Oakland Raiders

1. I have to take a moment and pay respect to Al Davis. The legendary Oakland Raiders owner passed away on Saturday. Born in Brockton, MA, the rebel and leader of the Silver and Black was a steward of the AFL and helped form the modern day NFL. The Patriots held a moment of silence before the game to honor Davis. The league lost an icon.

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ormation and how you can contribute, go to NFL.com/pink.

Go For Two: Say what you want about the Oakland Raiders and the franchise’s attitude, but give them credit for showing respect.

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Matt Light knows he’s there. You can’t miss the shadow of a 6-8 319 pound man-child standing behind you.

Light is the Patriots’ starting left tackle. For now. He’s expected to hold on to that position through the rest of the season. If Light is lucky, he keeps the job through next season as well. But Light knows his days are numbered.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 4"

ished NFC cornerback:

Charles Woodson.

Woodson made his name as an elite corner, first with the Oakland Raiders and now with the Packers. At 6-1 and just four pounds heavier than Dowling, Woodson battles the best receivers weekly. He earned seven Pro Bowl and two All-Pro selections and was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2009.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Preseason Week 1"

Remember back in 2009 how we thought the Patriots pulled another fast one on the Oakland Raiders when New England traded DL Richard Seymour for a 2011 first round draft pick? Remember calling the Raiders “suckers” because we though the Pats would get a high draft pick for a player that maybe had a couple of good years left? 

Continue reading "Raiders' Wrench in Patriots 2011 Draft"

If your jaw dropped five feet from the amount of Jahri Evans’ new contract, understand a smile of equal distance stretched across the face of Logan Mankins’ agent Frank Bauer. 

In case you missed it, before the Lawrence Taylor arrest and JaMarcus Russell’s release (talk about polar opposite stories – Taylor goes to a New York prison while Russell gets out of Oakland, which replicates the depressing hopelessness found behind bars), the Saints agreed to pay Evans $56.7 million over seven years, the biggest contract in NFL history for a guard. 

Continue reading "Market Value Set for Mankins"

Pro Bowl balloting is open to the public. Choose wisely. 

This year New England fans will have a tough time rationalizing Patriot players worthy of being selected. The offense’s big three of QB Tom Brady and WRs Randy Moss and Wes Welker will get their share of votes. Beyond them…good luck. 

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If you thought Mike Vrabel was upset when he was shipped to the rebuilding project known as the Kansas City Chiefs, you can only imagine how Richard Seymour felt this morning when he was told he had been traded to Oakland.

Continue reading "Richard Seymour: Shipped to the Black Hole"

A team strength just got a tiny bit weaker. The Patriots traded DL Le Kevin Smith to Denver for a 5th round pick. That selection was then sent to Oakland to complete the Derrick Burgess trade. The agreement was New England gave the Raiders 3rd and 4th round selections unless the Pats could get Oakland a 5th round pick. If the Pats came through with the fifth rounder, then that would replace the fourth round pick.

Continue reading "A Few Small Transactions"

OK, now I’m sold. 

Since the end of the regular season I’ve been waiting for the Patriots to get a rush linebacker I could believe in. Whether it was a rookie day one draft pick, a free agent, or by trade, I wanted someone that could get to the quarterback better than Mike Vrabel did in 2008. His trade to Kansas City made the need urgent. 

Continue reading "A Burgess Believer"

Well Mike Reiss predicted there would be a move at OLB and fast after the Pats let go of Vince Redd. Shawn Crabel is still MIA and Tully Banta-Cain's missing time with an undisclosed injury. So the Pats finally got Derrick Burgess from the Raiders for a 3rd rounder in 2010 and a 5th rounder in 2011. Pretty solid deal for both teams. If Burgess can stay healthy he should be able to improve the pass rush immediately. Pierre Woods should still be an early down run stopper with Burgess bringing the heat in the sub-packages. Surely Bill Belichick will use Burgess smartly, keeping him healthy and productive. Below a video from his dominant 2005 season.

Continue reading "Derrick Burgess Becomes a Patriot"

I’m not much of a poker player, but since the beginning of training camp, head coach Bill Belichick has been exchanging cards, looking for a full house. 

They looked at QB Cleo Lemon. DE Kevin Carter seems to be getting serious consideration. QB Matt Gutierrez was cut and QB Andrew Walter signed to replace Gutz. 

Continue reading "Ninkovich in the Cards"

The Patriots could have a full-blown rivalry with the Oakland Raiders, but it would be restricted to the front office. 

Former Missouri DE Stryker Sulak was at Gillette Stadium yesterday, as he was worked out by the Pats. The 6-4 251-pound rookie will then travel to Carolina and do the same. If Sulak shows the athleticism to make the switch from college defensive end to a 3-4 outside linebacker, New England would be very interested in signing him. 

Continue reading "Another Oakland Okie-doke?"

l. 

Just today I read in The Boston Herald that New England was discussing a trade with the Oakland Raiders for DE Derrick Burgess. Apparently these talks have been going on since around draft time. Oakland’s asking price is a second or third round pick for the veteran entering his eighth year. 

Continue reading "Derrick Burgess Not a Big Deal"

In the world of journalism, it's the greatest compliment when an article you wrote inspires others to express their own opinion on the same subject.

Back in February, I wrote an article asking the question should teams draft tight ends in the first round. It was a relevant question because Oklahoma State's Brandon Pettigrew could be the only TE selected within the first 32 picks.

Continue reading "Great Minds Think Alike"

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       Terrell Owens, meanwhile, will be wooed by the Oakland Raiders and Al Davis so that he can continue his halfway house for cast-offs. Look out for the Denver Broncos though. The Broncos new coach, Josh McDaniels, probably has his new gig due to the risk of taking Randy Moss in a similar situation. Yes, the Broncos already have Brandon Marshall and Brandon Stokely, but that full receiving courps could look like the Patriots of recent years. Marshall, Stokely, and Owens could become the Rocky Mountain version of Stallworth, Moss, and Welker.  

Continue reading "T. O. is Released From the Dallas Cowboys"

There was something about September 7th, 2008 that felt wrong from the start.

The New England Patriots, coming off the almost-perfect season of 2007, took to their home turf for the season opener at Gillette Stadium, however they weren’t wearing their usual home blue jerseys.

Continue reading "GU! The New "Doh!" for New England Patriots Fans"

According to The Boston Globe, DE Richard Seyour will miss today's game. With Big Sey is out, DE Jarvis Green probably starts in Richard's place.

While it's nothing new to the team, I'm going to repeat head coach Bill Belichick's mantra that worked so well in the past and this season:

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 17"

Just like against the Oakland Raiders, a healthy dose of pounding the rock would be in order for the Pats. That resulted in 277 yards on the ground. Now 'Zona is better defensively than Oakland, but I can see them missing tackles because they can't grip like they used to.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 16"

Overall Record: 21-19
Week 14 Record: 1-3


1) Houston Texans @ Oakland Raiders

The Houston Texans were officially eliminated from the playoffs at the end of Week 15 to no surprise after the shaky first half of the season, but faded playoff hopes hasn't kept the team down the past 4 weeks as they've played tough defense and good football overall. In the last 4 weeks the Texans have defeated (in order): Browns, Jaguars, Packers, Titans. Okay the Browns and Jaguars isn't too big of a deal, but going into Lambeau and dominating the Packers and then coming home and defeating the first place team and rival the Titans? That's a statement. This should be a layup for the Texans this week as they go into Oakland to face the 3-11 Raiders. A loss would be very disappointing for a team that has won 4 straight. I take the Texans in this one as they'll win their 5th straight game (hopefully).

Continue reading "NFL Week 16 Predictions"

I don't like this match-up. This isn't paranoia carried over from last week's comeback win over a bad Seattle Seahawks team. Oakland is about as bad as the Seahawks. This Patriots-Raiders game has me very concerned because the Raiders can run the ball.

Continue reading "Hours Before Kickoff: Week 15"

From bostonsportz.com: 

Here we are, only three games left in the demento 2008 season and the Pats are hanging on to their playoff hopes by a thread. Three things need to happen for New England to make the playoffs: Pats go 3-0, Jets lose one, Dolphins lose one. At least one of these is guaranteed since the Jets and Dolphins play in the regular season finale so it should be an exciting last few weeks of the season.

Continue reading "5 Keyz: Pats vs. Raiders"

Matt's availability for Sunday's game against the Oakland Raiders is uncertain.

The Raiders offer sympathy to the young passer and his family, but Oakland probably hopes Cassel doesn't play. Back in 2003, Brett Favre, then playing for Green Bay, lost his father Irvin the day before a Monday night game in Oakland. Brett decided to play that night and passed for 399 yards and four touchdowns. The chances that Cassel finds the inner strength to play the game of his career in honor of his father like Brett Favre did isn't likely, but the Raiders don't want to be on the wrong end of another dramatic performance.

Continue reading "It Will Be An Emotional Game Sunday"

When Tom Brady went down in the first quarter of the first game this season, the first thought of Patriots fans was if the team could still contend without their biggest star. What they didn't realize was that Brady's injury was a harbinger of things to come all season long.

Continue reading "Patriots Enter the Home Stretch Battered ..."

My interview with Bill Romanowski is on Real GM. You can read the trimmed for print edition or go to the end of the article and read the full interview.

Or watch the interview as it happened. Your choice.

Continue reading "The Romanowski Interview"

Holy crap, the Oakland Raiders suck! How do you take a once proud franchise and systematically drain it down the toilet? John Madden, put down the turkey leg and race your Winnebago straight to Oakland and do something about this please!

Continue reading "The Blackest of Holes"

Daunte Culpepper, former quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings, Miami Dolphins, and (most recently) Oakland Raiders, has been working out for the Detroit Lions, and Detroit coach Rod Marinelli is considering Pep to replace the struggling Dan Orlovsky.  Gus Frerotte is the starting QB for the Vikings.

Continue reading "Blast(s) From The Past"

MID-SEASON ALL-ROOKIE RECOGNITION

2ND TEAM

QB = Joe Flacco (BAL): 1216 YDS 3 TD 7 INT 62% CMP 70.5 RTG, 24 CAR 75 YDS 2 TD, 1 CTH 43 YDS

RB = Steve Slaton (HOU): 104 CAR 476 YDS 5 TD 4.6 YPC, 22 CTH 125 YDS 1 TD

Continue reading "MID-SEASON NFL ALL-ROOKIE TEAMS"

Week 7 is officially in the books as Tuesday, the 21st of October rolls around today. This week's Fallout report will cover the most interesting games from the week 7 slate in the National Football League. The alarm is going off in Big D as the Cowboys struggle for the second week in a row to find a win, the Vikings put up 41 in a loss, and Brett Farve gets the ball three times in overtime against the struggling Raiders, but can't chip any points in. I'll cover those happenings....right now!

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The Wednesday Blast

 

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NFC East

Week 6

Hello East Fans,

Well after a week of Hiatus to curse the football gods for my team’s embarrassing losses. I felt a preview of the Best division in Football was the only way to quench the thirst. Every team in the division except for Washington is on the road, let’s start with the leaders of the pack.

Continue reading "The East!"

The Oakland Raiders fired yet another coach yesterday. Lane Kiffin, who was a surprise appointee to the head coach position in January of 2007, was fired by Al Davis over the telephone after a dismal 1-4 start to the 2008 season. Offensive line coach Tom Cable has been named interim coach. At the televised news conference to announce the firing, Raiders owner Al Davis called Kiffin, “a flat-out liar” and accused Kiffin of “bringing disgrace to the organization.” After last seasons 4-12 showing, it was reported by ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that Al Davis drafted a letter of resignation for Lane Kiffin and asked him to sign it, which Kiffin refused to do. The reason for this was so the Raiders could avoid paying the remaining $2,000,000 on Kiffin’s contract. The Raiders denied the report. Since there was much speculation during the off-season and preseason regarding Kiffin’s job, it did not come as a surprise to anyone when word came down of his firing yesterday. The Raiders claim the move was made for cause, meaning they will likely try not to pay Kiffin for the remainder of his contract.

Continue reading "A Coaching "Black Hole""

       Sean Salisbury offers his fantasy football preview for week 6 of the NFL. Check this out every week at my blog.

Continue reading "Sean Salisbury's Fantasy Preview for Week 6"

It was an interesting week in the National Football League. A few surprises, a big meltdown by one team and one bruised and battered team found a way to win a big prime-time game. Let's get right to it--game by game.

Continue reading "NFL Week 5 Fallout"

First off, I want to introduce myself. My name is Jake, I live in Houston. I'm glad I found this place. I've read a lot of bloggers material today from predictions to their favorite teams' rants, it's great. I enjoyed it. Sports, baby sports!

Continue reading "NFL Week 5 Predictions"

there are reports of Moss exhibiting the bad behavior that the Minnesota Vikings tired of and the Oakland Raiders wouldn't deal with.

Boy, that didn't take long. I know Moss is under constant scrutiny, but I thought he'd get the benefit of the doubt after last season. Nope, Randy Moss still is the media's curiosity, with every move, gesture, soundbite, and hair braiding scrutinized with the power of an electron microscope.

Continue reading "The Randy Rules"

The Crying Game

The Terrell Owens story

Hello NFL fans,

Well here we are, week four of the third year with his last team. This will be his last team, I truly believe that. If I were an owner I would rather get a letter full of anthrax and then imprisoned IN Cuba to spend the rest of my days. The continuous onslaught of reporters and fans condemning my name and wanting my head on a stick would be too much for me to bare.

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              The economic “crisis" is not that complicated. The stock market always wants positive press to continue its trading

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eptember 8, 2008

"Stupid is as stupid does." - Mike Ditka on DeAngelo Hall of the NFL's Oakland Raiders late hit out of bounds versus the Denver Broncos. (which was immediately folloed by another late hit by Hall) 

Continue reading "Funny Sports Quotes"

Your favorite method of getting your football returns this week . The popular video series can be found at my blog.

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BLAST WEDNESDAYS

Hello NFL fans,

Well I am going to start up something new for all those NFL fans who have a lot to say but can’t get it out, enough. I have a lot of people writing, calling and just talking to me about the things that irk them about the NFL to include players, coaches, mascots, ticket prizes, play calls, cheerleaders…yes even that. I recently decided why not make a weekly manuscript about the things that hurt the fans, I know many legions of people out there are upset about their teams in some way shape or form. This is how we are going to do it every Wednesday, since it is the most boring day of the football week. Mondays and Sundays are game days. Tuesdays are layovers from the previous games and we seem to have nothing available in the middle of the week, until Friday when you get into college football mode.

Continue reading "Wednesday Blast!"

   I just wanted to let you know that I may be unable to post for a few days. I live south of Houston, near Galveston, Texas. As hurricane Ike approaches there may be power outages and loss of internet access. If that is the case, I will be unable to write my column. Remember though, there are things much more important than sports. If you need Ike information, you can go to:

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Houston Texans injury update:

Megan Manfull of the Houston Chronicle has reported these injuries -

               Running back Ahman Green - It wasn't a cramp that limited his play Sunday. He has a sprained ankle.

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Here is the great Jack Buck's poem that was given on September 17, 2001."Since this nation was founded ... under God
More than 200 years ago
We have been the bastion of freedom
The light that keeps the free world aglow

Continue reading "Jack Buck's Poem remembering 9-11"

delphia Eagles, the Chicago Bears, and even the Atlanta Falcons - the Falcons?  Meanwhile, the Oakland Raiders, the Detroit Lions, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Indianapolis Colts, and the Houston Texans looked like they forgot that the preseason was over -the Colts - our beloved Texans? Maybe, they just didn’t get the memo.

Continue reading "Believe!"

NFL Week 1 Results
NY Giants 16 Wahington 7
Pittsburgh 38 Houston 17
Atlanta 34 Detroit 21
Tennessee 17 Jacksonville 10
Baltimore 17 Cincinnati 10
Philadelphia 38 St. Louis 3

Continue reading "NFL SCOREBOARD"

You can get your fantasy football updates here as well as columns, funny sports quotes, injury updates and anything else sports related. If your not already seeing this video just hit the sportspoet link and you will get everything that you need to keep up with your favorite sports teams. Thank you for visiting this site.

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ember 8, 2008

"Stupid is as stupid does." - Mike Ditka on DeAngelo Hall of the NFL's Oakland Raiders late hit out of bounds versus the Denver Broncos. (which was immediately folloed by another late hit by Hall) 

Continue reading "Funny Sports Quotes-September 10"

That's where I come in. I've decided to come up with an idea to rebrand the Oakland Raiders to fit with the times. I wrote the poem for the Raiders new image and it's titled The Winter Wind. The poem is set to this Beck song

Continue reading "The Rebranding Of The Raiders"

e owners for over two decades, Upshaw beat down defenders in a 15-year Hall of Fame career with the Oakland Raiders. He played in three Super Bowls in three different decades, winning two, and seven Pro Bowl honors. He's considered an all-time great, possibly second only to the great John Hannah at the guard position.

Continue reading "Union Needs a new Upshaw"

NFL commissioner Roger Godell wasted little time handing out penalties after head coach Bill Belichick and the Patriots were caught with the poorly hidden camera. Besides the monentary fines, he docked the Pats their first round pick.

Continue reading "Got 'till it's gone"

He knows there's at least three teams in the top seven (Oakland Raiders, New York Jets, New England Patriots) may have a jones for Gholston. The question is, how badly does one want him? All three franchises feel secure Gholston will still be available after two picks. His availability comes into question when he reaches Oakland at third. So if the Jets or Pats or whoever really want Gholston, they'd call St. Louis.

Continue reading "Miami bluff"