Obi Wan Raider
The Difference Between 6/11 vs. 10/19………
Well my RAIDER Brethren, we’ve seem to come across this “usual suspect” before over the last 6 seasons. Here we are standing one game away from the mid-season mark and we have half the team apparently packing it up for next year and the other half still fighting the “good fight” as they would say. I myself am on the fence just as much of us in The Nation are in that: We want to believe that our team will have that miraculous turn around that we had in 2002 when we lost four straight and then came back to win 7 out of our next 8 games to make the playoffs; And then there are those of us in The Nation that say, “………..Hey there Kool-Aide drinkers, you do realize that THIS RAIDER team couldn’t hold the jockstrap of the 2002 AFC Champion Oakland Raiders don’t you?!!!!@#$#%^&*.” But misguided or not, we in The Nation will holdout all hope that this year is the year. So let’s analyze two small differences in 6/11 vs. 10/19 shall we…?
What exactly is 6/11 you ask? Well 6/11 is JaMarcus Russell’s completions vs. attempts in Sundays a$$-whooping handed to us by the New York Jets. But that’s not all Nation, when you go 6/11 for 61 measly, pathetic, uninspired, “pop warner-esq” yards you also win the following……..Vanna tell the Nation what they get with this from the Franchise QB …....! You get 2 interceptions (granted one of them was surely not Russell’s fault and squarely on the receiver). You get an opponent that knows that you are one damn dimensional. You get an opponent that has NO fear of you fighting back once they capitalize on your subpar play and lack of a passing game. You get Pace have a freakin’ career day when the O-line acts like a sieve. You get yanked like a bad act on Showtime at The Apollo! You get games with multiple fumbles, that by the way should not be happening given Russell’s physique as most of the time he is barely touched and fumbles the ball. Lastly, you get a QB with a pressure clock that apparently has dead or no batteries in it. If you doubt it Ladies and Gents just take a look at what 10/19 gets you.
Mathematically 10/19 gets you roughly 52% and yes that is 2% les than 6/11 (54%) that was turned in by Russell as noted above. But I present to you Nation that the 2% less is actually more. I say this because in the second half when Gradkowski can back in the game you saw more urgency in the offense. You saw a QB deliver crisp, clean balls that the receivers dropped. You saw the O-line play just a bit more inspired than earlier in the game. What you also gained with 10/19 was a QB that realized when to tuck it and run and when to show emotion instead of being the misunderstood little Eeyore that everyone wonders if he even gives a damn about his performance. We have been without a viable option at QB for so long that some of us in The Nation walk around screaming, “...…My kingdom for a QB……” Gradkowski was able to stand in the pocket (when the protection was good) plant and deliver a nicely thrown ball that was more than catchable. He was able to get the offense moving and mixed the plays up enough so that the Jets could not key in on one receiving target. He deserves a shot to see what a full week of practice and reps with the first team can give him. Bruce had has miscues in the game as well, don’t get me wrong, but that can be attributed to his not having any significant playing time since August.
Russell has had all of last year and 7 games into this year to show that he grasps what it means to be an NFL QB and sadly to say I don’t think that he has truly understood what it takes to make it at this level. The NFL is not LSU where you can simply rely upon your physical gifts to get you through games. You need that football IQ that will allow you to CONSISTENTLY work through your progression and EFFECTIVELY manage the game. No one would be upset at 200 or little less passing yards with an effective game managing QB. If you don’t think that can work look back to the Steelers use of Big Ben his first few years throwing less than 20 times a game. Gradkowski has his short comings just as all QB’s do but as my grandfather would say, “……Ya Gotta Show Me You’re At least Progressing With What You’ve Learned Son To Keep What Has Been Afforded You…….” Sadly, it is the collective thought of most in The Nation that Russell has actually regressed, and that’s putting it mildly.
I do agree that the WR’s could do a vastly improved job of helping Russell out and doing this crazy thing called their jobs and actually catching the ball. Conversely Cable could ACTUALLY play to our strengths more and run the ball more than he has. Realistically we need no fewer than 35 – 40 rushing plays to take the pressure off of Russell to make him noticeably better. All of our QB issues not withstanding; until we learn to play to OUR strengths (Offensively and Defensively, Yeah Just Blitz Baby) we will NEVER get out of the basement bunking with the likes of the Chiefs. It doesn’t take a Rhodes Scholar to figure that out but apparently it is too novel an idea for our Owner Mr. Al Davis and coaching staff to grasp. My prayer is that they realize this before it’s too late and the RAIDERS come to a home game with the stands filled by seagulls and the chill of the East Bay crosswinds instead of the RAIDER NATION.
As Always,
Obi-Wan-Raider
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