The Oakland Raiders Continued Struggles: Will They Ever Turn The Corner?

Oakland Raiders, you have just broken my heart too many times. After 7 years of ineptitude, all of my optimism is dead. While I can never dream of switching teams, I can no longer get excited each year, thinking this is going to be the year they start to right the ship. I believed that after their defeat in Super Bowl XXXVIII, that they were definite contenders for a repeat appearance the next year. I raised my eyebrows at the hiring of Norv Turner, but I still believed. When Turner was fired, Al Davis surprised many by hiring Art Shell, and "straight from the bed and breakfast in no one cares Idaho" Tom Walsh as offensive coordinator. Despite all of the naysayers, I still believed. And when Al Davis took a chance on Lane Kiffin, a college assistant from then perennial top 5 USC, whom no one had ever really heard of, I still believed. Even after the disaster that was Lane Kiffin's tenure and the beginning of Tom Cable’s, I still tried to believe. After the 34-13 defeat against the Washington Redskins this past Sunday, I'm fresh out of optimism.

I was never a Raider Fan by choice; I was born into it you could say. My father was a big fan of the then Los Angeles Raiders. I was a fan, but was never too enthusiastic about the Raiders, during their similar and all too familiar period of mediocrity of the 90s. However in 1998, things began to turn around. A then little known young Offensive co-coordinator, named Jon Gruden took over. In 1999 Rich Gannon was added, and by 2000 we were in the AFC championship. I felt as though I finally wouldn't be the guy who got laughed at every time he spoke of his favorite team. Too bad this was way too short lived.

After dominating most of the NFL and basically walking through the 2003 NFL Playoffs, with a 30-10 victory over the New York Jets, and a 41-24 routing of the Tennessee Titans in the AFC championship, I thought I would really get to see another Raider Super Bowl Victory, something I had yet to see in my lifetime. On paper it seemed as though the Raiders could easily beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, however the opposing coach had only just the previous year taken the Raiders to what should have been at least another AFC Championship if it weren't for one of the most controversial calls in NFL history. This element plus the mental collapse of Pro Bowl center Barrett Robbins, which is story that is just too bizarre to happen to anyone but the Raiders led to the rout in Super Bowl XXXVIII that haunts the Raiders Organization and myself to this day.

Ever since the bitter Super Bowl defeat the Raiders have been the second worst team behind the perennial bottom of the barrel Detroit Lions. We have suffered through 7 years of not just mediocre play, but downright laughable. At this point, and after 7 years I have begun to see the pattern. Al Davis hires, either washed up, or no name coaches with unimpressive resumes as head coach. He then pays exorbitant amounts of money for a select few players, some deserving, IE Nnamdi Asomugha, and some not so deserving IE Jamarcus Russell, Javon Walker, while having a mediocre roster with a few bright spots. However, any player who reaches a certain level either gets in a dispute with Al Davis, or leaves for more money, to succeed at another team. It’s bad enough we don't have very many quality play makers, but we can’t even keep them. Imagine the kind of secondary we would have if Charles Woodson, and Nnamdi Asomugha were in our backfield now, or if Randy Moss had decided to play and were still around for Jamarcus Russell to learn with. It’s a combination of inexperienced, or washed out coaches and a hedge maze of a personnel department that hold the Raiders back. As of now I don't see this problem being resolved in the near future. With Bruce Gradkowski likely out for the year, we'll either get to see Jamarcus Russell struggle, or Charlie Frye likely struggle. At the end of the year, Cable will be fired, and replaced with someone else you've never heard of, because proven coaches aren't willing to concede so much authority to Al Davis. We will then, find some way to leave everyone scratching their head at our picks in the 2010 draft. We will then probably let go of a player or two we absolutely shouldn't, overpay some high profile, but likely washed or at least controversial veteran free agent at some position, and all of the Raider faithful will again think that this is going to be the year. However before even the midpoint of the season, our hopes will likely be dashed yet again.

I will always be a Raider fan, and destined to be the laughing stock of the NFL for the foreseeable future. It is a sad existence, but I tell myself, no NFL team can be bad forever save for the Detroit Lions. Even the Arizona Cardinals, after the better part of the century of pedestrian efforts in the NFL have turned the corner. At some point Al Davis will have to luck out and hire the right coach with the right set of players or maybe at some point he will relinquish some of his authority to either a coach, or a qualified general manager type who can make better personnel decisions. This could take a few years, it could be next year, or it could be next century. I've avidly followed the Raiders each season, and subsequent offseason, and had high hopes for each year. I just can’t do it anymore.

Over seven years of dashed hopes, and the at least yearly bizarre controversial story involving the Raiders, I just haven't been given much too look forward to. The Raiders are going to have to prove to me that they have made the change to at least be a competitive franchise for me to have any enthusiasm. Unfortunately I don't see this happening in the foreseeable future. There is always next year, but it has been 7 long painful next years with no results. I simply just can’t take the heartbreak anymore.