Lowered Expetations: The 2015 Oakland Raiders
It’s around this time every year my father and I have what tends be a
longer than average phone conversation (fifteen or twenty minutes).
Partially it’s due to the pleasantness of the weather: he spends more
time outside, working on his yard and yelling at animals, and I spend
more time going out, bleeding money like a jackass, and making
one-time friends at bars. After about five minutes or so of this, one
of us will finally ask:
“How do you think the Raiders are going to do this year?”
and the other inevitably says:
“I think we can go 8–8.”
My dad and I have been having this conversation for a decade.
The Oakland Raiders are a team of contradictions: the fan base is loyal
to a degree of insanity, yet rarely believes the team can succeed. The
team’s motto is “Just win, baby!”, yet, they rarely do. Supposedly Al
Davis is dead, yet many believe he merely planted his brain inside his
son Mark Davis’ large, round head (Do yourself a favor and google pictures of Mark Davis). If any team in the NFL can simultaneously fail and succeed-Lets go 8–8!- it’s the Oakland Raiders.
Despite Oakland’s commitment to futility since the Buccaneers curb-stomped them in the 2003 Super Bowl, there are silver linings for the silver and black this year. Jack Del Rio isn’t exactly a turn-around coach, but assuming he manages to bring even an ounce of consistency and professionalism , he may be the first Raiders coach to last more than three seasons since Jon “All Stats Must Be Screamed” Gruden. Del Rio is sporting a sub .500 career winning percentage, so yeah, you get to coach the Raiders! At least he’s not burying all the teams athletic equipment in holes in the dirt a la Tony Sporano.
The roster is youthful and, for the first time in a while, might be
fun to watch. Second-year QB David Carr is coming off a decent rookie
season (A 76 QBR in your first year in Oakland gets you an autographed Ken
Stabler poster), which is going to be important when Oakland averages
only 77 yards per game on the ground. Carr is in better shape this
year — he’s got an offensive line with over thirty years of experience
and two genuinely talented receivers in Michael Crabtree and
first-round pick Amari Cooper. Despite Oakland’s tendency to waste
receivers (Randy Moss once played here, remember?), Carr’s possible emergence as a legitimate pro quarterback has brought some excitement to the offensive side of the Raiders for the first time since we buried Jeff
Garcia in Al Davis’ casket.
Don’t expect much from the rushing game — the O-line (coached by Mike
Tice — an interesting trivia fact!) will be focused on protecting
Carr, and when your biggest off season acquisition at the position is the now departed (not dead, just cut) Trent Richardson, there’s not much to celebrate. The outlier of the running game is FB Marcel Reese, who, despite not being widely recognized in his six years, has averaged over 4 yards a carry per attempt EVERYSEASON he’s been in the league, which is impressive even if it’s pureluck. As of right now Latavius Murray, who also averaged above 4 yards per carry last season is on top of the depth chart and in his third-year is poised to make a splash — if his offensive line can create space.
Ah, my nostalgia just kicked in — memories of the dual RB combo of
Charlie Garner & Tyrone Wheatley, the knowledge of veteran QB Rich
Gannon, the legendary WR combo of Tim Brown and Jerry Rice. Make no
mistake Raiders fans: This is not that team. It’s still a hodge-podge
of mid year veterans (and talented rookies), a second year QB at the
helm, and a new head coach. The AFC West is still controlled by the Broncos and the Chargers, but out-performing the Chiefs is a realistic goal. Oakland may not even be Oakland for long, and talks of moving a team rarely precede talks of playoff victories. But hey, if I’m right, and my dad is right, the Raiders might go 8–8 this year.
