Raiders Gab

Pre-season game 4 is to finalize the 53 man roster.  Starters will be used in possibly a quick series at the most, and the backups will see their most extensive time on the field, possibly all year.  Here are my thoughts on who are on the bubble to make the team come Saturday and will use this game to either make the Raiders or impressive another team to pick them up.

QB – Colt Brennan

FB – Alex Daniels

FB – Luke Lawton

FB – Manase Tonga

WR – Shaun Bodiford

WR – Johnathan Holland

WR – Nick Miller

WR – Todd Watkins

TE – Eric Butler

TE – John Owens

G – Daniel Loper

G – Brandon Rodd

OL – Alex Parsons

OT – Khalif Barnes

OT – Elliot Vallejo

DE – Greyson Gunheim

DT – Desmond Bryant

DT – Kellen Heard

DT – William Joseph

LB – Sam Williams

CB – Joey Thomas

DB – Joe Porter

S – Jerome Boyd

S – Stevie Brown

PK – Swayze Waters

TaylorMade-adidas Golf Company, a subsidiary of the adidas Group, has introduced a new line of hats and visors, which features the primary colors and logos of all 32 NFL teams. Golfers across the country can now fly the colors of their favorite teams on the golf course (not on Sundays of course).

Fans can choose from all 32 NFL teams at on-course and off-course retail locations, in addition to select sporting goods retailers. If you are a displaced fan and don’t think you will be able to find your favorite team locally, go to www.taylormadegolfgear.com for a complete selection.

Each hat and visor will feature an NFL team’s logo blazoned on the left panel. The team’s name will also be stitched onto the left corner of the hat/visor. The TaylorMade logo will appear in 3D embroidery on the front panel of the hat.

The hats will be available at retail at a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $27.99.

The 3rd pre-season game is the always the truth, it is more indicative of a teams chances during the regular season then the other pre-season games.  Remember, last years game 3 was the drubbing by the Saints.  There are 5 main theme’s I’ve been looking at which I think will determine the Raiders fate for this year.

The Raiders have released tight end Eric Butler to get their roster down to the 75-man limit. Butler (6-2, 255) signed with the Raiders on August 19, but did not appear in either of the two pre-season games Oakland has played since.

An undrafted free agent out of Mississippi State, Butler has had stints with the Giants, Colts, and Rams, but has yet to appear in an NFL game. Butler caught one pass for 4 yards during the 2009 pre-season with the Rams, who waived him on August 12.

Jerry McDonald of the Bay Area News Group reports the Raiders have released four players from their 80-man roster. Veteran tight end Tony Stewart had his contract terminated, while first-year wide receiver Paul Hubbard, fullback Chase Moline and offensive lineman Allen Smith were placed on waivers.

Moline and Smith signed with the Raiders as undrafted free agents this off-season. Stewart, 31, has been with the Raiders since 2007, and signed a one-year deal worth $1.2 million in March. A former fifth-round pick out of Penn State by the Philadelphia Eagles in 2001, Stewart has caught 21 passes for 159 yards in 47 games in the Silver & Black.

The 6-5, 260-pound Stewart has caught 76 passes for 623 yards and 3 touchdowns during his nine-year career with the Eagles (2001), Cincinnati Bengals (2002-06), and Raiders.

Jason LaCanfora just tweeted that despite the issues that Jason Campbell has, his teammates expect him to be ready to go for week one. Here’s what he had to say:

Texting with some of Jason Campbell’s teammates and they say the QB is fine. Looks good to go. They expect him to be under center Week 1

One would think that after the beatdown that Oakland Raiders quarterback Jason Campbell suffered during Saturday night’s game against the San Francisco 49ers was bad enough, it appears that he is more injured than originally thought.

Not only is Campbell suffering from a stinger, he is also suffering from an injury to his right wrist, according to The Sporting News. It probably wouldn’t be such a big deal, except that the injury is on his throwing wrist.

Raiders coach Tom Cable is of the hope that Campbell will be ready for the team’s season opener on September 12. More information should become readily available, so stay tuned to Raiders Gab.

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Wide receiver Chaz Schilens will miss between 3-6 weeks following last week’s arthroscopic knee surgery. On Sunday, Cable said that the Raiders are not interested in replacing Schilens with recently released WR Antonio Bryant, stating:

“We haven’t had any of those kind of discussions at this point.”

“Right now, we’re more focused on our group.”

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Running back Michael Bush is expected to undergo a procedure some time today in order to repair a broken thumb suffered this past Saturday. According to Bush, he said that he should be ready for Week 1.

Running back Michael Bush suffered a fractured thumb Saturday night and will see a hand specialist Sunday, reports Jerry McDonald, of ANG Newspapers. Head coach Tom Cable said Bush’s status won’t be known until he sees the specialist. Bush echoed his coach’s comments, saying he did not know if or how long he would be out.

Like the song says, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year..”  Thats right.. FOOTBALL season is approaching faster than you can say “I’m takin my talent to South Beach..”  And with that impending orgasm of the first kick off of the regular season comes a real mans (or woman’s – lets not be sexist here, gentlemen, there ARE chicks that play Fantasy – including mine, and she is quite GOOD!! )  )  biggest day of the year – your Fantasy Football Draft .. You have scoured the Internet, bought dozens of magazines and studied every player from the unknown rookies to the 137 year old Brett Farve..  ”whats my strategy?”  “who do I take with my first pick?”  “who the hell ate all the 7-layer dip?”  “who invited THAT a-hole?” and the question I am asking – “Is there any RAIDERS worth taking for my Fantasy Team this year??”   Well, before you start laughing and spit out your Natty Lite,  lets take a look at some key Raiders and see if they are worthy of a roster spot on your team.. 

Let’s start with the newest Raider QB Jason Campbell.. Acquired from Washington this off-season, Campbell will step into the role of Raider QB and should make an impact.. While not our saviour to march us off to the Super Bowl, Jason is quite an upgrade to what we have had to suffer through during the “Russell” years.. He has a strong arm, and is capable of leading a team.. I am not expecting huge numbers from him this year, but Campbell is more than worthy as a 2nd string QB this year.. You can pretty much avoid any other Raider QB at this point, but as we know, things change and later in the season we may be looking at Bruce Gradkowski or Kyle Boller if Campbell gets injured..   At the running back spot, Justin Fargus was shipped off to KC and the backfield has become less muddled.. All signs point to Oakland moving more to a RBBC with Michael Bush and Darren McFadden becoming the main ball carriers for a surprisingly decent running game.. A number of publications and Fantasy pundits are predicting a solid year from Michael Bush and many are looking at him as a “sleeper” pick.. McFadden will need to post strong numbers this year to avoid being labeled a “bust” as he has not played to expectations or lived up to his hype.. I see Bush going in the 4th or 5th rounds as a 2nd or 3rd string RB and he just may well surprise in this role.. McFadden I am looking more as a risky pick – moderate to high risk, but the payoff could be surprising.. I wouldn’t be looking at McFadden any earlier the the 6th or even 7th round.. 

 Oakland WR’s are all pretty much middle of the road picks.. There is not a #1 per se, but there are a couple of Oakland WR’s that may be worth a late round ..  NOTE – Chaz Schilens just recently had his knee scoped an is likely to miss some time.. Late rounds only !!   The other Oakland WR’s that may fill a late round need are Louis Murphy,  Darrius Heyward-Bey, and Johnny Lee-Higgins.. Any of them may be a surprise this year and the payoff could be worth it.. Over at TE is Zach Miller, who is definitely a top 10 Tight End.. Look for Miller to have a solid year with Campbell hooking up often with Oakland’s only bright spot on offense in recent years.. He is by far the most solid pick of any Raider on your Fantasy team this year..  As far as Sebastian Janikowski, forget it.. He is barely even worth a fill-in spot as he has lost his game a while back.. He may show flashes of his former strength, but unless your looking to hook up with some date rape drug GHB, I would suggest avoiding “SeaBass” as there are a number of stronger more reliable kickers to choose from this year..  The Oakland Defense could be considered for a spot on you roster as 2nd string or as a fill-in.. The defense actually isn’t all that bad, and couple surprise some Fantasy players this year..  

 There ya have it.. So to answer the question – Are there any Raiders worthy of a spot on my Fantasy team this year?? – yes, yes there are, but pick them with caution and know that they may just perform below expectations… Have fun and good luck to all you Fantasy Freaks out there.. I need to get ready for my draft in 4 hours….. ML

Football News Now speculates that Bruce Gradkowski could fall to the 3rd QB spot behind Kyle Boller and of course the starter, Jason Campbell.

In a move that comes as a surprise to basically no one, Oakland Raiders head coach Tom Cable said that Bruce Gradkowski and Kyle Boller are neck-and-neck for the backup job behind starter Jason Campbell. He is expected to play this weekend against the San Francisco 49ers, but the damage may already be done for Gradkowski who hasn’t played in a game in nearly eight months after tearing ligaments in both of his knees last December.

The prolonged absence has taken him from potentially competing with Campbell for the starting job to now just trying to hang on to be the No. 2 guy. Boller has played well enough this preseason to put himself in the running for the job and virtually erase any long shot Colt Brennan had of making the squad. Gradkowski won’t go down without a fight, however. “I feel good,” he told the San Francisco Chronicle. “I’m ready to rock and roll.”