With Brandon Marshall serving a one-game suspension, Jay Cutler was forced to the find another go-to receiver—at least for one night. It looks as if he found his new favorite target.
Rookie receiver Eddie Royal caught nine passes for 146 yards and a touchdown for the Broncos, as he and the other Bronco receivers torched the much-hyped Raider secondary for 299 yards.
Darrell Jackson added a 48-yard touchdown reception and tight end Tony Scheffler caught a deep pass and rumbled for 72 yards.
During the offseason, the Raiders spent a lot of money on free agents. Less than a month after celebrating a Super Bowl victory, safety Gibril Wilson celebrated signing a free-agent contract worth $39 million.
Oakland then re-signed defensive lineman Tommy Kelly to a $50 million contract. Oakland then traded two draft picks to acquire the rights to cornerback DeAngelo Hall and gave him $70 million.
If my math is correct, the Raiders gave nearly $160 million to three players.
Wilson is supposed to bring the championship experience he gained as a member of the New York Giants. Instead, at least three of his tackles were made more than 15 yards down the field, and he committed an unnecessary-roughness penalty.
Tommy Kelly was signed to replace Warren Sapp. So far, he's only replaced him on the depth chart. The Broncos gashed the defensive line for nearly 150 yards while not allowing a sack.
The pairing of Hall with Nnamdi Asomugha conjured up images of Lester Hayes and Mike Haynes for the optimistic Raider Nation. Hall debuted for Oakland by getting abused by Denver receivers and embarrassing himself with two personal foul penalties on the same drive. Those penalties led to a Bronco touchdown.
Despite the brutality on defense, there were some offensive highlights.
JaMarcus Russell hit on 17-of-26 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns. He did lose a fumble, but he did not throw an interception.
Running backs Justin Fargas and Darren McFadden combined for 143 yards on 27 carries. Continued success of the running game will open up the play-action pass for Russell and allow him better pass protection.
Unfortunately for the Raiders, much of the offensive production came in the fourth quarter, well after the outcome was decided.
13 comments Last one added 10 months ago — Leave a Comment
Al's Wingman 10 months ago
I didn't catch him at post game interview but if he is sounding off again, that's not going to help. Kiff needs to professionalize himself. You have to lose woth dignity and maintain direction. He's in a tough spot but it does no good to whine if that is what he is doing.
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Paul Augustin, Jr. 10 months ago
his disgust was very apparent in his body language on the sidelines.
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Michael Miller 10 months ago
Yeah, I gotta feel bad for the guy. He's in a lose-lose situation. If he sticks around, and has a dismal season, his record looks bad. If he quits, like Al Davis wants him to, he loses a bunch of money. Too bad, you would think by now people around the NFL would know not to touch Oakland until Al Davis either A: gets his head on straight, or B: keels over and goes to 'heaven'. Good Luck Kiff
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Chris X 10 months ago
I'm done with Al Davis. I was completely shocked by what transpired last night.
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mandingo 10 months ago
the raiders as a team didn't show much, but all i can say is this.....al davis era should've been over long time ago, he's killing is team and draggin the fans in the process.
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New Mexico Raider 10 months ago
Your all a bunch of F'n crybabies. Al Davis went and during the off season and signed the best players out there. Most of you were on board when he did this. Now because they lost one game your out there blaming him. This game was about not being prepared which falls on the coaches and players. As for that dumb a## niner fan you should worry about your team.
New Mexico RAIDER!!
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Chris X 10 months ago
Quote from Kiffin in the SF Gate regarding the defense:
"I'm not going to get really get into if I was the defensive coordinator what I would do because that doesn't really matter," coach Lane Kiffin said Wednesday. "I'm the head coach. I oversee everything and I control what I can control. Do I have the exact belief we do on defense? No, but it's hard to have the exact belief that we do. So, it is what it is."
regarding blitzing:
"We talk about it early in the week," Kiffin said. "Rob and the owner are always in communication. For the most part, I let Rob do his thing over there. He has a belief in certain things and he has a conversation with the owner about that. So, that wasn't the way the game plan ended up the other night."
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The_KRAKEN 10 months ago
I'M EMBARRESSED AND MY ASS IS STILL SORE !!
I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY ANYMORE.
The Kraken
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mike Raider 10 months ago
SUCKED! Have to believe that we would not be better off with Kiffin have more control, he has been mentioning lack of ability to get enough talent - getting some real competition on the team, not just making some big name splash.... 1 down, 15 to go, can't get much worse than that performance - let's hope
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mike Raider 10 months ago
....and meant have to believe we WOULD be better off with Kiff having more control -- typo
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James Senbeta 10 months ago
Don't forget Javon Walker, who has yet to have regular season action.
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Fan of Foozball captn crunch 10 months ago
Ive been a raider fan since tecmo bowl and i will forever be a raider fan till i Die but i would like to say each year its a fresh start but that freshness just like milk turns sour in a couple weeks....I believe there were horrible play calls...too many run plays in the first half...we need to mix things up a bit...CURRY needs to put glue on his hands...The O line needs to protect there QB....but what i was really disappointed in was the "D" they couldnt tackle anyone if there life depended on it...and deangelo Fall i mean Hall needs to step it up...they should of put Asoumoga on royal at least he can tackle and defend
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Evan Rockford 10 months ago
raiders suck
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