I hear rumor from abroad that the Black Hole in Oakland, California is gaining mass and has already swallowed up one East Coast team, the New York Jets in last week’s action. Many of the major pundits have targeted the Oakland Raiders to be contenders in the AFC from as early as the beginning of preseason. Myself, I scoffed at the notion. Al Davis is still alive, isn’t he?But three weeks into the season the Raiders are 2-1. Granted, one of their wins was against Denver, but it was in Denver. A road win is a road win no matter ...
There's no need to rehash the recent history of these two teams. We all know the story by now.On Sunday, the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders will face off at the O.co Coliseum. For the second week in a row, the hometown Raiders will be playing in front of a sellout crowd. This is the first time since 2008 that two games in a row have been sold out in Oakland.Last week, the Raiders put on a show for their fans, defeating the New York Jets 34-24—a team that has made the AFC Championship game two years in ...
After everything that has happened, new Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor might be able to finally focus on football and nothing else, even if he has to sit out longer than he would have wanted. His five-game suspension, which he and his agent had been appealing, was officially upheld by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.ESPN's Adam Schefter, as is so often the case, was among the first to report this news. He tweeted the following: "Terrelle Pryor's 5-game suspension was upheld today."Pryor and his representation simply waited too long after the suspension was handed down to have any real shot at having ...
Teams can acquire players in one of three ways; by drafting them out of high school or college, by trading for them or by signing them, after they reach free agency.Oakland's General Manager Billy Beane has to make up his team—on a budget. The draft is open to him, as to any other general manager, and he gets a few extra draft picks as compensation when richer teams take his star players in free agency.Trading is trickier. In Beane's case, it usually means trading a veteran player for an equivalent low-paid rookie, plus some prospects. Beane is a good trader, ...
The Oakland Raiders want to be bullies.Well, a bunch of preppy kids from New England just transferred to Black Hole High for the weekend.If the Raiders want to be feared when they roam the AFC hallways, then it is time to take Tom Brady's lunch money, and stuff his pasty, dimpled face in a locker.Speaking of violence, nowhere is there more excitement in the NFL this week than Raider Nation, as Oakland prepares to square off with New England in what should be a shootout at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The Raiders are coming off a satisfying 34-24 win over the New York Jets, ...
Now, THAT was a gratifying win. Beating a long-time and hated conference rival while out-muscling a supposedly "physical" team and shutting up the biggest mouths in the sport were all great in itself.Winning at home in front of a rare—but not for long, I'm thinking—sold-out crowd against a formidable foe by sticking to the game plan and getting solid play from all facets of the team were pretty great too.Being over .500 in September for the first time since 2004 is pretty good as well.But the best thing about this all? It's only the beginning. This team is not stepping ...
Taking a look at the power rankings entering Week 4 of the NFL regular season, the Green Bay Packers are right where they are expected to be, at the top, while the Philadelphia Eagles and Atlanta Falcons continue to drop having under performed thus far. However, there are three notable teams who have surprised early on who are slowly climbing their way up the power rankings ladder. These three teams who have exceeded expectations by over achieving are the Buffalo Bills (3-0), the Detroit Lions (3-0) and the Oakland Raiders (2-1). The Buffalo BillsThe Buffalo Bills have not made the playoffs since ...
The past two weeks, both the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders have fallen victim to massive comebacks by the Buffalo Bills. Now these two 2-1 teams will try to avoid falling .500 when they meet in Oakland. It should be a high scoring and exciting game as the Patriots are favored by four points over Oakland with the total set at 55.Last week the Patriots got off to a quick 21-0 lead over the Bills, only to lose on a game-winning field goal as time expired. Tom Brady didn't look like himself in throwing four interceptions, but he ...
The 2-1 Oakland Raiders will be at home on Sunday to take on the New England Patriots. If this were last year or the year before, this would have been the perfect game for the Patriots to get their frustrations out after losing a a heart breaker in Buffalo.Even though the Raiders just beat the Jet's, it still feels like NFL blasphemy to predict the Raiders will upset the Patriots. But I will say that the Raider Nation has plenty of reasons to be confident they will pull off the upset.I know I am!Turn the page to see those reasons.Begin Slideshow
As Sunday draws closer and the specter of Tom Brady and the New England Patriots approaches, the question of how the Oakland Raiders plan to thwart the Patriots' aerial attack becomes a sobering one.In fact, it may be as futile an endeavor as mowing the lawn with scissors.Thus far, Brady is on a torrid pace, already with 1,327 yards through the air and 11 touchdowns in just three games.By comparison, Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell has 584 yards and three touchdowns. Both play in completely different offenses, so the comparison is not fully warranted; it is simply a barometer to determine ...