

1:23 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Deangelo Hall sucks. Ryan makes no adjustments in the 2nd half. buffalo knew the run was coming yet the Raiders still ran three times on their last possession for -2 yards..... WTF

Ryan sucks but this one is on Kiffin.
Man am pissed. I am FURIOUS....

1:24 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

fireryan.com and firesob.com are available. How hard is it to set up a website?

1:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

cant wait for the next rob ryan press conferance... i make the calls!! i come up the game plan!! well nice one there chief...

1:35 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

It's strange, I don't know what to feel. Going into the second half I thought the Raiders would find a way to lose (I know I suck as a fan) but then we scored the TD and then I knew we'd win. But then, but then...

I'm so bewildered.

I don't understand why the Raiders went to zone in the 4th quarter when the Bills couldn't get anything going up to that point. Maybe the defensive line did wear down.

And then why not use your timeouts? Then at least you have a chance, banking everything on their kicker missing just seems... strange.

I'm not even angry or mad. I'm just bewildered by the decisions at the end of the games.

The defense I guess I can understand, Ryan does it all the time. But not using the timeouts? The outcome of the game may have still been the same, but... it's just so odd.

1:37 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

Ryan has survived three head coaching changes, I imagine he'll survive this. In fact, at this rate, he'll be promoted soon. I've got a feeling he'd survive a nuclear winter in Alameda. Why, I have no idea.

1:39 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

I guess Kiffen tried to get a timeout at the gun, but the refs didn't see it or just didn't grant it.

Overall I thought the Raiders were the better team on the field. The Bills are a good team so that the Raiders held their own on the road and that the game came down to a last second fieldgoal is definately a step in the right direction.

Unfortunately I don't see Kiffin lasting beyond the bye now. Much to my dismay because I think he is the right guy to turn this around.

1:56 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

In Rob Ryan's tenure with Raiders I can remember his defense making, maybe, 2 stops with the game on the line.

This is not a talent problem.

We have 8-8 talent, but based upon what I've seen this year so far, another season of double digit losses is well within reach.

And, much as I hate to say this, Kiffin looked like he just mailed in his "please fire me" request by leaving those time-outs on the board.

I'm gonna need a whole new wardrobe, as I am totally embarassed to be a Raiders fan.

Put a fork in me.

1:59 PM  
Blogger TheFreakingPope said...

I would like to quote Rob Ryan. Well, at least what I read on his lips. "F*ck me". Yes, f*ck you indeed!

2:00 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
Toni, I'm the same way as you... I kept expecting us to some how lose, but when we scored the big one I thought it was in hand. All I can say is Ryan had to be TRYING to lose. I am so sick of our defense going soft. How many times do you have to see that style of D not work before you shelve it?

2:04 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

He could have at least used one of the timeouts to ice the kicker!!!!

2:09 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

here's some free advice for the "cave in" man.

tomorrow, pick up phone and call daddy and let him install defensive gameplan for next week.

at halftime of sd game, pick up phone and call daddy and let him make key adjustments for defense.

if you don't like this idea, you can always resign, and clean the toilets.
but only if you promise not to screw that up as well.

2:19 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am just in awe of the caliber of offensive and defensive potential that the fizzlers have, and with the genius of big al (MR.) davis at the helm I can only feel bewilderment on the part of the other 31 teams in the NFL, they must be shaking in their boots at the prospect of having to play the fizzlers in the future! Big al (MR.) davis presents the most powerful combination of owner/headcoach tandem ever to exist in any sport ever! He has the brain of a footbal genius and of a head coaching genius and of a defensive genius! HE DOES IT ALL, the fizzlers will be the dynasty for decades to come! I only wish that science can find a way to prolong big al (MR.) davis' life so that future generations will not be robbed of the priveledge of experiencing the shear genius of this man....Man....no....he is no common man....he is for the ages....he is big al (MR.) davis! The genius, the reason for football to exist, he is ALL, HE IS THE ULTIMATE FOOTBAL GOD!!!!!!

2:25 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is just plain ridiclous.

SOB is not fit to coach. Plain and simple. If Kiffin gets fired which he will soon enough( because Al has to set a precendence for failure, which Kiffin will go on to coach the Chiefs or someone like that and will get our butts handed to us for like the next 10 years), if SOB gets the job. That's it. I will march down to Davis' pad, because I know where he lives and I will take his walker and beat some common sense in him.

We should all boycott home games. Davis would lose his a**.
Mr. Duva

2:26 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

P.S. I have updated my take to explain my thoughts on the timeout misuse.

2:32 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Well the good news is there prolly won't be any Patriot trolls in here today.

I thought the play calling was very strange on both sides of the ball. Three pass plays at the ten yard line when two of them should have been runs? The zone defense in the second half and no blitzes after blitzing and M2M shut them down in the first?

I think the Raiders could play with 80% of the teams in the NFL, but we just don't have the coaching to win.

Kinda sad and frustrating, to say the least.

2:35 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Post game show G. Poppa and T. Flores asked Kiffin "what happened to the defense towards the end, where they tired or something?"

Tom quipped," That is no excuse to be tired."

Kiffin, " I don't have an answer for that one, if I did I would tell you."

The D lost ground towards the end of the game. The interior line lost big time.

Kiffin's right in his answer. Kiffin did not call the shots on D. Remember he already tried to get SOB fired during the off season but Davis veto it. But as SOB said two weeks ago. " He's the HC and Im the DC. It starts and stops with the HC."

Really?

Maybe SOB is really trying to make Kiffin look bad. What is Davis' plan? Is it to make Kiffin so completely and utterly fustrated that he just can't stand it anymore. Sounds fishy to me?

Kiffin did have some questionable play calling there as well, too.

Mr. Duva

2:37 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Interesting quip by Rich Gannon on PFT.com

Let me make it offical here and now on RT before anyone else gets a chance to make it news.

"Lane Kiffin has been fired early Monday morning due to fact that Al Davis wanted to move the team in another direction. Rob Ryan will now be HC while James Lofton will be interm HC for the rest of the season."

Then we will go like... I don't know 4-5 wins this year and select in the top 5 in next years draft. And in the mean time will lose Aso, Burgess, D. Hall will want a trade. And will select DB's through out the draft.

Mr. Duva

2:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

My feelings in the form of haiku:

Disappointment is
something I am getting used
to from the Raiders.

JF

3:05 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Defense was bad in the fourth, but without Warren, Wilson, and Hall (well, someone told me Hall was on the field, but I couldn't see him) you can't honestly expect the same level of play. Is Hall the most overrated CB in the NFL? Warren Sapp might be right about him. More concerning to me is the fact that Kif only called 3 passing plays in the entire 2nd half. I really don't get that. With that kind of balance, I think Kiffin should be talking to Rupert Murdoch for a position in the "news" media. You'd think we were down to our 3rd string QB or maybe up by 5 TDs or ??? However, I suppose that the trickery of running the ball up the middle over and over again should have fooled those guys into giving up a big gap. Might have worked eventually just too bad we didn't save some time with those time outs we had. Oh well, Maybe we can use them to buy a corner back on eBay -- or a head coach...

3:09 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Theres a little "raider" (loser) in all of us... where two patches on those eyes fellas, its about to get ugly again... thanks Fiedel Al Castro ... ill bring ready my paper bag to wear for next home game...

3:10 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

If Son Of a Bitch ends up being our HC I'm definately not going to any games.

Hell, I might not go to any games until Al kicks the bucket, if we're that retarded of a football team.

Re SOB: In the immortal words of Napoleon Dynamite; "Freaking Idiot....Gosh!!!"

Psycho

4:29 PM  
Blogger x said...

I don't think Ryan coached to lose...he just sucks as a defensive coordinator.

The odd thing is, he called a pretty darn good game for 3 quarters. He just doesn't know how to close the deal.

If you guys recall, he did the same thing last week and a dude named Thigpen brought the Chiefs back to within a score late. If the Chiefs had a decent QB like Edwards, we'd probably be sitting at 0-3.

Evidently, Warren went out with an injury in the 4th quarter, which is why we saw more of Sands and Wakefield.

Crazy thing is, with the Warren injury and the totally BS Gibril Wilson ejection, not to mention the tiring defensive line, Ryan should have thrown the blitz in MORE, not less.

Ryan fans will no doubt mention the blitz that was called on the Parrish TD reception, but that was too late. Edwards had already got his confidence and rhythm back. He was a lost sheep back there most of the game and Ryan just let his foot off his throat.

5:29 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Psycho I am with you.
If sob is named HC I will be canceling my trip to NO. I will also cancel the nfl ticket. Enough is enough.

5:45 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Did you guys hear what the announcers said about Morrison & others telling Ryan to be more aggressive?

Who's the better coach here, Son Of a Bitch or "Early 20's" Kirk freakin' Morrison?!?

Some get Buddy on the phone to beat some sense into this bastard.

Psycho

6:30 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Felix Jones the rookie of the year... wow that kid has wheels on him and he creates plays with his quick juking ability... mock my words he will be the rookie of the year (not Mc Fading) that was the razor back I was intrested in ... and imagine Dallas in the Draft was willing to deal with us (maybe both of their two first round draft picks)to move up to get Mc Hype...Felix is the big homerun hitter...

6:33 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Anon.,

felix jones is fast, and good, but it's easier for him on the cowboys.
they have so many weapons on offense, the last guy the defense is worried about is jones.

mcfadden plays for oakland of course. so that means very little help for him.

with not much of a passing game right now, the defense can zero in on mcfad.

he's done a pretty good job so far, considering this.

6:52 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

See attached from Gannon no less...

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=
ArFUvo7kL1G6YXpvExxBRRlDubYF?slug=jc-dysfunctionalraiders091908&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

6:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Jamarcus Russell man o man lets just except it now that he doesnt have "It" to be a starter, much less a superstar... Given he doesnt have much of a wide receivers core (Al's fault here of course, could of got out cleanly with the whole Walker thing) but at least throw it to open receivers not in tight coverage or way off target...but that also has to be in part that he never really had great accuracy or has touch on the ball, only a big gun good for wide the hell open receivers like in college but not in the pros... which comes to my next point he cant read defenses, he can see a receiver wide open for a minute but in a second in the pros he can throw a pick in a bump and run zone... now his awareness sucks too, he has no time clock going off the snap (which he fumbles from time to time too) when dropping back to pass, his foot work is not good at all,or when throwing on the play action, boot leg or on the run, which most times as well he always locks in to one player(usually his lead receiver) but lacks the vision to see his second or third options in his check downs, which shows no confidence on what he is doing out there (even shows on his body language) too shakey for my taste in our leading general, who cant even step up in the pocket under pressure well, doesn't sell to good the PA's very well,plus his mobile actions suck, he runs with the arm extended out with the ball (easy for fumbles to be created like todays)instead of holding it close to your chest while on the move (pop warner fundamentals)plus his decision making sucks whether he holds the ball too long, doenst know when to throw it away, or even run and get what the defense gives you...and if he does run he will have a career like Daunte Culpeper AKA PEP,he being MEGA PEP (bigger in size) will suffer in all kinds of injuries becuz he will one day be clipped at his knees or at his ankles (big guys fall harder to the ground, bringing down all the weight to his knees and ankles) and he will be riddle with all kinds of injuries and eventually find him self in retirement like Culpeper (except that at least he had Randy Moss to throw at and he had more fundamentals down them MEGA PEP) I can go on and on with this guy ... but I guess we will have to wait and see if he develops (doubt it)but when you pick a # 1 overall pick in the draft, no matter what position, you are regarded as a high caliber player who is ready for the pros almost immediately, I just dont see it with this guy... lets call it what it is, a bust and maybe see if being on the bench he can pick up some things (many high profile QBs have done that and are starters now) so lets start Walters now...

7:34 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Why oh why do the Raiders relax when they get a lead of nine points? They did it last year when we had a small lead, the defense went into the prevent defense, and we lost. How long does it take to understand that concept?!!! I don't need conspiracy theories, I just need some fundamental football. If you've held the other team down for three quarters, why not just keep doing what you're doing(pressure the QB, stuff the run). We've got San Diego next week. Anything can happen on any given Sunday, but realistically our chances are very slim. Who would have thought after that Monday night drubbing that we had a legitimate shot of being 2-1 going into the San Diego game? Its games like today that are really frustrating. Blow outs you know you're out of the game. Games like this you kick yourself over because you KNOW you should have won them.

7:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

A bust after 4 starts? Not one interception? Please. Bill Walsh you are not, me thinks. It takes time to develop a QB, and its the coach who decided on only 3 pass attempts in the second half. I guess you missed that TD strike to Higgins, huh? BTW, the name is WALTER.

7:59 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Not sure why anyone would blame this loss on a QB with 4 career starts, but I guess it takes all kinds.

The coaching and Hall have this one, IMO.

8:04 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Hard to believe Hall is a 2-time Pro Bowler. Schemes be damned, he just seems out of place almost every time the other team throws at him. It also looks like the Raiders have gone back to the fingertip technique of tackling. How many plays should have been for a loss but wound up being a gain due to poor tackling? Fundamentals, fundamentals, funda-freaking-mentals.

8:21 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

All this hating on Russell is just rediculous. These are probably the same ass holes who were stuck on the fact that he's a black QB. Correct me if I'm wrong haters, but I'm all out of reasons for why you'd blame the QB for this BS!

PSYCHO!!!

8:26 PM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

Blaming this loss on Russell is just plain moronic. Anyone calling for Walter to replace Russell simply doesn't know football.

Two 9 point leads squandered by Ryan choosing to go soft. Up 16 to 7 and 23 to 14 and he took his foot off of Buffalo's throat. Totally unacceptable.

Riddle me this Ryan:

Q: In what D did your unit create 3 turnovers, 3 sacks, and about a dozen QB hurries?

A: Man to Man coverage with QB pressure created by blitz packages.

Q: In what D did your unit give up 17 points late in the game?

A: Soft zone, passive, prevent D.

Promote Ryan to HC ... he has earned it by his coaching acumen.

8:40 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Well it looks like we are well on our way to another fun filled season of double digit losses. I really thought we had a win today, and thought for sure we were finally going to be over .500 for the first time in four years. Do you realize that the Raiders have not been over .500 since week 3 of the 2004 season when we defeated Tampa Bay? Someone pointed out that stat to me the other day and it just blew my mind. Are we really that bad? Yes we are. Also, if we lose 10 or more games this season we will become the first team in the modern era to lose 10 or more games for 6 straight seasons. Think about that one for a minute. Not one team has ever done that. Not the Cardinals, not the Lions, not the Buccaneers, not the Bungles from the 90's and not any expansion team. But here sit the Raiders on the doorstep of making dubious history. You keep on fighting the good fight Al. Most of the Raider fans I know are about ready to check out.

8:48 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Just got back from the game. Shameful is right. Why in the world would you change something that worked so well for 3 quarters? Another colossal failure by Rob Ryan. That this man retains his job is strictly an act of Devine intervention (Al Davis). If I was “Lance” Kiffin, I’d grab Ryan’s D playbook and tear out all plays with less than a base four down linemen.

Folks, Trent Edwards is not that good. Ryan handed him the game on a silver and black platter. You’d think Al Davis would be insulted that his DC is so stupid as to give the Bills almost 7 minutes of prevent defense, down by only 9 points.

For what it's worth, during the one Raiders’ possession between Bills’ scores, the crowd noise was deafening.

RT, I understand and agree about the clock management to end the game, but I think Kiffin was as stunned with the defensive collapse as the thousands of Raiders fans (and all the Bills fans) that came out to see this game. How could he not be? However, that’s no excuse not to get the ball back into Higgin’s hands, who otherwise had a career day (although, he hotdogged it into the end zone, and that’s why he got tackled after the score - the Bills’ admitted as much).

Props to the New England Raider Boosters who provided a terrific tailgate party, complete with food and drink, raffle prizes and Bills’ jersey burnings. Met a lot of cool Raiders’ fans!

As far as the D, it's just painful to watch talented players fail at the hands of bad coaching/playcalling.

8:51 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Defensive bottom line is this. Our players are way better than this, whether they realize it or not. Our D Coordinator is a players coach plain & simple. They love him! But from the outside he's a piece of shit, prevent Defence using mother fucker, who for some reason has the support of the great Al Davis. Fuck this shit! Win GAMES! Enough is enough, this shit isn't working!!!

Psycho!!!

9:17 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

NY Raider, thanks for the cool insider's road game wrap, I can't imagine how it felt to have defeat snatched from the jaws of what would have been a magnificent victory in Buffalo, courtesy of a soft, aimless and shameful defensive scheme.

10:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The "big boy j-rust" is a BUST, it doesn't take a genius to see that he hasn't got what it takes to be a winner in the NFL. Only IDJEOTS and hardcore fizzler fanatics can be convinced that big al (MR.) davis can't be wrong, and that "big boy j-rust" is a super star! He is slow, unsure footed, a lumox, and he can't put the ball in the right spot when he's being pressured. You have to be retarded to beleive that this dim witted, slovenly moving guy is true QB material. Just watch and cringe babies, it will be painful to watch as big al (MR.) davis forces who-ever the HC will be to stick with "big boy j-rust" as the starter til he dies! Whatever happens.....keep defending your imaginary "nation", 1-15 is the goal, and the fizzlers are on track to meet that goal!

10:30 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This just handed to me.....BSPN.

Lane Kiffin to be fired as early as Monday, per Chris Mort-Head.

Mr. Duva

11:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Faida Boy!!! I told you to hush up when grown folks are talking!! Now go to bed or Poppa's gonna spank your narrow behind and you won't be able to sit down on that short bus tomorrow!!!!!

11:45 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I cant't say it as eloquently as Psycho but he's on the money.



RaiderMike

4:10 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

NY-

Don't give Kiffin a pass. He too coached a lousy offensive game. I'm all for limiting the passing game but 3 attempts? The play calling on 3rd down was especially attrocious. This game is won and lost on 3rd down and for the past 5 years we have been unable to convert while the opposing team seems to convert with ease. Much of that is coaching (or lack of).
-As far as Higgins being given a 15 yard penalty for slowing down, that official should be reprimanded. Typical anti-Raider non-sense. Total BS.



RaiderMike

4:17 AM  
Blogger H said...

After sleeping on it and going over all the items here, there seems to be something missing.

Yes, that prevent defense was an idiotic way to lose the game. I screamed at Ryan to at least blitz once.

Now, about Mr. Kiffin. Three times in the red zone, three field goals? Sitting on a 9 point lead with a quarter and a half to go?

I looked at the receiving stats. Miller's name is not there. We get the ball back with a 2 point lead and 4:03 to play. Instead of trying to do a little something unexpected, Kiffin does exactly what Buffalo wants him to do on first and second, then he goes deep????? What happened to Miller over the middle, or maybe even a screen pass. Something to just get a first down and use some clock. The short pass to Higgins worked fairly well from our own 16, why not a variation of something like that? Nope, a deep sideline pass to Curry who was well covered on third down.

This was an abomination for coaching on BOTH sides of the ball.

Ryan called a good game early, but went soft late (I think it's a league rule, Indy did the same thing and lost). Kiffin was terrible in the red zone and decided to sit on a 9 point lead with 5:19 left in the third quarter. As bad as Ryan was Kiffin matched him. He has said he can only control what he can control and he didn't do a very good job of it.

They are going to have to go with some two tight end formations with Stewart, and get Miller some touches in the passing game. Zero touches for a guy with his talent is unacceptable.

And now back to our regularly scheduled program.

H

5:21 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Raidermike - Higgins didn’t get flagged, it was the Bills’ Whitner who ran down Higgins 8 yards into the end zone and tackled him. Whitner later said in a radio interview that he brought Higgins down because Higgins was doggin’ it.

H - I understand what you’re saying about Kiffin, and I partly agree, but IMO we have to give some leeway to his conservatism in the interest of Russell, who is learning on the fly. The two-score lead looked pretty solid when the defense was playing aggressive. Up to that point in the game, the Bills only score was on a 23-yard drive, courtesy of a fumble by Russell. Later, the Russell-to-Higgins play seemed to lock up the game. Then, of course, Edwards had his way with SOB’s “prevent” D. At that point, there was nothing Kiffin could do except, as RT pointed out, stop the clock and hope to get the ball back into Higgins’ hands, and possibly run a few quick plays.

Bottom line, I would much rather go down while punching them in the mouth, than with the pathetic passive D that Rob Ryan has plagued us with for five years. At least I would know we went down with a fight!

After the game, Burgess came off the field shaking his head. I can only imagine what he was thinking. Ryan must have his players brainwashed, because how can they possibly support his coaching philosophy?

6:33 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

This excerpt from Jerry Mac says it all: “Tommy Kelly, dominant in the first half and into the third quarter, wasn’t getting the push he did earlier. Gerard Warren left with a neck injury. Derrick Burgess, who gave Langston Walker all he could handle early on, was bothered by his shoulder and was “winded,” coach Lane Kiffin said.”

So, by all means, instead of giving the D-line some much needed help at the end of the game by blitzing, let’s leave three of them on an island by themselves and hope their QB trips over a shoelace or something.

Clearly, Kiffin is now protecting Ryan, something he learned after the Broncos’ game.

6:47 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

P.S. As for the running game and the apparent difficulties McFadden had maintaining his footing, it drizzled through most of the game and the field appeared wet and slippery (they use artificial turf).

7:00 AM  
Blogger Carolyn said...

nyr - Higgins DID get flagged for "taunting" by slowing down and provoking the Bills' defender into tackling him in the end zone.

Higgins was wrong for letting up, yes. But that was a BS call unless the official heard some verbal taunts by Higgins, which would be hard to believe. Slowing up before crossing the goal line should not be a penalty.

That was pretty big because instead of offsetting penalties, the Raiders could have pooch kicked them deep in their end.

7:13 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

NY-

Higgins did get flagged for taunting I believe.


RaiderMike

7:17 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It didn't look like McFab had the right cleats on before half, and anyone that still thinks Al is calling the shots on defense is crazy... he has never liked the zone, he drafted or picked up players to play M2M, and SOB suddenly goes to the zone with the game on the line?

There was also a long pass connected on Asum early because he disconnected from his man playing zone... this team is not built to play zone. I can't believe that Al would promote SOB after this game unless he wants to get him out of coaching the defense, which might actually be a good thing. Just use him as a figure head Ra-Ra coach, and let more competent people call plays on both sides of the ball.

And I agree... what happened to the screen play? Misdirections? Quick passes to get JRuss into a groove?

7:19 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Yes, the penalties offset.

I guess the league thinks its ok to tackle players ten yards deep in the end-zone if a receiver doesn't run hard all the way through.

7:20 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Wow! I stand corrected. Unbelievable! I was sitting in the first row, at 30-yard-line behind the Raiders' bench (which was very cool). Most of the plays I saw were on the stadium screen either during the play or on replay. But I did see Higgins run right by me on the TD play and he visibly slowed down. The reply just showed the Bills player tackling him well inside the end zone. How could that possibly draw a flag on Higgins? Do they now flag players for stupidity?

Thanks Raidermike and Carolyn for pointing that out.

7:56 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I'm a little shocked everyone is blaming this loss on Ryan. The Raiders wouldn't have even been in this game if it were'nt for the defense in the 1st 3 quarters. Look, I hate the prevent defense, but how many times can you run a draw play on 3rd and 10? Kiffin is WAY too conservative and often plays not to lose rather than to win. 16 of the Raiders' 23 points were set up by the defense creating turnovers or big returns on special teams. 7 points on one big play, which was an inch away from being another 3 and out. If the offense generates one or two 1st downs, the Raiders win. I like Kiffin, but he screwed the pooch with play calling and clock management in this one.

8:17 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It's called the Al Davis Prevent. I have seen it for decades, we have a lead and poof, it's gone because of the same prevent defense that has been used. This defense has been a Raider staple for all the Raider D coach's since the beginning of time. This is an AD trait and anyone who has been a fan long enough KNOWS who calls it. Al Davis is to blame AGAIN. The team is learning how to win, despite AD, all young teams go through it. Next time the team is ahead, Kirk Morrison needs to IGNORE WHAT the coach says and call his own plays, that's what USED to happen when we were successful. It's Al sitting up there, calling down to the sideline, Sapp admitted this is still happening, telling his boy " time to play my great prevent". The offense had us up by 9 TWICE, that should be good enough on the road. Then comes the prevent and it just prevents a VICTORY, everyone chant " AL MUST GO!!!!!!".

JONES

9:07 AM  
Blogger TheFreakingPope said...

I'm not even sure were to begin this morning.

We may have to change name of our little club from “Raider Take” to “Raiders Anonymous”. By Wednesday I’m sure I’ll pick up on the Chargers scent and proudly declare an Oakland upset that (with any luck tonight) would push the Chargers to 0-4. That said, since 3 PM Central Time, I have been haunted by our play in the fourth quarter.

Over the years, we’ve talked a lot about a losing culture. Could there be a better example than those last 8 minutes?

One quick side note, putting this on Russell is foolishness. That would be like placing blame for your personal credit card debt on your young children. Madden & others said it over and over these last few days. Tony Romo and Aaron Rodgers are models for how one builds great quarterbacks. We don’t have the luxury, but it’s true, nonetheless. Russell is a rookie. He’s going to make mistakes. Unfortunately, his mistakes are made on the national stage instead of at the team’s facility, where they belong. Besides, his pass to Higgins filled me with more joy than any other single moment since we made it to the Superbowl.

We lack accountability, at so many levels. If Rob Ryan was my employee, I would have walked over to him after that first fourth quarter touchdown and told him to square things away. After restoring the lead, I would have clarified, if necessary. After allowing another touchdown and a field goal, I would have showed him the door. Now, imagine what it must be like to know you can’t do any of those things?

We need a leader. I love Kiffin, but he’s not a leader. Fear of termination should never be the only tool you have when dealing with employees. Maybe Lofton has what it takes to gently redirect an defense he can’t control. Maybe he doesn’t. I can clearly say Rob doesn’t have it in him, or he wouldn’t need the HC to do it for him on his side of the ball.

Things are bad, Raiders fans. This is bigger than Al, Rob, & Lane. We have cancer. I hate to say it, and I’ve never felt this way until today, but we need a General Manager.

I will never put a bag over my head or “boo” my team, but I wake on Sundays with a heavy heart.

9:16 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Anon 8:17 - You make our point for us...

"The Raiders wouldn't have even been in this game if it were'nt for the defense in the 1st 3 quarters."

Up two scores late in the game, why wouldn't you leave the game in the hands of the defense, who had to that point out-performed your offense?

Lane Kiffin did the right thing, i.e., not beat ourselves with a costly mistake on offense.

Our defensive breakdown was a coaching decision and cost us the game.

9:19 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

This one wasn't just on Ryan, this one was also on Kiffin. After coming up with a two point lead in the first half, Kiffin was the one who made the decision to play "not to lose."

Once the offense went up by two scores, Buffalo knew they were going to run which would have opened up some passing lanes. Kiffin refused to use them.

Like Take, I sat there baffled while Kiffin let the time run off the clock after Buffalo got within FG range. Then feebly trying to call time out to "ice the kicker." Seems like Kiffin has reached a roadblock in his learning development.

No, Lane, this one was about attempting to save a few precious seconds so the man with the best arm in football can try to make at least one play.

For three quarters, the Raider defense looked like the Raider defenses of old. The fourth quarter must have come after midnight when Rob Ryan turned back into a pumpkin. All of a sudden - no rush, and no press.

You can't play prevent for the majority of one half and expect to win unless you're leading by forty points. With a two score lead you should never go to a prevent with any more than four minutes on the clock. Ryan started it in the third quarter.

9:20 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

on the postgame show yesterday, atkinson and crew were basically bashing kiffin as are some of you for his conservative play calling.

open it up you say, we didn't draft a QB with a zillion dollar arm to hand off the ball.

i ask you sensible people - just who the heck is russell gonna throw it that can get open on a consistent basis? how can he get miller the ball if he draws double-coverage? the other team knows we don't have the skills @ wide receiver so they leave those guys alone and cover the one guy who can actually catch the ball. how does it make sense to open up the playbook if we don't have receivers or if this young QB is learning? after all, isn't this just his 4th pro start? isn't the reason we drafted mcfadden so he could take a big load off of his shoulders? so we wouldn't have to rely on russell and lean on a great running game?

secondly, a caller mentioned the fact that davis calls defensive plays down on the field. atkinson asked "where'd you get that?". the caller said that warren sapp said it. then atkinson denied it saying "I've been in this organization for 30 years and not once has davis done that" blah blah company line.

i'm so sick of hearing this crap on the pre and postgame show. these guys are davis apple shiners. OF COURSE they'll back davis up. it never davis' fault, it's other people's fault.

folks, kiffin will get fired. this guy should just quit with whatever dignity he has left. what's 4 Million bucks anyway? personally i'd rather have my sanity. thing is, if he gets fired, ryan should be fired along with him.

hopefully davis will have knapp or rathman step in for the sake of continuity.

this senile old man has run this team into the ground. other teams like KC are young and inexperienced. at least they have direction and a clue. another coach will get fired and it's back to square one!

9:34 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

First off, Davis DOESN'T call the defensive plays. He has been known to call a play down on occasion, and he has been known to demand that the coaches play a certain player, but he doesn't run the defense nor instruct the coaches what philosophy to use.

If you examine the things that Sapp has said, he hasn't claimed Davis does any more than I've described above.

This one is not on Davis. By my calculations we had three WRs with game experience out there. Walker, Lelie and Curry. We have one of the fastest WRs in football in Higgins who was having an excellent game. Even if this is not one of the best WR corps in football, by becoming one dimensional you restrict your best dimension. If the other team only has to look for the run, they don't have to play you honestly.

Whether it is fully effective or not, Kiffin has to at least threaten with the pass to protect the running game.

9:42 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
As another poster said further up in the chain, we've unfortunatley watched this defensive style for a long, long time. The only person in the organization that has been at the scene of the crimes over and over is Al. Al used to be able to trot out physical safeties and stellar CB's and win football games with a preventive, reactive style. That defensive style died circa 1987. And we've all watched these agnozing comebacks since then too many times. Need I mention the Chiefs Monday night game in Oakland many moons ago? Our leads are never safe. In today's NFL ANY QB can pick apart a defense if given time. ANY QB.
QB time to throw is the key to a defense. Our defense lost this game. If anyone is to lose their job this season that anyone should be the DC that gave up how many at home to the Broncos? and then followed that up by blowing a two score lead in the 4th qtr. What has been the biggest failing so far this year? Defense. What did Kiff try to change before the season started? defense. So why in the hell would the GM, at this point, remedy everything by firing the HC who is only involved with the offense? Only in Oakland. How sad. Can the NFL revoke a HOF status?
Watch Miami under Parcells. They'll be playoff force by 2010. watch us start from scratch in 2008 and then probably again in 2010.

10:08 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

For the great defensive call in the final quarter [Al Davis despises blitzes], Al is promoting Caveman Rob Ryan to Head Coach and demoting Kiffin to another position [make him work for his pay]. Ah, God is Great! Al Davis is Great!!

10:08 AM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

Well, here's something chuckle about on this dark Monday, courtesy of a story about the Patriots getting whacked by the Fins: "The most distressing sight for the Patriots may have been the body language of Randy Moss towards the end of the game. Moss walked through certain routes and barely tried to catch a couple of slightly off-target passes from Cassel as if he was back in Oakland."

10:08 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

blanda - what dimension? you cannot do that if the other team knows our receivers SUCK! walker's just going through the motions and collecting a paycheck. curry is playing with his head in a fog. maybe in the back of his mind he thinks he'll get hurt again. he is clearly not the same curry from 2 years ago. lelie may be the only one out of that group that is doing anything decent and good thing he comes cheap. higgins is still learning and schilens? who knows what we have there. madsen was a guy who has excellent hands. he definitely wasn't as fast as other receivers but at least he could catch but now he's gone.

what about protecting russell physically (ie: with the running game) as well as mentally? BUT NO. the coach'll be fired and davis will go on to yet another coach and/or coordinator with a different system. this guy's gonna turn into another alex smith!

10:10 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"First off, Davis DOESN'T call the defensive plays. He has been known to call a play down on occasion, and he has been known to demand that the coaches play a certain player, but he doesn't run the defense nor instruct the coaches what philosophy to use."

full of contradictions there... you fill in the blanks...

10:11 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda, you consider yourself a Raider guru with experience in watching them for decades. Tell me, why do we go into the same defense time after time in the 4th with a lead? Different co-ordinator , same defense, now tell us all WHY? You know why, but your make believe brain won't let you say it, quit defending the very thing that has RUINED the team. If you do defend it, you are part of the problem and if you are part of the problem, F U.

JONES

10:24 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

There's no contradiction there, Ano. Plenty of owners in the NFL do the same thing. Sending a play down to the sidelines or demanding that a particular player is used in a particular situation is NOT running the defense.

Further, Davis has no problem with blitzing. Saying Davis is stuck in the days when he used to coach, and then saying that Davis hates to blitz IS a contradiction. Davis had no trouble blitzing when he was coaching.

10:29 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I posted as anonymous 8:17 earlier. I didn't mean to sound like I was defending Ryan. He has folded up tent with that prevent so many times it makes me sick. My point was, with just a little help from Kiffin and the offense, and this message board is praising the defense for its effort. The defense was bad in the 4th quarter due to poor scheme AND the fact they were on the field WAY too much. Even the TD from Russell to Higgins hurt. Although it provided 7 points, it didn't give the defense a chance to rest. Ryan was great for 3 quarters and sucked for 1 quarter. Kiffin sucked the whole game.

10:30 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Jones, you can't solve a problem that you don't identify correctly. To my recollection, Davis has been around since the early 60s, and through the 80s, when Davis exerted the MOST influence on the coaching staffs, the Raiders were famous for their aggressive defense. Aggressive defense IS the Davis way.

Raider defensive coordinators who play soft have been Bresnahan and Ryan. Ryan had a reputation for being aggressive before he came here. However, since he's been here he's played soft. I can understand playing soft if you just don't have the personnel for match-up football, but this year Ryan has the horses and is still falling back on soft defenses.

Ryan put a pretty good defense on the field in 2006 (although they were never severely tested because of their poor offense). In his other years here, he didn't have the horses. THIS year, there is no excuse, and to blame Davis for it is overly simplistic. Let's see how Davis reacts to it, if he does.

10:37 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

dwalk, here we have a rookie QB, a rookie RB and a hodgebodge of WR's who couldn't make it on any other team. What do want Kiff to do? We were leading in the 4th by 9 TWICE and here comes the ole Al Davis prevent when pressure and aggresive put us in a position to win. If you have seen the Raiders over the last 3 decades, you have seen this scenario way to many times and it doesn't matter who the coach is. Put the pieces together, think about it, why do we have an OC from college as HC anyway? Why do we have a DC that has lost so many still one step away from HC? Ahhh, could it be because of Al??? NAWWWWW, can't be, Al is God Right?
JONES

10:40 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Overly simplistic? You are NUTS. It is very simple, maybe not for a simpleton such as yourself, but to those that can see, it is very simple. You blame Kiff, a young guy, who was an OC IN COLLEGE and has done well in turning a disaster ( Art Shell & comp.) into a positive turn. But again, Al can do no wrong in your eyes because....what he did 40 years ago? You are in LALA LAND, no talking you out of it, you will defend it till the franchise is dead and buried and you will still blame the " traitors" to Al. You are NUTS.
JONES

10:45 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Even if Kiffin gets the boot as bspn and fox are reporting. Do you guys honestly think this is going to fix the situation? who ever the takes the job will still have to deal with freaking Al Davis and have no goddamn power to do anything.


Bruce Allen was the last time the Raiders had any sort of general manager running the show.But as with Chucky, he went on his merry way, and the freaking team went to the ground.

10:49 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Raider rick, and of course Bruce Allen would have never gone into a prevent in the 3rd quarter. Huh?

Pretty soon it will be stuff like, "Davis caused Russell to throw that interception!"

Yeah, yeah, I know - IAADF! Couldn't be anything like this:

– The Raiders defense was worn out to the point where Kiffin didn’t call any time outs as the Bills got in position because Buffalo simply would have gotten closer for the kick.

“I wanted to keep that field goal where it was and give hi a chance to miss that, rather than calling time outs,” Kiffin said. “I didn’t want them to hand it to Marshawn again and all of a sudden they’d be down to the 5-yard line and have a chip shot.”

Fact is, even if Buffalo had scored a TD with time left on the clock, it still would have provided a few seconds for Russell to connect on a long pass where, still, one TD would have won it.

Kiffin made some dumb calls and those calls are on Kiffin. At least when Take blames Al, he blames him for hiring Kiffin in the first place.

10:58 AM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

There's one other aspect here about blaming everything on the way Al runs his organization. Almost the carbon copy of the Raiders are the Dallas Cowboys. Davis is Jerry Jones' hero. He imitates Davis on almost everything. He even sends plays down to the sidelines, demands certain players be played, and goes through HCs at almost the same rate. Yet many predict that the Cowboys will represent the NFC in the Super Bowl this year.

11:14 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Jones - I'm with you about Al Davis. I want him gone and gone now. My comments were regarding this specific game. What do I want Kiffin to do with a rookie qb and a rookie rb? I want him to call plays that have a chance of moving the chains. Lets see - run into the pile, no gain. Run into the pile, no gain. 3rd and 10 - throw a bomb down the side line. Was that Tom Walsh calling plays. How about a screen pass? How about a short pass to the TE on 1st down? He does the same thing over and over. And the clock management at the end was pathetic. "I didn't want to call a timeout because he has a better chance of missing the field goal from where he was?" Counting on the other team to miss? That's lame coaching.

11:27 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

what? that's not true blanda - jones didn't "change" or fire the previous coach parcells as you are claiming. parcells "retired" and was replaced by phillips. he doesn't change coaches as often as davis does.

11:34 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

NYRaider said, "H - I understand what you’re saying about Kiffin, and I partly agree, but IMO we have to give some leeway to his conservatism in the interest of Russell, who is learning on the fly."

My problem is that late in the game, our short passing game came to life; and we didn't utilize that with hard nosed running at the end of the game to put it away. The last 2 drives, 3 and out? Are you kidding? Deplorable.

As for the defense gassing out in the end; it proves that Gerard Warren is the DT to be recogned with on our line, not Kelly. As soon as Warren went out with the neck injury (which I hope he is okay), Kelly and the D-line was rendered ineffective. Then when we did blitz on the last 2 drives on Buffalo; our Linebackers and Branch were overshooting their run gaps; and we got burned.

I thought not using the 2 timeouts on at least the last Buffalo drive was deplorable. We desperately needed to get our head back into the game, and a timeout would have done that for us. Horrible clock management AGAIN! I blame Kiffin and Ryan for their lack of coaching ability; and I think that neither one will be with us at the end of the season. I don't think that either one will be fired during the season (though I wouldn't be surprised if it happened).

I go back to my theory that Ryan gave up on Kiffin again. After the offense couldn't punch it in the end zone early; and then went 3 and out, twice at the end of the game; the defensive wheels came off. I think Ryan is playing the "If you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" game with Kiffin. Because if you look at the KC game, it seemed all aspects of the game was flawless.

I think there is a problem between Ryan and Kiffin, not Kiffin and Al, IMO. I think that is the problem that Al needs to deal with; as well as finding a GM. Either way, it's depressing to watch, and depressing to see the team I love fall apart these last 5 years. I'm no longer holding my breath for redemption; rather I'm using my breath to pray that God has mercy on our beloved Raiders.

11:37 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Cowboys coaches since 1995: 5
Switzer
Gailey
Campo
Parcells
Phillips

Raiders coaches since 1995: 7
White
Bugel
Gruden
Callahan
Turner
Shell
Kiffin

Kiffin's probably gone, so that will make 8. Phillips could be gone if he doesn't win in the playoffs.

11:44 AM  
Blogger H said...

Blanda, good backup for my earler post.

NYRaider,

If Kiffin were my employee I would have walked over to him and asked why in the hell he was trying to sit on a 9 point lead with five minutes left in the third quarter.

The protecting Russell reasoning is also wearing thin. I reiterate, Kiffin has had Russell since last September. All the off season, all the mini camps and all camp. At some point the training wheels have to come off.

Three times in the red zone three field goals. Last time I checked Ryan didn't call a single one of those plays.

H

12:13 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

Well after mulling about this for a while I think it's about a 75/25 split of blame. Basically enough to go around.

I say Kiffin is 25% to blame for his not using the timeouts at the end of the game and for perhaps not going for 2 after the Higgins 4th qtr TD. If you make it, the most Bills could do is tie it with a FC, if you don't you lose by 2.

I also don't see how Kiffin can really open up the offensive playbook. Russell hasn't proven he can really throw the ball (yet) - you can blame it on his passes not being very accurate or our receiving core being pathetic, regardless the passing game is absolutely subpar at this point in time. If you throw and it's incomplete that leaves more time on the clock. And as for Bush running up the middle it had been working... I don't know if he has the same type of speed as McFadden to get around the corner.

The problem is that Kiffin has never been a HC before so there is going to be a learning curve. Ryan on the other hand, has been the DC for much longer, so he should know better.

I still think the majority of blame lays at the feet of the defense. Conditioning should not have been a problem. And if they got tired, that is bleeping unacceptable. And I don't think you change your game plan completely because of injury either. But I could be wrong there.

And I'm mightly disappointed in Hall so far. I didn't watch him much when they played with Atlanta (?) or whomever he played with but as of right now he looks like another reincarnation of Brown - without the Super Bowl INT's.

BTW what is an IAADF?

12:15 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

12:29 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Interesting, dwalk... Let's examine the assertion that Al Davis is stuck in the 70s and makes all his coaches operate with the systems made popular then.

Of the coaches you list, only two have offenses which are comparable - Turner and Kiffin. While Callahan used Gruden's offensive system, he DID NOT run it like Gruden. Gruden resisted passing the football, while Callahan couldn't pass it enough.

Of this group we've only gotten two who seem to fully understand the dynamics of late game clock management - Gruden and Callahan.

Any statement that Davis loves passive football is just absurd. It was Davis who built the aggressive image of the Raiders.

Take, at least, has identified the proper question. Why is it that Al Davis cannot seem to find the coach who will carry out an aggressive style of football - that is strategically sound as well (noting that Bugel and Shell were aggressive, but their offenses weren't strategically sound).

I'm beginning to be of the opinion that having Bruce Allen here was the key, but not for the reason many think. I think with Al Davis comes a big intimidation factor, and Davis has no problem letting it be known that he's dissatisfied with you.

Bruce Allen created a buffer between the HC and Davis. Dealing with Davis, the HC starts becoming afraid to lose, and begins to play accordingly. Allen could soften what came from Davis to the point where the HC only had to deal with minor organizational issues instead of confronting Davis directly.

Kiffin has designed an aggressive offense that he's not using aggressively. It was that aggressive offense that attracted Davis when he hired Kiffin. But now Kiffin is refusing to use all of the elements of his offense, only focusing on the "play not to lose" elements.

I think Davis is either going to have to learn to communicate with his HC more often, and better, to remove that intimidation factor. Otherwise, he's going to have to find himself a buffer in the form of another Bruce Allen.

12:30 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

FWIW and I have no idea how reliable the Examiner is and in light of the 52 typos in the article I'd say journalistic integrity isn't all that high and considering that their only source seems to be ESPN, BUT supposedly Kiffin was fired:


http://www.examiner.com/x-514-Oakland-Raiders-Examiner~y2008m9d22-Lane-Kiffin-fired-in-fallout-from-the-Oakland-Raiders-loss

12:32 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Anyone making the “defense was on the field too much” argument is going nowhere.

The Raiders offense had the ball 15:57 in the first half, about two minutes more than the Bills. In the second half we only had five possessions for 9:48 (but scored two TDs). The lopsided time of possession in the second half was grossly aided by the Bills’ TD drive of 8:55 in the 3rd qtr during which Trent Edwards methodically took what was generously handed to him by Rob Ryan.

I’m not saying Kiffin demonstrated absolute mastery of his craft, but I still believe he’s light years better than our chain of recent head coaches, and I would certainly give him a pass for playing “not to lose” late in a game that we were up by two scores and the defense to that point was playing well (before Ryan changed the game plan).

Conversely, how many more 4th qtr collapses by the defense do some of you need to see before throwing Ryan to the wolves?

As someone expressed earlier in this thread, changing head coaches just puts us back at square one, again! When will it end?

12:39 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Toni, I can't find anything official. I'll believe it when it happens. It might happen, but the press had Kiffin fired for the last two Mondays in a row. I expect that the press would be happy to run that all the way up to 17 times in a row for the season. We'll see.

12:40 PM  
Blogger TheFreakingPope said...

Blanda,

As a resident of the Big D, you are right about Jerry. He does love Al and he's cut from the exact same cloth.

And yes, Scorpio, there was a rash of REALLY bad coaches down here until Tuna came to town. That's actually a point I should have made in my earlier post about wanting a GM.

Parcells builds great teams from the ashes. He left here because his work was done. He's moved on to Miami, who desperately needed his talents. We need someone who can do the same. And look, sooner or later, Wade is going to go, regardless of his success with Boys. Jason Garrett is the future of the Dallas Cowboys. I'm hoping Wade wins the big one so he can have his pick of teams next season.

In case anyone is unfamiliar with the statistic (unlikely), Dallas hasn't won a playoff game since 1996. The coaching turnover and poor teamwork was a huge part of that.

12:40 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

BR, I agree, but prior to this I thought most articles were speculating Kiffin was going to be fired. This articles is stating he has been fired. Slight difference.

And you're right, it's probably bogus, but hey I felt it was okay to post the link.

:-)

It this does come to pass it will certainly make me sad and frustrated and drain what's left of my enthusiam. I don't think Kiffin is the problem. Well, he's part of the problem, but I think only a small part and it's more a function of him being young and this being only his second year as a HC (at any level). IMHO, the bigger problem lies with Ryan and Mr. Davis.

12:50 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

As for Lane Kiffin playing "not to lose," isn't that exactly what Ryan is TRYING to do in a prevent defense?

Even the press from Orchard Park stated the Bills should NOT have won that game. If Ryan had stayed the course and played the D that worked the entire first half, that game would have been a lock when we went up by 9 with 6:23 to go.

Anyone here could have called that game to completion. It should have been automatic.

12:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda, why don't you just stop. It IS CLEAR, the problems ALL START AT THE TOP. Saying, " look at Dallas" is just someone grasping at straws to continue your futile attempt at trying to convince the world that "Al is right and he is going to make us champs". Give it up already, you just make yourself look very delusional. You enable the losing, I guess your ego is more important than fixing what ails the RAIDERS. How do you sleep at night?

JONES

1:14 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

I'm about to drop a bomb...

Kiffin should be fired today, and Davis should elevate Rob Ryan to Head Coach, OR Davis should just back off and leave Kiffin to his own devices until the end of the season. My preference is for the former.

Davis has a long, proud history of aggressive football. The Ryan family has a long, proud tradition of aggressive football.

As a Head Coach, Turner has a history of running passive defenses designed to minimize scoring rather than stopping a team in it's tracks. He ran that kind of defense in Washington, and he's brought with it him to the Chargers. The Chargers were far more agressive under Schottenheimer.

Shell believed in aggressive football, and the defense played aggressively under Shell. In fact, they played so aggressively, even during practices, that Walsh's offense couldn't generate anything even in practice. In 2006, the Raiders had one of the better defenses in the NFL.

Now under Kiffin, Ryan (who respects authority) runs a more passive defense - one I believe that KIFFIN prefers. At this point, Kiffin has no defensive history of his own (other than his father), so I can only look at what I see.

I am asked to believe that both Davis and Ryan are the passive ones, and that just doesn't make sense to me.

If Ryan is named Head Coach, Knapp will become the OC, and I certainly have no problem with that. Knapp did a fine job of managing Vick and company in Atlanta, and I believe that he has better tools here. Martindale would become the DC at Ryan's direction, and Ryan would be able to run the type of defense he learned from his father.

While Davis prefers Head Coaches with offensive expertise, I think it is long past time for the Raiders to hire an HC from the defensive side of the ball.

1:15 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda, I didn't say anything about Al Davis being stuck in the 70's and dictates what kind of scheme is his coaches run. I listed the coaches for both teams because I was curious after reading what you said about Jones changing coaches nearly as much as Davis. You're right, he does. I never said that Davis loves passive football, in fact I haven't really said anything about Al Davis until this post.

My points so far have been that although Ryan is partly to blame for the collapse in the 4th quarter, Kiffin didn't do anything to help out the defense and called a terrible game offensively and mismanaged the clock at the end. In my view, that was worse than anything Ryan did. That being said, I do not want Lane Kiffin fired. I don't want Ryan fired. Firing either coach 3 games into the season will be counter productive.

People here are calling for Ryan's head and defending Kiffin because they take his side over Davis'. Kiffin should be criticized for the way he called the game. He should be made to answer for how he didn't call time outs on the final Buffalo drive. If he gets a free pass, then how is he going to improve as an NFL head coach. And he does need improvement.

1:15 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dropping the bomb? LOL, more like a peashooter. SHUT UP. Kiffin has no say in the defense ,remember? Ryan and Al take care of it remember? Or was Kiff lying when he said that? You are a FOOL, you piss me off because you are so caught up in fantasyland and you keep spewing it like you are an authority on the Raiders. YOU DON'T KNOW SHIT, you are a MAJOR POSER just like your buddy PANTYINABUNCH. Where is that meathead anyway.
JONES

1:20 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

I left out one point...

As long as Al Davis is alive and actively running his franchise, Head Coaches are going to have to deal with him. It is critical that whoever has this job (because Davis isn't going anywhere, no matter how much you may WANT a pony) is going to have to have open lines of communication with Davis. And Ryan appears to have jumped that hurdle. At least we know that he talks to Davis more than Kiffin does, and Ryan isn't afraid of Davis. If he was, he would avoid him like KIFFIN apparently does.

Ryan has also shown extraordinary leadership. The players would walk through plate glass windows for him.

1:22 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Well, Jones... you gained a handle. Can you acquire two coherant thoughts to rub together?

Apparently not. Additionally you know absolutely nothing about the Raiders and their history. Which would seem a little bit important, at least to me, in understanding how Davis operates.

Your method of arguing is to just tell others to shut up. I'm sorry you feel so insecure about your own ability to provide reason. Perhaps if you spent a little time dealing with the obvious anger issues you might calm down enough to think straight.

1:27 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

dwalk, I wasn't directing most of that at you. Mostly I just used your list to answer a couple of other things posted on the board.

I generally agree with you.

1:31 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

what'll stun me is if davis instead fired ryan which SHOULD be the case. his defenses have been crappy since he's been here.

after all, when kiffin was hired i believe davis said kiffin reminded him of himself - so why should he fire "himself"?

1:35 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Its 1:45 p.m. and still no breaking news of Kiffin's firing. Just the same "Raiders officials reportedly tell Lane Kiffin he could be fired as early as Monday." Seems to me if Kiff were to be fired those aforementioned officials would say "you will be fired Monday." I long for the day when we can just be about the games and not all this drama.

1:46 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Just Win, Baby" Haiku:

Will the madness stop?
Lamenting Raiders football
A legacy lost

1:46 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

The development of Russell by Kiffin also has me a little concerned at this point. It is true that Russell has performed just as Kiffin has asked. Russell hasn't thrown interceptions, and he hasn't really been sacked.

However, part of what makes Russell so dynamic is his physical tools - his accuracy and his powerful arm. Those physical tools must be tested and practiced in game situations and not in practice. Right now, if Russell can't throw the ball so that it comes down on the opposite side of the receiver from the defensive man, he throws it away. But Russell, at least occasionally, must challenge that defender and give the WR a chance to fight for the ball.

My problem, right now, with the development of Russell, is that it seems like we are developing a Rich Gannon type QB with Brett Favre type skills. I don't mind, so much, the Rich Gannon mentality as long as the Brett Favre in Russell can come out and play once in awhile.

1:50 PM  
Blogger TheFreakingPope said...

JONES.

Move along. We don't need your sh*t here.

1:56 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
Don't run Jones off for speaking his mind. He's pissed. Like any REAL Raider fan should be. This is a very sad day for the S&B if Kiff gets fired, yet here's Blanda spewing the usual drivel, backed by H. They kiss Al's butt. Why? The old man has no clue what he's doing. We are an NFL digrace right now. Get your heads out of your damn asses! How can we not point a finger at the obvious problem. Our defense sucks, get it? Our HC tried to change it before the season, but Al said no and instead tried to get rid of the coach. Now our D choked and lost the game so what's the old coot do? He's gonna fire the HC. The same HC that is trying get our 60 mil QB off to a good start in the NFL. What a bonehead Al Davis is. Please sell the team you demented old fu*&.
As for Jones, what do you want this board to be, just a bunch of people praising Al even when he sucks?

2:19 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda on SOB:

>>>>
The players would walk through plate glass windows for him.
>>>

If that is true, by all means make him HC. Just get him away from calling plays on the defense.

Two new people calling plays, and a HC that everyone respects to light a fire under everyone's ass might actually free this trapped bird.

Just do it Al. I'm reminded of an old joke about a hillbilly trapped up in a tree with a cougar... his buddy with a gun sez he can't see who is shooting at... the hillbilly goes "Just shoot up here amongst us... at least one of us will get some relief."

2:21 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

blanda - you haven't addressed the real issue. did you listen to those guys on the ksfo postgame show? you sound like them. the problem is these receivers can't get open! if they got open either downfield or even short to medium range, i'm sure he could get the ball to them. the thing is, they can't get open! and if they DO get open, they drop passes.

kiffin's game plan to run and run some more without a passing game is the logical thing to do.

isn't it better to be PATIENT and let russell develop into that kind of QB - hopefully a great one, instead of rushing him and attempting to do what your team just cannot do? geez, and i wasn't even for russell in that draft. in as much as we got him, might as well nurture him and hopefully he WILL turn into one of those QB's you mentioned or a hybrid of both.

why draft mcfadden and not a receiver?

2:25 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda... that is something I hadn't thought of... Kiffin is the one suddenly bringing in the weak ass zone defense and the lack of blitzing? I guess now that I think about it, I don't remember pulling my hair out because of the lack of blitzing until Kiffin showed up... although my memory could be faulty.

Hmmm... interesting.

2:28 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Scorpio... I agree this team should be a run first team with a greenhorn QB and crappy receivers, but what explains Kiffin suddenly running three straight passing plays at the ten yard line? At least ONE of those should have been a running play.

And then we suddenly abandon the run in the second half when even the worst of receivers might be open on play action (cough Higgins).

Agonizing.

2:33 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Not completely true, gary. The Raiders didn't blitz under Turner, nor did they much under Gruden (with Bresnahan) and Callahan. But Bresnahan was known for running passive defenses, Ryan has not been. Ryan has been here under Turner, Shell, and Kiffin. He's run passive offenses for both Turner and Kiffin, but was aggressive under shell.

That tells me that the HC makes the decision as to the style of defense, if not the defensive game plan. Davis has historically run aggressive defenses, so I don't think a passive defense comes from him.

Ryan certainly shows a great ability to run an aggressive defense, because when he does he shuts the other team out in the cold. Witness the Chiefs and the first half of the Bills. If you run that kind of a defense so well - so that they can hardly get a first down - why wouldn't you run it all the time unless you were asked not to?

According to Davis' history, he wouldn't ask Ryan to play passive. It would therefore have to come from Kiffin. And if Davis is upset about this, and he is the one getting the blame for the passive defense, it might explain some of the intrigue in the building.

2:36 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

blanda - why then would kiffin publicly deflect the blame to "the defensive coordinator" and the "owner" and wash his hands of the defensive screw-ups after the bronco game?

2:43 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Because it is Ryan who calls the plays, and Ryan who has put together the defensive play book. But that's a bit different than what I'm talking about here.

Kiffin can tell Ryan to play a more passive defense at times to prevent the big play, without actually calling the plays for him. And that's what Kiffin seems to be all about at the end of games, trying to prevent giving up the big play. As a result, they get picked apart. It could very well be that Ryan doesn't know how to call a game with a passive defense on the field. But he seems brilliant when calling plays with an aggressive defense on the field.

2:50 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Still no breaking news, but here's something:

http://www.contracostatimes.com/raiders/ci_10531343?nclick_check=1

Now if we could just show that kind of fortitude late in games after we build up a lead.

2:56 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Our defense is built on man coverage, yet we play zone in critical situations. Why?

We have the personnel to press at the line, and the speed to blitz, yet we rarely do either. Why?

I still believe we have the talent to be a top defense in the NFL, we just don't have the DC to get it done.

Some of the best defenses ever weren't just talented but also very aggressive, even reckless at times.

3:00 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

nyraider, you absolutely ask the right questions. And that's the point that I've been trying to make. Both Ryan and Davis come from a heritage of aggressive football, and the team is built for speed and aggression.

Since that is the history of Davis and Ryan, and since the defensive personnel is built for aggressive football, it seems highly doubtful that the passive style comes from either Davis or Ryan, no matter what Kiffin says.

I think that Kiffin, when the Raiders have a lead, or the game is close in the 2nd half, tells Ryan to play soft defenses in order to prevent giving up the big play.

And it's not always a bad strategy to play soft defense. But the Raiders go into soft coverages way too early, and allow teams to pick them apart while there's still time to do it.

If both the offense and the defense had stayed aggressive until we were at least three scores up, or until there was less than four minutes in the game, I think we'd have won it.

3:12 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

So, how many times can Chris Mortenson report something as a fact that doesn't come true and keep his credibility has THE NFL insider? That guy's a clown. Talk about throwing something up against a wall and hoping it sticks.

3:12 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blandarocked,

you have finally reached rock bottom.

so it's the head coaches that are to blame for the passive defense.

so i guess kiffin wanted to fire ryan last year because ryan wasn't passive enough ?
kiffin wanted an even more passive defense. hmmmm, now i see.

al davis stepped in to save the day again.
he retained ryan, and told the evil kiffin to stay away from the defense.
but kiffin is to powerful for al & ryan.
he made sure there was no blitzing going on during the denver game. right blanda ?

that's why kiffin was so happy after the donk game.

after the blitzing worked against kc, kiffin just couldn't stand it anymore.

after watching 3 quarters of effective blitzing shut down the bills, evil kiffin ordered the great rob ryan to stop blitzing, play a soft zone, and that was that.

now i can understand blanda. you've solved everything.

norv turner, and lane kiffin hoodwinked al davis into hiring them, and they in turn ruined our great dc,(the one who always agree's with the owner).

so ryan stays, and the coaches keep disappearing, but maybe next time, al will get it right and hire a hc who will let ryan be aggressive.

right ? do i have it straight now ?

poor, poor, al davis....poor, poor blandarocked.
they are only victims

3:12 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Raider00... So you think Kiffin has absolutely no say in anything. He's just a puppet on Al's string other then when he's talking to the press. No sir, Kiffin can't even take sh*t unless Al says, "Lane, go take dump!"

Sorry, Raider00. I just don't buy that a 79-year-old man in a walker makes every game day decision on the football field.

3:18 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

And by the way, when do ask the press for reliable information? This is the third straight week that we've been assured, "Kiffin will be fired on Monday!" We've even had something new added this week in, "Kiffin has been told he'll be fired by Monday!" Asked at todays press conference, Kiffin said, "I haven't been told anything." Except by the press.

I guess what this indicates is that Al Davis, in spite of any strong feelings he may have, will avoid firing Kiffin just so the press will be proven wrong.

I guess, under those circumstances, Lane has the press to thank because he still has his job. Yeah... Yeah... that's it! The press is just protecting Lane Kiffin's job!

3:26 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
Raider00 excellent retort to more of Blanda's madness. So now it's Kiff calling the defense in spite of Al who has always run "agressive" defenses? Blanda I have to believe with that last load of crap that you are just trying to screw with everyone. You're just a prankster that really likes another team! Come clean.
You are no longer contributing anything logical to this board. Was that Al's "agressive" D that let Young & Rice set the record against us on that Labor Day many moons ago? Was it Al's "agressive" D that let Rison and KC gives us all cornaries on a Monday night about 10 years ago? Was it Al's "agressive" D that let Favre and Green Bay come in to Oakland on a MOnday night and make our D look like a high school squad? I could go on for days with Al's "agressive" D's and miserable defensive performances over the last twenty years. As Belechik called him, "Coach" Davis (in jest Blanda, so don't use it as a positive), Coach Davis said "see that defense (that was me, Al was implying" after the 2006 Shell debacle. Yeah, Al, we see it. Actually, we've seen enough of it thank-you. When have we last had a good D? Back in the eighties when Al still understood the game a little.

3:31 PM  
Blogger H said...

Bama,

Blanda and I are too old and too ugly to be considered ass kissers. We just refuse to join the IAADF crowd and drink the media kool aid.

Al Davis has always liked an agressive defense. His primary philosophy is "The quarterback must go down, and he must go down hard." How do you do that without being agressive.

In doing that, he feels it starts with the corners. That is supposed to free up the line and LB's to get to the QB. That is according to John Madden.

Blanda,

Normally I don't have to correct you, but the media has had Kiffin fired since January.

H

3:48 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

I know, H. But they've had a death march running now for three straight weeks. They gave us a break after a couple of weeks of it January, only to drum up the old story again in March. Now it's apparently going to be an every Monday type thing.

3:51 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

BR I don't agree that it's Kiffin's edit to go to zone late in games. Just because Ryan, since with the Raiders, has been doing it before Kiffin ever became the head coach.

I also thinks it's a flaw in your logic that if Mr. Davis and Ryan both adhere to a more aggressive style of defense, Ryan would feel emboldened and tell Kiff to take his advise and stuff it (or something to that affect). If he truly had problems going zone (and anybody who has watched the Raiders during this spiral should have problems with zone defense close and late) he wouldn't do it.

Kiffin wanted to fire him in the offseason, Mr. Davis nixed the idea. So what would be his incentive to follow Kiffin's advise to go zone, if it truly goes against his and Mr. Davis' defensive philosphy?

I honestly don't understand your reasoning. And maybe my memory is faulty, but I don't remember Ryan ever being that aggressive since his tenure with the Raiders.

And I apologize to everybody for posting the Examiner link. News you can't use indeed!

:-)

PS can anybody tell me what IAADF means?

3:53 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

Stupid things you do when the power goes out at work, consult the magic 8 ball of course...


Will Lane Kiffin be fired? Indications say yes.

Will Lane Kiffin be fired before the end of the season? Cannot foretell now

Will Rob Ryan be the Head Coach? Unlikely

Will Rob Ryan be fired? You can count on it.

Will the Raiders lose 11 games? Check back later

Will the Raiders lose 12 games? Absolutely

Will Al Davis step down? No

:-)

I hope we don't lose 12 games....

4:02 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Toni:

Its

All(or Always)

Al's

Damn

Fault

It got upgraded this season from IAAF to IAADF.

4:03 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

Toni, IAADF is a variation of IAAF, which is It's All Al's Fault (or Al Davis's Fault).

It's a pejorative term used for those who think that the black plague, the mortgage crisis and root canals are all the fault of Mr. Davis.

However, it's increasingly used on folks like me, who dare to make the simple logical observation that the owner/leader of an organization is most responsible for the direction of an organization, be it up or down.

That's how I became an IAAFer, because I don't believe that the coaches hire themselves or that the players sign themselves, and I don't believe that you can chronically underperform parity in the NFL for five (working on six) straight years at a record level without major organizational dysfunction that starts at the top.

Hope that helps.

Signed,
Your Humble IAAFer

4:04 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have never seen as much Zone from SOB until this year... so what happened? Could it be that Kiffin wanted more zone because his Daddy is a zone-guy, and SOB sez... ok asshole... here's your fuckin' zone?

What explanation do YOU have?

All I know is Hall is not a zone player, and anyone having him off the bump and run deserves to be fired.

Asum gave up a long pass because he disengaged because of the zone earlier in the game... are you people HONESTLY thinking this is Al's plan?

4:06 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Toni, IAADF means It's All Al Davis' Fault.

"...if Mr. Davis and Ryan both adhere to a more aggressive style of defense, Ryan would feel emboldened and tell Kiff to take his advise and stuff it (or something to that affect). If he truly had problems going zone (and anybody who has watched the Raiders during this spiral should have problems with zone defense close and late) he wouldn't do it."

Not true. Ryan went through great pains to tell us last week that he "respects authority" and that both Davis and Lane Kiffin are his bosses. He did say that he takes complete responsibility for the play calling. He has to call the defensive plays because Kiffin calls the offensive plays. But that doesn't mean that Kiffin doesn't tell him when to play soft and when to play aggressive. It could just be that Ryan is not very good at calling plays while in soft coverages.


"Kiffin wanted to fire him in the offseason, Mr. Davis nixed the idea."

Not true. The way that panned out was that Ryan had another offer and he offered to resign. Kiffin took the proposed resignation to Davis, not a request that Ryan be fired. It could also be that Kiffin understands an inability from Ryan to call effective soft coverage plays, and wants a coordinator who can do it. If Ryan is fired, I wouldn't expect that to mean a more agressive defense.

4:09 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

Hey Take,

Have you paid your dues to Bama yet? Remember, he said they're very strict about that.

4:09 PM  
Blogger BlandaRocked said...

Take, I've taken you off my list as an IAADFer. I've considered that you are asking the correct question, I just don't know if I agree with your answer. As a matter of fact, I think I made reference to that feeling above.

I disagree with those (which should be no secret by now) that Al is as powerful and all controlling as legend would have it. For instance, I know he gives coaches various players that he asks for - it was Turner who brought in Jordan and Gruden who brought in Rich Gannon.

I think he lets the coaches, for the most part, call their own games and run their own strategic philosophies.

But I'm understanding at this point that Al does present a problem based mostly on who he is and his own reputation. I think that reputation obstructs communication with coaches, and that may be the problem.

Apparently Kiffin avoids Davis, which is not the answer. Ryan seems to have overcome any fear of Davis - perhaps because his own father has a reputation almost as scary. That's the reason I'd name Ryan HC. There has to be some communication here, and Al Davis isn't going anywhere.

The other alternative is a GM to act as buffer, as I believe was the effect of Bruce Allen during Gruden.

4:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blandarocked,

THE PLANET MARS CALLED. YOU'RE NEEDED BACK THERE AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

HAVE A NICE TRIP.

4:26 PM  
Blogger RaiderRealist said...

I would say we are in dire need of someone who could bridge the gap between coach and owner. Someone who could succinctly express the desires and expectations of the owner as well as convey the goals and plan of action to accomplish those goals of the coach.

Because whether you're an IAAF member or an Al diehard, none of us is being done much good with the current situation.

4:51 PM  
Blogger Toni said...

thanks everybody, now I know what an IAADF is.

BR I appreciate your POV but I still disagree. If Ryan shunts what he truly believes puts the team in the best position to win he shouldn't be the DC. Espeically if it goes against his defenisve scheme and philosphy. There's respecting authority, but there's also doing the right thing. I just don't see Kiffin having that type of control over Ryan considering he stated he didn't have any say over the defense. But that just could have been a lie.

A blind person could see that the zone wasn't working after the 3 hour, 182 play TD drive that started with less than 2 minutes remaining in the 3rd quarter. Why not switch back to man to man on the next series? Why not go back to what worked so well earlier in the game? I just don't buy into he respects Kiffin so much he would allow the game to be lost.

But thank you for clearing up what happened at the end of last season. I thought Kiffin had advocated firing Ryan, which is much different than just accepting his resignation. End result would have been the same, but it's a very different path to get to that end.

I also want to state (again), Kiffin isn't blameless in the loss either. But I'm of the camp it's mostly Ryan's fault.

:-)

5:04 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Is iaadf the same as being called a CT? You have now tried to group together and discredit all those who can see clear as day what is wrong. You have now reached the lowest depth of SCUM. This is what people do when their arguments can no longer hold water, the use LABELS to deflect and discredit. Al is the problem and has been for a very long time, you still living in the past Blanda. "Those who continue to live in the past...cannot move FORWARD".

JONES

5:17 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"I would say we are in dire need of someone who could bridge the gap between coach and owner."

hmmm a real GM would work here....

Blandarocked- damn old fart, disconected with todays reality
dont vote for Mc Cain

5:18 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

These 3 kill me, Blanda, Gary who idolizes every myth Blanda tells him and H. They are probably the same dolt under alias. Blanda says Al Owns this team and it will be done his way or the highway. Then he tells how Kiff runs the same defense that has been a staple of Raider teams since the 80's. He then says Kiff is OVERRULING Al and Ryan when using the passive defence. Al HATES BLITZING, anyone with a brain knows that. Ryan is Al's yesboy, anyone with a brain KNOWS THAT. He says Kiff is to inexperienced so that is why Al keeps a collar on him, but then Kiff is doing things that Al doesn't like and Al can't do a thing about it. Blanda and company , this message is for you....YOU SUCK.

JONES

5:33 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

And to thefreakinpope, SCREW YOU, I can post on here and set it straight, there is no MEMBERS ONLY sign here. It's about time the fairytale version of the Raiders get's called out. It is time to expose those who are running this franchise into the ground. IF Blanda is actually sincere in his continued B.S., then I feel very sorry for him. IF he is someone just stirring the pot, then, he must go and he can take all the whimpy , snivelling wannabe's like you with him.

5:38 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda and H-
AS two of the elder statesmen on this blog, I respect your collective knowledge and perspective. You defend your opinions to the end, and though I disagree with many of your views, we are united in our love for the Silver and Black. If I could play the antagonist, I would ask two questions: what would it take to convince you that there was a serious cancer/major dysfunction at the top of Raiders franchise that will prevent us from returning to our proud heritage? Secondly, if you were Al Davis the owner would you have fired Al Davis the GM years ago?

5:42 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

"Bridge the gap between owner and HC", that is a hilarious quote. In the real world, there should be no having to bridge. But in this insane world of Blanda, it is normal that an owner can't get along with HC'S HE HIRES. That the owner should have complete control and it doesn't matter what happens on the field, as long as we have Al Davis, "he is the Raiders". Doesn't matter, the fans don't matter, the wins don't matter just as long as Al is doing it his way. RETARDED.

5:43 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Anon, with no signature, keep politics/political views off this site. I respect both Presidential candidates tremendously, and I admire their ambitions to serve our country as President; but politics has no place on this site; regardless of who you are voting for.

Now to real business. If you have a pile of crap with flies, and see a peanut or piece of corn in it; does it make the pile of crap better? Or is it still a pile of crap?
My point, the Raiders organization has been a pile of crap since before the Gruden years. We had 3 good years under Gruden; but that still couldn't hide the crap behind closed doors at the "facility." There is a HUGE ego problem with this team, and it starts with the General Managing Partner. You can speculate that he is too involved and in everyone's business, too controlling and not letting his coaches coach; and especially meddling where he doesn't belong.

I say this has been the case until the 2nd season under Norv. Now he is not able to run the organization (not the team, two different things) as best as he once did. Despite all the "team" drama with coaches, players, etc; the Raiders, as an organization, was always a well-oiled machine because of how Al micro-managed everything. He still wants to micro-manage but doesn't have the health to do so; which has caused disgruntled employees getting reimbursed for expenses a month or so behind. He has been absent not only because of his health, but because of his wife's failing health (had a major stroke 3 years ago, that has left her partially paralyzed).

BR said that Kiffin doesn't talk to Davis. Because Davis is not at the facility every day. He is there maybe once a week (twice if you're lucky). The bottom line, Al is to blame because he is unable to give this organization his best at administration, proper guidance, and management; 3 things that made him a Hall of Fame owner. At the same time, he doesn't want to let go. The truth is; Al is the beginning of the blame. He still insists in micro-managing his team; but is not in a position to do so. That is a big thing when employees are awaiting his approval to make trades, sign free-agents, receive their checks, etc; and waiting for these things for a long period of time causes employees to be disgruntled and do their jobs half-@$$ed. The real problem is that Al needs to let go, not because he's too meddling; but he can no longer contribute to the managing, administrating, or guiding the team's front office like he used to.
The change that needs to be made needs to start there; or otherwise what we will end up with is another peanut or corn in a pile of crap.

5:50 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Check this recent post by J-Mac and read some significant quotes by Kiffin.

http://www.ibabuzz.com/raidersblog/

Kiffin says no way he would quit, and he hasn't talked to Al Davis, nor is it his place to approach Al for reassurance. He stands behind (or at least with) his players and coaches, many of whom he recruited to the Raiders along with their families.

6:42 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
Damn, this is some funny sh*& tonight. It's like a group therapy session from One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest. Blanda, your Harding. Jones is the character that the dude off Taxi played. H is Martini. I feel like Cheswick when he loses his sh*& over not getting his cigarettes. IAAF.

6:47 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Blanda.... Your depth of our history is very telling and yet uncanny at the same time. Your insight though at times may not make sense to most of us, it is truly a different take on the things that are happening in Oakland these days.

Now that being said. I just don't see where Kiffin is passive and Al and Ryan are agressive? You've explained it in detail, yet it never comes to fruitation on the field.

You know the one thing that stands out in my mind was yesterday's post game show with Poppa and Flores.

Poppa asked Kiffin, " What happened to the D towards the end? Could it have been that they were tired?"

Flores quipped, " That is no excuse. Nor should it be."
Flores is right. There is no excuse to being tired.

The point I am trying to make, is that there has been to many excuses going on in Oakland. I don't want excuses, explainations, or what should happen or not, I want results.

Funny isn't that what Al wants? But I do think Al needs to loosen his grip and Hire an intelligent GM and give JRock more weapons. I still think Kiffin can be great, not saying he is without fault. Just would like to have some consistency in this team.

Mr. Duva

6:54 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nahhh, I'm Jack Nicholson. I'm the smart one., Blanda is that guy who was dancing around in the corner all the time. Who is the Big Indian?
JONES

6:55 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

http://www.profootballtalk.com/category/rumor-mill/

After Kiffin's press conference something strange happens. If you guys haven't seen it see it for yourself's and then pass judgement

Mr. Duva

6:57 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

The chargers are having their way with the Jets.

Against the Chargers this week, we face the prospect of being without the services of Carlisle, Warren, Fargas and Burgess, all due to injury.

Added, Walker is still absentee, and McFadden has a nagging turf toe.

IMO, both Kiffin and Ryan will need to open their playbooks a little more, and the players have to step up.

BTW, to the earlier discussions about Higgins getting flagged, Kiffin seemed to say it was Carlisle "tackling Russell" that got called for excessive celebration on the Higgins TD. I did not see the second flag, but it makes more sense than Higgins getting flagged for slowing down.

7:15 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Bama7
Jones writes, "Who is the Big Indian?"... not sure but I hope he visits Al with that pillow tonight.
Kidding of course.

7:19 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Mr Duva, strange is an understatement for that clip. Not sure what to make of it, i.e., besides the fact that Herrera was totally unprofessional. Is Herrera lying, or was the story fabricated?

7:42 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

ny-

Sorry for using the word strange, let's say its quite interesting to say the lest. When I saw it I thought to myself why would John get so upset if he didn't do anything? It kind of reminds me of the whole Lombardi incident? Maybe Herrera is full of shit and wanting Kiffin to get fired. Lately in Oakland things just don't make sense anymore.

Mr. Duva

7:48 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It seems Raider Take has gone the way of the Raiders themselves.
Degenerating to the antics of herrara. Name calling and threats. I find the parallels interesting.

I have told my wife each year for the past 5 that things can't get any worse but amazingly they do.

I can't stand Kawakami but Herrara makes the organization look like what it is, pathetic. Don't worry though, if you think things are bad now turn on MNF and imagine what the chargers game will be like. Open up the play book? How about open up the prayer book.

I'm done.

7:49 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

BAMA, good 1. I love Al, just wish he would F O.

7:50 PM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

Sorry for the late arrival to the party.

BR:

I'm sorry but your way of spinning and speculating has left me dizzy. Your sense of logic today is severely distorted.

"Davis has no problem with blitzing"

CJ:

It is a known fact that the Raiders standard D over the past 40 years has been M2M coverage with primary pressure from the base 4. Yes, I realize we won 2 SBs with a 3/4 D but regardless, please tell me one season, one era, one DC who employed the blitz on a regular basis. Crickets.

BR:

"There's one other aspect here about blaming everything on the way Al runs his organization. Almost the carbon copy of the Raiders are the Dallas Cowboys. Davis is Jerry Jones' hero. He imitates Davis on almost everything."

CJ:

Who cares if Jones admires Davis? What does this have to do with anything? Are you implying by association that because Jones admires some of the things Davis has done in the past that everything is hunky dory in Alameda? The big difference between Davis and Jones isn't Davis' fault ... it is his age.

Davis simply does not have the time, energy, and attention to pay to the organization that is required. Meanwhile, Jones is a younger, more focused owner giving 100% attention to his club.

This one takes the cake ...

BR:

"Now under Kiffin, Ryan (who respects authority) runs a more passive defense - one I believe that KIFFIN prefers."

CJ:

So even though Ryan ran passive D's the majority of his tenure PRIOR to Kiffin, now all of the sudden it is by the authority of Kiffin that these passive D's come out? First off, Kiffin has no authority over the D. Secondly, Ryan is fully in charge of the D's game plan, personnel, schemes, etc. So even though Ryan is in charge of the D, Kiffin has no authority over the D, Ryan has run passive Ds in the past, we are suppose to believe that Kiffin tells Ryan to go soft? Sorry but that is some of the most faulty logic I've seen in quite some time.

BR:

"I am asked to believe that both Davis and Ryan are the passive ones, and that just doesn't make sense to me."

CJ:

Why wouldn't it make sense to you? Davis has employed the base 4 pressure with very little blitzing for 40+ some odd years. Ryan has had a passive D the vast majority of his tenure here.

Another beauty ...

BR:

"That tells me that the HC makes the decision as to the style of defense, if not the defensive game plan."

CJ:

You talk about pulling a magical rabbit out of thin air ... this defies every single report, quote, and established patterns about who is in charge of the D. Ryan is on record saying he is in charge of the D. Kiffin is on record saying he isn't involved in the D. Am I missing something. Is this a conspiracy I'm not aware of where a HC & DC say lie about their responsibilities? Yikes.

BR:

"Raider defensive coordinators who play soft have been Bresnahan and Ryan. Ryan had a reputation for being aggressive before he came here. However, since he's been here he's played soft."

CJ:

This one hits the bulleye. Just read this over 1x more time. Ryan was aggressive before he came to the Raiders. Since he's been here he's played soft. Can youfigure this one out BR. It's not hard. There have been numerous coaches during this time but the one constant has been Davis and a passive D.

7:57 PM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

One final point on the Raiders D from a historical point of view:

The game of football has changed tremendously over the past 15 to 20 years. Part of this evolution is an increased premium on speed and getting to the QB at all costs.

The Raiders defensive philosophy in the past doesn't necessarily work in the present times. By that I mean, the Raiders in their glory years were able to win with M2M and base 4 pass rush with very little blitzing.

In today's game, a D needs to incorporate exotic, diversified blitz packages and disguise coverages on a regular basis to be successful.

If the offense knows what you are running and prevents you from getting to the QB with 4 man pressure, the results are similar to the 96 TD drive by Buffalo where Edwards picked us apart and got in a serious groove.

It is absolutely imperative that the D disrupts the QB's timing, gets in his face, hurries his throws, forces him to make quick reads, and puts him on the turf.

Unless you've got a 2 score lead with less than 4:00 on the clock, the D needs to continue to dictate the tempo and terms of the game to close out the game.

8:14 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

did anyone watch the chargers game?

they blitzed like crazy even when they were up 24 points. they never let up and they won. not that we have the same D, but it's worth noting.

I think that Jamarcus is going to have a hard time with that constant pressure next week.

8:56 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

>>>

It is a known fact that the Raiders standard D over the past 40 years has been M2M coverage with primary pressure from the base 4.
>>>>

So if Al is pulling all the defensive strings, where did all the zone defense suddenly show up this year CJ?

10:02 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Jones:

Two words:

Anger management.

10:11 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nate: The things that Al is doing in not going to change.

The things the coaches are doing can change.

I prefer to worry about that.

If enough people make the coaches know they are screwing up by trying to sit on leads, maybe they will stop sitting on leads (and this is where the Raider media has to hold their feet to the fire).

SOB didn't blitz more than a few times in the Monday Night Meltdown... the media and all the fans were outraged... he has now blitzed the last two games more than he did in 6 normal games... so it's not like they aren't listening.

Best case scenario is Kiffin and Ryan get together and grow some balls and decide to play to win instead of play not to lose sometime this decade.

If that doesn't happen I hope Al kicks SOB upstairs and we get two new playcallers on both sides of the ball in the fourth quarter.

10:19 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

It sucks when your team of over 30 years loses games like this time and time again. We just can't close the deal and we played so well for 3 qtrs, we gave up 177 passing yards in the 4th freakin qtr, 100 the rest of the game. I honestly wonder if there is some under handed shit going on to make us lose, maybe SOB trying to get Kiffin fired and Kiffin not using the timeouts in a rebelious "if your not going to try, neither am I" type of thing. I hate to think it would come to that, but how else can you explain what happened at the end of that game?

I also agree anyone that blames the loss on Russell is an idiot that clearly has no grasp or knowledge of the NFL.

This will not change until Al dies or is removed from his position.

4:50 AM  

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