The Squeel
Remember this offseason? Remember the hemmin' and hawin' when the Pittsburgh Squeelers so-called genius, young prodigy, O-Coordinator Ken Whisenhunt was not signed on as the new Raider head coach?
Well, the Raiders DEFENSE just outscored the boy “genius”!
Remember this offseason when the Raiders were ridiculed for hiring B&B owner and small-town mayor, Tom Walsh as the O-coordinator?
Well, they were right. Walsh's play calling is still a joke. After all, some baboon drew up a pass to reserve OT Chad Slaughter from the one yard line...my guess it was Walsh. Further proof is in a single bound Chris Carr returned an INT for 100 yards and outgained Walsh's entire offensive output for the game. But the playcaller does not matter when your "D" is on its game causing mayhem and mischief.
Remember this offseason when the mediots paraded around the idea that no one would work for Al Davis because he handpicks the assistant coaches? Remember Al replying that the Squeeler HC, Spittin’ Bill Cowher, had been there for fourteen years winning nothing before winning the Super Bowl? He said the Rooneys believed in continuity.
Well, there is something to be said for continuity in coaches. Caveman Rob Ryan was kept on as D-Coordinator during the changes and his defense finally seems to have matured to the point where it is a legit top-ten difference maker.
Remember the hand wringing last season when the Raider secondary set an All-Time record for fewest INTs in the history of the league with five?
Well, the Raiders nearly equaled that total in one game as Carr, Asomugha, Morrison, and Washington all made Big Ben Roethlisberger pay for his mistakes. The five Raider sacks helped scare Big Ben into spraying the ball where it just shouldn't be thrown.
Remember how they questioned the serial drafting of DBs after Derrick "Radio" Gibson and Philip "Pinetime" Buchanon flamed out?
Where are they to doubt Michael Huff, Fabian Washington, and Nnamdi Asomugha now? The Raider pass "D" is the best in the NFL at the moment.
Remember the Immaculate Deception or the Inaccurate Reception or whatever you want to call the travesty of a mockery of a sham of a play that bumped the Raiders out of the Super Bowl in '72?
Well, I remember all these things. We do not forget the slights and the insults. We use them for motivation. Go here for an outstanding batch of motivating photos of the game (click on "View Slideshow Now" in the upper right corner when you go there, and thanks to Drumsky for the tip).This is why I say to the hated Squeelers and the doubting mediots, "Payback is Hell." And if you don't know what Hell is, it closely resembles a befuddled Terry Bradshaw trying to spell the word "C-A-T" after you spot him the "C" and the "A".
‘nuff said
posted by Stick'em at 2:29 PM
11 Comments:
Stick'Em:
Your central point about the Raiders benefiting from continuity is on the money.
Give Shell the time and authority necessary to overhaul the mindset of the team. Give Caveman the time and latitude to build a championship caliber defense. Finally, give the predominately young squad time to develop & grow and you will see a sharp turnaround.
I believe we are starting to reap the dividends of this plan. Major kudos to Shell for his unwavering, steady, consistent leadership and voice.
Even at our darkest hour (0-5), Shell continued to preach the tried and true formula: Work hard and believe in each other.
Even with all of the mediots taking rapid fire pot shots at the team and Shell in particular, the Raiders stayed unified and unbowed. Now that all of the hard work is paying off in "W"s, Shell's voice resonates even more.
The most telling aspect of the Raiders having good chemistry and unity is the lack of finger pointing even when the media was circling like vultures ready to write their 0-16 stories.
Here's one long range plan that I would like to see come to fruition:
Shell remains HC through the 2010 season. Ryan becomes HC in 2011 and Shell gets kicked upstairs to a GM/Operations role. I really believe in my heart and mind that Rob Ryan will become a dynamic HC for the S&B. The players love him just like the players loved to play for Madden.
Calico, I agree with you but I'll add one condition; The Raiders should have continuity at head coach and defensive coordinator. They should have continuity at offensive coordinator AFTER they fire Walsh and hire someone with a modern playbook who knows how to use it.
I understand that Shell wants power running and downfield throwing, so do I. But you don't have to go back to 1994 to find a coordinator who believes in those principles too. Not only do I not like his schemes, I don't like his play calling and personnel groupings either.
Shell has done a marvelous job holding the team together, they would have quit at 0-5 under Turner or Callahan. But I think the offensive players have not bought into what Walsh is selling, and for the Shell era to be a total success, that needs to change in my opinion...
I mostly agree with you guys, except, of course, about Walsh. Walsh is there because he's one of the few who understands the Raider style vertical offense. And he's not a bad play caller.
Case in point. That three TE set up at the goal line that led to the incomplete to Chad Slaughter. They went with the 3TE formation because that was the unit on the field, without a timeout remaining. Anticipating that the Steelers would stuff the middle, the Raiders (either Walter or Walsh) called for the pass. The pass was supposed to go to either Anderson or Williams, but both were knocked down at the line of scrimmage. That means that Walter either has to try to run it in, or to look for another option, and the only other eligible receiver available was Slaughter. Slaughter wasn't looking for it. He didn't expect it. But Walter took the shot. It was not a designed play, but an improvisation. And if it had worked, would you be celebrating Walsh's genius or Walter's?
calico - one addition to your comment.....
shell becomes gm in 2010 and ryan moves to hc in 2011 - IN L.A.!!!!!
Calico and Scorpio:
I agree that Shell moving upstairs after 2010, and Ryan becoming HC would be great, but I don't expect he'll still be with the Raiders. Somebody will offer him the chance to be an HC before then.
Scorpio:
No way the Raiders are going back to LA. I came back from there, and so did the Raiders. One thing that Al Davis knows at this point is that there is no there there. The stadium would never fill up. The reason for that is that because nobody is actually from LA (they've all moved in from someplace else), people only go to games to see the teams that represent the cities they came from. There is typically more people at the stadium rooting for the visiting team than for the home team.
Don't be fooled by those who claimed that Davis was asserting rights to the LA market because he wanted to move back down. He wanted those rights for the money they represented. Davis has been doing everything in his power (one of the reasons he hasn't been involved with the team this year) to solidify the Raiders' relationship with Oakland. And now that the A's are moving, Davis will have the HOT to himself.
That was one great game to listen to. Greg Papa was beside himself with excitement. What was with that referee call where they let the series (with Raider D on the field) get to third down and then they said it was really first down? Even the refs got excited!
Something has to be done about the Tight End situation, and I am confident that Al is working that angle as we speak. These fools by committee kill three drives per game for the Raider offense--and that is 50% of the Silver and Black efforts.
Sorry, La-La, we have to stop calling Justin Fargas "Potato Chip." It was funny, it was descriptive, but it just doesn't ring true anymore. Fargas has done well this year, and he deserves the football. Whether he gets the game ball or not is up to him.
With the win over Arizona, Raiders started the engine; with the 'W' over the Steelers, Silver and Black began to taxi down the runway; with a victory over Seattle in a first-ever win at Qwest Field, the 2006 Oakland Raiders take flight.
Let the flag be unfurled. Just make sure it doesn't say '12' on it.
Tenacious Pussycat
Mr. Goodkat: Right on with Fargas. I will now reserve the "potato chip" label for Sam Williams.
Fargas hits the hole (when there is one) with decisiveness and acceleration in full gear, while LaMont Jordan stuttersteps and junebugs to nowhere...
CJ: There is now speed on "D" and this is perhaps as much responsible for the resurgence as the continuity. As much as I hated to see Clark go, it is obvious Morrison has more coverage ability and Thomas is light years faster than the Hammerhead.
Speaking of speed, Huff seems to be able to string out the runs around end and cover the TEs in a way that Radio Gibson could only guess at.
Since Ryan is now just coming into his own as a D-coordinator, perhaps we should reserve judgement on his HC ability until a later date. And remember, Al Davis rarely hires D-minded HCs.
Personally, I would love to see a "D" minded head coach like Mike Singletary or one of the Ryan family run the team.
But you certainly have a valid point; Ryan has the "D" playing with fire and enthusiasm... while Walsh has the "O" asleep at the wheel and going through the motions.
Blanda: We agree Walter never should have thrown the ball to Joey Porter from the one (Slaughter was the nearest eligible receiver - why he was even in the endzone we may never know).
Who knows how Walsh drew it up, but it certainly shouldn't look like that when executed.
My question about Walsh's playcalling on that series is this:
How do you have 2nd and goal from the one yard line and end up throwing the ball to Slaughter on 2nd down and Anderson on 3rd?
Is it just me, or did Zack Crockett used to be the best short yardage/ goal line runner in the NFL not very long ago? Even that guy ReShard Lee made a Marcus Allenesque leap over the goal line the previous week for a big score.
Why did Walsh throw twice and put all the pressure on the "rookie", Walter? Walter completed what, a third of his passes? Why not pound the run in at least once?
And if you do pass twice, why not chuck one to Moss or Curry? Those guys are supposed to be money in the red zone...
IMO, you go with your plays with the highest chance of success in the red zone. Anderson ain't it. He's got all of five TDs in his entire career.
Stick'Em aka Lucky # Slevin:
In regards to the goal line playcalling at the end of the 1st half, here are a few points to consider:
- I actually agree with Walsh calling 2 consecutive pass plays on 2nd down and 3rd down.
- However, I don't agree with the actual play selections or intended targets.
- Running wasn't a viable option
on 2-1 since there were :18 left and we had no time outs. If you run and get stuffed, you end up with no options and likely 0 points. (no time to get the FG unit out onto the field)
- The personnel groupings were limited due to the timeout/time.
- I would have called a simple "jump ball" pass play to Moss on 2nd down and again (if nec.) on 3rd down. It's a no brainer. No one can out-jump/cover Moss on this very simple play.
There isn't anything that anyone could say to me right now that would change my mind about Caveman becoming a dynamic, passionate, football lifer, crazy, fun loving head coach that players would follow into battle in a heart beat. It would be a shame if he gets away to another team. Keep in mind from my earlier post, this is projected for 2011...that is plenty of time to reserve judgment.
Panty: How 'bout bringing Rich Gannon in at OC once Walsh walks the plank? Methinks much of Gruden's success had to do with Gannon being the field general.
CJ: I understand the need for urgency at the end of the half... and I understand Slaughter was probably just in the endzone to draw coverage from a LB and keep 'em from sacking Walter (which they did often).
Perhaps there is good reason why I'm not an O-coordinator, but I can see running on one of these two plays despite what the clock says. Perhaps it is easy to have cojones when your job is not at stake - LOL!
Like Coach Madden has said, if you run on passing downs and pass on running downs, they won't know what the hell you are doing.
Question on O is, do WE know what we are doing?
Rob Ryan for President of the Entire Known Universe sounds like a good idea at the moment. I can't remember being this happy after a win the last three and a half seasons...
Stick'Em:
Walsh should be calling the plays like his job is on the line. I think it was wise to pass on 2nd down. It gives you a min. of 2 cracks at the end zone without the clock becoming a factor. It also ensures that you will come away with at least 3 points.
Whether it is a run or pass, the play call and execution will determine the end result. Every NFL team practices goal line scenarios on a regular basis. The element of suprise is nice but don't you think it would be wise to have a few "bread and butter" type plays that involves your best players in the most favorable matchups?
As I said earlier, the "Jump Ball" pass to Moss would have been a simple play to execute with next to no risk. It puts your best player on a DB who is 6 inches shorter trying to climb a magical ladder to get up to where the ball is thrown. I have yet to see a DB win this battle mano y mano with Moss. This matchup could easily be created by having Moss, and Porter on 1 side, and Curry on the other side. Just my 2 cents.
1 offensive TD total in the 2nd half for 7 games is beyond pathetic. The Raiders have scored a total of 19 offensive points in the 2nd halfs for a 2.7 average.
What do these alarming numbers point out as clear as day? OC Walsh is totally incompetent about making the necessary half time adjustments. The schemes, personnel groupings, the play calling, the 1st half plays that set up the 2nd half plays all fall on his shoulders and he isn't getting it done.
Unfortunately, it looks like we will be forced to grin and bear it for the remainder of the year but it is never to early to start compiling a short list of potential OC candidates now...even putting out a few feelers. I would hope that such an important decision isn't left to muddle through at the 11th hour in the off season.
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