Silver and Black Report

Former Seattle Seahawk Aaron Curry has only been with the Oakland Raiders for little more than a month and he’s already been a force on defense at WLB with 18 solo tackles and came up huge in last Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears when he disrupted and tipped a Chad Hanie screen pass to his teammate Kamerion Wimbley who in turn ran the ball back for 73-yards before getting tackled at the 12-yard line. “It was really good. We felt better as a unit as far as energy-wise, but it was still… I think, we had more of a mental energy. You could feel the focus. You could feel the excitement too. But you could feel the focus more than the excitement and I think that turned into turnovers and turned into getting the stops we needed to get stopped.”

Aaron Curry makes a tackle

Curry, a God fearing and humble man, has brought with him a level of intense energy that seems to compliment the mentality and purpose coach Hue Jackson demands. In turn, his positive energy has helped the Raiders get closer to winning it’s division again. “I’m just excited that the fans got what they needed and what they deserved and it’s big to come out of the game 7-4″, said Curry.

When asked about the team’s confidence earlier last week heading into it’s match-ups against the Chicago Bears, Curry expressed, “That’s one thing you’re going to learn about the Raiders; we’re always going to be confident. You’re never gonna see us with our heads down. We don’t go for that. We don’t agree with bad energy, negative energy. We’re going to be confident and we’re just going to take pride in being a Raider. For us, being a Raider is passed just you and your uniform. Being a Raider goes all the way back to the history of being a Raider and it’s not too many times you’re gonna see a Raider that wasn’t confident in his craft and what they did.”

Oh yeah…about that trade from Seattle to Oakland? “Yeah, I’m extremely happy. I couldn’t be happier. I love being a Raider. I love everything about being an Oakland Raider. This is what football is about! I haven’t felt this way…I haven’t felt this way in a long time about where I’m at in my life (and) about what my purpose is. I haven’t felt this way about my teammates, about OUR purpose. Being a Raider, this is the best I’ve felt in a long time and I’m very excited. And possibly, my purpose may have been to be a Raider…That’s how it feels.”

Marcel Reece played an important role yesterday in the Oakland Raiders 25-20 home win versus the Chicago Bears.

With two of their key targets inactive, the fullback ran through the Bears secondary for a total of 92-yards. “I relish taking on every challenge,” said Reece after the game, who split out wide and scampered for yardage as a receiver out of the backfield. “Whatever the case may be, I just challenge myself to do it to the best of my abilities.”

Oakland is now 7-4 and controlling their own destiny entering December.  Stanford Routt noted how vastly different it is being the hunted: “But 7-4 is also a gift and a curse. Right now we’re still leading the division. If we go in and pee down our leg and wind up finishing second in the division, it’s going to be an embarrassment. Se we definitely got to keep going.”

The rush defense is a major concern, especially since the Bears tallied 172-yards on the ground. “We’re an aggressive team, a lot of young, hungry dogs, but we’re trying to play smarter,” safety Mike Mitchell stated.

Matt Forte did not hurt them out of the backfield pass catching, and he only had one breakout run. But Marion Barber plowed through the defensive line and gave Chicago life when they needed a ground attack. Oh, and yet another quarterback enjoyed success bolting out of the backfield, as Caleb Hanie ended with 50-yards rushing.

“We knew Forte was 60 percent of the offense, so our goal was to stop him and put the game in the quarterback’s hands,” commented Michael Huff. “And we did that.”

The linebackers had their best game as a unit all season. Kamerion Wimbley had the momentum shifting interception and 73-yard return, Rolando McClain had a sack and was violent at the line of scrimmage and Aaron Curry was disruptive, as he dissected Hanie’s interception at the end of the 2^nd quarter.

The red-zone woes almost hurt Oakland, and their lack of success in the 4^th quarter. But a vital 3^rd down conversion by Chaz Schilens and Louis Murphy 47-yard catch gave them enough breathing room at the end.

“Not to get touchdowns is something that frustrates you, but you can’t let it frustrate you,” stated Carson Palmer, who tallied 301-yards on  21-for-37 attempts. “You have to be happy to get field goals and points and getting points on the board when your defense is playing like that, and be conservative at times.”

UP NEXT…

The Miami Dolphins, who are 3-8, have been playing better football lately and are coming off a tough defeat on Thanksgiving Day in Dallas.

“They played a heck of a football game, a hard fought national NFL game last night. It was a hard fought game. We didn’t win the game. I’m proud of the effort the guys put out there. We didn’t win the game. They’ll be excited to get back to work. They’ll be a little bit healthier and ready to go,” said head coach Tony Sparano after their loss.

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It was a treacherous way to take care of business at home, but the Oakland Raiders prevailed and continued their run atop the AFC West with a 25-20 win against the Chicago Bears.

Here’s a breakdown of the victory, with all the key plays and moments for the Silver & Black:

SPECIAL TEAMS LEADS THE WAY… AGAIN.

Sebastian Janikowski broke his own franchise record for most field goals in a game, going 6-for-6 (40, 47, 42, 19, 37, 44) and leading the way when the offense was not able to stick it in the end zone. “It means a lot. There’s plenty more records to be broken,” he stated when asked about his performance. Each one of those kicks was crucial and equally impressive, especially after he was hindered with left hamstring injury the last few weeks.

You knew he was on his game and completely healed when he drove kickoffs deep into the end zone.

Devin Hester was shutdown, tallying seven yards on punt returns and only 39-yards on kickoffs. Rock Cartwright, Quentin Groves, Mike Mitchell, Brandon Myers and Darryl Blackstock gunned down Hester all afternoon.

Shane Lechler was stellar, averaging 54.6 on his punts, with a long of 80-yards. What impressed the most were his three punts inside the 20-yard line – especially the final one, pushed out of bounds by Bryan McCann at the four-yard line with 1:01 remaining – forcing Caleb Hanie to go long distances on drives for scores.

“Our two kickers are fantastic,” coach Hue Jackson commented. “There’s not another punter or kicker in the National Football League I would ever want to have on the football team. I said to the team when this was over, those were the two men who were here the last time this team was 7-4. Those guys have a lot to do with it. They did a tremendous job.”

TURNOVERS

Caleb Hanie tossed three interceptions – all in the first half. Stanford Routt’s pick in the 1^st quarter eventually gave Oakland a 6-0 lead.

“We knew coming into this game that [Hanie] lacked experience but we knew that he could still make plays, as you saw in the Green Bay title game last year,” Routt said. “We knew he still had the ability to make us look bad and come out of here with the W if we didn’t take care of business.”

Michael Huff’s interception killed a Chicago drive that could’ve ended in at least a field goal attempt. Hanie’s poor decision making victimized the Bears early.

Kamerion Wimbley got his first pick of the season and returned it 73-yards to the Bears six-yard line. Oakland went into the half with a 15-7 lead due to that turnover.

MOMENTUM SWINGS

The Bears felt good after Johnny Knox scored from 29-yards out. It had to be demoralizing for Oakland…

They outplayed Chicago up to that point, but since they settled for field goals, the visiting team continued to have life. Corey Graham intercepted Carson Palmer and the Bears went on a 76-yard, 9-play drive that gave them a 7-6 lead.

Oakland immediately went on the attack with a Marcel Reece 47-yard catch and run. Four plays later, the Silver & Black were up again, 9-7.

Wimbley’s pick came at a point where Chicago had a 2^nd and 1 at the Oakland 7-yard line. Knox had returned a kickoff 56-yards, but instead of scoring at the end of the 2^nd quarter, the Bears let the Raiders go into the locker room with confidence. “Man, I thought I was like Barry Sanders or something. When I caught it, I was just looking at the end zone and I was trying my best to get there. An offensive lineman got me, so the guys won’t let me live that one down for a while,” said Wimbley.

Louis Murphy’s 47-yard catch on 3^rd and 4 – at midfield late in the 4^th quarter – helped set-up Michael Bush’s 3-yard scamper, which gave Oakland a 25-13 lead.

RESERVES AND ROLE PLAYERS STEPPING UP

Marcel Reece had five receptions for 92-yards. The fullback consistently beat defenders and gave Oakland an added element to their aerial attack today.

Chaz Schilens, who had some choice words for Warren Sapp this week, backed up his banter with his best performance of the year. His 14-yard reception on 3^rd and 6 in the final quarter was key. He ended with 58-yards on 4 catches.

Louis Murphy hauled in two passes, one of them being the biggest play of the game.

GAME NOTES:

• Oakland had a tough time converting 3^rd downs, finishing a putrid 3-15. They also struggled in the red-zone and often settled for field goals. “It was tough in the red zone. That’s a good defense. That’s a good unit. People questioned what their ranking was statistically. That’s a very good unit that’s played together a long time and understands their scheme,” commented Carson Palmer.
• The Bears rush defense did a fine job this afternoon, limiting Michael Bush to 69-yards on 24-carries. Oakland managed 73-team rushing yards. The Raiders offensive line did not get push at the point of attack and struggled in pass protection, allowing four sacks. Jared Veldheer, who had his way with Jared Allen last week, struggled with Julius Peppers (2-sacks) and got infracted with a holding penalty. Samson Satele’s hold nullified a 14-yard Bush run and Stefen Wisniewski’s hold wiped away a 12-yard Bush score. The Bears ended with four sacks.
• The Bears out gained the Raiders, 401-341. Marion Barber was their most effective rusher, gaining 63-yards on 10 carries. Matt Forte finished with 59-yards on 12-carries, but 33 of them on one play. Hanie had 50-yards rushing, including a backbreaking 24-yard run on 3^rd and 18 – the drive that gave them a 7-6 lead.
• Oakland had one penalty at the half. They ended with 6-for-44 yards.
• Bush’s 3-yard run in the 4^th quarter snapped a five-game scoreless drought in the final quarter. “We should have won that football game based on the way our offense played,” linebacker Brian Urlacher said. “We didn’t play well enough on defense. We gave up too many big plays, didn’t get enough takeaways. That’s why we didn’t win.”

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Here’s a look at the top performers in today’s match-up between the Oakland Raiders (7-4) and the Chicago Bears (7-4):

Sebastian Janikowski, K

He was 6-for-6, breaking his own record for most field goals in a game. When asked about the performance, he stated, “It means a lot. There’s plenty more records to be broken.” If Janikowski missed one, it could’ve change the complexity of the game.

Chaz Schilens, WR

Up to this point, the only people who knew of him where those that followed his verbal barrage with Warren Sapp this week. But today, he was vital with Denarius Moore and Jacoby Ford inactive. Four catches for 58-yards was his final stat line. Oakland converted only two first downs in the second half – one on a 3rd and 6 to Schilens for 14-yards on the scoring drive in the 4^th quarter.

Darrius Heyward-Bey, WR

Four receptions for 42-yards a week after he sustained a scary injury to his neck – that’s impressive.

Aaron Curry, LB

Was active all afternoon around the line of scrimmage and one of the reasons why they corralled Matt Forte. Curry’s play has improved every week. Kamerion Wimbley got the interception and long return, but it was Curry who dissected and blew up the play.

Tyvon Branch, SS

Had a sack and eight tackles. Flew around all afternoon and his coverage skills have been top notch.

Rolando McClain, MLB

Started today very strong, got hurt and missed a series… then came alive in the second half. Two tackles for losses and more disruptive play will be needed moving forward. Posted one of Oakland’s four sacks.

Marcel Reece, FB

He presents such difficult match-ups for opponents. He lined up as a wide receiver and hurt the Bears. Out of the backfield, he was a handful. Reece ended with 92-yards receiving. “I relish taking on every challenge,” said Reece, who had a bigger role today with injuries along the receiver depth chart.

Shane Lechler, P

An 80-yard punt? Yup… but that’s not all. He placed three inside the 20, including his final punt with just over a minute left, which forced Caleb Hanie to begin his drive at the four-yard line.

Hue Jackson, Coach

A critical decision was going for the field goal at the end of the 2^nd quarter instead of risking it and going for it with time expiring. Oakland eventually kicked the field and posted points in a game where every change of the scoreboard was critical. Handled the injuries well, rotating Louis Murphy, Schilens, Heyward-Bey and others, and mixing up the two tight end packages. That was a gutsy call on 3^rd and 4, when Carson Palmer hit Murphy for 47-yards. “Man, it was a relief. You start to doubt yourself. Can I still play this game? Coach has been telling me, ‘Murph, just stay focused, keep going.’ It was a good time to get over the hump,” commented Murphy.

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Raiders rookie receiver Denarius Moore was hobbled this week.

A slew of Oakland Raiders were listed as questionable for their match-up on Sunday versus the Chicago Bears.

On offense: WR Denarius Moore (foot), WR Darrius Heyward-Bey (neck), RB Taiwan Jones (hamstring) and FB Manase Tonga (knee).

On defense: DE Lamarr Houston (knee), S Michael Huff (ankle), CB Chris Johnson (hamstring, groin), S Mike Mitchell (ankle) and DT Richard Seymour (knee).

Sebastian Janikowski’s left hamstring is feeling better than it has in several weeks. “I am ready, feeling good,” Janikowski stated this afternoon. “It has gotten better every week. I can still feel it a little bit when I’m stretching, but I don’t think it will affect my kicking anymore.”

RB Darren McFadden (foot), WR Jacoby Ford (foot) and DE Jarvis Moss (hamstring) have been ruled out.

For the Chicago Bears, Devin Hester is expected to play after missing the team’s last two days of practice. “Devin is getting better,” commented head coach Lovie Smith. “We kept him out one more day. He should be able to go.”

The dangerous return man is working through sore shins. Defensive back D.J. Moore (ankle) is doubtful to play.

A key on special teams may be the play of Chris Massey. The veteran was signed this week after their reliable long time snapper Patrick Mannelly was lost for the season with a ruptured ACL. The Carolina Panthers released Massey in August.

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Like the Oakland Raiders (6-4), the Chicago Bears (7-3) lost their starting quarterback, and it appears that Jay Cutler may not be available for the remainder of the regular season. But the Silver & Black were able to take advantage of the trade deadline and bring in Carson Palmer just days after Jason Campbell went down. Caleb Hanie will make his first career start, stating, “I know where I am in the offense, I know what I’m doing in this offense. I’ve been waiting for this opportunity.”

OAKLAND RAIDERS

On Offense:

Darren McFadden and Jacoby Ford are likely out again, as they both sat out of practice on Thursday. Hue Jackson stated, “We’ll see if we can get anything out of [McFadden or Ford] tomorrow.”

That means that Michael Bush will continue his run as a starter. In the last four games, Bush has 96-carries, 461-yards and 2 scores on the ground.

Jared Veldheer, coming off his stellar performance versus Jared Allen last weekend, now gets Julius Peppers. “That’s what pro football is all about. You play the best, and when you’re able to hold your own, you start to realize you’re starting to become something,” stated Jackson about his tackle.

With Ford missing time in practice and Darrius Heyward-Bey recovering from his neck injury last weekend, Oakland were forced to practice with only three receivers this week.  Denarius Moore also was held out due to a foot ailment.

“It makes it difficult,” Palmer stated. “You don’t get the same guys on the field from the week before, that rhythm and timing thing slows down a little bit. So we have our work cut out for us.

On Defense:

“We’ve got better players than we had in the past,” defensive tackle Tommy Kelly commented this week. “But we’re also making the job a lot harder than we have to. We say that to ourselves a lot on the sideline. But in the end all you’ve got to do is win the game.”

Last week, the defense dodged a bullet with Adrian Peterson’s early departure. Now they get Matt Forte, who is the NFL’s fourth leading rusher (926-yards). Oakland will undoubtedly stack the line of scrimmage and hope to force the young passer into long down and distance situations.

“Really, probably the blue print of how they’re going to play us – I’m guessing – is what they did against that rookie quarterback in Minnesota, where they pressured a lot more than they had been pressuring,” Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice was quoted. “I look for them to do something like that, to us. And they’ve got a nice blitz package. We’ll be ready for it.

“We’re 11, 12 weeks into the season. We’ve seen just about everything. There are only so many blitzes.”

CHICAGO BEARS

On Offense:

Hanie is mobile enough to escape and hurt the Raiders out of the pocket. Surely, the Bears have seen film of Tim Tebow running for 118-yards and Christian Ponder for 71-yards the last three weeks.

But they’ll have to lean heavily on Forte, who is the type of shifty rusher that gives Oakland fits. He’s also a threat out of the backfield, which will put pressure on the Raiders linebackers and safeties.

John Henderson, Tommy Kelly & Richard Seymour have a tough task ahead, versus Matt Forte.

“Teams have tried to play us the last few weeks, they stack the box, try to get the running game out, and beat them with the pass,” Hanie said. “Luckily last week we were able to beat them with the pass. Hopefully we can keep the big plays and keep our explosiveness.”

Those big plays, if they do come in the passing game, could be screens versus an aggressive Raider bunch or off misdirections and bootlegs.

On Defense:

Chicago’s defense allows 20.1 points per game (14^th in the NFL), 270.7 pass yards a contest (30^th) and 101.2 rush yards per game (11^th).

Over the last six weeks, the Bears have allowed a league low 66.8 rushing yards. They also rank second in the NFL with 23 turnovers. “I wish it wasn’t the issue, but I think you look at the way we’re set up, in my mind, we’re still a defensive team and (on) special teams, we can score at any time, which is a good thing,” Brian Urlacher said.

Urlacher, D.J Moore and Major Wright, all have three interceptions apiece.

Peppers leads the team with 6.0 sacks. Henry Melton (4), Amobi Okoye (3) and Israel Idonije (3) have also been hunting opposing passers.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Devin Hester is the ultimate x-factor whenever the Bears play. He can swing momentum, alter field position or score at any given moment when he’s returning.

But Oakland in the past has not been afraid of the dynamic talent. In 2007, albeit with different players and coaches, the Silver & Black did not shy away from Hester. This time around, Lane Kiffin isn’t around to boast about kicking to him, but other players are.

“As a punt unit, I feel like we have the best weapon in the league in Shane Lechler,” safety Mike Mitchell said. “We’re going to punt to anybody. I don’t think we’re afraid to punt to a specific player.”

“As far as I’m concerned, no, it’s not the same attitude right now,” Lechler said regarding their first match-up four years ago. “That guy’s too dangerous.”

Mitchell continued: “After he gets machine-gunned a couple of times, he’s not going to be too quick to return punts. I’m not talking any trash, either. He’s the best punt returner, best returner besides Jacoby [Ford]. He’s awesome. But our mentality is, he has to play us.”

GAME NOTES

• Oakland is 4-1 on the road, but just 2-3 in front of the Black Hole. “You’ve got to win at home,” Palmer said. “You’ve got to protect your field. We’ve got to do a better job of keeping or crowd in it. We’ve fallen behind and not gotten off to fast starts.” The team sold out the O.Co Coliseum for the sixth straight game.
• “It falls squarely on our offensive line,” Roberto Garza said. “We have to do our technique better, move those guys and cover those guys up, and make those holes for Matt [Forte] and Marion [Barber] to run through.”
• “He’s a special player, to say the least,” defensive lineman Richard Seymour said about Forte. “He’s playing at an All-Pro level; we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
• Bears signed former Raider Josh McCown, who was the starter for the Silver & Black the last time they met.
• Chicago is averaging 32.2 points per game during their current five-game winning streak.

KEY MATCH-UPS

Containing Forte

The all-purpose running back can do it all and is a big play threat. Oakland has to be sure-handed with their tackling and stay disciplined in run support. Out of the backfield as a receiver, he has 46 receptions for 465-yards.

Hester’s hysteria…

If Oakland can keep Hester from shifting the field and putting up points on special teams, it could hinder Hanie’s first start. The young passer could get loads of confidence by having short fields to work with, or not having to shoulder the scoring burden.

Veldheer & Lil’ Wiz…

Again this week, Oakland’s youthful left side will be the spotlight. The Raiders need to get Bush going again and protect Palmer from an onslaught rush.

PREDICTION

Raiders 24 – Bears 23

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Apparently, Chaz Schilens had heard enough.

The often-injured wide receiver told the San Francisco Chronicle that, “Warren Sapp is a fool.”

Sapp, a former Raider and current NFL Network analyst, has been critical of the Silver & Black through the years, many times with merit, but Schilens and a lot of the fan-base has taken it to heart, his verbal barrage.

Schilens continued, “That dude is stupid. He played for the Raiders 20 years ago. No one cares what he says, nobody likes him, he’s a joke. … Everyone on this team thinks he’s a joke.”

The former NFL defensive player of the year responded, “Ok Just Woke Up From My Tuesday Slumber. Who’s Chaz Schilens ?? Oh Wasn’t He Just On DWTS? Did He Win??”, via twitter.

Then: “My Bad! I Looked Ole Chaz Up, 8 & 6 Starts His 1st Two Yrs. ONE Start In Last 2yrs, Better Start a Career Before Its Over! #BiggerFishToFry”

Schilens, who has done very little in his career to distinguish himself and has been known more for his fragility than actual skill level, had no reason to stir this up.

His team is atop the division at 6-4 and eyeing their first playoff berth since 2002. Whether his team does really believe Sapp is a joke or not, it makes no sense to bring further attention to a team that should be flying under the radar.

If he wanted notoriety, he got it. Now, can he actually help this team go forward, or continue his pedestrian NFL career?

Sapp has been critical many times of the Silver & Black. But who hasn’t when the team posted a historical losing stretch, finally got to 8-8 last season and many questions surrounded this year’s club ability to improve upon that with a first year head coach.

Oakland has been a pleasant surprise and with continued growth heading into the latter part of the schedule, they could become one of the scarier threats to come out of the AFC.

Fans believe that, and Schilens probably does to. If Sapp doesn’t, why bother going after him?

He gets paid by the NFL network to give his insight, thoughts and opinions on varying topics. He’s doing his job.

BEARS NEXT…

Brian Urlacher believes that Caleb Hanie will be just fine in his first NFL start…

But he’s also putting more of the onus on the defense to clamp down over the next few weeks.

“Our mindset right now is we’re going to have to carry this team,” Urlacher said. “Not to take anything away from our offense right now, but our mindset is we have to play better and get more takeaways and put them in better field position to be able to be successful.

“We can do that. We’ve done it in the past. We’ve got to do it again. No more mistakes for us. We didn’t play well [last Sunday against the Chargers]. We can’t have any mistakes this late in the season. So we’ve got to play better and hopefully our offense can pick it up when they have to.”

ORTON EFFECT…

Today is the deadline for teams to claim Kyle Orton. Candidates include the Chiefs, Bears and Texans.

Sources have stated that Chicago could claim him, but it will be unlikely he starts Sunday if that is the case. Any team claiming the passer would owe him the pro-rated portion of his $8.8 million contract, which would be around $2.58 million. If Orton goes unclaimed, Denver would be on the hook for his remaining salary.

MORE…

“That’d be 90 in three games. That’d be pretty good,” said Hue Jackson, regarding Michael Bush’s workload the last couple of weeks and his expected contributions this week.

“I think Sammy will be fine,” commented Jackson his starting center (Samson Satele).

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There’s no doubt that the Chicago Bears will miss Jay Cutler’s presence as the season winds down. The beneficiary of that right off the bat will be the Oakland Raiders, who will face a transitioning Caleb Hanie this Sunday.

Hanie has just thrown 14 regular season passes in four seasons. “He came in and ran the offense and got us within a touchdown of possibly taking us to the Super Bowl,” Lovie Smith said of his back-up, and his surprising performance in the playoffs last year, in relief. “So as you talk with our team, they are all going to say the same thing: We will miss Jay, but we’ll keep his spot warm. In the meantime, we’re going to continue to win with Caleb.”

“Obviously, Jay Cutler is one of the better quarterbacks in this league and one of their best offensive players,” Hue Jackson stated Monday. “But Caleb Hanie is a really good player. This guy played in the NFC championship game and almost won the game for them.”

Chicago has won five in a row and in the playoff hunt at 7-3, but unfortunately in the same division as the Lions, who also share the same record and the Green Bay Packers, who have not lost a game yet.

Long-snapper Patrick Mannelly will miss the rest of the season with a ruptured ACL. “We’re losing him for the season,” said Smith. “We’ll put him on IR, so two valuable guys in our program went down [Sunday].”

Oakland’s John Fassel has taken advantage of protection schemes in the past. He’s designed successful attacks at opposing punters with Brandon Myers and Rock Cartwright. The Raiders’ speed will be a concern for Chicago, especially since their staple on special teams won’t be there manning the middle.

Mannelly has played in 147 straight games and a franchise-record 215 games, missing just three contests in 14 seasons.

Whether Darren McFadden finally gets back into action will depend on the workweek. Jackson stated that his rusher made strides last week, but he hasn’t seen any reps in practice since his injury on Oct. 23.

The progress Jackson talked about was McFadden being out of his boot observing practice. Real progress will be when he is padded and running around at full speed, something we may not see this week.

“I don’t want a 70 percent Darren McFadden,” Jackson said. “I think that’s unfair to the player and unfair to the football team.”

Darrius Heyward-Bey looks to be in the clear now after sustaining a scary neck injury versus the Vikings.

“I think we’re beyond the major part of it,” Jackson said. “Now let’s see how fast he heals and see exactly where he is.”

DHB was seen wearing a neck brace and will likely have to go through a battery of tests, like Samson Satele (concussion) before they get back on the field.

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Bob Wylie, Stefen Wisniewski & Jared Veldheer have become a force in Oakland.

Jared Veldheer may not be a household name…yet.

The Oakland Raiders left tackle has been the anchor of an offensive line that is becoming one of the games best – in only his second year as pro.

As a rookie, Veldheer allowed 7.5 sacks, starting at center before making his way to the left edge. This season, he’s only given up two sacks and yesterday, gobbled up the NFL’s leader in sacks, Jared Allen. Going into the game versus the Minnesota Vikings, the Hillsdale college product stated, “He is really tearing it up right now. He is a great player all-around, especially against the pass but against the run too. High motor guy.”

Single-handedly, Veldheer mauled Allen and used his large frame to keep Carson Palmer from being one of the defensive end’s many victims this season.

“I just asked him if he realized what he did today,” Palmer commented. “I don’t think it’s hit him. Not many guys play that well against that guy, and he didn’t have any help, either.”

Veldheer legitimately deserves Pro Bowl consideration this season. Not only does he play the most important position along the offensive line, but he’s the foundation of a unit that has a top ranked rush attack, opening holes for whoever they plug in at running back and have kept their passers clean, allowing just 15-sacks all campaign.

He’s only in his second season, but you can argue that Veldheer is one of the top left tackles in his conference. “You’re not allowed to put any pressure on the quarterback or let alone touch the guy. That was my mindset going in,” said the tackle after his performance versus Allen.

Oakland’s offensive line is one of the best in the league. Bob Wylie has done a wonderful job transitioning a new system of blocking in his first year as line coach and developing new talent along the way.

Stefen Wisniewski is not playing like a rookie. Along the left side, Oakland has bullied opponents with their 6-8, 315 pound tackle and first year guard.

There isn’t much experience on that side of the field, but it’s where the Raiders go when they need crucial yardage. The scary part is…their going to get better.

“I know where No. 69 is at all times. And I didn’t notice him hardly at all (today),” Palmer stated after the game. Soon, everyone will know where no. 68 is at all times.

Wisniewski & Veldheer win the majority of their match-ups on the left side.

THE DAY AFTER…

Hue Jackson is fed up with what’s going on…

With his team and the officials.

“I want us to have the same opportunity that everyone else has in this league,” Jackson said, complaining about the officiating in yesterday’s 27-21 road win.

“I understand that I am a rookie coach and maybe I don’t get all the calls,” he continued, “but there is no way some of the things that happened should happen.

“Sometimes, I would get talked to as if they didn’t know what I was asking. I just don’t think it was fair. I asked several times for explanations and wouldn’t get them. … We can’t get the ref over here when there is a break in the action, but he is over there on the other bench having conversations with them. I have a hard time with that.”

Another 12 penalties were called on the Silver & Black for 117 yards, putting them on pace to shatter the record held by the Kansas City Chiefs for most flags and yards in a season (165 for 1,427).

“I am going to reach out to the league myself, personally,” Jackson said. “I normally don’t complain about the officiating. I don’t make any bones that way because I said I wouldn’t. But today I just truly felt like it was a little unfair. I really do … I know everyone says we’re the most-penalized team in football and that’s a fact, and I’m not running from that,” Jackson said. “But there’s no way … some things that happened today on that football field, I question. I just do, and I have to, and I’m going to defend my team. It’s time that I do that.”

Tommy Kelly tallied his first career interception. “Coach has been stressing for us to keep running to the ball, and I did and it just ricocheted into my hands,” the defensive tackle said. “It felt good and then I was tired.”

Darrius Heyward-Bey (neck), Samson Satele (concussion), Taiwan Jones (hamstring) and Jarvis Moss (hamstring) were injured.  DHB was on the team flight on the way back to Oakland.

Oakland has scored 99 points the last five games, but has not scored in the fourth quarter during that span.

UP NEXT…

Veldheer’s reward for shutting down Allen…a match-up against Julius Peppers and the Chicago Bears defense.

Oakland dodged a bullet when Adrian Peterson was hurt and left the game early. Next week, they face Matt Forte, who is one of the top rushers in the league but has been held in check the last two weeks, rushing for 64 and 59 yards in consecutive games.

Jay Cutler won’t be in action, as reportedly he sustained a right thumb injury that will force Caleb Hanie into the starting line-up.

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