The Raiders only have two days left of practice before they take the field against the Dallas Cowboys. As camp has progressed the story of the 2010 Oakland Raiders has become to emerge. Unlike years past, there is a semblance of a quality offense as well as defense beginning to emerge in the wine country. There are several storylines that have emerged in the first eleven days of practices.
Wide Receivers
An early spate of injuries at wide receiver led to concerns about depth at the position. Chaz Schilens has missed multiple sessions due to lingering problems from his foot injury in 2009. Louis Murphy was held out for a few days due to a concussion brought on by a freak combination between his head and Nnamdi Asomugha’s leg. He missed a couple of sessions due to soreness after defensive back Stanford Routt had stepped on his foot. Darrius Heyward-Bey has been not only healthy but a much improved version of himself, and has been holding on to the ball. Veteran Johnnie Lee Higgins is starting to look like an afterthought.
Quarterbacks:
Jason Campbell is the unquestioned starter at this point, and any significant challenge that Bruce Gradkowski hoped to mount went awry when he had to miss time due to a strained groin. Charlie Frye has an injured wrist. The two injures led the Raiders to sign another former Washington Redskins quarterback in Colt Brennan. Brennan and Frye are both more mobile quarterbacks, which make them a better system fit than Kyle Boller. Besides, Brennan has a higher upside than the veterans Boller and Frye, so he is going to make his push to win the third quarterback job.
Offensive rebirth:
The Raiders offense has come alive with a renewed energy under offensive coordinator Hue Jackson. The lethargy of years past is long gone from the offense. It is not just the absence of an unnamed quarterback, but it is a top to bottom new attitude. If the team does not hustle to the line after breaking the huddle, they are read the riot act by Jackson.
That energy level combined with Cable’s focus on perfect execution makes for a recipe for a successful offense. Gradkowski recently said of the new offense, “I’m impressed with Hue. I think his attitude, one, of course, he’s an outgoing guy and brings energy to the offense, and also discipline. And also the concepts, too, that he brings. Changes here and there, wrinkles that he’s putting in that’s good for us. We’re excited for that and I think that’s a great step for us for the season and we’re really looking forward to it.”
Defensive line:
Rookie defensive end Lamarr Houston has brought a mean streak to the position that has not been seen in Silver and Black in a while. This along with moving Richard Seymour inside to tackle in certain situations is expected to pay dividends as the team is looking to be effective at stopping the run. To aid in run stuffing, they have brought in defensive tackle John Henderson to be a run stuffing specialist in the middle of the line.
Overall defense:
The Raiders are bringing multiple looks to the defense with their offseason additions. The team does not have the same look of the 4-3 straight up man defense that has been the trademark of the Raiders for many years. They are looking to move Seymour inside and outside. They also have linebackers like Trevor Scott and Kamerion Wembley who can also put their hands on the ground and play defensive end. They look like a team that is going to be able to do a few things to confuse opposing quarterbacks before the snap and get to those same quarterbacks during the play. Al Davis always says that “the quarterback must go down and go down hard.” However, that has not been happening in recent years in Oakland, and this defense is being primed to change that.
To stop the run, the Raiders have beefed up their front seven. They spent their first round pick on middle linebacker Rolando McClain who has been making his presence known in drills. What hasn’t been seen in practice, that will get a good look on Thursday against the Cowboys will be their ability to tackle. That has been an achilles heel for this team for years.
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