Oakland Raiders Giving Me That Sick Feeling Again: Finally!

I'm always a nervous wreck before an Oakland Raiders game. It doesn't matter if they are1-4 or 4-1, if they're in the playoff hunt or eliminated by Week 12; I'm a mess no matter what.

During the past seven years, there has been something missing. Yes, victories, but something more than that. On October 24, 2010 that all began to change.

I was taking a shower prior to a game that pitted the Raiders against their hated rival Denver Broncos. The Raiders' record was 2-4 at the time, and they were coming off a terrible loss to the San Francisco 49ers; I started to feel sick to my stomach, started to gag and then proceeded to dry heave.

At first I thought I was getting sick, then I realized the magnitude of the game. If the Raiders lost, the season would be pretty much over; they would have to win to stay in the playoff hunt.

When the Raiders were contenders I would vomit before every game. Let's not forget the other symptoms like cold sweats, nervous pacing and then there is the partial blackout five seconds before kickoff. The feeling was finally back!

From that game on, things changed. The Raiders started to win again, and I was puking in the shower and almost passing out before every game.

Unfortunately, the Raiders missed the playoffs, but they were in the hunt right up until Week 16. They finished a respectable 8-8 season with a victory against the Kansas City Chiefs in a game that actually meant something to the Chiefs.

The physical symptoms I had to endure during the 2010 season were well worth it, because if I'm as anxious as a man about to get his prostate checked then maybe, just maybe, the Oakland Raiders are relevant again. Then again, it could just mean I'm a little nuts. I'm perfectly OK with both.