If the Oakland Raiders' Receivers Don't Produce, Whose Fault Is It?

Quick, off the top of your head, who is the receivers coach of the Oakland Raiders?  No, it’s not Fred Biletnikoff.  He was politely removed to a front office position a few years ago, replaced by James Lofton who was himself replaced (without explanation of course) after last season by someone named Sanjay Lal.

We won’t be too hard on Sanjay.  Presumably, his bio at raiders.com makes it clear that he is better qualified than Lofton—a Hall of Famer—to coach up a receiving corps that under-produced last season.

We can speculate on the reason for Lofton’s removal.  It may not be fair but the coach has to take responsibility for the production of the receivers.  There is little question the Raiders wide receivers did not do very well as a whole (with some notable exceptions in a few games).   

Never mind that Jamarcus Russell played behind an unsteady offensive line, giving him little time to make his throws or that he is inconsistent with his accuracy anyway.  We’ll take it for granted that Undead Al knows his business and that James Lofton was not the right guy for the job after all. 

This, despite Lofton being given consideration as a head coaching candidate of the Raiders at least once but probably twice.  It’s ok for the guy in charge to change his mind when he feels like it.

Still, everything written about Lofton by media beat writers in training camp last season was very positive.  Even though a passing game never emerged in training camp or the preseason, was it Lofton’s fault or the receivers Al brought in to play on the team? 

Personally, I do not have any serious questions about Lofton’s ability to teach the nuances of the game to young receivers. Also, during the Lance Kiffin fiasco, Lofton was a company man and stood in Al’s corner all the way through so loyalty can't be part of it though who knows if Lofton may have said something he shouldn't have to Al.

Though, Undead Al did not seem to cut Lofton loose entirely.  Reports are he is still working at team HQ.  In what capacity no one knows.

As it stands, Sanjay Lal has his work cut out for him, The Raiders have some talent in the receiving corps but we don’t know if Ashley Lelie will be back or not.  That means the only proven veteran is head case Javon Walker.  Javon will start because Al insists he gets his money’s worth after last season's debacle. 

So for at least one more season we can look forward to another single catch per game performance from Javon Walker. 

We can also depend on Johnnie Lee Higgins making a few plays and then acting like a gay bird with his booty shaking end zone dances (why not just come out of the closet Johnnie? We won’t laugh at you, promise.).

The additions of  high priced rookie Darrius Heyward-Bey and fourth round draft pick Louis Murphy and whatever free agents get a look in camp should only improve the offense.

If Drew Carter stays healthy and on board, that’s a plus.  So would a breakout year for second year pro Chaz Schilens.  From the looks of it, the promising Todd Watkins will once again be training camp fodder and be buried when cuts are made.

The addition of a blocking tight end should help free up first stringer Zach Miller who has the surest hands on the team.

So things are not so bad as far as depth now at receiver.  We’ll just have to rely on Undead Al’s judgment if it was worth it to bypass one of the top two rated Left Tackles in the draft (Eugene Monroe who was taken by Jacksonville with the No. 8 pick following the Raiders) in favor of a pure speed after the catch guy in Darrius Heyward-Bey at No. 7.