Las Vegas Raiders Thread

heyjude

Former Raiders and Bears wide receiver Willie Gault, who was one of the fastest players in the NFL in the 1980s and 90s showed at the Oxy Invite in Los Angeles last Saturday, that he would still be one of the fastest in the league, at the age of 55. Gault set new records in his age group for the 100 metres and 200 metres, running the 100m in 11.30 secs and the 200m in 23.24 secs, which is very impressive for a man that played in the NFL for 11 years(5 with the Bears / 6 with the Raiders) and was a member of the Bears Superbowl winning team in 1985(31 years ago).

eire4

A lot of talk about the Raiders moving to Las Vegas making the headlines this week including interviews with the Mayor of Las Vegas.

Beefy78

As someone who generally spends a lot of time working out which NFL fixtures to fly over to - AND who likes to go to Las Vegas whenever possible this gets my seal of approval.

coco0981

Beefy78 wrote: »

As someone who generally spends a lot of time working out which NFL fixtures to fly over to - AND who likes to go to Las Vegas whenever possible this gets my seal of approval.

I don't see this happening in the short term. There is still an aversion to gambling in America. Having to get 24 team owners support to move could be difficult. Remember the NFL made Tony Romo cancel a fantasy football convention in Vegas only last year

eire4

coco1981 wrote: »

I don't see this happening in the short term. There is still an aversion to gambling in America. Having to get 24 team owners support to move could be difficult. Remember the NFL made Tony Romo cancel a fantasy football convention in Vegas only last year

You might be right but money talks and thats all the NFL cares about as the way the Rams move back to LA worked out showed very clearly and the Raiders and powerbrokers in Las Vegas think they can come up with the money to make a massive $1.4B stadium deal work.
Plus Jerry Jones one of the most influential owners in the NFL came out this week saying that he was not against a team playing in Las Vegas.

ButcherOfNog

We looked decent in game one of preseason, we looked to have a fairly deep roster compared to Arizona. It'll be good to see more of the backup players in the next 2 games to properly judge them. Cook looked better that I thought he'd be.

heyjude

With the Cowboys facing being without starting QB Tony Romo for perhaps half the season and with the Vikings now facing into the season without Teddy Bridgewater(after he torn his ACL), would the Raiders be tempted to try to trade Matt McGloin and see what they can get ?

McGloin becomes a free agent next year and there is no chance that the team will be able to afford to re-sign him, while the team drafted Connor Cook, who is widely seen as his replacement.

It comes down to what they might be offered and how confident they are in the ability of Cook to stand-in if Carr gets injured. An impressive showing by McGloin in the final pre-season game might lead to some trade interest. He certainly has more upside than the likes of Mark Sanchez, who may be traded / cut by the Broncos.

LiamG

don't think you would get much for him. plays well in spurts

heyjude

LiamG wrote: »

don't think you would get much for him. plays well in spurts

I'd be happy enough if they could get a 3rd-5th round pick for him, assuming that is, that Carr stays healthy or Cook is capable of standing in ably. They signed McGloin as an undrafted free agent, got a couple of years out of him and as he is likely to leave next year, anything they could get would be a bonus. In any case if he leaves as a free agent and signs elsewhere as a starter(:)) they may get a compensatory pick

heyjude

The deadline for cutting the roster to 53 is 4pm New York time tomorrow, there were no major surprises except perhaps the cutting of DT Leon Orr when the cut to 75 players were carried out a few days ago. So here's how I see the roster looking

QB - Carr safe as starter, McGloin stays at backup unless they get a trade offer, rookie Connor Cook will be kept as QB3

FB - Olawale is the starter with Marcel Reese missing the first 3 games through suspension. So Reese won't be part of the 53 man roster, but will he be back at all or will they seek to trade him.

HB - Difficult cuts to be made, Murray and 5th round pick Washington are probably safe, Undrafted rookie Jalen Richard has impressed during OTAs and training camp especially as a pass catcher and can also return punts, George Atkinson III had some long runs against the 3rd/4th teamers and had a return for a TD last night, while Taiwan Jones is a top special team gunner and kick returner. They may decide to keep all 5, otherwise Jones and Atkinson could vie for the final spot.

TE - No real surprises they tried to trade Rivera before, so he could be under threat possibly from a roster cut elsewhere.

WR - Cooper, Crabtree and Roberts are safe, Holmes could be under threat. Johnny Holton seems be be the best bet for a new face at WR5. Its unlikely they would keep 6

OL - Last years starting 5 plus Austin Howard are safe. Feliciano seems to have moved to center and can play guard too. The team seems high on the potential of 7th rounder Vadal Alexander, so he may stick. Then it depends how many O-linemen they keep with Matt McCants, and rookies Oni Omoile and Denver Kirkland fighting for the remaining spots.

DL - The switching between 5-2, 4-3 and 3-4 formations mean that the lines are blurred between D-linemen and linebackers. But Mack, Mario Edwards Jr., D.Williams, Ellis,Autry and 2nd round pick Jihad Ward look safe. Undrafted rookie Darius Latham was rated the best rookie DT by PFF in the preseason, so he could well be kept. Stacy McGee could be a casualty, while Mario Edwards could be placed on IR if his injury takes too long to recover.

LB - Smith, Irvin, Heeney are safe. Neiron Bell's injury problems add some doubt. 3rd round draftee Calhoun should stick, as could Cory James and James Cowser. Special team specialist Daren Bates is hard to call.

CB - Smith, Amerson and TJ Carrie are safe, DJ Hayden could be squeezed though he has moved to the slot, Neiko Thorpe is under most threat, but may surivive too.

S - Nelson and 1st round pick Joseph are safe, Nate Allen holds on too. But the final spot is up for grabs.

Janikowski, King and Condo retain the special team specialist positions

The roster may change later in the season, if the team keeps Marcel Reese after he completes his 3 game ban this month and Aldon Smith completes his year long ban in November(and is reintstated by the Commish).

heyjude

The Raiders enter the new season tomorrow, with more optimism than any season since their last Superbowl appearance. So what are their prospects ?

Coaching - Jack DelRio and his staff remain in place, so the team will enjoy the advantage of continuity on both offence and defence, though this will be diluted by the shuffling of personnel on the offensive line and throughout the defence.

QB - Derek Carr remains the starter and the only change is the addition of rookie Connor Cook as QB3. Carr will look to improve on last season and with his offensive line looking strong in pass protection, the starting wide receivers remaining unchanged, plus promising rookie pass catching running backs, the prospects look good.

RB - Olawale is the fullback, Murray remains the starting HB, with rookies Washington and Richard showing plenty of promise though neither are bruisers. Taiwan Jones is the other RB but is primarily used as a ST gunner and kick returner. Marcel Reece is suspended for the first 4 games. The running game was poor in the preseason and the team needs better RB play and better OL blocking if they are to become the power running team that DelRio wants.

TE - Walford needs to stay fit and contribute more. He has the talent to be a true all rounder and can be a force in the red zone. Lee Smith is a quality blocking TE, but doesn't catch much. Mychal Rivera is a good receiver, but could be a casualty when Reece returns, the team was open to offers for him around draft time but no trade was agreed. Gabe Holmes in on IR.

OL - Penn, Hudson and Jackson return on the line though Gabe Jackson moves from LG to RG to make way for big money free agent Kelechi Osemele. Menelik Watson who was due to start at RT last season until he was lost to injury, will start the season at right tackle. Jon Feliciano takes over as backup Center, as LG and RG. Austin Howard and Matt McCants backup the tackle spots and promising rookie Vadal Alexander is backup at guard. The OL is huge, of the 9 OL only 2 are less than 6'4(Hudson at 6'2 and Jackson at 6'3), while 5 of them are 325lbs or more. Given their size they need to gel quickly to establish the running game, which is a necessity in a division full of top notch pass rushers.

DL/LB Several players double up by playing on the line, most notably Khalil Mack, who was the first player ever voted all pro at LB and DE last season. Mack returns and will be targeting the single season sack record(though he will need help from the officials as he seems to be held on most plays, something which the officials rarely seem to notice or punish). Dan Williams and Justin Ellis return in the middle, as does Stacy McGee. But two rookies could attract a lot of attention in 2nd round draft pick Jihad Ward and undrafted free agent Darius Latham(who I expect to really impress). Free agent signing Bruce Irwin will play DE or OLB and it is hoped, he can draw some attention away from Mack and add some alternative pass rush capability, in the same way the team hopes that Ward can provide some push up the middle. The team was really hoping for big things from Mario Edwards Jr this season, but a freak accident in preseason saw him sustain a hip injury, so he is on injured reserve and set to return mid-season. Ben Heeney starts at MLB backed up by rookie Cory James, but if they struggle Malcolm Smith may be moved inside. Shilique Calhoun will be a situational pass rusher while he learns the OLB position having played mainly DE in college.

S - The Raiders picked up Reggie Nelson to fill the vacancy left by Charles Woodsons' retirement, it is expected that first round pick Karl Joseph will play the other Safety spot, but for week one, facing Drew Brees, the team chose to play Nate Allen alongside Nelson, as Joseph still isn't up to full speed after returning from injury. Brynden Trawick, the other safety is mainly a special teams player.

DB - Amerson led the team in passes defenced last season and was signed to a long term deal, while he is joined as starter at cornerback by former Chief Sean Smith, giving the team two solid starters. TJ Carrie and DJ Hayden will be the backups, while it seems as though Hayden won the competition to see who will play the slot. Neiko Thorpe was cut, so Dexter McDonald and Antonio Hamilton will be the other corners. Hamilton is also supposed to be a bit of a kick/punt return ace, though they didn't utilise him in this role in pre-season, so they may spring a surprise tomorrow.

Specialists - Janikowski, King and Condo all return.

Bottom Line - The rushing attack was poor in the preseason and the run defence was equally poor, both need huge improvement, though the loss of Edwards on defence could hamper them. They don't have a dominant middle linebacker, so they may have to scheme around this or trawl the waiver wire for answers.

The X-Factor - Washington and Richard could be very productive in a Darren Sproles way, out of the backfield. Antonio Hamilton making the final 53 man roster was unexpected, his return skills could be the explanation( he had 3 punt return TDs(av 21.7yds per return off 23 returns) and 2 kick return TDs(av 24.8yds per return off 33 returns) during his college career).

X-Factor 2 - The team could get a huge mid-season defensive boost if Mario Edwards is fit to return and Aldon Smith is cleared to return after his suspension ends in early November. Heading down the final few weeks of the season with both of these two, fit and fresh would give a huge lift, but where will the team be in the standings at that stage and can they get over their long-standing inability to win on the east coast ?

As a fan, I think if they can cure their running woes on offence and defence, then combined with some luck in avoiding injury, they could at least challenge for a wildcard spot. Denver and especially Kansas City are tough and all four AFC West teams are likely to beat up on each other, but I think that a 10-6 season is possible and with that we could finally return to the playoffs, where the only team I would fear at this stage are the Steelers.

Kev8360

Good start today with a road win - big comeback in the 4th quarter. That was a game we would have lost last year.

eire4

Kev8360 wrote: »

Good start today with a road win - big comeback in the 4th quarter. That was a game we would have lost last year.

No question that would have been a loss last year. Going and winning in New Orleans is an impressive start for sure.

Prefab Sprouter

Very impressive start. It was great to watch and feel that they were in the game, right up to the end. A worry though was our Cornerback play, especially Sean Smith. He was supposed to provide stability and himself and Hayden got torched throughout the game. The Offense played well although we will have to face far better defences than the Saints. But you can only play against the team that is lined up in front of you and we were superior to them. I'm really looking forward to week 2 now!

Leslie91

Fair play to big balls Jack del Rio.......... showing our pu$$y of a coach how it needs to be done.

We are toast and it's only week 2......

heyjude

Great result and full credit to DelRio for having the courage to go for the win, rather than opting for overtime.

Only time will tell just how good a result this was, after all this was the 97th time that Drew Brees has thrown for 300yds or more in an NFL game and he might well put up big scores against many other opponents this season. But the team can't be expected to score 35pts each week to win.

Not too much to criticise on offence apart from some of the playcalling(the short passes into the flat became a bit predictable and didn't gain much). The biggest issue for the O was injuries, losing Menelik Watson with a groin injury, with his backup(Austin Howard) not fit to travel and then having their 3rd choice RT Matt McCants also going down injured as well could force them into an early roster move, as the only remaining fit OL is rookie Vadal Alexander, who is pencilled in as a guard, for even though he played some RT in college, he isn't mobile enough to play their in the NFL.

The defence played the run a bit better, but they failed to get much pressure against Brees, even though he is especially tough to sack. But the lack of pressure combined with poor play especially from Sean Smith and DJ Hayden led to several big plays and in the case of Hayden, lots of penalties. With Hayden struggling I don't known why we didn't see more from TJ Carrie, who played well in the slot last year..

So overall a good win, but plenty to improve on, after all you won't win many games if you conceed 141yds in penalties every week.

heyjude

Good news, Austin Howard has recovered from an ankle injury that kept him out last week, returned to training on Wednesday and is expected to start at RT replacing Menelik Watson, who is still out after limping off last week. Matt McCants is also still injured, so Vadal Alexander will backup Howard. Center Rodney Hudson and RG Gabe Jackson, who had minor knocks earlier in the week are fit to play.

Cornerback Sean Smith will return to the starting lineup after struggling badly and being benched last week, but he will need to figure out how to deal with speedsters or it could be a brief outing for him. No news about whether the team might replace DJ Hayden with TJ Carrie, after Hayden also played poorly last week. They also need to find a way to exert more pressure up front or Matt Ryan/Julio Jones could enjoy a field day on Sunday.

I think Taiwan Jones place as kick returner could also come under pressure as rookie Jalen Richard really impressed. Jack DelRio can't be happy though, with their being a penalty of virtually every kick return.

Prefab Sprouter

Well that was a harsh lesson and no end. Being forced to run on 4th and 2 because you have no confidence in your defense and then having to take over from your Defensive Co-Ordinator are not positive things. To be honest, I thought that we'd lose to the Saints and beat the Falcons, so 1-1 going into week 3 was what I expected, but the signs arent good at this point. Defense has a lot to answer for. No Pass Rush means the Secondary is getting torched. Now, Drew Brees is a future Hall of Famer and Matt Ryan is no slouch but to give up that much yardage in two consecutive weeks is inexcusable. Every time Atlanta got the ball, they made serious yardage. I really hope that there is serious work being done this week because without a half decent Defence, we are going to struggle mightily this season. The Offensive side of the ball is looking very promising but we wont put up 3 or 4 touchdowns every week. Fingers and toes crossed!

helimachoptor

what are your thoughts for sunday gents?

From what i've been reading while the Raiders O has been lighting it up, the D hasnt been all that good

Magico Gonzalez

Great team to watch for the neutral, gotta find someway to play in the secondary because they are getting smoked every week.

Prefab Sprouter

helimachoptor wrote: »

what are your thoughts for sunday gents?

From what i've been reading while the Raiders O has been lighting it up, the D hasnt been all that good

Hi Helimachopter! And good luck this weekend. To be honest, I have no idea how this will go. Our Defense has been very poor to date and I cant see it changing too much. This game will go down to our Offense versus your Defense. The Offense is doing okay, our QB and receivers are showing a good understanding early on and there is the makings of a decent Running game. Penalties are killing us though. It would not surprise me to see Tennessee get a win on Sunday, and well done if you do.

helimachoptor

Prefab Sprouter wrote: »

Hi Helimachopter! And good luck this weekend. To be honest, I have no idea how this will go. Our Defense has been very poor to date and I cant see it changing too much. This game will go down to our Offense versus your Defense. The Offense is doing okay, our QB and receivers are showing a good understanding early on and there is the makings of a decent Running game. Penalties are killing us though. It would not surprise me to see Tennessee get a win on Sunday, and well done if you do.

Yeah our D has been surprisingly good, we've only allowed one offensive TD in 2 games, our offense has misfired a bit but i expect we will have a good showing against your secondary and our run game has been solid for the most part.

We had 2 penalties in game 1.. then 12 in game 2! who knows how it will go for both teams!

Could be another tight one

heyjude

The defence is a mess, DelRio doesn't seem to blame the complex scheme, but says they must be better teachers, still he assumed defensive playcalling near the end of the Falcons game.

The defence doesn't seem to be able to play the run or the pass well. Opposing RBs are having little trouble putting up big numbers, while last years problems with opposition TEs also reemerged. The coaching staff seem to be scrambling for answers, benching starters in the hope that the replacement can stem the flow, in week one Seam Smith was benched, while last week MLB Ben Heeney was replaced by rookie Cory James near the end.

Confusion could partly the explain the problems as last weeks defence featured 5 players that didn't feature last season(Irvin, Ward, Nelson, McGill and Smith), but that doesn't explain poor tackling and sloppy penalties.

Perhaps the biggest mystery concerns what has happened to Khalil Mack, who was expected to challenge for Defensive Player of the Year, but has been virtually anonymous through the first two games. They need to get him into the game and if double teams and chips from TEs are negating him at DE perhaps they need to play more feature more 3-4 sets allowing him more freedom to roam at outside linebacker(where he was All-Pro last season).

The defence should get a boost in early November when potentially OLB Aldon Smith could return from suspension and Mario Edwards Jr or Neiron Bell could return from Injured Reserve, but at the rate things are going that might be too late to save the season.

ButcherOfNog

The D side of things is a bit of a mystery, I assume we ran the same schemes in pre-season and looked good. We have enough good players on that side of the ball so we should be better than we are. It's a strange one. Mack is getting double teamed so others have to step up and help him out. Also we look weak at safety, our play against the run and short and across the middle passing game has been very very poor.

On a positive note, the Offense is great.

Looking like an 8-8 season with no playoffs at the moment.

helimachoptor

with the texans loss the titans will know a win will see them top of the division, hopefully that means a solid performance and a win..

golfball37

D much better tonight. Good road win

helimachoptor

Yeah good win lads. You lads should have been out of sight but drops let you down.

However Taylor Lewan with his bone headed spear tackle into the pile when we were at the 4 yard line.. ridiculous

Prefab Sprouter

Morning Heli! Well I'll not deny I'm relieved we got the win, but we made hard work of it. Ye have a great running attack but there is a real need to draft a WR, or acquire a good one in Free Agency. But yeah, we probably didnt deserve the win but with 14 years of mediocrity, bad calls and terrible coaching behind us, I'll take the W any way we can. Best of luck to you guys for the rest of the season!

heyjude

A win is a win, especially on the road, but I think it papered over the cracks in the defence, as the Titans had no credible deep threat, which allowed the defence to key more heavily on the shorter passes and run, yet they still allowed the Titans to have their first 100yd rusher in over 30 games. There was still no sign of Khalil Mack and the rest of the pass rush, though there was some improvement in players being in the right positions. It was also good to see Karl Joseph seeing his first action and Cory James getting extended playing time too.

The game would have been much more comfortable, only for simple drops by Seth Roberts, Clive Walford and Amari Cooper, while a hold by Penn and Reggie Nelson's decision not to go out of bounds with the interception just before half time, cost the team a probable ten points.

Another long trip east next weekend, where they will face a much stouter challenge from Baltimore, who will certainly go deep especially against Sean Smith as well as testing whether the Raiders have found a way to cover opposing tight ends. They really can't afford to lose if they are to challenge for the AFC West crown as the Broncos are looking surprisingly good offensively and are already a game ahead.

It was nice to Sebastian Janikowski set a new NFL record for most 50yd or more field goals, when he kicked his 53rd, drawing clear of former Lion Jason Hanson. Hanson took 20 seasons to reach the 52 mark, with half his games played indoors in the Silverdome. Janikowski is currently in his 17th season.

heyjude

It was announced today that the Raiders have released former pro-bowl fullback Marcel Reece. Reece missed the first three games through suspension, but his replacement Jamize Olawale has played well in Reeces' absence, as he did last season.

Reece had been training with the tight ends during the pre-season and it had been thought that he might be used as a h-back, but he is 31, due $2.6m in base salary and with Olawale having grabbed the FB spot and with Richard and Washington backing up Murray at HB, he was squeezed out.

As a loyal Raider through the bad years I'm sorry to see him go, even more sorry that they couldn't have managed to get something for him through a trade and I'm sure the'll be picked up pretty fast. Its not often that a uninjured, pro bowler in his early 30s with a pretty modest contract, hits the free agent market. I just hope he joins an NFC team that we don't face this year.