Scouting Report – Week 2 – Oakland Raiders

Need a full scouting report on the enemy? Look no further than here. Position by position, I break down the competition’s roster and tell you which team has the edge.

QUARTERBACK – JOSH MCCOWN (#12, 6-4, 215)

There are conflicting reports out there, but my gut tells me we’ll be facing Josh McCown on Sunday in Denver. While Daunte Culpepper obviously has more upside in the long term, I think McCown is a better short term solution while Culpepper still nurses his knee. I’m admittedly biased though – living in Arizona most of my life, my “second team” would be the Arizona Cardinals (a very, very, VERY distant second). McCown always played well backing up the oft-injured Kurt Warner, and I wanted to see him get his shot in Detroit. In his first start, he went 30 of 40 for 313 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. 75% completion percentage… 93.0 QB Rating… definitely the best in Oakland in a while.
THE EDGE –

RUNNING BACK – LAMONT JORDAN (#34, 5-10, 235)

After eclipsing 1000 rushing yards and over 1500 total yards in 2005, LaMont Jordan didn’t do nearly as well in 2006, finishing the season with 508 yards combined rushing and receiving. In his first game of 2007, Jordan looked more like the 2005 version, rushing for 70 yards in 15 carries and tallying 9 receptions for 89 yards. He packs a lot of bulk in his small frame (only 5-10), and can pound the rock behind a half decent offensive line this year.
THE EDGE –

TIGHT ENDS – ZACH MILLER (#45, 6-5, 255)

The 38th Overall selection in the 2007 NFL Draft, Rookie Zach Miller hopes to bring an athletic tight end presence the Raiders haven’t had in some time. He ran a 4.87 40-time at the combine and was the second tight end taken in the draft. From the scouting reports I’ve read, he reminds some people of a Daniel Graham – significant as a pass-blocking tight end, but don’t forget about him in the passing game either.
THE EDGE –

WIDE RECEIVERS – RONALD CURRY (#89, 6-2, 210), JERRY PORTER (#84, 6-2, 220)

Ronald Curry, a 6th year man out of North Carolina, stormed into 2007 with 10 receptions for 133 yards and a touchdown last week. This is the kind of production the Raiders have been missing for some time, and if Curry can perform like that against the Broncos’ elite corners, it will mean that the Raiders offense will have returned to respectability. Jerry Porter is a voice in the locker room and hopes to add to his 2 catches last week.
THE EDGE –

OFFENSIVE LINE – LT BARRY SIMMS (#65, 6-5, 300), LG ROBERT GALLERY (#76, 6-7, 325), C JAKE GROVE (#64, 6-4, 300), RG COOPER CARLISLE (#66, 6-5, 295), RT CORNELL GREEN (#74, 6-6, 315)

After a bit of shuffling, the Raiders believe they’ve found the lineup that works. Barry Simms and Robert Gallery switch positions at left guard and left tackle, and former Bronco Cooper Carlisle fills in at right guard. The unit looked better than last year in one week of action – but then again, that begs the question: “Could they look any worse?”.
THE EDGE –

DEFENSIVE LINE – DEs DERRICK BURGESS (#56, 6-2, 260), TOMMY KELLY (#93, 6-6, 300), DTs WARREN SAPP (#99, 6-2, 300), TERDELL SANDS (#90, 6-7, 335)

Derrick Burgess and Warren Sapp have to be considered one of the best one-two punches as pass rushers in the entire league. Burgess has been among the sack leaders the past two seasons, and Sapp has lost a ton of weight to increase his speed and to become more disruptive in the opponent’s backfield. Recently traded Gerard Warren is currently listed as a backup. Their defensive line struggled last week, but I imagine they’ll be able to shake the rust off soon enough.
THE EDGE –

LINEBACKERS – SOLB SAM WILLIAMS (#54, 6-5, 260), MLB KIRK MORRISON (#52, 6-2, 240), WOLB THOMAS HOWARD (#53, 6-3, 240)

Anyone who has both the name “Sam” and “Will” in his name was born to play outside linebacker… these guys leave something to be desired, but I wouldn’t call them below average in the league. Morrison had a good game with 9 tackles last week, and Howard tallied a sack, but none of these guys really strike fear in my heart, and therefore they won’t be striking fear in opponents’ running backs’ hearts either. Although if Howard improves on his 110 tackles last year, he could be dangerous.
THE EDGE –

CORNERBACKS – NNAMDI ASOMUGHA (#21, 6-2, 210), FABIAN WASHINGTON (#27, 5-11, 185)

The Raiders have a truly rising star in Nnamdi Asomugha, who finished 2006 with a career best 8 interceptions. Fabian Washington is a solid #2 who finished with 4 picks for the year. Neither have registered an interception yet this year.
THE EDGE –

SAFETIES – FS STUART SCHWEIGART (#30, 6-2, 210), SS MICHAEL HUFF (#24, 6-1, 205)

If I were to describe these guys in one word, it would be “upside.” Huff enters his second year hungry for his first interception, and Schweigart heads into his 4th year attempting to eclipse 100 tackles again. It’s doubtful Schweigart has reached his full potential, and Huff definitely has not.
THE EDGE – PUSH.

As you can see by who has the edge across almost every position, if the Raiders win it would truly be considered an upset.

Raider Week is coming to a close, but I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve this weekend.  Signing off for a while…