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The Raiders Top Five Studs and Duds for 2009
Published: December 26, 2009
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Who impressed this season? Who didn’t? It was a tale of two seasons for the Raiders. The first half they were awful, the second half they showed some spark thanks to Bruce Gradkowski. The Raiders have actually had their best season in 7 years no matter the outcome of the final games. Here’s your top 5 Studs & Duds for 2009:
Oakland Raiders-Cleveland Browns Predictions
Published: December 26, 2009
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QB—Charlie Frye vs. Derek Anderson
CLE: Both are former Cleveland QBs. Whoops! For Derek Anderson, he’s about to be. Anderson was abysmal when he was given another chance as Browns QB: wildly inaccurate and nobody to throw to. Not a good combination, eh?
OAK: Frye was called upon last week and did a mediocre job running the offense until he was taken out of the game with a concussion. He wasn’t relied on largely because Bush and McFadden controlled the clock.
Edge: OAK
RB—Darren McFadden and Michael Bush vs. Jerome Harrison and Chris Jennings
CLE: Harrison ran wild last week against the lowly Chiefs. In fact, it was the third best rushing performance in NFL history. Heck, who heard of him before last Sunday? Regardless, he’s facing another awful run defense. But don’t expect a carbon copy of last weekend.
OAK: Bush and McFadden had their best games of the season last Sunday. Bush showed that when he gets his carries he can produce. The problem is that he hasn’t gotten enough carries. Honestly, it wouldn’t be shocking if Bush gets only five to ten carries vs. the Browns.
Edge: Push
WR—Louis Murphy, Chaz Schilens, and Jonnie Lee Higgens vs. Mohamed Massaqoi, Mike Furrey, and Brian Robiskie
CLE: Really, Massaqoi is the only deep threat of this group. And he’s the only one who can eventually be an NFL starter in the future. He has prototypical size (6’2″ 210 lbs.).
OAK: As it turns out, Louis Murphy is the best rookie WR for the Raiders. He is pretty polished but far from perfect. He, like Heyward-Bey (questionable for Sunday), has dropped many passes, but he catched more too. Schilens looked good on the final drive last Sunday and is a big target.
Edge: OAK
Oakland’s O-line vs. Cleveland’s O-line
CLE: Two building blocks: LT Joe Thomas and C Alex Mack. Then there are the other three guys. RT John St. Clair has been poor this season, and it’s clear they need an upgrade. A couple of weeks ago, Cleveland was the only team without a rushing TD.
OAK: With Robert Gallery out, the Raiders were forced to be creative. They put RT Langston Walker at Guard. Then they moved starting center Chris Morris to RG and promoted Samson Satele to Center. It will be interesting to see how the line holds up this week.
Edge: Push
Oakland’s D-line vs. Cleveland’s D-line
CLE: They use the suddenly popular 3-4 scheme. The line is composed of a bunch of no name guys that lost NT Shaun Rodgers a month ago. This group will be pretty easy to move around.
OAK: Tommy Kelly played pretty hard Sunday. Enough to lose his pants. Richard Seymour has been very quiet lately. We’ll see what he has in store…Matt Shaughnessy has been a nice surprise. He’s really giving Oakland a spark off the bench.
Edge: OAK
Oakland’s Linebackers vs. Cleveland’s Linebackers
CLE: Kameron Wimbley is having an up-and-down season with 6.5 sacks. A lot of talent, but not consistent enough. Cleveland does get enough of a rush to get by each week. They rank in the top 10 in the category.
OAK: Trevor Scott was converted to the strong-side linebacker position when Ricky Brown went down with a season ending injury a couple of weeks ago. Kirk Morrison and Thomas Howard are better at defending the pass then the run.
Edge: CLE
Oaklands Defensive Backs vs. Cleveland’s Defensive Backs
CLE: The corners Eric Wright and Brandon McDonald have been inconsistent this season. They are 31st in the league in yards per attempt (8.2).
OAK: They boast one of the best corners in the league in Nnamdi Asomugha. Unfortunately, that means QBs will target Chris Johnson more times than not. Tyvon Branch has held up well at strong safety in his sophmore season. The problem is they lead the league with plays over 25 yards.
Edge: CLE
Oakland’s Special Teams vs. Cleveland’s Special Teams
CLE: Josh Cribbs has been electric this season. He added two more kick returns for touchdowns last week. K Phil Dawson doesn’t get many chances, so he’ll have to make the most of them.
OAK: They have gotten terrible production from their kick returners this season. Shane Lechler and big-footed Sebastian Janakowski are having another great seasons.
Edge: Push
Prediction: OAK 30, CLE 27
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