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Archive for May, 2013
From May 30 and every day until September 5—the start of the 2013 NFL season—"Sports Stats on Tapp" will publish “99 Stats Until Kick-Off” a daily dose of NFL stats that will get you ready for the 2013 NFL season. Eight teams enter the ’13 NFL season with new head coaches at the helm. They are: Arizona (Bruce Arians), Buffalo (Doug Marrone), Chicago (Mark Trestman), Cleveland (Rob Chudzinski), Jacksonville (Gus Bradley), Kansas City (Andy Reid), Philadelphia (Chip Kelly) and San Diego (Mike McCoy).For the Bills and Browns, this is the seventh head coach since 2000. That, however, does not top ...
After an impressive offseason lead by general manager Reggie McKenzie, the Oakland Raiders have put together a roster that has a real chance to surprise some teams around the league.  While they may not compete for a playoff spot this season, they are most certainly headed in the right direction.  Despite some trades and cuts of their most highly paid players from 2012, a solid draft and some underrated free-agent signings allow for the argument to be made that this year’s roster is much improved already.  Here are offseason power rankings for the top 53 players on the Oakland Raiders’ ...
For the first time in a few years, the Oakland Raiders' fanbase seems to have a grasp on two very important things: realistic expectations and realistic hope.On the one hand, after years of losing, the Black Hole finally seems to have accepted the fact that, unlike in the past, there is no more quick fix out there. With the dire situation of the salary cap, the Oakland Raiders are in full rebuilding mode, and oddly enough, people seem to be at peace with that.On the flip side, signings like the one of Charles Woodson seem to have invigorated folks, leaving ...
I have got to be honest. The headline is deceiving because it sounds as if I am down on Sonny Gray. That could not be further from the truth. I think Gray is eventually going to be very good in Oakland with the A's. However, I stated that Gray is not Oakland's next great pitching star, and in my humble opinion, he is not. That honor goes to a player I have been high on since his rapid ascension through the minors last year, Dan Straily.The pitcher I felt Straily could be after observing him in Sacramento is the pitcher the ...
The criticism of the Oakland A's early season success was that it came against weak opposition, namely the Houston Astros. And that was a valid criticism before the series against the Texas Rangers from May 20th-22nd. Heading into that three-game set in Arlington, Oakland was 23-22, largely on the strength of a 14-1 record against the Astros, the Los Angeles Angels and the Kansas City Royals. Those teams are a combined 34 games under the .500 mark. After defeating the Rangers in two out of three games, the A's won their seventh, eighth and ninth straight games against Houston in 2013. That set up ...
The calendar still says May, and the regular season remains nearly 100 days away, but the Oakland Raiders are clearly straying away from a truly open competition at quarterback. Matt Flynn, who the Raiders dealt for this offseason, has taken the majority of first-team snaps at organized team activities and is being considered the current starter by head coach Dennis Allen, according to Steve Corkran of the Contra Coast Times. “Matt’s our starting quarterback as we go forward right now,” Allen said, via Corkran. “And until the competition dictates otherwise, that’s where we’re going.” While obviously not guaranteed of a starting spot come Week 1 of ...
Once upon a time, California's Bay Area belonged to the Oakland A's, and though the road back is difficult and in the distant future, it is possible to once again take back No. 1 status from the San Francisco Giants.Let's face it: the Giants are more popular than the A's.I mean, how can they not be? They've won two World Series in three years. They have a gorgeous stadium. And that catcher of theirs—already a Rookie of the Year and NL MVP—is OK too, I guess. Heck, even the Giants announcers are some of the best in the league.What isn't ...
While any group of rookies is sure to have a slew of storylines that come with them to OTAs, those storylines are magnified when the team is in desperate need of help.Welcome to Oakland.With a full group of rookies headed to camp, there are a number of things to look for in the next few weeks that could have a major impact not just on the 2013 season, but well beyond.Begin Slideshow
D.J. Hayden's inspiring story hit a small speed bump on Tuesday when Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the first-rounder was hospitalized with an abdominal injury.According to Steve Corkran of the Bay Area News Group, Hayden underwent a surgical procedure to clear out abdominal scar tissue.Perhaps the most important bit of news came from the Los Angeles Times' Sam Farmer, who mentioned that the operation was unrelated to the previous heart injury and subsequent surgery that almost took Hayden's life.Though precise medical details are unavailable to the public, speculation suggests Hayden's most recent concern stems from an ...
For the second time in two seasons, quarterback Matt Flynn finds himself on a new team, and for a second straight year, Flynn is in danger of having his role as starter usurped by a rookie signal-caller.Last year, it was Russell Wilson who vaulted past Flynn and into the starting job for the Seattle Seahawks. In 2013, it's Tyler Wilson doing the honors with the Oakland Raiders by staking an early claim with a strong showing in OTAs.That's the latest from Steve Corkran of The Contra Costa Times, who recently tweeted that he agrees with those who believe that Wilson ...