(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
We should all wish that Antonio Pierce had something to say about the Raiders every week.
One week removed from a performance that was as lackluster and inspired as it was embarrassing, the Oakland Raiders looked themselves in the eyes and asked "Are we not men?"
The answer, at least for three-and-a-half hours on Sunday, was "Yes. Fierce men."
After laying an egg against the Giants in a 44-7 thrashing that honestly could've been 51-0 or worse, the Raiders were called out by New York linebacker Antonio Pierce.
Breaking an unwritten rule of team sports that makes it taboo for an opponent to question another team's heart, desire, passion, and professionalism, Pierce saw a team that was so far in shambles that his statement was more one of pity than it was of criticism.
It was on these players as men with pride in themselves and their craft to answer the bell and come out fired up, proving critics, fans, and a very disillusioned Raider Nation that they were professional football players. Not frauds. Not humps happy to pick up a paycheck.
I'm happy to say that they shut my mouth, that's for sure.
I don't know if it was Pierce's comments, or inspiration drawn from a fearless, hardcore pigeon that kept excellent contain on one particular Raider kickoff, but this was a different Raider team.
The pigeon gets a game-ball from me; he just flew down that field looking to hit someone. He owned that field; the strut and attitudinal head bob he showed fit right in with the swagger of the resurgent Raiders defense.
I hear Al Davis has signed him to a 5-year, $60 million contract with $25 million guaranteed.
This team came out like a house on fire. On defense, coordinator John Marshall finally decided to ignore conventional Raider wisdom and use his ultra-fast players to blitz the hell out of Donovan McNabb. Although half-joking he'll probably get in trouble for it, after the success the defense had getting in the grill of McNabb, he may be wrong.
When Eagles LT Jason Peters went out of the game in the first quarter, the Raider line began licking their chops. Richard Seymour, solid but unspectacular the last couple of games, made the trenches his own personal Ironman triathlon.
Despite being held, slapped in the head, double/triple teamed, and even blatantly tripped on one play, Seymour set up camp in the Eagles' backfield and refused to give up real estate. I'm not one for complaining about the officiating, but it was distinctly one-sided in this game; perhaps the refs felt sorry for the Eagles' O-line.
Seymour pressured McNabb constantly, knocked him down a half-dozen times, and recorded two official sacks. He would've had three had he not been taken down by replacement LT who, while prostrate after Seymour manhandled him yet again, executed a technically flawless scissor-kick that would've made the Fabulous Moolah proud.
Trevor Scott, Tommy Kelly, Kirk Morrison, and Thomas Howard were also gigantic pains in McNabb's rear. Imagine if Ellis was fully healthy? Inspired line play and good gap discipline. The Raiders intensity and creativity on defense completely and utterly took the Eagles out of their gameplan, and left them looking lost and scared. It was beautiful.
On the offensive side of the ball, we finally got that big play we've all been waiting for. I don't when I've seen a better effort from a wide receiver than Louis Murphy's one-man accompaniment of Zach Miller's 86-yard touchdown romp.
First, Murphy lines up safety Quintin Mikell and absolutely blows him up. I mean, he pasted the dude. Before he even hits the ground, he's running down field, looking for someone else to block. The unselfish sacrifice of Murphy is something we haven't seen much in Raider land, and it was as refreshing and inspiring as it was exciting. Even though he hasn't caught a pass in a while, from what I've seen, I love this kid.
JaMarcus Russell, whom I have been very very hard on recently, vindicated himself with a performance that was more about confidence, intelligence, and leadership than stats. Oh, his line was pretty good with 18/27 and 224 yds, a TD and 2 INT's (one which was a deflection) but his presence was much, much more impressive.
His pocket presence, non-existent against the Giants, was impressive against the Eagles. Although the Eagles didn't get a ton of pressure (great job, O-Line), when they did, Russell calmly slid out of the pocket and completed passes either to FB Gary Russell, or to Zach Miller.
On one play, Russell was snagged and heading for a sack. Before he went down, he showed his impressive lower-body strength by holding himself up just long enough to complete a flick to Gary Russell. He wasn't even close to making plays like that last week.
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