Silver and Black Report

OAKLAND — An always smiling Jailen Cooper must have been in Seventh Heaven as Wednesday’s Oakland Raiders’ VIP guest along with his proud family from North Carolina. Jailen was chosen by the Make-A-Wish Foundation to participate in an Oakland Raiders practice session. He is also recovering from a tumor on his pituitary gland and the subsequent treatments, but you would never guess that in a million years judging by his exuberance.

Raiders’ CEO Amy Trask and the rest of the Oakland Raiders rolled out the red carpet for Jailen as they gave him his own locker complete with his own personalized jersey and cap. The Raiders also gave him Carte blanche of the practice field as he got a once in a lifetime opportunity to lead the team warmups alongside the team trainer, assist the assistant coaches during positional drills, and even watched the more intensive team drills alongside Raider Head Coach Tom Cable! Never once looking overwhelmed; Jailen looked curiously like a seasoned veteran as if her were made to do this. Jailen was totally in his element.

At the end of practice, the team typically comes together on the field for a group huddle before they hit the lockerrom. This time it was a little different. Jailen was in the center of the team huddle. All of a sudden a chant breaks out, “Jai-len…Jai-len…Jai-len!” from all the players. All of a sudden, the team splits off in two columns; making a gauntlet (it’s sort of like a Soul Train Dance line), but with football players and no music.

At one end of the gauntlet stood Darren McFadden, (Jailen’s favorite football player), with the ball in the ready position and at the other end stood Jailen in his best defensive lineman stance. Then all of a sudden Jailen runs full speed, hits, wraps up (proper technique too), and tackles McFadden to the ground. The team erupts in euphoria as they cheer on Jailen and briefly hoists him in the air in celebration.

Then for kicks and giggles, Jailen stole the show as he headed the coach’s pres conference by fielding questions from the media before coach Cable took over. The kid was AWESOME!!! Did I mention that he’s only 10 years old?!

*ESPN will be airing Jailen’s visit and other Make-A-Wish recipients July 18-27.

JOHN OWENS

• TIGHT END
• No: 86
• Height: 6-3
• Weight: 255
• Birth date: 01/10/1980
• College: Notre Dame
• Acquired: Signed as a free agent in 2010

Nine-year veteran John Owens signed with the Oakland Raiders during the 2010 off-season. Primarily a blocking tight end, the 30-year old will try to earn a spot on the roster competing against Tony Stewart. Oakland wants to free up Zach Miller more and add some bulk to the edge of the offensive line in support of Hue Jackson’s ground attack.

The Detroit Lions originally selected Owens in the 5th round of the 2002 draft. Since, he has played for the Chicago Bears, Miami Dolphins, Cleveland Browns, New Orleans Saints and Seattle Seahawks.

In his career, Owens has tallied 22 receptions for 178 yards and one score.

OAKLAND — Oakland Raiders head coach Tom Cable wraps up another OTA workout and discusses the current status of the team and answers media questions.

OAKLAND — Oakland Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha speaks to the media following today’s OTA about offensive coordinator Hue Jackson and today’s crisp practice that was filled with constructive banter/competitive trash talking.

OAKLAND — Oakland Raiders wide receiver Louis Murphy spoke to SBReport and other media following today’s highly productive OTA offensive practice session. Murphy touched on the team camaraderie, coach Hue Jackson and the emergence of fellow wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR:

He’ll get a lot of mileage out of the performance on Wednesday during the OTA. But the reality is, that was in a controlled environment and not against live opponents. The second year speedster is still under the gun and a major question mark. The Oakland Raiders need him to be a solid contributor. Mainly because the owner wants him out there and without a real deep threat, the Silver & Black need Heyward-Bey to have some mastery of shorter routes in order to blow past defenders on deeper routes.

Hue Jackson, offensive coordinator:

No coach in recent years has had such a positive influence on the team in such a short time. He wants his offense to have a pace, the players to be accountable of their assignments and ultimately, production out of a grouping that has been one of the worst in the league in recent years. Plan A – get the offensive line straightened out and functioning. That will lead to plan-b: to pound the football on the ground with his talented rushers. The next plan, which will be an easier task with the competent passers on the roster, is expanding Oakland’s playbook, making them harder to defend with a variety of formations and a viable passing attack.

Darren McFadden, RB:

The time is now for the multi-talented running back. It appears that Michael Bush will be the primary ball carrier and that Oakland would like a veteran take over the back-up role. But McFadden will be mixed in and used a lot more efficiently to cater to his abilities. He’s a threat lined up as a wide receiver and as a target out of the backfield. And occasional sweep and toss could also make him a more effective player in Jackson’s offense.

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Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

Here are excerpts of commisionaer Roger Goodell’s spring press conference in Dallas yesterday. The NFL’s head man talked about Ben Roethlisberger, the Super Bowl, Canadian doctor Anthony Galea and other topics.

On the New York-New Jersey Super Bowl and his role in getting it done:

Far too much is being made of my role. Our job is to make sure we present three terrific bids. Our staff and the Super Bowl Advisory Committee did that. There are three great communities, two of which we’ve had experience with. New York-New Jersey came in as a new bid with a new stadium with two franchises and I think there are some unique aspects to this and I think that appealed to our membership. But it was a tough vote because we had three great bids.

On impact of Super Bowl XLIV:

Obviously it was one of the greatest games we’ve had in the history of the NFL and certainly in Super Bowl history. Not only was it the play on the field, but the story of the Saints and the role they’ve had in their community in restoring hope and the connection they have with their community that had been through such a difficult period. The role the NFL and in particular the Saints played in that is something that we can all be very proud of. It added to the story of a terrific football game. When we reflect back on that, you can look at the records of the largest audience in the history of television. One of the greatest games, if not the greatest game in the history of the NFL. But it’s really the core of the relationship between that team and the fans and the history of the fans in that region that is something we’ll remember.

On Roethlisberger situation:

When I return following these meetings, I expect to be sitting down with our staff and reviewing the evaluation and determining the next steps. Sometime in the next week or so I will be issuing a decision.

On Los Angeles stadium and importance of a retractable roof:

There’s no cookie-cutter approach to this. What works in one community doesn’t necessarily work in another community. In large part, the reason we’ve been successful in getting our stadiums built is we’ve worked in public-private partnerships to find solutions that the community may have to address or those issues that they may have to address and we find reasonable solutions. In the case of the downtown LA stadium, that could potentially be addressing an issue with respect to convention facilities and would it add to the convention facilities they have in that area? That’s how we’ve been successful. We’ve done it in Indianapolis and other communities where we try to identify the issue and see if we can be part of the solution.

On HGH testing:

We’ve proposed that in our collective bargaining discussions. The only way to reliably do that is through blood testing at this point in time. But we support that because we think it’s important in making sure that we are all playing by the same rules. It is a health and safety issue also. We will continue to press it in negotiations and I’m hopeful we will reach an agreement where our new drug program will make some advancements, including HGH testing.

On a public component to a stadium project in Los Angeles:

I can’t address any of the specifics of it because I think they are at a very early stage of addressing that. I know these things are successful when they are public-private partnerships, when the public and the private sector work together to create these solutions. And that is what we want to do.

On Dr. Galea and possibility of league discipline:

We are going to pursue all of the information that’s been publicly available. Hopefully we’ll get additional information as the case proceeds. We are very anxious to understand all of the details and pursue it aggressively and we will. We don’t take those issues lightly. It’s important for us to get whatever information is available and we will pursue it in accordance with our policies.

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Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

Here is a press release disseminated by the Oakland Raiders on May 26, 2010 regarding the youth skills camp being held on June 12-13.

The 10th Annual Oakland Raiders Youth Skills Camp is set for June 12-13 and is open to boys and girls ages 8-14. Raider players and coaching staff, along with Bay Area high school and college coaches, will instruct participants on fundamental football techniques. All camp instruction and activities will be held at the Raiders facility in Alameda, Calif.

The two-day camp is designed to encourage boys and girls to participate in and enjoy the game of football. Demonstrations, step-by-step explanations, and one-on-one attention will provide close instruction in order to substantially improve on each athlete’s ability. There will be sessions specific to offense, defense and special teams play. Athletes with all levels of experience are encouraged to participate.

Campers will have the opportunity to take a tour of the facility, including a visit to the team locker room, and will be able to obtain autographs from many of their favorite Raiders.

The camp begins on Saturday morning and concludes Sunday afternoon. Each session runs from 8:00 a.m. until approximately 3:00 p.m.

The registration fee includes instruction, camp T-shirt, Raiders gift bag, and lunch on both days. Registration forms and additional camp information are available on the Raiders official web site,www.raiders.com, and on the site’s Kids Zone, www.raidersforkids.com.

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Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

Here are some highlights of the Oakland Raiders Organized Team Activities on Wednesday May 26^th:

SBReport.net photographer and journalist DeMarcus Davis stated, “[this OTA was] perhaps the best practice I have seen in the almost 7 years I have been covering the team! [Oakland] had it all; chirping from the coaches, fights, amazing catches, some good ole’ defensive line penetration, and some sweet timing by the quarterbacks.”

Offensive coordinator Hue Jackson got on his unit verbally, and made his position coaches accountable for the performance of their talents. There is no denying who is in control of the offense and that Jackson is a vocal presence that will surely dole out criticism and praise when its needed.

Darrius Heyward-Bey appeared like a wide receiver that deserved a high draft status. He had his best practice as a professional and the hard work he is putting into this off-season has paid dividends as Oakland approaches the summer. His route running, hands and technique were solid and if the Raiders get that type of output in 2010, many of the worries this grouping has will be alleviated.

Both the offense and defensive units were chirping at each other during drills. In past minicamps, the defense has pushed around the offense with little to no resistance from the unit that is trying to put the ball in the end zone. The offense this spring is finally fighting back, unlike years past when the defense showed to be the better of the two groups. Assistant Kevin Ross was yelling to his defense, “Make a play. Somebody…make a damn play!” Jackson’s reply, “THEY CAN’T!!!…THEY CAN’T!”

Rock Cartwright and Darren McFadden had solid practices. The run happy Jackson, who wants to pound the football on the ground in 2010 screamed, “We going to run the ball EVERY DOWN!”

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Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

Here are some more exclusive images of the Oakland Raiders at work during recent minicamps and Organized Team Activities (OTA), captured by SBReport.net photographer DeMarcus Davis.

Yamon Figurs, who signed a future contract with the Silver & Black in January, has been working with the special teams. Oakland regressed in their return game in 2009, as the likes of Johnnie Lee Higgins and Gary Russell were primarily used during punts and kickoffs. Higgins, who made headlines with his punt return prowess a few years back, has competition this summer in Figurs and Nick Miller.

Nick Miller trying to get pass Ricky Brown

Robert Gallery may not be the All-Pro left tackle many thought he would become coming out of Iowa. But he has become a very formidable left guard under the tutelage of Tom Cable. There is no coincidence that since Cable’s arrival, Gallery has been a mainstay along the trenches and a reliable interior blocker. Early in his career, Gallery went through various coaching changes at his position, which may have affected him negatively during his developing years. And with his skill set, footwork and ability to work in space, the former 2^nd overall pick in the 2004 draft could gain more notoriety if Oakland’s run game becomes one of the better ones in the AFC.

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Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist