Silver and Black Report

Three weeks into the NFL season and there is no denying who is the best cornerback in the league. That distinction belongs to the Oakland Raiders Nnamdi Asomugha.

Darrelle Revis and his New York Jets captured headlines all off-season and during the pre-season. Their vocal coach proclaimed Revis not just the best defensive back in the league, but the best defensive player around.

A television show and divisive hold out later, Revis supporters would have thought that their guy would have been head and shoulders above the rest.

This is the same Revis that was heralded after match-ups against Randy Moss, Terrell Owens, Andre Johnson, Steve Smith, Marques Colston and Chad Ochocinco. This after a fabulous performance in 2009 that catapulted him to notoriety, and was capped by a playoff run where he shined and his club was one win from the Super Bowl.

But that was one season.

Revis wanted ‘Asomugha type’ money for 2010. He missed four pre-season games and caused an uproar all summer before landing a deal reportedly worth $46 million, including $32 million guaranteed.

He got his money, but he also got smoked by the receiver he called a ‘slouch.’ Former Raiders and now New England Patriot Randy Moss hauled in a 34-yard touchdown grab against Revis this season. And after the play, the cornerback who was touted as the best and was spirited about getting top billing at his position was grabbing his hamstring in pain.

As he sits now and watches from the sideline, maybe he can get a better perspective at the cornerback in Oakland that has a résumé dating back to 2006.

Asomugha tallied eight interceptions that year during a break out campaign. From 2007 through 2009, he has been a Pro Bowl selection. But more importantly, at the start of the 2010 season, he has proven again to be the ultimate defender at corner in the NFL.

Last weekend, against arguably the biggest threat the league has at wide receiver – Larry Fitzgerald – Asomugha allowed one reception. The other lone catch Fitzgerald had during that contest wasn’t even against Asomugha.

“To me, it wasn’t good enough because he did get the catch,” Asomugha said. “That’s what upset me. (But) then against a guy like Larry, that can happen. A guy like that comes around once a decade.”

Oakland coaches won’t get in front of a microphone and spout of bravado regarding their defender. Nor will you see a player in Oakland get as much coverage as a hold out in New York City.

But at this point, it is clear who the top cornerback in the league is. And there was a reason why Revis wanted ‘Asomugha type’ money…

He wants what Asomugha has – and everything that comes with it.

Being recognized the best overall cornerback in the league.

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Oakland Raiders defensive lineman Richard Seymour talks about the 24-23 defeat in Arizona against the Cardinals. Click on the link to load the locker room audio:

Seymour

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – As soon as the fourth quarter began, the Oakland Raiders picked up a first down with a Darren McFadden 7-yard run on 3^rd and 2. A few plays later though, Bruce Gradkowski fumbled during his throwing motion and Marcel Reece bobbled the ball out of bounds for a loss of 14-yards. Oakland punted after not converting on a 3^rd and 28, but they got a break when the football bounced off wide receiver Andre Roberts and Quentin Groves recovered the fumble at Arizona’s 16-yard line.

Oakland then was the beneficiary of Cardinal penalties.

On 3^rd and 10, Gradkowski tossed an incompletion to Zach Miller in the end zone, but Michael Adams was flagged for holding against Louis Murphy, extending the Raider drive. Then a few plays later, Greg Toler drew a flag after interfering with Darrius Heyward-Bey in the end zone, setting Oakland up at the 1-yard line.

The Raiders could not punch it in with Michael Bush, were flagged for delay of game and back-to-back incompletions to Heyward-Bey led to a Sebastian Janikowski field goal from 23-yards out to make it a 24-23 contest, in favor of the Cardinals.

Arizona began the ensuing drive with a false start by Lyle Sendlein with 7:50 remaining on the game clock.

Their drive took a nose-dive after Beanie Wells was flagged for a facemask penalty on Tyvon Branch as he attempted a stiff-arm. Arizona punted after not converting on a 3^rd and 21 and Oakland took over at the 6:20 mark.

Gradkowski attempted to break the pocket on 1^st and 10 and only gained one yard. On 2^nd and 9, he completed a 25-yard toss to Louis Murphy – that was challenged by Ken Whisenhunt – and McFadden followed that with a gain of 5.

McFadden ran for 4 more yards on 2^nd and 5 and on 3^rd and 1; Mario Henderson was flagged for a false start.

Facing a 3^rd and 6, Gradkowski’s pass to Zach Miller was broken up and play was stopped with 4:36 remaining.

Sebastian Janikowski attempted a 58-yard field goal attempt, which had the distance, but was wide right.

Arizona with great field position decided to start milking the clock with Tim Hightower and Steve Breaston rushes that combined for 5-yards. After Oakland called a time out with 3:44 left, facing a 3^rd and 5, Breaston dropped a pass tossed slightly behind him, giving Oakland another possession after the punt.

With 3:33 remaining, Oakland began their drive at the 20-yard line.

Oakland faced a 3^rd and 9, but converted with a Miller 15-yard reception. McFadden ran for 1-yard before the 2-minute warning.

Gradkowski was pressured into bad throws and on 4^th and 10, he found Heyward-Bey for a 12-yard gain with 1:02 left.

On the next play, Dominique Rogers-Cromartie was flagged for pass interference on Heyward-Bey, giving Oakland the ball at the Cardinal 13-yard line [39-yards on play].

McFadden loss 4-yards on the following run and on 2^nd and 14 with 49 seconds left, the former Arkansas star gained 3.

Oakland milked the clock and called a time out with 4 seconds left.

Janikowski missed a 32-yard field goal as time expired.

FINAL SCORE: Cardinals 24 – Raiders 23

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Oakland Raiders started the second half with the ball and the lead, but could not capitalize, going three and out on their first possession. On 3^rd and 4, Bruce Gradkowski could not connect with Zach Miller – ending the opening drive of the third quarter.

Lamarr Houston was called for a neutral zone infraction on the first play of Arizona’s drive, but his rookie-mate Rolando McClain darted through the line of scrimmage to take down Beanie Wells for a loss of 3 on the following play. Matt Shaughnessy sacked Dreke Anderson a few plays later but on 3^rd and 16, Larry Fitzgerald enjoyed his first success against Nnamdi Asomugha with a gain of 18 on a slant. On 3^rd and 9 at the 8:36 mark, Richard Seymour stuffed the drive with a sack of Anderson.

Oakland began their next drive at the 11-yard line.

After Darren McFadden tallied 6-yards on 2 carries, Louis Murphy gave Oakland a spark on 3^rd and 4. The second year wide receiver wrestled a short pass away from cornerback Michael Adams and then bolted 70-yards to the Arizona 13-yard line. Mario Henderson’s holding infraction on the ensuing play thwarted the drive, which eventually resulted in a Sebastian Janikowski missed field goal from 41-yards out.

The Cardinals went to work on the ground with Beanie Wells after Ben Patrick started the drive with an 8-yard catch. Wells ran for 15-yards on three plays before Steve Breaston hauled in a catch for 25-yards and Tim Hightower’s 13-yard run to the Oakland 8-yard line. Then, Larry Fitzgerald gave Arizona a 24-20 lead with an 8-yard touchdown reception against the Raiders’ confused zone defense.

With 1:01 remaining, Jacoby Ford took a knee in the end zone during the kickoff.

Oakland ended the 3^rd quarter with a screen to Marcel Reece for 7-yards and a run by McFadden for 2-yards.

SCORE: CARDINALS 24 – RAIDERS 20

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Arizona Cardinals opened the 2^nd quarter featuring running back Beanie Wells on runs of 12 and 6-yards. On 3^rd and goal, Derek Anderson connected with Steve Breaston for 2-yards to give the Cardinals a 17-13 lead over the Oakland Raiders.

Jacoby Ford returns the ensuing kickoff 21-yards to the Oakland 23-yard line.

Oakland then ran the ball with Darren McFadden for 3-yards, completed a toss to Louis Murphy for 12-yards and attempted some trickery with a McFadden lateral after handoff, back to Bruce Gradkowski that wound up as a 7-yard loss. On 3^rd and 14, Oakland’s passer connected with Darrius Heyward-Bey for 21-yards, but the drive stalled with a Michael Bush run for negative yards, an incompletion in the end zone to Murphy and a sack recorded by linebacker Paris Lenon.

The Raiders pinned the Cardinals deep in their own territory after a Shane Lechler punt and solid coverage. Arizona’s drive was brief, ending in an incompletion to Larry Fitzgerald, who was blanketed by Nnamdi Asomugha on a 3^rd and 9.

Oakland started at the Arizona 42-yard line with 4:24 left in the 2^nd quarter.

But that drive lasted one play when Lenon picked off Gradkowski, on a deflected pass intended for Heyward-Bey.

The Raider returned the favor four plays later when Anderson attempted a shuffle pass to Tim Hightower that rebounded into the hands of linebacker Quentin Groves.

Oakland then ran the ball with McFadden for 6-yards and completed a short toss to Zach Miller for 6-yards before the 2-minute warning.

At that point, McFadden took over, running for 33-yards, gaining 3-yards on another run, before hauling in a screen for 18-yards and finally scoring on a 2-yard run to give Oakland a 20-17 lead with ten seconds remaining in the 2^nd quarter.

SCORE AT HALFTIME: OAKLAND 20 – ARIZONA 17

KEY STATS:

Darren McFadden – 11 car. for 74-yards and 1 TD; 1 rec. for 18-yards

Zach Miller – 3 rec. for 49-yards and 1 TD

FIRST DOWNS

OAK 12  - ARZ 12

TOTAL YARDS

OAK 206 – ARZ 130

PASSING YARDS

OAK 120 – ARZ 56

PENALTIES

OAK 5 (89) – ARZ 2 (30)

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Arizona Cardinals got their home opener started by receiving the game’s opening kickoff. Sebastian Janikowski, the Oakland Raiders powerful kicker, booted the football into the end zone, but LaRod Stephens-Howling returned it 102-yards for the touchdown. After the extra point, the Cardinals held a 7-0 lead 14-seconds into the contest.

Oakland’s first possession started with great field position after a Rock Cartwright 25-yard return to the 48-yard line. Darrius Heyward-Bey dropped what would have been a first down on the opening play and Louis Murphy’s 42-yard gain was negated by Heyward-Bey’s pass interference infraction on 3^rd and 5. Started Bruce Gradkowski scrambled for 8-yards on 3^rd and 16 and the Raiders punted on the ensuing play.

Shane Lechler’s punt was downed at the Arizona 2-yard line.

The Cardinals went three and out on their next possession, as Oakland displayed tight coverage, especially on 3^rd and 5 when Stanford Routt blanketed wide receiver Stephen Williams.

Oakland took over on their own 41-yard line after Johnnie Lee Higgins had a 5-yard punt return.

The Raiders tied the contest with a Gradkowski to Zach Miller 22-yard toss. Prior to that play, Oakland was aided by a unnecessary roughness penalty on Adrian Wilson after Gradkowski hit Murphy for 10-yards. That placed the ball on the Arizona 34-yard line. Then, Darren McFadden rushed for 12-yards on the left edge on the play prior to the score.

Oakland’s drive consisted of 3-plays for 59-yards and occupied all but 52 seconds in the quarter.

The Raiders clamped down on defense on the following drive.

Tyvon Branch missed quarterback Derek Anderson on a blitz, and the passer was able to find his favorite target, Larry Fitzgerald. Nnamdi Asomugha was flagged for pass interference and Arizona picked up 20-yards on the play. But the Silver & Black denied Tim Hightower on a run and a screen for no yards before Anderson tossed an incompletion deep to the covered Fitzgerald.

Oakland then began their third drive at their own 3-yard line.

A McFadden carry for no gain and a Gradkowski incompletion to Heyward-Bey left Oakland with a 3^rd and 10. Gradkowski could not connect with Miller on a seam pattern and Oakland had to punt.

Arizona botched the ensuing punt and Oakland took over at the Cardinals 28-yard line.

Gradkowski then quickly connected with Miller for 21-yards. A few plays later on 3^rd and goal, an outstretched Miller could not snag a Gradkowski pass towards the back of the end zone. But Sebastian Janikowski nailed a 22-yard field goal to give the Raiders a 10-7 lead with 6:42 remaining.

The Cardinals responded with a 5-play 56-yard drive that ended with a Jay Feely 42-yard field goal. That was set up by Beanie Wells run for 24-yards on the posesion’s first play and a Stanford Routt pass interference penalty that netted the Cardinals 27-yards to the Oakland 29-yard line.

With the game tied at 10, Jacoby Ford returned the Cardinals kickoff 39-yards.

Oakland then ran the ball with McFadden for 7-yards, completed a toss to Heyward-Bey for 16-yards before settling for a 54-yard field goal attempt by Janikowski.

Before the attempt, Oakland called their final time out at the half because of disorganization prior to the kick. Then, the lefty kicker nailed a 54-yard field goal to give Oakland a 13-10 lead.

Arizona ended the first quarter with possession. Nnamdi Asomugha, who has been blanketing Fitzgerald the first quarter batted a pass intended for the wide receiver to start the Cardinals’ drive. But on the next play, rookie Walter McFadden was the victim of a bad official’s call on a pass interference that netted Arizona 27-yards. Jay Alford stuffed Wells on a lass for 2-yards before the quarter ended on a Anderson toss for 11-yards to Williams.

END OF 1^st QUARTER: OAKLAND 13 – ARIZONA 10

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

GLENDALE, Ariz. – Inactives for today’s game featuring the Oakland Raiders and the Arizona Cardinals include:

S Hiram Eugene, CB Chris Johnson, LB Travis Goethel, LB Ricky Brown, G Robert Gallery, DT John Henderson, and WR Chaz Schilens.

Daniel Loper (Guard) with start in place of Gallery. Wide receiver Louis Murphy will start for the injured Schilens.

For the Cardinals, inactives include: CB AJ Jefferson, SS Hamza Abdullah, CB Brandon McDonald, C Ben Claxton, WR Early Doucet, LB Alex Hall and DT Gabe Watson.

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

The NFL fined Oakland Raiders rookie middle linebacker Rolando McClain for his body slam of St. Louis Rams wide receiver Danny Amendola.

Amendola hauled in a 6-yard catch in the 4^th quarter and during the tackle, McClain lifted and slammed the diminutive wide receiver. Oakland’s defender was flagged for unnecessary roughness and a few plays later, the Rams scored on that drive.

Tom Cable stated that Michael Bush practiced without limitations and he’ll be listed as probable for the game on Sunday versus the Arizona Cardinals.

“That remains to be seen,” Cable said about the rusher’s role. “He obviously did everything this week. He’s done a little bit the last two weeks. We’ll go in there and be smart about where and when we use him.”

Of concern as the week has wound down is John Henderson’s foot. The defensive lineman was in a boot on Monday and he stated that the injury was not serious. But Cable commented that it has not gotten better. With Richard Seymour healthy and ready to go and the solid performance by Desmond Bryant last weekend, it won’t surprise me to see the veteran Henderson inactive this weekend.

Robert Gallery (hamstring), Travis Goethel and Chaz Schilens will not play.

Beanie Wells, who expects to play against the Raiders, underwent a procedure to repair torn meniscus in his right knee earlier this month.

“I really wasn’t worried about what people knew and what people didn’t know,” Wells said. “I had a procedure done. I had to take some time off and I’m back from it.”

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

The last time the Oakland Raiders faced the Arizona Cardinals in the regular season, was in October 22, 2006 at the Oakland Alameda-County Coliseum.

Oakland was victorious 22-9, as Randy Moss lit up the Cardinals secondary with 7-receptions for 129-yards and one touchdown. Then rookie Mat Leinart was shaky, going 13-for-32 for 203-yards and two interceptions.

“He was flustered,” safety Stuart Schweigert stated after the game. “His eyes were wide open. He was throwing the ball away real quick.”

The Raiders were led by Andrew Walter, who tossed the ball 30-times, recording 17-completions for 263-yards with one touchdown and a interception.

In 2008, both teams met in the pre-season with the Cardinals winning 24-0.

Then Raiders’ rookie Darren McFadden rushed for 40-yards on 12-carries.

Here are some images from our archives from both of those contest captured by SBReport.net and Raiderfans.net photographers:

Randy Moss (18) making a move in front of Cardinals coach Dennis Green

Andrew Walter (16) directing the Silver & Black’s offense

Stanford Routt (26) tallied an interception in the pre-season against Arizona

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

The Oakland Raiders (1-1), invigorated with quarterback Bruce Gradkowski, head Sunday to the University of Phoenix Stadium to face the Arizona Cardinals (1-1). “[Gradkowski] finds ways to make plays. He has guys in his face, getting hit, put on his back but he’s still getting the ball out,” tight end Zach Miller said. “Even if he’s just throwing it away, he’s saving us sacks. He’s really able to make plays under pressure and find a way to get first downs. It’s a good quality in a quarterback.” Arizona is staying with their quarterback – Derek Anderson – but it appears that he’s on a short leash if the offense struggles in the coming weeks.

OAKLAND RAIDERS

On Offense:

One reason the Raiders feels confident going into Sunday is because of the recent play of running back Darren McFadden. So far, he has compiled 240-rushing yards, good for second in the NFL, as Oakland ranks third in the league averaging 154.5 ground yards per contest.

Arizona is allowing the second most rushing yards in the NFL through two games. And Oakland could get back Michael Bush after the rusher sat out the first two games of the campaign with a hand injury. “Bush did everything today. For the first time, everything form individual to catching to blocking to running, the whole deal. I think he feels really good and we feel really good about where he’s at,” said Tom Cable yesterday.

Robert Gallery will likely be ruled out for Sunday, but that decision may not come until late in the weekend. Cable commented: “He’s much better today. His workout was good this morning. Let’s see where he’s at tomorrow and again on Friday. He’s better how much we’ll see.”

What to Expect:

Bush’s presence could be an added boost to an already strong running attack. But what will take this club to another level will be the play of their quarterback and how that corresponds to their wide receivers. Gradkowski injects life into the offense when he’s in there and the targets feel more confident with the more accurate and decisive passer. If Louis Murphy and Darrius Heyward-Bey perform as they did last week, Oakland will start rolling. Gradkowski’s mobility and his ability to get rid of the ball to his weapons quickly will aide a offensive line that struggles in pass protection and will continue the shuffle at left tackle.

On Defense:

Richard Seymour has talked about being active this weekend in Arizona. Oakland performed admirably against Steven Jackson last week without their anchor defensive lineman, holding the Rams to 8-yards on the ground in the 2^nd half after allowing 67 in the first half.

Oakland was aggressive early on against the Rams, and continued pressure throughout the second half from the front-four rattled rookie quarterback Sam Bradford.

Cardinals’ right tackle Brandon Keith has struggled, so defensive end Trevor Scott could have a field day. The Raiders have shown a tendency to blitz more often in 2010, so if extra men come off the edges, it will be from the right side of the Cardinals formation.

What to Expect:

Beanie Wells expects to play on Sunday. In combination with Tim Hightower, that can provide Oakland with their third straight tough test on the ground. Consecutive solid efforts by the Raiders run defense will give this grouping a lot of confidence to start 2010. Arizona has allowed 4-sacks and 13-quarterback hits so far; so expect John Marshall to stay aggressive.

ARIZONA CARDINALS

On Offense:

“It was terrible (sitting out),” Wells stated this week. “I wanted to be out there with the guys. Seeing Tim last week [rush for 115 yards] gave me extra motivation.”

The Cardinals need a balanced attack, especially if they want to stay away from third and long situations – which has plagued them to start 2010. “It takes all 11 guys on the execution part of that,” Derek Anderson said. “In order to convert third downs and extend drives and score touchdowns that’s what we have to do.”

Anderson is under the gun and needs solid outings to keep himself atop the depth chart.

What to Expect:

Arizona will try to pound away at the Raiders front-seven in order to free up their talented group of wide receivers. Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston will have to light up the Oakland secondary if Arizona wants to get into the end-zone often. The best way to stretch Oakland out would be with a solid trio of targets and staying away from Nnamdi Asomugha.

On Defense:

Defensive coordinator Bill Davis was highlighted disappointed with the Cardinals execution last Sunday when the Atlanta Falcons 41-7 trounced them.

“It was the overall performance. As a group, we got outcoached. They executed their offense a lot better than we executed our defense. And that’s on me to fix it, and we will. We have a good group of veteran guys. We’ll learn from this, and it will make us better. It will make us better,” said Davis.

The Cardinals are a team looking for answers on defense. A players only meeting this week was scheduled to sort out a lot of the disarray that occurred last weekend.

“We have to step it up, that ‘when somebody punches us in the mouth we need to be ready to punch back,’” stated cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie.

“The veteran guys took it to heart. They basically got everybody together and said we can’t do that no more.”

“The players are embarrassed and hurt and ready to get after Oakland and get that bad game out of our system,” said Davis. “But we own it. It snuck up on us. It happened and now we have to respond to it.”

What to Expect:

The Cardinals want to feed off their home crowd. With five new starters on defense, Arizona will try to gang up on the Raiders ground attack and force their wide receivers to beat them. Arizona feels like they can clamp down on Heyward-Bey and Murphy and force Gradkowski into mistakes.

GAME NOTES

• Hue Jackson, who was under wraps during the summer, talked to the media and gave insight on his role regarding the selection of the starting quarterback: “No. Like I said, we have a head coach. Everything I do on offense I do it through with the blessing of Tom Cable. Obviously I think he would ask for my input. He’s going to ask me, ‘ Hue what do (you) think?.’ He’s going to make that decision when it’s all said and done.”
• Oakland has not won two games in a row since the end of the 2008 season. The Silver & Black are 5-2 against the Cardinals dating back to 1973.
• The Raiders are 1-8 under Cable after victories. They have been outscored 191-55 in defeats after wins under the current coach.

KEY MATCH UPS

Larry Fitzgerald vs. Nnamdi Asomugha

One of the game’s best wide receivers against one the league’s premier defensive players.

Which offensive line controls the LOS?

Both teams will depend on ground attacks. The offensive line that plays the steadiest will help their team be victorious.

PREDICTION

Raiders 26 – Cardinals 17

GAME INFO

Sunday, September 26, 2010 4:15 p.m. ET | U. of Phoenix Stadium, PHX, ARZ.

Road Team: Oakland raiders (1-1) Home: 1-0 Road: 0-1

Home Team: Arizona Cardinals (1-1) Home: 0-0 Road: 1-1

BROADCAST INFO (cited from the Oakland Raiders web site)

The game will be televised on CBS with Spero Dedes providing play-by-play and former NFL player Randy Cross handling color analysis. The game will air in the Bay Area on KPIX Channel 5 and in Sacramento on KOVR Channel 13. Greg Papa and Tom Flores will call the game on the Raiders Radio Network. The game will air live on Raiders Radio Network originating on KITS LIVE 105.3 FMand KFRC 1550 AM, with pre and post-game analysis on KFRC, the Silver and Black’s flagship for the multi-state Radio Network. Papa and Raiders two-time Super Bowl winning head coach Flores will man the booth for the 13^th straight year. The radio pregame and postgame shows will feature Raider Legends George Atkinson and David Humm as well as local veteran radio personalities Bruce Magowan and Jason Ross. In addition, the Compass Radio Network will broadcast the game nationally withChris Carrino and Brian Baldinger calling the action.

Follow me on Twitter, click here.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist