Oakland Raiders: The Past, Present and Future
By Blu Spikes
September 30 2012; Denver, CO, USA; Oakland Raiders tight end Brandon Myers (83) runs after a catch during second quarter of the game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE
Welcome to the humble tent of the Sultan of the AFC West – Blu Spikes. This is where we talk of the past, worry about today, and predict the future. We will cast our eyes deep into the crystal ball, which knows all, sees all, and tells all.
Ladies and gentlemen, you’re about to go on an adventure. I urge those who suffer from depression after a Raider loss to be cautious. Silver and Black fans who experience nightmares after losses to AFC rivals, please forgo witnessing this. There are only two kinds of Raider fans, those that are, and those that are not.
Raiders are 1-3 on the young season; a bye week, then off to face a red-hot Atlanta Falcon team in the Georgia Dome! Sounds like a challenge? Challenge accepted! The nation is not in peril, the faithful of the Silver and Black should be somewhat concerned about the play of the Oakland Raiders but not in anxiety mode.
Lets start with the past—can we do anything about it? No, we do not have a time machine that will allow us space continuum travel back in time. We use the past as a means of correcting the present and future. Rectifying imperfection and eliminating mistakes that have been costly in the first part of the season on both sides of the ball.
This challenge could be achieved by repetition, but what kind of repetition? Perfect practice makes perfect play. You have to do it right in practice day after day to do it correct in the game once.
Simplicity, it seems the Raiders have a check and no balance system to play calling on offense. Adjustments are causing chaos on the line of scrimmage for blocking assignments and dysfunction in the backfield. Don’t even start me on the receivers problems; the crystal ball fogs up every time the receivers are mentioned. The Oakland Raiders need to work smarter, not harder; keep it simple, stupid (KISS).
The defensive side of the ball has displayed some continuity but little consistency.Third quarter for whatever reason is the Waterloo of the Silver and Black. Elementary mistakes by the secondary, filling inside out on sweeps instead of turning the play in. The secondary didn’t help itself against the Broncos. Preaching over and over how Manning gets the ball out of his hand as fast as any QB. The Raiders played passive coverage three to five yards off the receiver. No press, no jamming the receiver, no press and bail. The secondary never disrupted the timing of the QB and receivers, thus not allowing the defensive front time to get a push to sack or pressure Manning, hurry throws and knock him down. This was fatal in Sunday’s game, especially to Carson Palmer who suffered through all of that from the Denver defense. See what it does?
Players will be motivated by leadership and driven by great contracts or the fear of not playing, being traded or released.
You do not have to belittle the coaches, players, or the front office. They are the people that feel the worst about the present state of the Raiders. Changing coaches, running off the GM, firing the offensive coordinator or defensive coordinator is not going to gain ground. We are at the point we are because of the revolving door of coaches and quality players in Oakland.
Quality, not quantity, is what we would like to see on the sideline of the Raiders. We have quality players in certain positions, but to play consistent game in game out you need quality in every position. That will take some strategy on trades and on draft day in the next few years.
“There is no medicine like hope, no incentive so great, and no tonic so powerful as expectation of something tomorrow.”- Orison Swett Marden