Going into the 2007 NFL draft, JaMarcus Russell was faced with the prospect of going No. 1 overall to the Oakland Raiders.
These Raiders gave up an appalling 72 sacks and finished last or close to the bottom of the league in nearly every offensive category. That could hardly have been something to look forward to for Russell.
But change was already well underway in Alameda; new head coach Lane Kiffin and his staff were rebuilding the team to give Russell the tools he would need to lead his new team to greatness.
The 2007 season proved a trying one for the Raiders and JaMarcus Russell in particular. Russell had very little playing time until the end of the season, where he played for a set amount of time in two games.
Russell started the finale against the division rival Chargers, gaining valuable playing time. Despite the win-loss record, the Raiders established many things in 2007 that should play an important role next year in Russell's development.
The first is the running game. No team can be successful if they can't run the ball. Offensive line coach Tom Cable's zone-blocking system is a relatively cheap and highly effective way of run blocking, virtually ensuring that R will have a strong running game to rely on next season.
The wild-card here is Michael Bush. Justin Fargas had a breakout season last year, breaking 1,000 yards for the first time in his career while starting nine games. Fargas' performance postponed rookie Michael Bush's debut.
However, the former Louisville standout, who was projected to be a first-round pick before his leg injury in 2007, is ready to make his debut for the Silver and Black in 2008.
His hard, bruising running style, deceptive speed, and pass catching abilities will make him a valuable weapon in Russell's growth. With the speedy Fargas potentially splitting carries with the powerful Bush and Dominic Rhodes also on the roster, the Raiders.
The second factor is continuity in the coaching staff and personnel. Although the offseason has been rocky to say the least for Lane Kiffin, he appears ready to return to the Raiders' sidelines in 2008.
The same holds true for the rest of the staff Kiffin assembled in 2007. This could be the biggest factor in aiding Russell's development The same offensive system and the same coaches go a long way in the growth of a young quarterback.
For evidence, look no further than San Francisco across the bay. Alex Smith, 2005's No. 1 pick, looked as most rookies are expected to look in 2005.
He made huge strides in 2006 under new offensive coordinator Norv Turner, and regressed badly in 2007 under a different coordinator. A quarterback trusting his coach and vice-versa usually spells success (Madden-Stabler; Dungy-Manning, anyone?).
Lastly, let's look at tight end Zach Miller. The team's second round pick in 2007 proved to be invaluable towards the end of the season as both a blocker and receiver.
Miller was on the receiving end of JaMarcus Russell's first NFL touchdown pass in Jacksonville, and he was Russell's favorite target against San Diego, catching eight of Russell's passes.
In the San Diego finale, it seemed Russell could always count on Miller to be open when the play fell apart.
If this continues in 2008, and there's no reason to think it won't, the Raiders may have a makings a of a very formidable offense. Now, for the first time in many years, the Raiders have another of their trademark receiving threats at tight end.
Raiders owner Al Davis is notorious for being relentless in his pursuit of a player he covets, and Chad Johnson's name has been linked to trade rumors with the Raiders.
If this is true, expect Al to push for Ocho Cinco on draft day, and if he manages to land the malcontent but highly talented wide receiver, the Raiders' offense, led by Russell, will terrorize opposing defenses once again.
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5 months ago
With Ocho Cinco, we get a player who is a game breaker who can contribute right off the bat. With D.Mac we also get a player who will make an impact on the team immediately. If and only IF Jake Long is available he too would improve our offense and help Jamarcus' development.
Kiff will implement an offense that has QB Russell rolling out and away from pass rushers to allow the WR's to run their routes effectively, along with a strong running game (made stronger w/ the presence of DMAC) can rely on play action and screens to keep opposing defenses guessing. So while we think Ocho Cinco will contribute to our offense trading the fourth pick is not the answer but utilizing Fabian, Stu, Lamont and/or 3rd and 5th rounder of next yrs draft might make sense.
So assuming we don't draft OL and we are content with running game with Fargas and Rhodes and X factor Bush then we would look to complete a potentially good defense.
With the example above DE's C. Long and V. Gholston are still available as well as Ellis.
SOH is high energy and can bring the old timers back to the stadium and hope that he will be even a slight
resemblance of his father. As of now though he projects better in a 3-4 defense as he is slightly undersized as an every down DE in a 4-3 defense. I get scared when they talk highly about his motor as we recently just parted ways with a guy with high motor (Tyler Braton). Vernon Gholston, a player who did not show up in all of his games and on all of his downs, but did light it up at the end of his final season. If you look at the tape you have to look hard since as stated previously he is not a consistent player and disappears at times in a game. His strength is his potential, as a work out queen he posted some sick numbers and could be developed into the next coming of S. Marrion.
C. Ellis is available but is he a fourth round pick? Who cares we need help up front. Will Dorsey some how fall to us? If yes to the Dorsey question then he would be my first choice. If our D coaches can coach and they have shown that they can or at least draft good players, then we should take Gholston or if we like what C.Long can do right now we should take him.
As of right now we have enough DT's and NT's, but we are short on DE's. We could use a LB but this can be put off till next season as its not a major need. So back to the front line of the D, if we can pick up Gholston or C.Long and pick up a mammoth 2 gap NT a la Sam Addams in the later rounds we could use the remaining picks for the O Line.
So just to recap one last time before this weekends draft. It all has to do with who we have on the board at the time of our 4th overall pick. If we can trade for more picks or for Ocho Cinco great either way!
1 Dorsey
2 C.Long/V.Gholston
3 J.Long
4 DMAC
LARaider70
5 months ago
Do you really want to help JaMarcus Russell?
Trade him to another team......
just kidding, take it easy everyone...
5 months ago
Isn't it crazy how much can change in a year? Last year the Raiders drafted Russell, then signed him in September. Miami has already signed their first overall pick, and St. Louis is inquiring to the league if they can start already.
5 months ago
Actually, considering the advancement from that horrid year of 2006, to 2007, we gave up only 41 sacks, taking last year and bringing it down by a third.
Bringing in Tom Cable, who was helping Atlanta find a running game not named Vick, helped up have a 1000 yard rusher, in Fargas.
The previous 1000 yard rusher, of course, is still on board, for a few more days: Lamont Jordan.
Russell's number one priority, is to learn the game. He had to learn a lot of it on the fly, because he missed out on camp, didn't get any proper starting to work with, and by the time he was given chances, they were in either relief, or, the one start, thrown to the lions.
Don't get me wrong, even against the Chargers, he didn't look bad. He could have been doing the Marc Wilson two step: Take two steps back, and fall back. For extra credit, fumble the ball way.
Keeping the line together, replacing some parts will help, if they're injured. I noticed we got a new center, which will be another person learning the snap counts and other trickery. A lot of what JaMarcus needs, however, only he can do....that is, take the field, and learn what it's really like, on the field of battle.
Nothing substitutes for experience like the real thing.
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