NFL Draft 2011: Oakland Raiders Hoping for Great Picks and No "Busts"

When I first saw that the Oakland Raiders joined in a partnership with the California Lottery, I thought it was a clever idea. After all, the lottery is a game and NFL football is a popular sport.

Later, I found that many NFL teams are joining in partnership’s with their state’s lottery. For example, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Cleveland Browns  and the Houston Texans have their name attached to lottery games.

The Oakland Raiders launched their scratch ticket in Sept. 2010. If you don’t win the cash, you can win other things like tickets.

Taking a chance on the lottery may be like taking a chance on a draft choice. The selection process for the draft starts today, and it’s as exciting as winning a lottery game or even a football game.

We hope that the choices that the Oakland Raiders make will not be “busts” like a few of those in the past. Yes, we know that the selection of new players is taking a chance, but let’s hope the criteria with which Al Davis or Hue Jackson select the players will yield steady, stable and predictable results and wins for the Oakland Raiders.

Hopefully, the partnerships between NFL teams and the lottery will help raise funds for education and other worthy causes.

Let’s just say that there is more than one way to impact the economy in an NFL team's town.

First, take chances on good players and make wise choices in the draft. Second, help other revenue producing strategies by partnering with them to raise money for communities and other worthy causes.

Even when you consider the name of the stadium, Overstock.com, you realize that the name may not sound “cool” but the use of it might boost ticket sales and minimize the number of blackouts in 2011.

What do you think? Let's hope the chips fall right for the Oakland Raiders and no more "busts" cause the team to struggle. In the meantime, let's keep looking at the mathematics and probabilities association with the progress of the Oakland Raiders in 2011.

By the way, many of my students are continuing to join us in tracking the Oakland Raiders by using the data.

Go Raiders!