Panda Sees All: Oakland Raiders Preview
FOUR BOLD PREDICTIONS
Bold Prediction: JaMarcus Russell will finish in the top half of the league in QB rating.
Russell’s 77.1 rating last season ranked 26th in the league, but the former No. 1 pick showed dramatic improvement toward the end of last season when the pressure was off (6 TDs, 2 INTs in the last three weeks). With a trio of capable running backs to hand the ball off to and keep opposing defenses honest, Russell will have the opportunity to showcase his strong arm in a wide-open offense that feature two shiny new toys in rookie receivers Darrius Heyward-Bey and Louis Murphy. It’s a make or break season for Russell, who took on a leadership role and hosted top-secret private workouts during the offseason. Of course, none of that excuses Russell for this debacle.
Bold Prediction: Darrius Heyward-Bey will catch at least 65 balls.
…and drop at least 70. We kid. The Raiders were criticized by some for drafting the Maryland product ahead of Texas Tech’s Michael Crabtree, but who’s laughing now bitches? Al Davis, that’s who. While Hey-Bey had a rough start to training camp and has a reputation for the dropsies, he improved throughout the preseason and has developed a decent chemistry with Russell. He’s guaranteed to surpass Johnnie Lee Higgins’ WR-best 22 catches last season and if he gets to 65, he’ll be the first Raiders player to reach that mark since 2005. Yuck.
Bold Prediction: Zach Miller will make the Pro Bowl.
With Tony Gonzalez now doing his thing in the NFC, Miller is one of several young players poised to join Antonio Gates and Dallas Clark in the upper echelon of AFC tight ends. Miller caught 56 balls and averaged 13.9 yards per catch last season, but scored only one touchdown. Entering his third season, the former second-round pick out of Arizona State will once again be one of Russell’s main targets, while rookie tight end Brandon Myers will help ease Miller’s blocking workload.
Bold Prediction: The Raiders will win 7 games.
We know we’re going out on a limb here, what with the head coach allegedly beating the crap out of an assistant, a standout defensive end who is so disenchanted with the idea of playing in Oakland that he refuses to report to the team, and a mostly uninspiring preseason, but what the hell. If our first three predictions come true, the Raiders should be good for at least seven wins, even with a daunting schedule outside of the awful AFC West.
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By Scott on Friday, September 11th, 2009 at 12:00 pm.
Tags: Oakland Raiders