Monday, December 23, 2013

One Postgame Take

Well, that was a fitting and emblematic end, eh? The five-minute two-minute drill. McGloin getting pressured and heaving the ball in desperation. The ball miraculously finding the cradle of Reece's arms, only to tumble sadly to the turf...

Like I said before, I'm not feeling McGloin as a future starter for the Raiders. And that's okay. He was undrafted. He's doing a pretty good job under the circumstances. Asking more from him is asking a lot. 

Cooler heads seem to be prevailing here at Raider Take with regard to keeping Dennis Allen around for next year. I'm okay with that, because coaching stability is something we haven't really tried before. Maybe it's what we need. 

I think it's pretty clear that this team is struggling with focus, fundamentals, situational awareness and discipline as we head into this very pivotal year flush with cash and draft picks. All of that needs to change, pronto.

We've certainly proven that we can deconstruct. It's the construction that's still lacking. To suggest that these are two wholly independent and successive processes is also questionable. First you deconstruct! Then you construct! No. You should always be constructing. 

I don't buy that winning eight (or nine, who knows next week!) games over two years and concluding the second year with complete nosedive and a paper-thin roster is evidence of a well executed blueprint, no matter how bad things were at the start.

But I'm not convinced that management and coaching turnover is the answer, either. So my take is that EVERYONE needs to step up their game right now, management, coaches and players. The management and coaches don't get a pass. They all need to do better. The future is now.

44 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

The way I see it, stability is key. Don't get me wrong, 8-23 (most likely to be 8-24) in two years is not acceptable, no matter the state of team, but there's something to be said about what D.A. can do with $ and a full draft. If he fails next year, he should be gone.

HOWEVER, If Gruden were to come back to Oakland this offseason, I would volunteer to pack Allens bags and show him the door.

9:50 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Continuity is important but not just for continuity's sake. If McKenzie, by some miracle, discovers access to hire a top level HC (Cowher, Gruden, etc), I could welcome that.

Even under the worst of circumstances, this has been a disappointing season. I'd hope to watch this team get better as the season progressed; yet, there's really no doubt they have done just the opposite.

10:13 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I agree %100. I can't really defend D.A. anymore, even though I would like continuity and stability. You need time to implement a plan, but 8-24 is just unacceptable, as I said previously.

I read in another forum earlier today that Allen is the football worlds Dale Sveum, and being a Cubs and Raiders fan, I couldn't agree more. Now, let's see if the Raiders drop him and hire a Renteria (O'Brien) or try to go for a Girardi (Gruden).

11:58 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Last week I was listening to sports radio discuss how the HC jobs in Dallas and Washington are undesirable because of ownership. On a positive note we (raider fans) do not have to hear how no reputable HC would want to go to Oakland. In fact, the Oakland HC job may be one of the most desirable in the NFL. Positives: low draft picks, high cap salary, and he can bring in his own QB. The only negative is lack of roster talent.

I understand wanting stability, but is Allen a good HC? I have not seen anything that would suggest that he is. I think there is a better HC out there, and the Raiders are finally in a position to hire one of the more qualified HCs.

12:19 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

It won't be a desired position IF Mark Davis is saying who he wants as HC or telling Reggie he needs to fire the HC.

IF that is the case, the Raiders are SCREWED. Mark hired Reggie because " he (Mark) doesn't know anything".

So IF Mark is telling Reggie to ditch Allen = NOTHING HAS CHANGED. IF Allen is Reggie's guy, and Reggie wants to keep Allen and Mark is ordering him to fire him....then we are completely FUCKED.

This needs to be Reggie's call, Mark needs to sit in his chair and wait for Reggie to tell him what needs to be done. If Mark over rules that...it's toast.

JONES

12:56 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

No more excuses about how Reggie and DA couldn't have done any better after two years.

They may not need to go, but the excuses do.

The players aren't the only ones who have to step up their game now. They all do: management, coaches and players.



1:04 PM  
Anonymous Raider00 said...



I keep hearing all DA needs is more/better, players. OK, true enough.

But look at what's going on.

12 more penalties vs SD

3 skinny points in the 2nd half.

Going 1 for Nov, and, it looks like, 0 for Dec.

Yes, Raiders/DA need a QB.

But who made the call to dump Flynn after only one game ?

Was it Reggie ? DA ? or did they both agree ?

Whoever made that decision should be gone. Because they cannot evaluate talent at the critical QB position.



1:36 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

Pryor to start on Sunday:

Allen said the decision to go with Pryor one more time was part of the plan all along and is not a reflection of McGloin’s performance.

1:57 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

That decision shows the Raiders have no real direction at QB right now. I was high on McGloin but he has regressed just like the entire team. It's pretty clear the Raiders have a big challenge ahead of them to find a QB, and whatever that decision, it will need to be a lot better than the one they made to trade for Matt Flynn.

2:35 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

SCAR

Wow, I know it's open season around here on everything Raider related, but no one wants to talk about the TD taken away from Streater with 6 minutes left in the game?
I haven't felt like the officials jobbed the Raiders this year like I have in years past, but this game was ugly in terms of officiating. The game had a taste of the old biases that plagued the Raiders...JMHO...

As for the 2013 4-11 Raiders? I'm not on the inside, so its all conjecture from me. As long as Reggie stays,(the guy who was practically hand-picked by Ron Wolf and John Madden)Dennis Allen will get a minimum of 3 possibly 4 years to turn the Raiders fortunes around and prove himself as a head coach in the NFL. I'm inclined to believe that Mark Davis and Reggie remember that the infastructure was archaic, as in overhead projector archaic, when they took the helm. My point being that under these circumstances where the coaching staff and the organization as a whole had less to work with these past 2 seasons, extra consideration should be taken before deciding if the coaching staff should be axed.

Does anybody have stats to compare on Rookie seasons of various qb's in the NFL past and present? I'm curious to see how McGloin's rookie season stacks up.
In McGloin, I'm seeing a rookie who is making rookie mistakes, but who is also showing up and playing maturely for a rookie. I can't see how you pin this game on McGloin. How many dropped passes did the TE's and rb's have? Streater and Holmes are really starting to blossom this season,,,so it goes without saying that McGloin has something to do with that.

IMO, You guys are starting to wallow in your misery, and its starting to affect your decisionmaking. as long as none of you guys are doing the evaluating and Reggie and the Oakland Raiders coaching staff are, I'm ok with that...

SCAR

3:28 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

Nice post SCAR...B I N G O.

Blaming the Refs isn't allowed at RT, he has made it very clear that he thinks the Refs call the same game with Oakland as every other team in the League.

Sunday was a debacle as far as the Refs go, they stamped momentum at every turn, it was very obvious. I guess Las Vegas called and told them they wanted a bigger point spread.....anyways, I like your way of thinking.

JONES

4:58 PM  
Anonymous Raider00 said...




You want to know why Pryor is starting the last game ?

Because Raiders coaches have figured that while Pryor is running around, eating clock, it keeps their swiss cheese defense off the field.

So while Pryor is a runner, and can't throw a lick, he plays in hope of keeping Donks offense on sidelines.

In any case, no matter. Be it Mcgloin, Pryor, or the ghost of Blanda, Raiders will not score in 2nd half.

5:17 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

SCAR, I don't mind staying put and seeing this through.

However, I think everyone needs to step up their game, not just the players.

I don't think RM or DA have earned "A" grades over the past 23 months. If they had, I don't think there'd be any doubt about the direction of the team right now.

Well, now that we're entering this pivotal third year, they need to earn A grades, because that's the best NFL teams do, and that's what it takes to become championship caliber.

That's all I'm saying. It's an observation. I've heard all of the excuses. There are none left.

5:20 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

"Well, now that we're entering this pivotal third year, they need to earn A grades, because that's the best NFL teams do, and that's what it takes to become championship caliber.".....

Wow, that is quite a revelation, LOL....oh my....and here is RT the nervous Nelly, as opposed to getting behind his GM and expecting him to get the job done.

Nope, crucify him over problems that he had to correct, but were not of his doing. Because he only hit on approx. 75% of his moves that he made....well he isn't good enough for the nervous Nellies...they want 90 to 100% because they feel that is realistic, THOUGH, never done in the NFL before.

JONES

5:31 PM  
Anonymous Raider00 said...




"Because he(Reggie) only hit on approx. 75% of his moves".
**************************************************************************************************


Really, 75% success rate for Reggie ?

Then why is the 8 win team he took over, now a 4 win team...every year ?

Doesn't make much sense to me.

5:37 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

LOL and it never will, double zero. What, you want to go through the whole spiel again? The baiting is obvious, like RT wrote...you need to step up your game.

JONES

5:50 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Raider Take

I agree the two construction processes are not mutually exclusive and to be frank I am sick and tired of hearing the same thing over and over.

Your feelings or lack thereof on McGloin is similar to how inspiring I find Allen. He seems okay and has done well considering the circumstances but certainly not Pro Bowl material.

Given the roster he has not had a real shot at success. But the NFL is not about fair. Could Allen do better with a real roster and nfl caliber qb, of course he could.

That being said, I don't see Allen as the type of leader of men who can take a team to the super bowl. NFL head coach is the most difficult coaching job in professional sports. Only a select few are elite. Perhaps he is competent but he is certainly not elite.

This is one issue that is not hindered by the salary cap and with enough money you can buy your team coaching greatness. An owner can really control this aspect versus draft results etc. The constant turnover is not good but I would take another firing if it meant a super star coach who could inject some life into the franchise.

Regards
Sandy

6:55 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

Does Allen have room to grow...I'm sure he does, he is still young as far as NFL HC's.

Has Reggie seen enough from Allen during this DECONSTRUCTION period to believe he WILL develop into a top HC....that is the question.

NONE OF US have had access to the daily operations, so saying that you KNOW ALLEN can't do it = blowing smoke.

I want Allen to continue, this coaching staff did some good work this year with what the circumstances were. Yes, it is show time, just like Mark Davis said....the DAY AFTER THIS SUNDAY....strap em up, I have a feeling it's going to be a good ride.

JONES

7:06 PM  
Blogger x said...

Nice take Scar.

Yeah, that game was horribly officiated and very one-sided. 12-3? C'mon. That's not even counting the TD they called off and the PI they should have called.

Don't look now, but Raiders are back up to #2 in penalties.

Bias?

Nah, just a coincidence that Raiders are league leaders with entirely different rosters and coaches.

I'm still liking McGloin. He's still a rook and has made some rookie mistakes, but overall impressive. If D had played as well behind him as they did for Pryor, he could be at least 3-3 rather than 1-5.

On coaching, have to admit I'm disappointed somewhat, but you have to give DA and (most of) staff another year.

Oh and maybe they took deconstruction part a little too far? Mike Mitchell's playing pretty well on a good D in Carolina. Another wasted high draft pick at #2. Maybe a tad more patience there would have been rewarded with him. Brandian Ross by the way - lowest rated safety in all of NFL last I checked.

8:25 PM  
Blogger Raider Take said...

A bunch of drama coming at DA from the Pryor camp tonight.

Like I said, QB is job #1 going forward, and this is more proof.

9:35 PM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

It is up to the GM whether or not to retain the HC. This is one of the GM's primary responsibilities to make this judgment call.

A GM who isn't able to make this decision has ZERO authority and has been essentially neutered to the point where you might as well axe the GM.

Knowing the context of the past 2 years, I'm confident that DA is coming back for year 3 to see what he can do now that stability has been established and he will have a crack at coaching a team with far more talent.

IMO, to start Pryor in week 17 is for the most part an evaluation tool going forward.

9:48 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

Always a bunch of drama from the Pryor camp....that is the part of the Nation that is truly irritating.

They are the ones who cry for Hue, scream for Allen's head, boo the backup to Pryor.

The cult of personality/color crowd. If you say that to them, they scream racist....it's the NO WIN crowd, nothing is ever good enough unless it is tied to the past.

JONES

10:39 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The Grinch that stole Raiderness is alive and well. Merry Christmas, Jones! Or should I say Bah Humbug?

10:45 PM  
Anonymous JONES said...

Oh, Pryor's agent, just read that he shot his mouth off like Pryor was Peyton Manning or something....well his agent just screwed Pryor, ROYALLY. He won't be back...him not communicating with his concussion and knee injury...he's gone, toast. Pryor is too immature and apparently, so is his agent.

I stole raiderness? I'm one of the one's who has been trying to get it back, it's all you morons who think the past is where it is at holding it back...let it go, it's time. By the way, Xmas is a pagan ritual, enjoy.

RT is on full alert, good to see, keep those posts coming, settin em up.....pop, there goes another....

JONES

10:53 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Happy Nativity then, Mr. Pagan. Its obvious you're not into that "good will towards men" stuff.

11:05 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Pryor camp drama, indeed! Have to wonder if there's any truth to the decision to start Pryor coming from someone other than Allen. Is this a repeat of last year?

It's like the Raiders are stuck in neutral but with the infusion of some cash, they will be expected to go from neutral to 4th gear.

This has been a disappointing season. For me, I now have to dial back my expectations for 2014 to pretty much what I expected in 2013 but didn't happen; and that's for the Raiders to field a competitive team that shows progress during the course of a season.

5:11 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

There is still a complete lack of leadership on the Raiders at both he player, coach, gm and owner level.

Mark open your wallet and bring in a Tony Dungy, Gruden, Cowher a proven guy not inexperienced nobodys like Allen and Reggie.

The Raiders need a dynamic personality who has the experience to lead and reignite the franchise from the morass its in.

If anyone thinks Reggie and Allen are the guys one only needs to look at two of the most important issues. No bonafide pass rusher in two years and our QB roster is Mcgloin and Pryor that is a total joke. How can any responsible GM field a qb roster like that. Cap or nothing between that and the Tyler Wilson/Flynn debacle it is a total failure on the most important position.

Regards
Sandy

5:40 AM  
Blogger nyraider said...

I had not seen this before:

"Adam Schefter of ESPN reported Sunday morning that Raiders owner Mark Davis recently rejected a request from Allen to extend the contracts of assistant coaches on the last year of their deals."

6:07 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Allen seems to be floundering and does not look in control. Not an easy situation but he is not exactly showing he is control of the team. The penalties are out of control the handling of the qb situation looks weird and dysfunctional. Clock management is poor and the blowout against KC was laughable.

Why in such a critical time for the organization do you have a rookie head coach. The Raiders can not afford to have someone growing on the job they need a steady strong hand.

Stan

9:36 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Good point Stan the old adage of when the going gets tough.....Allen and Reggie sure don't get going

12:12 PM  
Blogger Bullet Point Mom said...

Agree with Sandy on the bonafide pass rusher. Very disappointed they didn't try harder to acquire or draft one. If there's one thing that, at the right time, could have won another game or two - it would be a sack. Lord knows there were tons of opponent third down conversions that could have been snuffed.

And is Pryor's agent an idiot or what? Love DA's response:

"Well, the first is, that’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever fricking heard. No coach in their right mind _ this isn’t the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, this isn’t made for TV drama. This is football and we make our football decisions based solely on that, nothing other than that...."

And it appears Pryor is distancing himself from that stupidity. He should fire the guy.

Merry Christmas everyone!

2:34 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

I love that response. It's well deserved. Allen has his moments.

3:08 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The agent was out of line but Allen has been inconsistent in terms of the QB plan. A few weeks back he said McGloin was his starter now he is saying that Pryor gives the Raiders best chance to win. Does not seem like a steady hand to me. Anyway the real problem is how two years in to the reconstruction the QBs are Pryor and McGloin.That is a terrible combo.

I hope they land Bridgewater or some long term option because the team is not going anywhere till they have a QB. Cutler though very expensive would also be a good solution for a team as desperate as the Raiders are


9:51 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

BTW look at the Rams this year proof positive its worth spending big bucks on high quality coach. The Rams were pretty much in the same spot as the Raiders two years ago and Fisher has turned that franchise around. Kudos to him

9:52 AM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

"The Rams were pretty much in the same spot as the Raiders two years ago"

Not exactly. The Rams had a sizable cap balance and full range of draft picks the past 2 years.

1:06 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Your right it had nothing to do with Jeff Fisher. Put Denis on the Rams it would be the same thing, LOL

7:07 PM  
Blogger Calico Jack said...

I'm not discounting the job, experience, and leadership of Jeff Fisher.

I'm just not ignorant to put the 2 franchises overall situations as nearly the same.

Going into the 2012 season, the Raiders had the worst situation possible in terms of the salary cap and draft picks.

10:26 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

yes the Rams had a better salary cap and draft situation but they also had the league's oldest roster and in two years they have completely turned over the roster.

Maybe Fisher started from a "better platform" but as you note his experience and leadership made a huge difference especially in the w-l during the reconstruction.

This is the element the Raiders are missing when you have rookies at GM and HC. Not saying that will doom them but it sure makes it harder

5:56 AM  
Anonymous Raider Nate 75 said...

"yes the Rams had a better salary cap and draft situation but they also had the league's oldest roster and in two years they have completely turned over the roster."

This is what RM and DA came into as well, but with salary backlog and no drafts. They kept the team the first year, and rightfully so, because they were coming off an 8-8 season, where the wheels fell off the bus. The mistake, I felt they should have kept Campbell because he got them to 7-4 record before getting injured. But Palmer was traded for a first rounder, and were obligated to keep him.

The other keeps being mentioned over and over, and that is the salary mess, with players who didn't deserve half of what they had. Stanford Routt made how much? Then when he was cut was paid league minimum. Bad investments led to a bad team. We had to cut these players and still pay them guaranteed $$ which left us with little to do anything with. Not sure if Flynn would have been able to play all year, remember he was cut because of a tendinitis injury in his throwing arm. He hasn't played until GB, and had time to let his injury heal. Bad move in giving him the $$ he made. There's something about LSU QBs that tells me to stay away.

We will see what kind of impact players they bring in this offseason. We need major overhauls on both sides of the line and other areas; now we have the major $$ to do it as well.
JUST WIN, DAMMIT!

9:15 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

LMFAO>>>>>BUSTED

2:00 PM  
Blogger GGRaider said...

If Pryor plays well on Sunday and shows the continued improvement I his passing game that we've been seeing for a year, the effective result will be that there will be yet another off season where we will be wondering whether Pryor can be a franchise Quarterback. That outcome should be unacceptable to Raiders fans. Once healthy, Allen should have let the Pryor evaluation process play out. McGloin's physical limitations were apparent from the get go. While he makes the most of his abilities, he's at best a career back-up. If he had been forced to play with the patchwork offensive line that Pryor played behind in the first half of the season, the results would have been disastrous.

4:20 PM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

True both guys suck but if you want to fantasize there is way more upside with Pryor

On another note here is text from Tarver interview. Man its sounds pathetic just a guy whining about the situation and making excuses in a desperate plea to keep his job. Whatever parts of it are true its just an embarrassing rant and it aint leadership. Itwould refreshing and I would respect the guy more if he just plain said we suck.

“And I think the biggest thing that it shows is if you don’t stick with a process in this league – the teams that win have a process from building up personnel and working forward,” Tarver said. “The hand that the Oakland Raiders were handed when we stepped into this building was one where we couldn’t make a lot of [roster] moves. And the moves that were made by this organization had to be made. And as you look at the progress and process, you knew through this little window that there were going to be some dramatic ups and downs – not an established quarterback … on defense, 10 new starters – whatever the case may be.

“If you don’t have a process and you don’t stick with something, you maybe get one little year blip, and then we’ll go right back down …[you knew] there were going to be ups and downs … because there were too many unknowns. But a lot of those unknowns have become knowns. And that’s a good thing.”

7:11 PM  
Blogger nyraider said...

Another meaningless game to end the season (11th in a row!). Today, it's about holding it together and avoiding the embarrassment of allowing the Broncos to break what could be a dozen or more NFL player and team records.

Based on recent weeks (for both teams), it's probable the Broncos will finish their business by halftime, and subs will play in the second half.

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