Silver and Black Report

The bye week is over. The Lane Kiffin era is over. Now, the Oakland Raiders (1-3) can start the second quarter of their season with less instability on the sidelines and a head coach who wants to impress the remainder of the regular season to knock that ‘interim’ designation from his title.

Tom Cable will make his debut as the head man on the sidelines versus the New Orleans Saints (2-3). And he has already singled out a few aspects of the club that need to improve to prevent some of the collapses late in games the Raiders have been accustomed to. “I really believe that if we can be better out there on third down, better in the red zone, and finish the game in the fourth quarter, then those things will take care of themselves,” commented the 43-year old head coach. “Right now we need to do those three things as good as we can to help us win football games.”

The Saints are coming off a tough home defeat on Monday night where miscues, penalties and four turnovers kept them from partying in the Bayou. Head coach Sean Payton said this week, “The quickest way I know how to get rid of that feeling and to get going again is to put some wins together.”

OAKLAND RAIDERS

On Offense:

It’s back to basics for the Silver & Black, even though many in attendance would love to see Louisiana’s returning star, JaMarcus Russell, air it out and replay some of his finest moments by tossing the football down the field in the Superdome as he did in his days at LSU.

Justin Fargas appears ready to get back on the field after missing two games with a groin injury. Darren McFadden went full speed in practice on Wednesday for the first time in three weeks. And Tom Cable will use both extensively and attempt to get the Raiders back to ball control football.

“I think it allows you to get back on track … your focus about who we are,” head coach Tom Cable said after both running backs practiced Wednesday. “To win games, you’ve got to be tough at the end of the game and I think having them back will really give us that opportunity.”

What to expect:

The Raiders are averaging 155.0 rushing yards per game (5^th in the NFL). Their passing attack is very feeble right now, and with Cable at the helm, there is no doubt that they will try to shift the burden of the offense to the trio of ball carriers they like to use. But she Saints know that, and they impressed last week in holding the Vikings ground game to 44 yards total. The Saints secondary has struggled allowing 244.6 yards per game, so it will be interesting to see how much Cable deviates from his philosophy and attacks down the field in order to take advantage of a defense primed to stuff the run.

On Defense:

Oakland needs to apply consistent pressure this week to keep Drew Brees moving in the pocket. But with Derrick Burgess nursing his second triceps injury of the season, how much disruption they can force when the Saints attack via the air will be in question. Kalimba Edwards leads the Raiders in sacks (3) and will surely get a lot of reps if Burgess is limited.

Burgess did not practice on Wednesday, but cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha did after two weeks of recovery from a elbow injury.

After blowing a lead of nine points in Buffalo and failing to close out the game versus San Diego after holding a 12 point advantage, expect Rob Ryan to be more aggressive in his approach to keep the Saints on their heels.

What to expect:

The Raiders have played at their best on defense when their pass rushers get into the backfield and linebackers Kirk Morrison and Thomas Howard are attacking the line of scrimmage. The Saints offense is explosive and can put up points quickly, but that should not deter Oakland from trying to disrupt the timing of Brees and his targets and getting physical with speedster Reggie Bush. If Oakland lets Brees and co. get in a rhythm, Payton’s play calling could keep them off-balance and the result will look like what occurred in week one versus the Broncos.

On Special Teams:

The coverage teams have a major challenge keeping Bush and his game altering returns to a minimum. His two returns for a touchdown last week against the Vikings were electrifying, and if not for those scores, the Saints could have been shut down during that contest.

Tyvon Branch has excelled early on. And his ability to get down the field and cut off any return lanes will be key. And if he misses, the rest of the unit must maintain their responsibilities or they will be chasing a returner who likes to improvise and can alter his path to the end zone very quickly.

NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

On Offense:

Brees is the triggerman for the Saints and a passer who can tear up a secondary with his pinpoint accuracy. He currently ranks seventh in the league in passer rating (97.7) and is first in passing yards per game (334.6).

The Saints can play ball control football, with Bush and Brees via the air, as both have connected for 38 receptions for 321 yards. Bush’s multi-dimensional effect on this offense puts a lot of pressure on defenses, as they have to be aware where he is lined up and whether or not to shift coverage to his side of the field.

Wide receivers Lance Moore (22 rec. 234 yards 2 TD), Devery Henderson (10 rec. 317 yards 2 TD) and Robert Meachem (7 rec. 235 yards 2 TD) have taken advantage of the attention paid to Bush with their big play ability. And with Jeremy Shockey’s return to practice on Wednesday, as well as Marques Colston’s limited action during drills, the offense can be far more dangerous than what it has shown in recent weeks.

What to expect:

“I was pleased with what I saw (Wednesday), and I saw more than I expected to see,” Payton said yesterday. “[Colston and Shockey] actually took reps and moved around pretty good. You know, we’ll see how they feel, especially when it comes to Jeremy. But Marques looked good.”

Even if neither plays, the Saints will go about spreading the ball all over the field with their ball control passing attack and take advantage of a Raiders front seven that will look to account for Bush’s presence. New Orleans is ranked 29^th in the league in rushing, so expect them to rev up their ground game by spreading the Raiders out in hopes of pounding away at their front seven.

On Defense:

The Saints currently have the 24^th overall ranked defense, allowing 26.0 points per game and the third most passing yards in the league.

That defense and secondary took another hit this week when rookie cornerback Tracy Porter was lost for the season with a dislocated right wrist. They were already without top draft pick Sedrick Ellis, who was lost two-to-four weeks with a right knee injury.

With a decimated defense line, Payton talked about the importance of players stepping up. “It’s a challenge,” the head coach said. “We understand that’s something we’ve got to deal with. We’re playing the game and I think our players will handle it well. The good news is it’s a shorter period of time. Our goal for him is to have him back for Carolina (Oct. 19), along with guys like (Jeremy) Shockey and (Marques) Colston. Right now, someone else is going to have to pick it up inside and we understand that.”

What to expect:

Can the Saints afford to stack the line of scrimmage and keep their defensive backs on an island with the Raider targets? If they can do so, they’ll be in good shape this week. And a week after shutting down Adrian Peterson, they face the daunting task of slowing down Oakland’s three-headed monster.

The Raiders have sputtered in their passing game, but unlike the Vikings, they do have a quarterback who is confident going back to a familiar stadium and that can connect from anywhere on the football field.

GAME NOTES

• This will be the 11^th regular season, with the Raiders holding a 5-4-1 advantage since New Orleans began play as an expansion team in 1967.
• The last time both teams met, the Saints came away with a 31-26 victory on October 24, 2004 in Oakland.
• The Saints placed kicker Martin Gramatica on injured reserve with a groin injury and replaced him with sixth round draft pick Taylor Mehlhaff.

KEY MATCH-UPS

JaMarcus Russell vs. New Orleans’ Coverages

The big-armed passer will have to make plays down the field if the Raiders plan on the upset. Oakland can run the ball, but they will be forced to make plays in the air at times, and if Russell cannot connect with Javon Walker, Ronald Curry, Ashley Lelie or his favorite target, Zach Miller, the Saints will run away with this one.

Rob Ryan vs. Sean Payton

The fiery Raider defensive coordinator has to attack Payton, or his club will suffer the same fate as in the Bronco game earlier in the season. Payton can play call with the best of them. He can get pas happy, but expect the Saints to try to get more of a balance on offense. If they cannot, the Raiders secondary has enough talent to make life hard on the Saints’ pass catchers.

PREDICTION

Saints 34 – Raiders 23

TV & RADIO

The game will be televised on CBS with Kevin Harlan providing play-by-play and former Raiders QB Rich Gannon handling color analysis.  The game will air locally on KPIX Channel 5. The game will also air in Sacramento on KOVR Channel 13 as well as on KHSL in Chico, KION in Monterey and KJEO in Fresno. The game will air on Raiders Radio originating on KSFO 560 AM, the Silver and Black Flagship for the multi-state Radio Network. Greg Papa and former Raiders player, assistant and head coach Tom Flores will man the booth for the 11th straight year. The radio pregame show and postgame show will feature Raider Legends George Atkinson and David Humm along with KGO’s Rich Walcoff. (Broadcast information found on the official Raiders web site)

Home Team: New Orleans Saints (2-3) Home: 2-1 Road: 0-2

Road Team: Oakland Raiders (1-3) Home: 0-2 Road: 1-1

When and Where: Sunday, October 12, 2008, 10:00 a.m. PT | Louisiana Superdome