Jason Babin????

As soon as I heard Jason Babin was put on waivers, I immediately went to check the waiver wire priority list. The Raiders are currently at #4. So now the question is this: will the Raiders risk claiming Babin even though the season is basically over? To me he would totally be worth it...if we the Raiders were to have a better record. It would be a waste to keep a player like Babin especially if they're not even going to the playoffs. However, if they were thinking long term, I would try to claim him. He would be a great investment especially since the Raiders need defensive line help since Richard Seymour's playing career is basically over. They need someone to replace him. They could move Matt Shaughnessy to the middle and put Babin on the right. That would be a potent right side that could be threatening to opposing offenses. So to answer the question, I would take that risk and claim Babin. It would make the Raiders fanbase exited, for a team that show's no improvement, especially for next season. It could revamp the fans' hope that they could make a push for next season. They need something positive to look for after this disastrous season. Babin could be that spark for the Raiders defense that could remind older fans of the Raiders legends of the earlier years that included the likes of many players like Howie Long, Greg Townsend, Ronnie Lott, Willie Brown, and Jack Tatum.

State of the Nation #1

          At this point of the season, it has now become apparent that there really is no hope for the Raiders this year. I can not see how fans (including my own father) believe that there is still some chance that the Raiders will in fact make the playoffs through the AFC Wild Card. Truthfully, there is no way in this reality that they will even make it to 5 wins if they continue to play the way they are right now. I have always been a Raiders fan and will continue to be one, but this season has become unbearable to say the least. That is why I am going to state what I believe should be addressed this off-season. When referring to current and past players, I will avoid saying "great" since that is a controversial term to define a player.

1. Trade Darren McFadden: I know most Raiders fans would kill anyone who mentioned this, but it is now true. It should be McKenzie's #1 priority once the season is done. It's basically over with his career. It has been ever since his first season (if you can even say he had a season) in the NFL. He's never been able to play past the first half of the regular season which even contains a bye week so that players can rest up their bodies. Yet somehow, he's always hurting some part of his leg every season. It's better for the Raiders to get something out of him right now than to waste their time on someone who won't even be there through the long haul. He's supposed to be the one who leads his team to the playoffs to which the Raiders haven't been in for almost 10 years (it's not 2013 yet). It's ridiculous how often he gets hurt. Why keep him now with all this uncertainty heading into next season. Yes, I know players can have freak accidents or get hurt out of nowhere, but come on! It's OVER. To me, McFadden should be done playing as a Raider. Sure we won games because of him, but what's the point if he can't even make it to play the remaining 8 games. Besides, even if the Raiders had made it to the playoffs, there's no guaranteeing that McFadden would even be able to play in the playoffs. If the Raiders were to trade McFadden for draft picks, he'd be a 4th round AT BEST. Any team would like to have a player like McFadden, but none of those teams would be willing to give up a 2nd or 3rd round pick for a player like McFadden. Imagine this situation: McFadden is suddenly on the trading block and your team is in desperate need of a running back. However, there is free agent running back who is around 30 and is not explosive. However, he has always been durable and hardly ever fumbled the ball. McFadden, on the other hand, has never made it to the second half of the season but when he plays, he can change the whole tempo of the game in your favor. However, he is not suited for the Zone-Blocking scheme as was apparent this season since he had a difficulty making big runs and plays, as well as blocking for Carson Palmer. Another downfall is his big contract which would have to be re-negotiated due to the salary cap. You as a GM have to decide which of the two running backs you'd prefer to have. Difficult choice to make, huh? I would try to trade him for someone who can block for the quarterback, have good hands in passing situations, not fumble, have some speed, and be durable. Last season, I wanted someone like Mike Tolbert. He wasn't explosive, but man was he hard to stop. He was durable, strong, and dependable in the running game. During the this year's draft, I knew Doug Martin was going to be good. However, to me someone like LaMichael James isn't a Raiders running back. Mike Tolbert and Doug Martin would have been really good Raiders running backs in the fact that they remind me a lot of the ground-and-pound running backs the Raiders used to have. Marcus Allen and Bo Jackson especially defined this since they were fast, but more importantly, were almost impossible to bring down. They also had with them a certain image that showed their pride in being a Raider both on and off the field. McFadden is good and all, but he can sometimes be easily taken down. Too me, he's not built to be a running back. He looks more like a wide receiver, but I know appearance doesn't always mean whether you're good or not. But that's just what I think. Sure, I would rather have McFadden over a lot of running backs any day, but I'd like to have him more if he were a dependable one. They need to trade him for either a veteran and a pick or try to get a higher pick if they can somehow. I know it'd be difficult but it's something that has to be done.
2. No More Seymour: Richard Seymour isn't getting any younger. Plus, he's hardly even playing. When he is playing, he sort of helps, but not really. He's not the player he used to be. The Raiders are paying someone a lot of money to barely even be on the field. It seems as though he's always on the injury report after every game. They need to let him go. I loved the idea of trading for him at first, but he really hasn't done much with Oakland. He's just taking up a roster spot and a portion of the salary cap. There is no need for him anymore. When they played the Bengals this past Sunday, I saw the type of player, specifically a defensive lineman, the Raiders need and that's someone like Geno Atkins. I liked how he played the game that day such as his passion for the game and how much he enjoyed playing it. He's strong and a rising star for the Bengals defense. The Raiders need someone like that to be the focal point of the defensive line. Yes, Tommy Kelly is the "leader" of the defensive line, but he can't play every down. And if he were to miss a game, there would be no one to take his place. Seymour to me is no longer a captain on the field since he's no longer a real factor or threat to opposing offenses. He's not as strong nor as explosive at the snap of the ball. He had a really good career, but it's time for him to retire. I enjoyed having him as a Raider, but it's over for him too.
3. DHB GTG (Sort of) : First let me explain. The Raiders seem lost with their Wide Receivers. They have plenty of depth, but don't really use their strengths. Darrius Heyward-Bey was meant to be a vertical threat for the offense, but they hardly ever use him for any vertical passing plays. When they do, you have to hope he won't end up dropping the ball. He's not really all that reliable. However, I give him a ton of props for practicing every off-season to get better at catching. He's vastly improved than how he was as a rookie. In his rookie season, he seemed like a total bust from his first dropped pass. He's also improved his route running and bulked up a lot. I like Heyward-Bey, but he's not a #1 or a #2 wide receiver. He's a #3 receiver at best. Denarius Moore has really good hands and is a good route runner. His downside, however, is the fact that he isn't that fast or tall. That seems to be the downside to almost every wide receiver the Raiders currently have. They're all really short. That seems to be why the offense struggles with their wide receivers. Whenever the quarterback's in trouble and has to get rid of the ball, they mostly fling the ball hoping the wide receiver they threw it to would catch it. However, when it's in the air, the defenders have enough time to get to the receiver and have him in double and sometimes triple coverage. When this happens, the Raiders short receivers have a hard time getting over the defenders to catch the ball. Because of this fact, this is the reason why Lions and Texans are so successful. Andre Johnson and Calvin Johnson are both really tall and strong for wide receivers. To them, it's not that hard to reach for lobbed balls. Same downside especially goes for Jacoby Ford. He is an incredibly short receiver, yet still finds a way to be a big playmaker for the Raiders when he's healthy. I was hoping the Raiders would try to sign Vincent Jackson, but to my dismay they made no run at him. They need someone who is explosive, over 6'2", strong, has good hands, and a playmaker. Terrell Owens would be an ideal receiver...if he was younger. Hopefully this gets addressed this offseason. 
4. Cornerback, Cornerback, CORNERBACK!!!!!!! The Raiders need this really bad. However, they also need a safety if Michael Huff is to remain at Cornerback. They need players to defend the pass since all they do is get torched in the passing game. Not much is needed to explain this since basically every Raiders fan has seen how badly the corners play every game especially against really good receivers.
5. Quarterback...: The quarterback position has never really been a stable position since Rich Gannon retired. No one has really proven themselves as the Raiders starting quarterback. Even Carson Palmer has had troubles at the position, plus he just loves giving away the ball to the opposition. He's had too many interceptions in his career even if some of those are from tipped balls. He has good pocket presence, but he's old. The Raiders either need to draft a quarterback or sign a young one in the offseason. Terrelle Pryor is supposed to be the future quarterback, but he's hardly given the chance to play. Sure he's the third-string quarterback, but he needs some real in-game experience. The quarterback I really, really, really like coming out of college is A.J. McCarron. I used to like Matt Barkley until his season unraveled into an atrocity. I am really confident that A.J. McCarron could be the Raiders quarterback of the future. However, it all depends on how high on people's draft board they rate him or else the Raiders could overdraft him as well as other teams. He has really good accuracy and is a pretty good decision maker, but he doesn't have an over-powering arm. To me though, he seems to be the perfect quarterback the Raiders could develop into their potential starter.
6. Right Tackle Nightmare: What else can I say. The right tackle position is the weakness of the offensive line. Because of that, the offensive linemen have to account for both sides of the field. Khalif Barnes is also the main reason why the Raiders' offensive line has regressed. He commits too many false start/offsides penalties which always happens during key moments of the game. He isn't that great of a blocker either. I never like him from the start. They someone who is especially good at run blocking or else there will never be any running lanes. The Raiders have let go of Bruce Campbell and Joe Barksdale which basically leaves no young talent that could have a decent shot of being the right tackle. Alabama has always produced great offensive line talent;however, they are basically always drafted in the first round. I would rather like for the Raiders to sign a free agent right tackle or, if they could, trade McFadden or anyone for an experienced and good right tackle. Every good offense needs to have a good offensive line. That's where it all begins. They provide the blocking necessary to give the quarterback time to make good decisions and provide the blocking needed to allow the runningback to gain the yards necessary to advance the ball. They are the key focal point of every offense. Just look at the Chicago Bears. They are a really good time with an amazing defense. They have lots of good weapons on offense; however, they can hardly drive the ball down the field because of their offense. Jay Cutler's always getting hurt because of his offensive line which leads to Cutler having to make quick decisions, both good and bad, and sometimes having to scramble more than a quarterback should because he simply can not trust it. The same goes for Michael Vick.

          So in the end, it doesn't really matter what I or Raiders fans say or think. It all comes down to what Reggie McKenzie and his staff believes needs to be done and fixed. I am, however, excited to see whether the Raiders will make any interesting moves in the future to which they can help propel them to the playoffs. However, many obstacles lie ahead for the Raiders such as the salary cap, draft pick selection, and the Denver Broncos, for they are now the top team in the AFC West. Another issue that needs to be addressed is the stadium issue since it's location could also make it hard for the Raiders to sign many free agents. The stadium issue will be my next topic since it basically affects every Raiders fan.

My First Post

Well I would just like to thank you for giving my blog a try. I promise to inform everyone who reads my posts to keep them up to date on matters that I believe are important towards the Oakland Raiders. So my next post will be about the recent signings and cuts by the Oakland Raiders.