GREAT Read for the very few that care about fixing the Oakland Raiders:
How can the Raiders be fixed?
Dismayed with the complete lack of quality play on the field, the longtime Owner of the Oakland-Los Angeles-Oakland Raiders has announced that he will investigate options for bringing in a person to function as a managing partner with regards to the talent on the field.
Al Davis would never call this position a "General Manager" but that's essentially what this position would be. Davis will hire one of the few people he trusts to make the Raiders relevant again. What if I was hired by Davis in this capacity? Could I possibly last more than a year, or perhaps even restore the "Commitment to Excellence"?
Obviously, major change would be needed, and it would have to start from day one.
Step one: Salvaging the 2008 season
Lane Kiffin didn't think he could win with this current roster. Certainly, you can't get more "insider" than head coach of the team, so who am I to disagree with Kiffin? The 2008 Raiders are currently 2.5 games out of first place in the horrific AFC West, but this team isn't going to the playoffs. I'd be happy to finish out of last place this year. 5 wins (the most since 2004) would be a nice building block for the future, so I would be optimistic with a 3-5 finish. JaMarcus Russell is past the point where his No. 1 overall selection carries any weight. His birthdate, however, and athleticism still have merit. On day one, I cut QB Marques Tuiasosopo and sign former Bucs and Titans QB Chris Simms. JaMarcus Russell starts every game the rest of the 2008 season as long as he's healthy, but shares some time with Chris Simms. Andrew Walter and Simms both see increased reps in practice with the No. 1 offense, and if either Simms or Russell misses a game, I put Walter in at Quarterback for a few drives. I want to know if I have a Quarterback in this bunch by the end of the year.
S Michael Huff has been benched by Head Coach Tom Cable, but he and Hiram Eugene should both be taking reps at free safety. I still feel Huff can be a good player in this league and he's only in his third season. Plus, this is not a position I plan to address in the upcoming draft, so one of these two is likely going to be my starting FS next year.
I want Mario Henderson to start at Right Tackle for the rest of the year. Cornell Green can bump inside to RG for the rest of the season.
2009 Offseason
The Raiders announce the release of interim HC Cable and Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan, but not OC Greg Knapp or WRs coach James Lofton. The Raiders interview Patriots OC Josh McDaniels, but after he declines the job, the Raiders end up settling for Dolphins WR coach and former UCLA head coach Karl Dorrell as head coach. With Dorrell's approval, the Raiders' promote LBs coach Tom Martindale to Defensive Coordinator.
The Raiders head into the offseason with a clear plan to get younger and build from within, but they know they have to take deals on the free agent market in order to be competitive soon.
The Raiders use the franchise tag on CB Nnamdi Asomugha for the second consecutive year. Before he can sign it, the Raiders award Asomugha, who represents everything I want the Raiders to be, with a historic deal, making him the highest payed defensive player in franchise history: a 6 year deal that exceeds $90 million in total value with $35 million guaranteed.
Here is a position by position breakdown of how I will improve the Raiders in 2009:
Quarterback
The Raiders announce they have signed Pittsburgh Steelers' backup QB Byron Leftwich to a 4 year contract worth 12 million dollars. The quarterback job becomes an open competition between 5 guys, including Russell, Leftwich, Simms, Walter, and a mid round rookie draft pick (UCLA's Ben Olson?). Russell gets to start the preseason as the No. 1 guy. If he can not show the new coaching staff enough in camp to win the starting job outright, then JaMarcus Russell will be traded or released prior to week one. Remember, we said major changes. For the purpose of this exercise, we'll assume that the Raiders will roster Byron Leftwich, Chris Simms, and Ben Olson at Quarterback in 2009. Note that none of those players are on the 2008 Raiders, and that's exactly how we like it.
Running Back
Part of the purpose of all the continuity on the offensive coaching staff is so the Raiders can keep the foundation of their running game, which was great in 2007, but bad in 2008. There's no reason to not have faith in 4th overall pick in 2008 Darren McFadden at RB, and with Justin Fargas, Justin Griffith, and Michael Bush here, the Raiders are young and deep at this position.
Wide Receiver
Javon Walker is very overpaid, but he's healthy, talented, and there's no way I can do better at WR on the open market. The Raiders are happy to see Drew Carter and Ashley Lelie leave in free agency. The Raiders' sign WR Devery Henderson away from New Orleans to give them another deep threat, and promote Chaz Shillens to the starting lineup. Ronald Curry stays on board to compete with the former four names for playing time, and the Raiders fill out the position with late round picks/UDFAs.
Tight End
Zach Miller remains the starter, and the Raiders sign RFA Quinn Sypenewski from Baltimore to help with the running game. John Madsen is the third TE.
Offensive Tackle
After the no-brainer release of Kwame Harris, the Raiders spend their top 5 selection on Ole Miss Offensive Tackle Michael Oher. It's time to get serious about drafting prospects with a solid college resume. Oher is a phenomenal talent, but very few prospects are good enough to have a book written about them by age 20. He starts from day one at LT. Mario Henderson remains the starter at RT. Cornell Green stays on as a utility lineman and the Raiders spend a second pick here by the 5th round.
Offensive Guard
Cooper Carlisle's contract is extended by two years. The Redskins release Robert Gallery just before the eve of free agency. The Raiders make a play for the Redskins' Pete Kendall before he is inevitably resigned. Jake Grove is given the LG job, but competition will come in the form of a later round draft pick or Undrafted Free Agent. Grove is released if he is not the opening day starter at LG.
Center
Russ Hochstein is signed from the Patriots to play Center, with Grove as the backup. In the event that Grove gets the axe, an undrafted free agent will get the roster spot as a backup Center to Hochstein.
Defensive Tackle
The Raiders keep DT Tommy Kelly, but realize that upgrading the nose tackle will be critical to pressure quarterbacks. We target USC DT Fili Moala in the second round. They also announce the signing of another Trojan, Shaun Cody from the Detroit Lions. Gerrard Warren is released, and Terdell Sands rounds out the roster.
Defensive End
One of the few positions where the current roster looks strong for the future is DE. Another pass rusher to replace Derrick Burgess is something we will look at in the future, but for right now he continues to be a force at RE, while Jay Richardson and Trevor Scott split the snaps at LE, with Tommy Kelly getting some looks at LE in rushing downs. Kalimba Edwards can have one more season to prove he belongs in the NFL.
Linebacker
Kirk Morrison's deal is torn up and replaced by a long term contract to be the leader of the front seven. Sam Williams and Robert Thomas are not retained. The Raiders bring back Eric Barton to play SLB. Thomas Howard is allowed to play his contract year here, and the team will consider using the Franchise Tag on him in 2010. Ricky Brown remains the immediate depth, Jon Alston is retained along with Isaiah Ekejiuba.
Corner
This is a position that absolutely needs to be addressed correctly. The Raiders announce that they have signed CB Dunta Robinson to a 5 year contract to team with Asomugha. Stanford Routt becomes the nickelback with Chris Johnson and John Bowie as the depth guys. One mid round selection is spent on a corner.
Safety
The Raiders retain the same four guys from this year, but Tyvon Branch becomes the dime back. Michael Huff begins the season at free safety, and it's either going to be him or Hiram Eugene that becomes the long term solution there. Gibril Wilson needs to have a good year.
Punter
Shane Lechler is awarded a huge money deal for a Punter, because he's simply not replacable. By huge, I mean like 8 million dollars for three years.
Kicker
Janikowski.
In Review
Key Additions
QB Byron Leftwich
QB Chris Simms
WR Devery Henderson
TE Quinn Sypenewski
OT Michael Oher
OG Russ Hochstein
DT Fili Moala
DT Shaun Cody
LB Eric Barton
CB Dunta Robinson
Key Losses
QB JaMarcus Russell?
WR Ashley Lelie
OT Kwame Harris
OG Robert Gallery
OG/C Jake Grove?
DT Gerrard Warren
LB Robert Thomas
LB Sam Williams
The future of the Raiders
The ultimate point that I'm trying to show here is that the Raiders have to do what they've been unable to do each of the last three offseasons: they have to rid themselves of the past once and for all. All of my "solutions" are simply the best available on the free agent market. That's to get a winning product on the field in the immediate. It's beyond necessary to actually establish a continually replenishing base of quality talent, and a system to develop said talent. I believe these moves would get the Raiders back around .500: essentially back where they were ten years ago before Rich Gannon and Jon Gruden made them the team to beat in the AFC.
Short term success is not an excuse to abandon talent development. That's how the Raiders got into this mess. Remember: Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen didn't need a player development system because 1) they both share the same ability to fill the roster with quality talent cheaply on a year by year basis, and 2) neither planned to stay in Oakland for the balance of their careers. It was obvious to all involved that the Raiders would have a few down years when the old guard retired. It's the absence of a clear plan to rebuild the young talent that's totally inexcusable on the part of Davis, and his (to be former) lackies.
Since the Oakland Raiders can not actually hire me, nor should they be considering that sort of move, the most important move will be who they do choose to hire to run the team. If the Raiders will in fact, "be back", and theres not much about Al Davis' word these days that instills any confidence in the ability of the Raiders to return to glory, some new face will have to make the hard decisions. And if Al Davis doesn't choose someone who is more worried about improving the Raiders than keeping their job, there's no reason to think anything will change.
How can the Raiders be fixed? - MVN Outsider