The Raiders met the Seahawks at CenturyLink Field for their final 2012 preseason game on Thursday, August 30 at 10pm EST/7pm PST. Photo credit: Tony Gonzales

Just as the title of this post implies, this game left me speechless (in a bad way), specifically in the fourth quarter.

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Dot, dot, dot – that’s literally all I could come up with on Twitter at the end of Thursday night’s game. I know that my blog is called “The Silver Lining”, but it was almost impossible to find a silver lining in this match-up. Aside from the Raiders’ home game against the Lions two weekends ago, the O wasn’t able to get anything going against a relentless, consistent Seahawks D. Starting Seattle QB, Russell Wilson, only played the first quarter, but it was backup Matt Flynn who made an impression, leading his team to the tune of two touchdowns between the second and third quarter that he played.

This was the game in a nutshell on the Silver & Black side of the ball, broken down most accurately by Paul Gutierrez of CSN Bay Area:

The starters see some time: Darren McFadden was dressed but did not play. Same with Brandon Myers and Tommy Kelly. But Carson Palmer started under center and handed the ball off six straight times before taking the rest of the game off. Both first-team units played one series apiece.

Lack of depth: I’ve written and said time and again that the Raiders’ front-line players, on both sides of the ball, are among the most talented in the league…when healthy. The problem, though, is the chasm between the first-stringer and second-stringers. A lack of quality depth showed up. Big time. The Seahawks’ offense carved up the Raiders’ backups on defense time and again.

» Continue reading “Speechless In Seattle: Raiders Fall To Seahawks, 21-3″

“On the road again..” The road to 53 has been in all-wheel drive so far this week in Alameda County for the Oakland Raiders. Who has jumped on and who has been sent packing? Allow me to answer that.

Tuesday’s practice at Alameda. Photo credit: Tony Gonzales

» Continue reading “The Raiders’ Road To 53: Who’s Coming, Who’s Going”

Detroit Lions vs. Oakland Raiders, Preseason Week 3 – Saturday, August 25, 2012. Photo credit: Tony Gonzales

This brief review of Saturday’s Detroit Lions vs. Oakland Raiders preseason game is brought to you by a slacking blogger whose computer had 340 malware and viruses and was in the shop for a week. In all seriousness, I do apologize for the delay. Unfortunately I was out at a prior engagement on Saturday night and missed the game in its entirety, but shout out to WXYZ in Detroit where I was able to watch the full replay the very next morning.

From what I was able to put together, only being able to follow along on my Twitter feed Saturday night, was that Carson Palmer was having yet another lackluster performance. What I saw the next day confirmed it; he had a few inspiring completions that were completely drowned out by two God awful-looking INTs. Both were not thrown too poorly and were emphasized with a dash of fluke, but I am not about to sit here and inject all of the blame onto the wideouts. Poor luck, I suppose? Let’s just say I am happy to watch Palmer throw as many INTs as he wishes in the preseason when it doesn’t count – so long as his veteran expertise shines through in the regular season and it doesn’t happen too often, I can live with that.

As a side note that I won’t go into detail about, RB Darren McFadden looked stellar again over the weekend, healthy as ever (knock on wood).

Note: It always amazes me that McFadden runs hard and with such authority; should by some miracle he stay injury-free this 2012-2013 season, all fantasy football team owners should seriously consider risking a first- or second-round draft pick on him. I plan on trying to get him in one of my five fantasy drafts, anyway, throwing caution to the wind. Then again, the fact that he runs so hard could be a contributing factor to his reoccurring injury year after year, no?

» Continue reading “Pryor Puts On A Clinic In Raiders’ 31-20 Win Over Lions”

Photo: Tony Gonzales

Since I wasn’t able to watch the game in its entirety (meaning that I caught bits and pieces, and I also didn’t see the last quarter again), I cannot provide an accurate analysis of this game. I know that the offense shit the bed yet again (from start to end), the defense was looking great, the special teams defense was looking piss poor, and Matt Leinart was a pussy.

No one can wrap up this game better than Paul Gutierrez himself in his replay of Friday night’s game:

The Raiders’ first-team offense, especially the passing game in which Carson Palmer had a passer rating of just 48.4 after completing 13 of 24 for 107 yards and an interception, looked skittish, not to mention the zone-blocking scheme. Oakland’s first-team defense, however, looked dominant at times and dominated the line of scrimmage. Special teams? Yeah, the Raiders have some work to do there. In all, the Raiders had two turnovers and a blocked punt that led to 17 points for the Cardinals. Yeah, the Raiders have some work to do still in this preseason.

Run DMC shows explosion…kinda: A week ago, Darren McFadden touched the ball three times and came away with 38 yards. This time, McFadden had 10 touches for 51 yards, though that number might be a little misleading since 39 of those yards came on two plays, a 22-yard run and a 17-yard catch and run. Other than that, he had three carries for no gain, including twice from the 1-yard line. At least he emerged unscathed, unlike…

Injury bug bites: Receiver/returner Jacoby Ford and running back Mike Goodson both left the game in the first half with foot and chest injuries, respectively. Goodson, who missed last week’s opener after a scary-looking neck injury, fumbled twice and left the game after his second, when he was popped by linebacker Reggie Walker. Then there was backup quarterback Matt Leinart going out in the third quarter.

» Continue reading “Drama In The Desert: Raiders Fall To Cardinals, 31-27″

Korey Bosworth during his time at UCLA

Announced on Thursday, LB Korey Bosworth has joined the squad in Napa Valley. The announcement came shortly after LB Mario Kurn was cut due to a torn ACL. As most Raiders fans know, the Raiders are hurting at the linebacker position, so we might as well bring in some competition while we can.

As per the Raiders’ official announcement:

Bosworth, a 6-foot-1, 230-pound linebacker out of UCLA, adds depth to that position on the Raiders’ roster. He will wear No. 97, and is expected to make the trip with the team to Arizona for Friday’s preseason game.

Officially a second-year player, Bosworth initially signed as a non-drafted free agent with the Denver Broncos in 2010. He spent parts of training camp with the Detroit Lions in 2010, 2011 and 2012, and played in the Lions’ preseason opener last week vs. Cleveland.

Bosworth played all 51 games during his four years at UCLA, starting 25 in a row over his final two seasons. His twin brother, Kyle, plays for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Their uncle is former Seattle Seahawks and University of Oklahoma linebacker Brian Bosworth.

The Silver & Black heading onto the field at O.co Coliseum Monday night. Photo: Tony Gonzales

It was the moment we were all waiting for, Raiders fans! Very lackluster, but a moment no less.

I’m not going to pretend and write like I watched this entire game, because unfortunately I didn’t (I was actually in a hotel that didn’t get the required TSN2 channel that I needed here in Ontario to tune-in). Trust me, I was fuming. I was able to head on down to the restaurant attached to the hotel where they were showing the game, but only caught the end of the first quarter and pieces of the second. Without going into detail, it was a busy weekend for me.

Based on the highlights that I have watched, which can be found here for anyone who has not been able to find them (yes, it’s a Cowboys blog, but ignore the content and just watch the video like I did), I was extremely impressed with the team as a whole, even in such low-scoring, offensively challenged game. Minimal penalties throughout and what looked to be a in-tact run defense – I think it is safe to say Raider Nation was happy to see both.

No, we didn’t score a single point – I believe the best chance we had all night was Jano’s short FG attempt towards the end of the second quarter, that was kicked out of the dirt and held by rookie P Marquette King (two things that could probably make any Pro Bowl kicker shudder). It looked as though all of the reps King has had throughout training camp so far have paid off though, as he looked very solid. It isn’t likely that King will stay in Oakland, in my opinion anyway, but at least with the practice he’s had and the great tape from the first preseason game, he will probably be considered and even signed elsewhere. It is merely a thought, but I would be pleasantly surprised if McZ found a way to keep this kid on the roster. With veteran P Shane Lechler currently being on the NFI list with a knee injury, you never know – we may need a punter sooner in the future than later.

These are some other honourable mentions, kindly provided by the team’s official website, which include Tommy Kelly sacking Cowboys starting QB Tony Romo in the first quarter for a 12-yard loss. Is it just me, or is Kelly looking quite svelte nowadays? It looks as though he’s lost a lot of weight; he appeared faster and feistier than normal. Hey, I’m okay with it! Even if the play only lasted a few seconds, it was the Tommy Kelly I know and love again – I hope that this continues into the regular season.

» Continue reading “Monday Night Barn-Burner: Raiders Lose 3-0 To Cowboys”