State of the Union: Oakland Raiders

Al Davis is dead. There hasn't been a major press release claiming it, but he is most certainly dead. Everything the Raiders have been doing recently has made far too much sense for him to have anything to do with the organization anymore. I don't know if they're going with the Weekend at Bernie's approach or some type of Prestige-esque body double, but they're definitely trying to boost this generation's opinion of the man so when he is gone they can sell his memory for more profit. If he wasn't gone, why would they draft Rolando McClain and have him signed before camp? He didn't run the fastest 40 at the combine but he'll help improve their terrible run defense (29th in the league last year). Overall, this unit was ranked 26th in the league in total defense, but their pass D was surprisingly good. I'm unsure as to whether it was because teams often did not have to pass because they were so terrible, or that their secondary is that talented. Nobody can throw the ball on Nnamdi Asomugha, and if second year starters DT Desmond Bryant (Harvard boy = low expectations for me) and DE Matt Shaughenessy can improve, this team will be solid. Then again, everybody is saying they'll surprise and Tom Cable is still their coach so they'll probably wind up 6-10 (still an improvement on 5-11. Baby steps).

The biggest difference is the lack of JaWalrus Russell. I'm struggling to think of a single player who screwed over his team so badly but coming up blank. Maybe Jim Jones. To hijack Parker from Seattle's statistical analysis, JaMarcus was sacked at twice the rate that the Polish Cannon and Charlie Frye were sacked at, and running backs averaged a full yard per carry less. He lead an offense that, on the season, scored fewer touchdowns than Adrian Peterson and half as many as Drew Brees. They could have had a promotional "buy a beer get a snap" day and gotten better results. At least those guys wouldn't figure out how to overthrow Darrius Heyward-Bey (Who you can't really blame for being terrible last year. The guy is an unpolished receiver with bad hands forced into the one slot. Of course he's gonna suck). Just by taking the Walrus out, the team becomes instantly better on offense, which should help their defense get some rest, which then translates to a better record. As far as their backfield goes, I hope Michael Bush gets more carries than Darren McFadden. I've liked the guy since his days in Louisville and I think he's the better every down back. They should both be better than last year with Campbell running the show (you know you're terrible when Jason Campbell looks like a stud. If Gradkowski could look like a Pro Bowler to Oakland fans then he should be fine).

Sebastian Janikowski is the man. If I were a Raider fan I'd have his jersey.