Richard Seymour proves the Raiders’ team facility has become an asylum

Where the crazy people go play. Photo from Flickr user scotrail.

Al Davis has been crazy for years, and the overhead-projector-aided rambling press conference about Lane Kiffin only solidified that the owner is lucid enough to still be nuts. Then JaMarcus Russell proved he’s delusional by saying he was fine with his awful passing performance this year.

Well there must be something in the water, because now Richard Seymour has lost his damn mind, too.


The defensive end was on a Cincinnati radio show Wednesday (who the hell knows why he’s on a show in Cincinnati when the Raiders play New York this week), and he boldly proclaimed that the Raiders will make the playoffs. Not in 2015, or even next year – he expects to playing in January this season.

A very rough afternoon for Russell and the Raiders

It’s official Raider Nation: JaMarcus Russell is not only going to be a bust – he’s lost his damn mind.

We’re three years into the Russell experiment, and so far the results are not just bad – they’re damn right Ryan Leaf-ian. To be fair, we can hardly count the first season of Russell’s NFL career since he wasn’t signed until almost October and missed training camp and preseason. But Russell has had nothing but time to learn since then, and instead of getting better, he’s getting much, much worse. But don't tell him that - the quarterback has repeatedly said he's feeling fine about his play so far. At least someone in Oakland is...

Are you ready for some football? 2009 NFL Preview

The Autumn wind is upon us – football season is finally here! It’s time for 17 weeks of hard-hitting football, and we’re going to celebrate the kick-off at Unsportsmanlike Conduct by offering a look into our predictions for the NFL season.

AFC WEST: Oakland Raiders (8-8)
AFC NORTH: Pittsburgh Steelers (14-2)
AFC SOUTH: Indianapolis Colts (14-2)
AFC EAST: New England Patriots (12-4)
WILD CARDS: Houston Texans (10-6), Baltimore Ravens (12-4)

Analysis: You read that right – I am calling my shot, Oakland wins the West this year and has a (gasp) home playoff game. Now before you get all out of control, realize two things: First, that the Raiders will finish 8-8, which isn’t that spectacular of a record; and second, that the division is absolutely atrocious. Remember that 8-8 did, in fact, win this division last year. The Broncos are in for a very bad season, and the Chiefs won’t be much better this year. San Diego could still win this division, but even if they do it won’t be at better than 9-7. The Chargers have to deal with an aging LaDainian Tomlinson, and Norv Turner will always cost a team at least a game or two every year. Oakland’s three-headed running back monster of Darren McFadden, Michael Bush and Justin Fargas is going to take a lot of pressure off of JaMarcus Russell, and Richard Seymour is in a contract year - at age 30 he needs the last big score to set up the rest of his career. Expect Seymour to play with a fire in his belly, and immensely improve both the run and pass defense. If the Raiders do play better defense and effectively hand the ball off about 30 times a game, 8-8 is very much within reach. They are going to get stomped on in the first round of the playoffs though, anyway.

As for the others, Pittsburgh has a soft schedule, and the Steelers are a good team that hasn’t gotten any worse – they will have the No. 1 seed in the postseason. The Colts won’t lose much without Marvin Harrison since Anthony Gonzalez has stepped up. As for New England, the Patriots are going to find their defense is not what it used to be now that most of the leaders have left, but they have enough firepower to overwhelm most teams. When New England runs into teams that can pressure Tom Brady, it’ll be in serious trouble. The Ravens also have a favorable schedule, which allows them to use a steady offense and still-great defense on the way to 12 wins. The pieces are all in place for Houston, and now is the time for the Texans to make their first postseason trip in franchise history.

NFC WEST: Arizona Cardinals (10-6)
NFC NORTH: Minnesota Vikings (11-5)
NFC SOUTH: New Orleans Saints (11-5)
NFC EAST: Philadelphia Eagles (13-3)
WILD CARDS: Chicago Bears (11-5), Dallas Cowboys (10-6)

The NFC East gets a huge boost this season because it gets to play all of the AFC West teams, which is almost like guaranteeing three wins a piece. Philly has the defense to stop good offenses, and Donovan McNabb finally has an offense that is stacked with young, explosive weapons. The Eagles were already a conference championship favorite before Michael Vick, but his addition could add a dimension that makes their offense virtually unstoppable. The Vikings are also a team poised for a huge year, because all Brett Favre has to do is complete a few deep passes a game to keep defenses from stacking the line. If Adrian Peterson continues to dominate, Favre is going to be especially deadly with play-action passes to speedsters like Bernard Berrian and Percy Harvin. The Saints haven’t been able to put it together the last couple of seasons, but Tampa Bay is going to struggle and Carolina and Atlanta can’t help but regress a little, so I look for New Orleans to capitalize and win the division. The Cardinals will actually finish with a better record than they did last year, thanks to a favorable schedule and a boost of confidence from their Super Bowl run last season. But if Kurt Warner gets hurt or regresses to his fumble-prone ways, the West is a division that could be stolen by either the San Francisco 49ers or the Seattle Seahawks.

The Bears with Jay Cutler will be successful, but they can’t overcome Minnesota in the division. The Cowboys, like the Eagles, benefit mightily from playing the AFC West, and finally make it back to postseason play. Look for Washington to make noise in this division as well. Jason Campbell has improved steadily every year, and the addition of Albert Haynesworth will be huge. There have been few defensive players that have such an impact as he does – he really is a game changer. I will be shocked if two teams from the NFC East aren’t playing postseason football.

PLAYOFFS

AFC
Wild Card
Baltimore over Oakland
New England over Houston

Divisional
Indianapolis over New England
Pittsburgh over Baltimore

Conference
Pittsburgh over Indianapolis

NFC

Wild Card
Dallas over Arizona
New Orleans over Chicago

Divisional
Minnesota over Dallas
Philadelphia over New Orleans

Conference
Philadelphia over Minnesota

SUPER BOWL XLIV
Pittsburgh over Philadelphia

Are the Silver and Black on Crack?

By Fernando Gallo

In the words of Vince Lombardi: What the hell is going on here?

The Raiders have traded for defensive end Richard Seymour, giving up a first-round pick in 2011 in the process. That the Raiders made a move from completely out of left field is not really a story these days. But this trade? Oy vey...

For the Patriots, I completely understand why they made this deal. Seymour is in the last year of his contract and they don’t like to pay anybody. He’s got three rings already, so he’ll likely want to set up the rest of his life with one last fat contract. The Pats certainly weren’t going to give him that, so they trade him for a possible top-ten pick. Makes sense.

As for the Al Davis All-stars - what are you guys thinking? This move makes sense for a team that really is one piece away from Super Bowl contention, but not for the bumbling Raiders. Seymour is a former Pro Bowler, and certainly talented, but is his addition going to shore up a run defense that got gashed by three of four opponents this preseason? Doubtful.

This solidifies the fact that Davis is simply too stubborn to succeed in today’s NFL. He refuses to flat-out rebuild, and this latest reach might be one of the most painful. Based on the fact that Oakland hasn’t won more than six games since 2002, the pick they just gave up is likely to be a good one. And if Seymour leaves for free agency after this year, this is one of the dumbest trades in NFL history.

On a slightly different note, is there some sort of secret, under-the-table deal between Davis and Patriots owner Robert Kraft? These two teams just can’t seem to get enough of each other. The Raiders hired former defensive coordinator Rob Ryan from the Patriots in 2004, gave away Randy Moss to them in 2007 in a deal that still gives me nightmares, and sent disgruntled defensive lineman Derrick Burgess there earlier this year. Oakland seems to be doing New England a lot of favors - how about a little reciprocation one of these days?

Why Al Davis? Why do you hate me?

It is with a heavy heart that I write this first blog post. I want to express my displeasure with the Oakland Raiders and the Cryptkeeper, er, Al Davis, but it is just so hard to find words that are strong enough.

Seriously? Another speedster? Another defensive back? Sigh...

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm talking about the NFL draft, and Davis' inexplicable and moronic moves. If there was ever any doubt on who's calling the shots in Oakland, it's been cemented now. Crazy old man Davis is sitting in his office watching tape from the 80s, cackling as he dreams of the days of Willie Brown and Fred Biletnikoff.

First there was the selection of Darrius Heyward-Bey with the seventh overall pick. Sure he's big (6'3") and yeah, he's fast (4.2 40-yard dash). But he would have been just as big and fast at the No. 20 pick! The Raiders could have traded down and gotten some extra draft picks, and still drafted Heyward-Bey. Plus, he would have been a lot cheaper then, too. Based on last year's contracts, the Raiders could have saved about $35 million dollars.

And let's not forget who was available at No. 7: a receiver by the name of Michael Crabtree. Perhaps you've heard of him and his playmaking abilities? I gave myself a concussion with how hard I smacked my forehead on Saturday.

This is a classic Davis pick. It's sad that all those Raider-haters on the networks can snicker and say the pick was because of Davis' obsession with speed - and they're right. And now Crabtree will wear red and gold across the bay, and his numerous Pro Bowl selections will taunt us for years to come. Heyward-Bey might turn out to be a great player, but I am worried about a guy who never caught more than 51 passes or 5 touchdowns in a season.

Then the Raiders pick a guy in the second round who was being projected as a Day 2 pick (hell, maybe even an undrafted free agent). Michael Mitchell might be talented, but why waste a second round choice on him? It came out on Sunday that the Bears were ready to take Mitchell with the No. 49 pick, just two picks after the Raiders selected him. NFL Network draft expert Mike Mayock said Mitchell had seen his stock rise late, but the Raiders have drafted defensive backs in the first two rounds in eight of the last nine years. Mix in an offensive tackle now and then, will you?

NFL experts on ESPN and NFL Network love to ramble on about the ineptitude of the Raiders, and they take pleasure in ripping my beloved Raider Nation to shreds. This has made me angry for years, and the East Coast bias thing on ESPN especially gets old, but I have no defense anymore. It hurts me to type this, but the Raiders deserve to be the laughingstock of the league right now. And the main reason for this? You guessed it - Al Davis.

In his day, Davis was a badass who was a perfect fit for the Raiders. He hated the NFL and it hated him right back, but the term Commitment to Excellence actually meant something and people feared the Silver and Black. Now, the game has passed you by, Mr. Davis. And the Raider faithful have to sit here and watch as you pick speed and flash over substance. Former head coach Jon Gruden said on NFL Network Sunday that Al Davis, "could care less what any of us think." Unfortunately, Chucky, I think you're right.

John Madden, please return home and buy this team before its too late. And if anyone out there can run a 4.3 40-yard dash, please report to Raiders training camp this summer. Al Davis might want to offer you a contract.