Paranoidmoonduck
01-05-2010, 02:48 AM
Now that this season is wrapped up for the Raiders, let's take a look back...
Pleasant Surprises
Bruce Gradkowski - The list of positives for Oakland this year has to start with Gradkowski, the guy who was fighting for the 3rd quarterback spot in the preseason. He only started 4 games and only posted a passer rating of 80.6, but we saw an entirely different offense with him under center. Whether Bruce gets a fair shake at the starting job next season is yet to be seen, but I believe he should.
Tyvon Branch - This kid absolutely exceeded my expectations. He came into the NFL as a cornerback weighing under 200 lbs and after only one year of special teams work transformed himself into quite the strong safety, leading all defensive backs in tackles for 2009. I had my doubts that he'd be able to be as physical as we needed him to be, but he proved to be a willing and aggressive tackler who was fairly strong in coverage.
Louis Murphy - Murphy was sort of an afterthought with all the attention (mostly negative) than surrounded the selection of Darrius Heyward-Bey in the first round. I knew he was a good receiver, but he came from a school with a spotty track record for wideouts and from an offense that was nothing like our own. Sure, Murphy had a few rough games with lapses in concentration and dropped balls, but he arguably came up even bigger at times than Zach Miller did for us.
Matt Shaughnessy - He only started two games, but outside of Richard Seymour, one could make the argument that Shaughnessy was our best defensive lineman. He wasn't a fantastic pass rusher, but he consistently played to the whistle and helped keep the edge against the run, something Oakland has needed for seasons.
Depressing Disappointments
Thomas Howard - While Kirk Morrison continues to receive the most flack from Raider fans, it's Howard who failed to take that step forward that we've been anticipating from him since his great sophomore campaign. He's a great athlete, but his disruptive moments were fewer and farther in between in 2009 and it's far from a sure thing that he gets brought back for the 2010 season.
Chris Johnson - Johnson finished 2008 so strongly, I was almost convinced we had corner capable of handling the attention that playing opposite Asomugha generates. Sadly, almost from the get-go, the Johnson we got this year was sloppy and despite his blazing speed was regularly beat deep. I'm not even sure he was better than Stanford Routt.
JaMarcus Russell - There's no much to say here that hasn't already been said. He's talented, he'll go through streaks of making great throws (throws only he can make), but he lackadaisical both on and off the field. He's not going to be the guy to lead this team and it appears that Al Davis finally gets that. He may be given a shot to win the job for 2010 but he'll have to show a work ethic he hasn't even come close to mustering so far in his career.
Awards
Most Valuable Player(s) - Sebastian Janikowski/Shane Lechler
While the team in general struggled, both Lecher and Janikowski had their best years ever. Janikowski missed one field goal inside of 50 yards all year and nailed a career long 61 yarder (the 4th longest FG in NFL history). On top of that he managed to score essentially half of all of Oakland's points this season and became the first player to score 1000 points as a Raiders. As for Lechler, he may have had the best season by a punter in modern NFL history. He fell just short (3/10 of a yard) of breaking Sammie Baugh's 70 year old punting average record. It was a pleasure to watch both of these guys work.
Pleasant Surprises
Bruce Gradkowski - The list of positives for Oakland this year has to start with Gradkowski, the guy who was fighting for the 3rd quarterback spot in the preseason. He only started 4 games and only posted a passer rating of 80.6, but we saw an entirely different offense with him under center. Whether Bruce gets a fair shake at the starting job next season is yet to be seen, but I believe he should.
Tyvon Branch - This kid absolutely exceeded my expectations. He came into the NFL as a cornerback weighing under 200 lbs and after only one year of special teams work transformed himself into quite the strong safety, leading all defensive backs in tackles for 2009. I had my doubts that he'd be able to be as physical as we needed him to be, but he proved to be a willing and aggressive tackler who was fairly strong in coverage.
Louis Murphy - Murphy was sort of an afterthought with all the attention (mostly negative) than surrounded the selection of Darrius Heyward-Bey in the first round. I knew he was a good receiver, but he came from a school with a spotty track record for wideouts and from an offense that was nothing like our own. Sure, Murphy had a few rough games with lapses in concentration and dropped balls, but he arguably came up even bigger at times than Zach Miller did for us.
Matt Shaughnessy - He only started two games, but outside of Richard Seymour, one could make the argument that Shaughnessy was our best defensive lineman. He wasn't a fantastic pass rusher, but he consistently played to the whistle and helped keep the edge against the run, something Oakland has needed for seasons.
Depressing Disappointments
Thomas Howard - While Kirk Morrison continues to receive the most flack from Raider fans, it's Howard who failed to take that step forward that we've been anticipating from him since his great sophomore campaign. He's a great athlete, but his disruptive moments were fewer and farther in between in 2009 and it's far from a sure thing that he gets brought back for the 2010 season.
Chris Johnson - Johnson finished 2008 so strongly, I was almost convinced we had corner capable of handling the attention that playing opposite Asomugha generates. Sadly, almost from the get-go, the Johnson we got this year was sloppy and despite his blazing speed was regularly beat deep. I'm not even sure he was better than Stanford Routt.
JaMarcus Russell - There's no much to say here that hasn't already been said. He's talented, he'll go through streaks of making great throws (throws only he can make), but he lackadaisical both on and off the field. He's not going to be the guy to lead this team and it appears that Al Davis finally gets that. He may be given a shot to win the job for 2010 but he'll have to show a work ethic he hasn't even come close to mustering so far in his career.
Awards
Most Valuable Player(s) - Sebastian Janikowski/Shane Lechler
While the team in general struggled, both Lecher and Janikowski had their best years ever. Janikowski missed one field goal inside of 50 yards all year and nailed a career long 61 yarder (the 4th longest FG in NFL history). On top of that he managed to score essentially half of all of Oakland's points this season and became the first player to score 1000 points as a Raiders. As for Lechler, he may have had the best season by a punter in modern NFL history. He fell just short (3/10 of a yard) of breaking Sammie Baugh's 70 year old punting average record. It was a pleasure to watch both of these guys work.