Las Vegas Raiders Thread

Kev8360 · 05-09-2019 7:48pm

Well looks like AB will be suspended by the Raiders after his reaction to getting fined. T.O and Randy Moss combined aren’t as big a diva as that lad.

Itssoeasy · 05-09-2019 8:33pm

I think the reason why the AB issue has blown up this off season is because as much as I love the raiders as a franchise in the NFL and when they are good the league is better for it. I don’t believe they are set up to handle an issue like AB like a team like the steelers who run a tight ship. The crap may have hit the fan regardless but I don’t think we’d have AB saying he’d hit the GM of the Steelers.

Kev8360 · 07-09-2019 10:03pm

I think the right call was made to release Antonio Brown - it was really the only option after all that went down last week. I just don’t know what end he has in mind with all this crap. I am sure someone will pick him up as he has loads of talent and someone will be desperate enough to ignore the issues but it will be hard to see him finding a long term home now. Onwards and upwards

golfball37 · 08-09-2019 1:59pm

The AB thing stinks to high heaven. He’d never any intention of wearing the silver and black imo.

heyjude · 08-09-2019 7:06pm

I agree, I don't think he ever had any intention of playing for the Raiders either. The conspiracy theorists will have a field day with the idea that Antonio always wanted to play for the Patriots, but he knew that the Steelers would never trade him to New England, so he heads off to Oakland, pushes and prods them until they finally had to react and then he asks to be released, after which, within hours, he's a Patriot.

Some of the anti-Raider bias among some pundits was really shown up by this. I saw one TV pundit who(after the announcement that Brown had been cut, but before he signed with New England) criticised the Raiders, saying that they should have known what Brown was like, given how desperate the Steelers were to offload him and that this is what happens when you sign other peoples' problems. Yet the decision of the Patriots to sign the same player(after further issues), seems to have been given the universal thumbs up.

Williams now goes into the season as the Raiders No 1 receiver, but the real beneficiary could be TE Darren Waller, whose targets will jump massively and who could turn into a real star(and a really useful fantasy signing). What are the odds now that the Raiders use one of their first round picks new year on a wide receiver ?

heyjude · 08-09-2019 7:26pm

Second season in a row that the Raiders go into their week one game having just lost their best player. Last year, they traded Mack just before week one and this year they lose Brown.

Its hard to make real progress in moving the team forward when this happens, even if the two players left for completely different reasons.

Kev8360 · 09-09-2019 5:16pm

Agreed it must be very disruptive on the squad to see this going on - lot of rookies in the 53 as well so makes it doubly hard on the veterans to hold it all together.

Keelan Doss is back from Jacksonville practice squad to add another body at WR - hope he gets some real game time after all the positive vibes from hard knocks.

eagle eye · 09-09-2019 7:27pm

You look like you may have fixed your offensive line which imo was crucial. While you don't have Brown you do have a QB who I think will do great things once he is protected.

I think Tyrell Williams could be a really good wide receiver, he showed plenty in his time with the Chargers and he was splitting targets with a lot of receivers there. Renfrow in the slot looks like he could be really special, your third spot isn't so promising but then again JJ Nelson didn't ever play with a good QB.

The X factor in that offense could be Darren Waller, if he can come close to replicating what you got from Jared Cook then you will be in good shape imo. This is all of course if that OL does it's job.

Prefab Sprouter · 10-09-2019 4:48pm

Well that was a very satisfying win! The O-Line was in good shape last night and the Defense seemed hungry for it. I'm not expecting anything from next week but just to see us play well was gratifying!!

eire4 · 10-09-2019 5:27pm

Prefab Sprouter wrote: »

Well that was a very satisfying win! The O-Line was in good shape last night and the Defense seemed hungry for it. I'm not expecting anything from next week but just to see us play well was gratifying!!

Definitely much better then expected. The defense was very good which considering how bad the Raiders D was last season is vital if there is to be any chance of having a winning season. On offense the line was brilliant. Carr was not touched all night and Williams and Jacobs had brilliant debuts. As good as the improvements were on both sides of the ball it will be back down to earth next weekend with Kansas City likely to be simply too much for the Raiders right now but it will be interesting to see if the Raiders can be competitive in the game or will it be a stroll for Kansas City. That will tell a lot about what to expect the rest of the way I think.

heyjude · 10-09-2019 8:40pm

The offensive line played really well and given that it featured backups at both guard positions, it bodes well for the season with pro-bowl guards Gabe Jackson and Richie Incognito still to return. They won't face many better pass rush pairings than Miller and Chubb. Glad to see that Waller and Williams had good games too.

The rookies were making plays all over the place, on both sides of the ball and will surely get even better as the season progresses and they gain experience. I hope Conleys' injury isn't too serious or Mullen will be heavily tested by the Chiefs next week.

My only quibble about the game, is the tendency of Grudens' teams to take their foot off the gas when they get a lead. They had a good lead at the half and then got tentative, which allowed Denver to creep back into the game. They need to be more aggressive when leading, you don't see the top teams backing off when they get on top. The defence has far more young players than the offence, so if the offence gets cautious and has more 3 and outs, it puts the defence in a spot.

To have a chance next week they can't be scared to take chances against the Chiefs and with Jacobs playing so well, play action passes could reap rewards

Prefab Sprouter · 12-09-2019 8:46am

I'd also say that its disappointing to see Abrams injury is season long. I was hoping that he would be a cornerstone of the Secondary but thats now for next season. And whilst I'm delighted by the O-line's play, I'm very conscious that its a Tom Cable led line and thats always a cause for worry

. But like eire4 said, it will be interesting to see how we play against the Chiefs. I'd be happy if we were still competitive in the game going into the 4th quarter. I'm looking more at how we play as opposed to the result.

eire4 · 12-09-2019 4:25pm

heyjude wrote: »

The offensive line played really well and given that it featured backups at both guard positions, it bodes well for the season with pro-bowl guards Gabe Jackson and Richie Incognito still to return. They won't face many better pass rush pairings than Miller and Chubb. Glad to see that Waller and Williams had good games too.

The rookies were making plays all over the place, on both sides of the ball and will surely get even better as the season progresses and they gain experience. I hope Conleys' injury isn't too serious or Mullen will be heavily tested by the Chiefs next week.

My only quibble about the game, is the tendency of Grudens' teams to take their foot off the gas when they get a lead. They had a good lead at the half and then got tentative, which allowed Denver to creep back into the game. They need to be more aggressive when leading, you don't see the top teams backing off when they get on top. The defence has far more young players than the offence, so if the offence gets cautious and has more 3 and outs, it puts the defence in a spot.

To have a chance next week they can't be scared to take chances against the Chiefs and with Jacobs playing so well, play action passes could reap rewards

Reports are that Conley's injury is not as serious as it looked during the game and he might even play on Sunday.

Prefab Sprouter · 16-09-2019 2:12pm

Ouch. That didnt end well.

eire4 · 16-09-2019 4:09pm

No it sure didn't but in fairness Kansas City along with the Patriots are probably head and shoulders the best teams in the AFC maybe even in the whole NFL. I never expected anything other then a Chiefs win but disappointing the Raiders could not get closer to the Chiefs. I think next week in Minnesota against a decent Vikings team will be very telling in terms of will this be another long losing season or are the Raiders at least going to be a competitive team this season.

Prefab Sprouter · 16-09-2019 9:28pm

eire4 wrote: »

No it sure didn't but in fairness Kansas City along with the Patriots are probably head and shoulders the best teams in the AFC maybe even in the whole NFL. I never expected anything other then a Chiefs win but disappointing the Raiders could not get closer to the Chiefs. I think next week in Minnesota against a decent Vikings team will be very telling in terms of will this be another long losing season or are the Raiders at least going to be a competitive team this season.

Agreed. The Vikings have a Boom or bust passing game. Chris Simms made the point tonight on the NBC Football talk that Minnesota either use the Screen pass or the 40 yard "Hail Mary". The meat and potatoes 10-15 yards passing game is absent with them. I hope that we can shape up against them. The Running Defense needs to be on point. And the Offense needs to click. Big Time.

golfball37 · 17-09-2019 10:41am

Prefab Sprouter wrote: »

Agreed. The Vikings have a Boom or bust passing game. Chris Simms made the point tonight on the NBC Football talk that Minnesota either use the Screen pass or the 40 yard "Hail Mary". The meat and potatoes 10-15 yards passing game is absent with them. I hope that we can shape up against them. The Running Defense needs to be on point. And the Offense needs to click. Big Time.

They have potentially the best RB in the game right now though also, so won't need to air it out. If we pack the box with our big guys and make Cousins throw we can restrict them on offence, I am pretty confident.

Do I think we have enough on offense to score more than them- no sadly.

Kev8360 · 23-09-2019 1:21pm

golfball37 wrote: »

They have potentially the best RB in the game right now though also, so won't need to air it out. If we pack the box with our big guys and make Cousins throw we can restrict them on offence, I am pretty confident.

Do I think we have enough on offense to score more than them- no sadly.

Well called - offense just couldn't get going and defense had a tough day against the run. This is going to be a tough stretch. Next game with any chance of a win is probably at home to the lions in Wk8 and even that will be tough - they played really well to win away to a banged up Eagles team.

eire4 · 24-09-2019 5:53pm

Kev8360 wrote: »

Well called - offense just couldn't get going and defense had a tough day against the run. This is going to be a tough stretch. Next game with any chance of a win is probably at home to the lions in Wk8 and even that will be tough - they played really well to win away to a banged up Eagles team.

Well I still say that the overall team is better then last season and I stand by that but this weekend clearly showed the improvement is only of small margins and with a really tough schedule another heavy losing season looms large now. The improvements have come with a solid draft and the significant lowering of the age of the team so some hope for the future yes but not much immediate hope for this season. Easily likely to be another 4-12 effort and maybe even worse. Another season now spent focused on how high a top 5 draft pick the Raiders will get rather then trying to actually be competitive never mind even challenge.

eire4 · 24-09-2019 5:57pm

With the above in mind I will post the early NFL tankathon league standings after week 3. Currently the Raiders in 10th and don't forget the Raiders also have Chicago's first round pick for next season as well currently that is 20tth.

http://www.tankathon.com/nfl

Kev8360 · 25-09-2019 1:39pm

eire4 wrote: »

Well I still say that the overall team is better then last season and I stand by that but this weekend clearly showed the improvement is only of small margins and with a really tough schedule another heavy losing season looms large now. The improvements have come with a solid draft and the significant lowering of the age of the team so some hope for the future yes but not much immediate hope for this season. Easily likely to be another 4-12 effort and maybe even worse. Another season now spent focused on how high a top 5 draft pick the Raiders will get rather then trying to actually be competitive never mind even challenge.

Yes I do believe the defense is better than last year - at least they are getting pressure on the QB (vs the broncos and for 3 quarters vs the chiefs). its a little early to tell with the offense - Jacobs is an improvement for sure but the o-line and WRs need time to gel and injuries definitely had a impact last weekend as williams was not 100% with his hip.

What will be interesting to see is if we go for a QB early in the draft next year - still not sold that Gruden thinks Carr will be the franchise QB going forward.

eire4 · 25-09-2019 3:41pm

Kev8360 wrote: »

Yes I do believe the defense is better than last year - at least they are getting pressure on the QB (vs the broncos and for 3 quarters vs the chiefs). its a little early to tell with the offense - Jacobs is an improvement for sure but the o-line and WRs need time to gel and injuries definitely had a impact last weekend as williams was not 100% with his hip.

What will be interesting to see is if we go for a QB early in the draft next year - still not sold that Gruden thinks Carr will be the franchise QB going forward.

The QB issue does seem to be coming up a lot but for me Carr is far from the biggest issue for the Raiders. He is no top tier QB yes for sure but he is overall a decent QB who mostly has put up good numbers and certainly did last season which was impressive considering how poor the cast he had on offense to play with last season was. This season Jacobs is without a doubt an upgrade on offense and Williams is a good WR but again he really does not have in any way a potent group around him to play with so for me QB is not where I would be going with either of the 2 first round draft picks next spring. The only way I would consider going for a new QB would be if some team got desperate later this season and offered a first round pick for Carr in a trade. But for me the issues the Raiders have are still so many on both sides of the ball that QB is far from the top of the list for me.

Kev8360 · 30-09-2019 9:44am

Good to win one on the road - even if it was to a team with some key injuries. Burfict was always good for an ejection this season - I hope he learns from that but probably not.

Crosby looks a really good find this year - made some key plays including the forced fumble when the colts looked dangerous.

When Carr went down I had visions of the home game against the colts when he broke his leg. Very glad to see him get up and play on. Hopefully we can protect him against Mack next week.

Prefab Sprouter · 30-09-2019 12:53pm

Kev8360 wrote: »

Good to win one on the road - even if it was to a team with some key injuries. Burfict was always good for an ejection this season - I hope he learns from that but probably not.

Crosby looks a really good find this year - made some key plays including the forced fumble when the colts looked dangerous.

When Carr went down I had visions of the home game against the colts when he broke his leg. Very glad to see him get up and play on. Hopefully we can protect him against Mack next week.

Yes indeed Kev, a good win and its great to see the offense getting its act together after two games of disappointment. And nice to see the Defense chipping in with that pick 6 towards the end.
Next week will be interesting and the O-line will need to be at its best. I watched the Vikings-Bears game last night and their front 7 look awfully good. Now, Minnesota's O-line is nothing to write home about but we will need to step up to have any chance. Its an early kickoff in an unfamiliar timezone so I have no illusions about the result but I'll take us being competitive at least. And Chicago dont have a high powered offense so it could be interesting to see if our Defense can limit them. Anyone going to the game?

Prefab Sprouter · 30-09-2019 5:16pm

And now Burfict is gone for the season. Great.

Kev8360 · 30-09-2019 11:12pm

Wow. It was a bad tackle for sure but a whole season ban is a real kicker.

I see he is appealing it - can’t see that getting overturned.

eire4 · 01-10-2019 3:25pm

Kev8360 wrote: »

Wow. It was a bad tackle for sure but a whole season ban is a real kicker.

I see he is appealing it - can’t see that getting overturned.

The league is saying this is far from your first offense hence the season ban. I would be surprised if the league budges on this suspension.

MrKingsley · 01-10-2019 4:33pm

eire4 wrote: »

The league is saying this is far from your first offense hence the season ban. I would be surprised if the league budges on this suspension.

If they want to make sure(at best as possible) that he doesn’t do then they can’t move from this ban

Kev8360 · 02-10-2019 11:11pm

I can't defend him as this is his 4th or 5th suspension at this point - even with the season ban I expect next year he will end up in the same spot after another helmet to helmet hit. The only way he stops is when he retires.

Prefab Sprouter · 03-10-2019 7:40am

I'm annoyed because he was shaping up to be a real leader on Defense. But that type of hit is completely unacceptable. We'll miss the player, not the person.

Las Vegas Raiders Thread

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