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Asomugha, One on One With the Best
Published: July 20, 2009
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With just over a week until the beginning of training camp, Raiders CB Nnamdi Asomugha spoke out on the Raiders upcoming season.
Specifically the defense this season run by new DC John Marshall.
“He’s got a few more coverages than we’ve had in the past, so he might be able to use that,” Asomugha said of Marshall.
We need Asomugha to come out and tell us fans how the defense is running, especially since Al Davis believes in the “one voice” policy in his interaction with the media. Only Coach Tom Cable is allowed to speak, leaving a lot of questions unanswered in the media and fan base.
“(Marshall is) still a dominant man-to-man guy. He never has been, but coming here he understands that’s the way Mr. Davis likes it. And he sees the talent that we have and the speed so he’s fallen into that. So we’re still going to do man, still going to free up linebackers and other guys like that. But he’s got a lot more blitzing, a lot more coverages, so we should be fine.”
Looks like Marshall has accepted Davis—ball, but with his own twist that Rob Ryan did not provide.
With Marshall’s new plans, there has been talk that Asomugha will be freed up to shadow opposing team’s No. 1 receivers. Asomugha would face these rumors Sunday.
“It may happen,” he said. “This has never been something that we here have done. We’ve always just kept me where I am (on the field) and then double team whoever’s on the left. I think if it’s someone that’s really dominant then we (move me) but nowadays the No. 2 receiver is almost as good as the No. 1. So you never know who to take.”
Throughout all of last season the Raiders left Asomugha to shut down the right side of the field, leaving whoever was at left corner back (usually DeAngelo Hall or Chris Johnson) safety help over the top.
Now that Asomugha is the highest paid defensive back in NFL history, the Raiders may call on him to shut down the opposing team’s best of the best.
That could be bad news for intradivision rivals Dwayne Bowe, Vincent Jackson, and Brandon Marshall.
The Oakland Raiders: The Team To Watch In The Next Decade
Published: July 19, 2009
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As the ’53 Silver and Black Warriors set foot on to the field this year, Raider fans across the globe will have high hopes for their beloved team.
But whether you love or hate them, you cannot forget one simple fact—the Raiders are built for the future.
Of course, we look at the potential this year: we expect this to be Jamarcus Russell’s “make or break” season.
We expect great things out of our draft picks, despite what ESPN thinks. We expect our running game to burst into a top-5 rushing attack.
We expect John Marshall to stop the run, sans Rob Ryan’s vanilla defensive schemes.
We expect our team to become comfortable with returning head coach Tom Cable.
We expect to win.
Al Davis has always gone by the “reload, not rebuild” philosophy; however, it seems the past three seasons, we have entered the mythical rebuilding stage other teams are famous for.
As Raider fans, we expect to win every season. Year after year, we get out hopes up, we see the potential, and we always find an answer to this offseason’s questions, but then we’re disappointed by our team during the season.
This year is no different. Going into training camp, we see the positives, envision stealing away the division, and making an unexpected playoff berth.
Chances are that’s not going to happen.
Don’t get me wrong—I’m not dooming the franchise. The Raiders are going to significantly improve this year, develop into a more stable team, and prove many haters that this isn’t just the seventh year of mediocrity.
But I challenge you, Raiders fans and Raider haters alike to look at this team’s future.
The Coach:
Raider fans are clamoring about the ‘Cable Man’, and how he will finally bring stability to the Raiders franchise at the head coach position. If coming back after one season is going to bring familiarity of the system to the team, then future years will be golden.
Tom Cable is what should be classified as a “Yes-man with a twist”.
He drafted Al Davis’ prototype players. He has regular meetings with the boss.
Yet, every move he’s made feels like a change from the expected. Every pick has been by Al Davis’ standards, yet Cable gets players with good character, who are also hard-working men who take their craft seriously.
Cable has changed the feel of the locker room, and with any improvement at all this year, we will see a significant jump at the start of the next decade.
The Offense:
Entering his second full season, there are a lot of questions surrounding JaMarcus Russell.
Some are unsure if he will even keep his starting job. I assure you, though—he will play, and he will progress.
During his first year at LSU, Russell completed only 50.7 percent of his passes. In his sophomore campaign, he showed improvement and bumped his percentage up to 60.5 percent, an increase of nearly 10 percent. Finally, entering his third year at LSU was when he turned the corner, completing 67.8 percent of his passes en route to a 7:2 TD:INT ratio.
Russell is expected to turn the corner this year, but I see this as his sophomore year at LSU. Much improved, but the next season is where he will show he is the real deal.
Even with the questions surrounding Russell, the Raiders don’t even need him to be anything more than a game manager. With RBs Darren McFadden and Michael Bush shaping up to become the future of the Raiders running game, Russell has next to nothing to worry about.
Even though they were injured and running behind a mediocre offensive line, the Raiders’ tailbacks finished the season tenth overall in rushing. As these backs develop alongside a relatively young (and improved) offensive line, the Raiders have something to smile about in their future.
Finally—the wide receivers.
The Raiders biggest question mark this past season was the play of their wideouts. Chaz Schillens has been placed with high expectations for this season, but what we fail to see is that wide receivers usually come into their own during their third season. Chaz is entering his second, and while I feel he will have a solid year, next season and beyond is where he will truly shine.
Furthermore, we have the rookie wideouts drafted this season, whom have done nothing but impress, and a Pro-Bowl WR/PR in Johnnie Lee Higgins.
The Defense:
Despite the Raiders down seasons, they have kept up one of the better defenses in the league. The Raiders only have one problem: they can’t stop the run.
Now, with the addition of John Marshall and his blitz-happy schemes, the Raiders should improve in their run stopping abilities.
But don’t look for their woes to completely go away—next season, look for them to draft defensive players, now that the offensive side of the ball is slowly shoring up.
On the bright side however, why don’t we take a look at what the Raiders already have.
With the addition of DE Greg Ellis form the Cowboys, the Raiders make run deficient DE Derrick Burgess a little more expendable.
Add in Trevor Scott and numerous d-line draft picks, and the Raiders’ d-line is the best it has been in a while.
The Raiders linebacking corps is no joke, either. If they can manage to retain Oakland native Kirk Morrison, the Raiders will have a solid combination of LBs that can only benefit from John Marshall’s scheme.
And we already know the Raiders can defend the pass. Pro Bowl CB Nnamdi Asomugha shuts down half the field. He even held league—leading WR Andre Johnson to two receptions for 19 yards,by far his season low. Oh wait I’m sorry, both those passes were thrown towards CB Chris Johnson.
Add in late—budding CB Chris Johnson, and the Raiders have arguably the best CB tandem in the league that is locked up for at least the next three years.
The Raiders have an up—and—coming team with a lot of potential.
But hold off your excitement, Raiders fans, the best is yet to come.
How the AFC West Will Unfold
Published: July 17, 2009
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Writing my first ever article, I decided to stick to something I know, the AFC West.
After a surprising 2008-2009 season, the Chargers ended on top of the division after a late season Bronco collapse. Meanwhile the Raiders and Chiefs remained bottom dwellers for yet another season.
After an overall…*surprising*…AFC West draft this year (granted it was a weak draft class) and some offseason trades and meltdowns, this year looks to be anybodies year. Lots of young talent in the division, how will things pan out?
