Week 9 - Falcons at Raiders

[psj3809]

On a huge high after the Jets game, last week was bad against the Ravens but this is just appalling against the Falcons.

Defense was dire in the first half, offense did nothing, we had minus yards at halftime.  Just appalling.

Surely soon we'll start to turn it around ?  Got a lot of crap on the team but still think we have some talent.

Terrible game today, one of the worst i've watched in all my years.  Depressing

[R8RMR]

Based on the score and your comments, this appears to one that I am glad that I missed. Haven't read anything on it till now. How depressing!

[psj3809]

Really was shocking.  I mean i've had a lot of highs and lows the last few years with the Raiders, mostly lows but when you get a high (Win over the Steelers with Chris Carrs long int return, win over the Jets) its superb as losing constantly REALLY makes you appreciate winning even more.

But yesterday was one of the low points for me, just totally shocking, offense was dire, defense couldnt do anything and granted they held them to 0 points in the second half but with a 24-0 lead for the Falcs i'm not excited by that.

I dont blame Al, i dont put all the blame on Cable as apparently they had a great week of practice, Rob Ryan as always i hope he'll go at the end of the year, the players though who are getting paid millions are just playing very bad.

I still think (perhaps stupidly) we have a fair chunk of talent but things are just going so bad.  Kwame Harris was shocking at LT and i hope he goes/gets benched or something.  Russell who has showed promise in previous weeks was p*ss poor, his int in the end zone he just totally locked onto one WR, thank god he could scramble or we may have finished with an NFL record for fewest yards.

Work all week , cant wait for every sunday and this happens, depressing.

[R8RMR]

The way things are going, we will have very early draft picks to try to get some assistance in the areas where we are weak.

Wait a minute, we are apparently weak in all areas! 

[psj3809]

I'm still very stunned how bad we are on offense, granted Russell was going to go through some growing pains but i thought with a good rushing attack to help him it would make his job slightly easier.  The WR's have just been shocking, the o-line seems to have regressed, Gallery is doing okay but our tackles are turnstyles.

Our defense has been hot/cold, our d-line has been very poor, we've missed Burgess but its nice to see Scott get gametime.  Our LB's who are meant to be superb have i think been a bit poor this year also.  Our secondary, well whoever is the CB opposite Aso would get a ton of action but Hall has been very bad.  Shame it looks like Huff is our latest first round flop.

Still think there is hope for the future but i can handle losses like this if Russell plays okay or Bush/McFadden go 18 for 70 yards kinda thing but yesterday was just a joke.  The last game i can think of which was just as bad was the 7-6 win over the Chargers, we trailed 6-0 for most of the game, a record for punts for both teams and then somehow Wade Wilson hit James Jett in stride on 4th down for a long touchdown and we won 7-6.

SURELY we'll be far far better against the Panthers but theyre a top team

[R8RMR]

Having read quite a few reports now, I'm aghast at how bad we are perceived as being. I could not find any single report that is even a little upbeat following the debacle yesterday.

Surely they will be better against the Panthers? Based on current performances, I would seriously doubt that we will be able to hold them to just 24 points. And the way the offense is, any points could be down to special teams.

[Aeyjay]

After the jets game I consoled myself that we nearly beat the Bills and Chargers and we were not far away from a .500 team

Holy shit how wrong was I?

That so called performance yesterday is no1 pick material and if that doesn't send shockwaves through Al's skull then nothing ever will and we are doomed as a franchise until he draws his last breath.

[psj3809]

I like to think its just 'one of those games' where everything goes wrong and next week we'll bounce back and everyone will think its just a blip.

But i'm beginning to get very nervous.  Doesnt help that some of the rookie QB's this year are doing well.   To me Russell is a 'rookie' because he missed camp last year, but even so hes playing very poorly lately.  Because of his arm why dont we throw the odd deep pass to keep defenses guessing ?

I know hes a young QB etc but i dont know, the gameplan is just sooo vanilla it seems, tons of short passes, perhaps a 10 yard slant etc.  Granted the line have to give him time and the WR's get open but i dont know, just very nervous about Russell right now.  The rushing game has to improve to help him out though otherwise hes a sitting duck.

STILL think we do have some good  young talent, hope we do anyway !

[Aeyjay]

The only thing that keeps me calm about Russell is the the thought that Gannon or Manning would be struggling to get going in this team.

The knock on him in college was that he had hardly played that many games and that he only had to throw in the general vacinity of his WR's to get  a completion due to is arm good wr's and the lack of good DB's in college that he faced.

This is all coming home to roost at present where he has a limited playing exp coupled with a shoddy line and poor WR's with decent or very good Cb's spread through the NFL.

Hopefully in a year or two he can grow into the franchise QB we all want but it seems a long way off at present. He needs a great QB coach, head coach and team support to develop him and I dispair of us ever having this in the next decade.

[psj3809]

Surely after all the coaches hes fired when Davis does settle on a new coach he will hopefully keep him a while as Russell needs the same coach/QB coach/off co -ordinator ideally for as long as possible.

Rome wasnt built in a day and due to QB's such as Rothliesberger (And Matt Ryan this year) people expect a QB picked in the 1st round (and 1st overall) to instantly be a star.  In the past Aikman/Couch all struggled but also showed the odd flash of talent.  Aikmans 89 Cowboys were worse than our team (just) and he struggled but also had a few good games.

Like you say i obviously hope he will turn into the franchise QB, just in todays NFL people are so quick to say bust.  Cant believe i've read that in a few reports lately, if Russell throws for 300+ yards i wont think he'll make the HOF but if he has a nightmare i wont  think hes a bust.

I'm stunned how bad Javon Walker has been, i thought with Russell learning the ropes Walker would be a great veteran WR to help him.  Walker was great for Denver last year before getting injured.  Shocked at how poor hes been.

I'm actually really looking forward to this weeks game at home as SURELY after one of the worst games of all time in Raider history last week things have to change big time this week.  I'm not expecting a win against Carolina who are a top team and have had a week off but at home surely we'll put on a better show than last week !

[R8RMR]

Can't say that I share your sentiment about this weeks game. I fear that it could be a repeat of the Atlanta debacle. But perhaps the humiliation that they suffered will spur them into a performance that will at least prove that they are capable of playing. And though there is little if any expectations, when Sunday comes, I will still be hoping that they can pull it off.

[psj3809]

Based on the score and your comments, this appears to one that I am glad that I missed. Haven't read anything on it till now. How depressing!

How come you missed the game ?  Thought you would be glued to the box/computer every sunday ?

My wife knows that from Sept-Jan, Sunday 6pm onwards do not book me for anything, no dinner parties, no meeting parents, no shopping.  I'll do whatever she wants all week long bar 6 hours on a sunday night !  Wouldnt miss a game for anything

[R8RMR]

Had to drive over to Edinburgh airport to pick up my daughter. And with delays etc. I missed the the majority of it. But I will be there this Sunday.