Silver and Black Report

To make room for the recently signed CB Rashad Baker, the Oakland Raiders waived veteran fullback Lorenzo Neal.

Neal was on the injury list this afternoon (hamstring); he was on the field but did not practice with the team.

The former Saint, Jet, Buccaneer, Titan, Bengal, Charger and Raven has played 16 seasons in the league. He has helped Adrian Murrell, Warrick Dunn, Eddie George, Corey Dillon, and LaDainian Tomlinson to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season on his many stops throughout his career. One of the better run blockers in the league for some time, Neal was signed by the Raiders in March of 2009.

Oren O’Neal is expected to pave lanes for Darren McFadden, Justin Fargas and Michael Bush, but the young fullback per DeMarcus Davis has been seen ‘hobbling around.’ Davis also stated that Tom Cable felt it was in the team’s best interest to release Neal.

Also, receiver Chaz Schilens underwent surgery on the broken bone in his left foot Wednesday. The second year pro is expected to miss four to six weeks.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

The Oakland Raiders’ offense did not have a bad practice session versus the San Francisco 49ers. They were abysmal!

San Francisco’s pass defense toyed with the Raider offense; including five interceptions, four during run throughs in the red-zone and three of them that were picked off from JaMarcus Russell.

His response, “It’s not the end of the world. If it is, then show me.”

We all know by now how laid back the cannon armed passer can be. So this just may be how he emotes after a lackadaisical effort during practice. Russell may not let this affect him in the long run. But showing a little frustration and letting his teammates know that that was not an acceptable performance is something we should see out of the guy pegged to lead this team.

S&B journalist DeMarcus Davis said of the embarrassing practive, “All the Raiders could do was hold their heads down in shame. NOT ONE RAIDER got in the face of their tormentors. They would just walk back to the huddle and limp to another play. It was pathetic.”

That’s when Russell needs to show leadership. That’s when he has to gather his troops and stop the bleeding. So far, we have not seen signs of this and eventually, he’ll have to show some more fire if this team is going to turn the corner and avoid a seventh straight 11+ loss season.

Even his opponents see the immaturity. Cornerback Dre Bly stated, “He’s kind of young. He’s kind of learning to be a leader. I didn’t notice anyone stepping up and saying, ‘this is enough.”

What should be troubling to Russell is how his teammate Jeff Garcia is showing more fire. It was the former 49er that huddled the team and gave them words of motivation.

“[Garcia] brought the guys up,” Russell said. “You can see some of the guys haven’t been in that situation to where a guy jumping on them like that. It’s the big leagues. You going to get that. You never know who it’s going to come from. You can have a kid in there say a few words but Jeff is a guy that’s been in the NFL for quite some years. I think a lot of the young guys will take heed to that.”

Yes JaMarcus…

Learn from that, because if you don’t, Garcia will take your job. He is not there to baby-sit you. He may teach how to be a leader, – if that’s something you can learn – but he’ll do it knowing that he may be the best quarterback on the roster and deserving of the job if Russell cannot show progress.

MURPHY THE IGNITOR

One player who showed some fire during practice was rookie Louis Murphy.

The wide receiver out of Florida was boisterous, getting in the face of cornerback Shawntae Spencer in drills. “That’s how I get motivated,” Murphy said. “And the coaches know that. Just out there talking man, you know? That’s just part of my game. To a certain extent, it helps me get pumped and ready for the play.”

It was important to see Murphy back on the field, especially after the loss of Chaz Schilens. The rookie has a chance to get substantial playing time once the season starts, so working with Russell and the first team in practice and during pre-season games could go a long way in seeing him contribute early in 2009.

Head Coach Tom Cable said, “We have to have guys step up. Louis Murphy’s back, and someone else has got to go make those plays.”

What did the 49ers think of Murphy?

Bly commented: “Well, (Louis) Murphy. A Florida guy. They’ve got two national championships, so I guess you feel like you can come into this league and talk. I was telling one of the guys, the national championships on this level is equivalent to a high school state championship. Nobody cares. That’s in the past. It was cool while you were in college, but when you get to the league it’s equivalent to a high school state championship. He’s a guy that has a lot of swagger… He’s young. When you’re young you’re going to come in talking and want to compete. I was the same way. I don’t know if I talked that much, but I was fired up about being in the league and having a chance to compete against different guys.”

BAKER BACK

Per reports, CB Rashad Baker has signed a deal with the Raiders. The Philadelphia Eagles cut the 27 year old recently after inking him back in March to shore up a secondary that had lost leader Brian Dawkins.

“I think I’ve had a fair camp,” Baker had said before being waived. “I know there are a lot of good players at the safety position on this team. My goal is to open some eyes. Some days it might happen because I make a couple of interceptions. Some days I might not get any picks, so I’ll have to do something else to stand out. That might mean doing something on special teams or anywhere on the field.”

Baker was on the Raiders roster during the 2007 and 2008 seasons.

Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist

Well, at least the Oakland Raiders (2-7) didn’t wait till the 3^rd quarter to get their initial first down of the game against the Carolina Panthers (7-2). They got that out of the way in the 1^st quarter on Sunday, but after that, they couldn’t do much of else. 

Unlike last weekend, the Raiders showed some signs of life, but their ineptitude on offense and sloppy play kept them from putting any scare into the Panthers as they lost their third straight game 17-6.

Oakland was 2-of-17 on third down conversions, had 10 penalties for 83 yards and Shane Lechler had a career high 11 punts during the slop-fest.

Both teams combined for 20 punts and seven turnovers. The Raiders won the time of possession battle 37:02 to 22:58 and actually had more first downs than the Panthers (17-10). But that only gave more opportunities for the offense to show how pitiable they are in front of a non-sellout crowd at the ‘Black Hole.’

The Panthers did not need to move the chains or play keep away today.

They scored on a short field at the beginning of the game after Johnnie Lee Higgins fumbled the opening kickoff. Carolina started their drive at the Oakland 16-yard line and four plays later; they went up 7-0 on a Jake Delhomme to Muhsin Muhammad 3-yard connection.

Oakland’s defense was solid in spurts versus the run and gave Delhomme fits all day when he dropped back to pass. The revamped secondary recorded four interceptions and looked very active today, but with the good there was some bad, as they reverted to shoddy tackling at times and miscues that led directly to Carolina points.

Rashad Baker blew a tackle on a DeAngelo Williams run, which sprung him 69-yards for a touchdown and gave Carolina a 14-0 lead in the 2^nd quarter.

Baker had two interceptions on the day, but at times was bowled over by opposing rushers.

And the Raiders, who came into the game allowing 157.6 rushing yards per game (30^th in the NFL), allowed another 162 today and a career high 140 on 19 carries by Williams.

Oakland wasted many opportunities to score on short fields after turnovers.

Nnamdi Asomugha, who blanketed Steve Smith whenever they paired up, got his first interception of the season in the first quarter. Oakland took over on the Carolina 39-yard line, but Andrew Walter, starting his 9^th career game, tossed an interception four plays later on a pass intended for rookie Chaz Schilens in the end zone.

The game was difficult to watch.

Oakland cold not muster up any offense and considering they won in time of possession and tallied more first downs than their opponent, it must be upsetting to coaches that they couldn’t wear down the Panther defense. If anything, it was Carolina who was exhausting the Raiders with their constant pressure and rugged play.

Julius Peppers was a one-man gang recording three sacks. The second time in as many weeks that a defensive end has compiled three sacks against the Raiders (John Abraham) and their turnstile tackles.

The Raiders couldn’t even catch a break when Sebastian Janikowski hit the cross bar from 58-yards out with :09 remaining. Oakland was looking to put up some points on that 3^rd down and then get a chance on the ensuing kickoff to field an onside kick.

The Raiders are an abysmal football team right now. And the playoff bound Panthers, coming off their bye week, did not appear like the team atop their division.

You can play bad against Oakland and still get away with it. Just ask Carolina.

INJURIES

After the game, head coach Tom Cable stated that Jake Grove sustained a strained calf, but did not know the severity of the injury. Chaz Schilens had a high ankle sprain and Javon Walker’s injury was above his ankle, and the coach said that the he was ‘pretty sore.’

GAME NOTES

• Janikowski booted field goals from 38 and 45 yards today. The second field goal gave the former first rounder the franchise points record, as he surpassed George Blanda with his 865 points.
• Kwame Harris struggled mightily again, and Cable stated after the game during an interview on KSFO that he intends to play Mario Henderson more often. Henderson was briefly in the game today, but was on the sidelines the entire second half. 
• The Raiders have gone back-to-back games at home without a touchdown.
•  Andrew Walter was noticeably upset on a 5-yard completion to Tony Stewart on 3^rd and 7. Instead of moving up the field after the grab, the tight end inexplicably attempted to juke the cornerback who was closing in on the tackle instead of trying to bowl him over.
• Justin Fargas ran hard and continues to be one of the few Raiders to show consistent fire on game day. He finished with 22 carries for 89 yards.