Raiders D is gonna be sick this year (1 Viewer)

[LawFitz]

The line will be Kelly/Sands/Sapp/Burgess with Richardson/Warren/Moses rotating in to keep everyone fresh. Solid talent and depth. That is a sick front four.

The backers are solid too with Howard/Morrison/Williams and Thomas on the bench.

And the 2ndary. Holy shizzle, the 2ndary. Nnamdi, Washington, Huff, Darius, Schweigert, Ward, Rhoutt, Carr look deep, fast, talented and nasty with DD and BJ Ward bringing the heat at safety. Best overall 2ndary in the league.

If the offense is decent this year, which I think it will be with Kiffin, this D will be elite. Rob Ryan set a great foundation with recent drafts and the system he employs. Dude is a stud coordinator. It would be nice if the Raiders would extend this guy forever.

 

[One]

I'm tellin' ya. It will be a different looking Raiders team.

 

[Routilla]

Does this mean OAK is going to be good?

 

[LawFitz]

Does this mean OAK is going to be good?

It all depends on whether Kiffin can field a decent offense that can win the TOP battle and not turn it over. If he can do that, this team can get 6-8 wins with this D, assuming Big Terd Sands remains healthy.

 

[Chaka]

I think Ryan needs to do something as a defensive coordinator before he is anointed a stud.

But I do like this defense on paper.

 

[One]

Does this mean OAK is going to be good?

I didn't say anything about the O.

 

[strong]

I think Ryan needs to do something as a defensive coordinator before he is anointed a stud.But I do like this defense on paper.

Umm... I'm going to assume you didn't watch many Raiders games last year. Their defense was one of the best in the NFL and the only defense in the top ten that was on the field more than 30 minutes a game... And Washington and Asomugha are about the only cornerbacks in the NFL that Chad Johnson openly respects... which is saying a lot considering he trash talks just about every DB out there... I think the Raiders are going to surprise a lot of people this year. If they can bump their offense up from 32nd to about 20th to 22nd, they'll be in the playoff hunt near the end of the season. The more I watch games from last year the more I feel that offensive playcalling/strategy was the overriding factor behind their putrid offense. The talent wasn't great, but the coaching was worse. Change the plays and their defense will constantly put them in great positions all season long...I'm drinking the koolaide.

 

[Maurile Tremblay]

Their defense was one of the best in the NFL and the only defense in the top ten that was on the field more than 30 minutes a game...

The Raiders fielded a young defense last year, but they really improved over the course of the season. By the end of the year I think they were a top five NFL defense. I've got them ranked as my #3 fantasy defense this year.

 

[strong]

Their defense was one of the best in the NFL and the only defense in the top ten that was on the field more than 30 minutes a game...

The Raiders fielded a young defense last year, but they really improved over the course of the season. By the end of the year I think they were a top five NFL defense. I've got them ranked as my #3 fantasy defense this year.

#3 in yards allowed per game#18 in points allowed per game#4 in yards allowed per play #4 in yards allowed per pass attempt#7 in opponents' QB rating#11 in yards allowed per rushIf you look at how many points they allowed considering their other defensive statistics, it's clear that they were often put in bad positions and left out on the field way too much... Like you mentioned, this defense was really young last year and seemed to improve as the year went along. Another year under their belt and they should be even better. Also, assume their offense will be at least slightly better and they could join the elite defensive groups of Baltimore and Chicago this season...

 

[Chaka]

I think Ryan needs to do something as a defensive coordinator before he is anointed a stud.But I do like this defense on paper.

Umm... I'm going to assume you didn't watch many Raiders games last year. Their defense was one of the best in the NFL and the only defense in the top ten that was on the field more than 30 minutes a game... And Washington and Asomugha are about the only cornerbacks in the NFL that Chad Johnson openly respects... which is saying a lot considering he trash talks just about every DB out there... I think the Raiders are going to surprise a lot of people this year. If they can bump their offense up from 32nd to about 20th to 22nd, they'll be in the playoff hunt near the end of the season. The more I watch games from last year the more I feel that offensive playcalling/strategy was the overriding factor behind their putrid offense. The talent wasn't great, but the coaching was worse. Change the plays and their defense will constantly put them in great positions all season long...I'm drinking the koolaide.

I hate when people say "You obviously don't watch..."At any rate I said I like the Raider defense this year, what more do you want? And the #1 pass defense might have been a product of having only 410 pass attempts thrown against them, fewest in the NFL (Minnesota had 599 attempts against). They were #1 in rushing attempts against (542) so it is respectable that they pulled in a #25 ranking there. Finishing #18 in scoring defense is also pretty impressive. Still the low pass attempts against makes you worry because it suppresses sack totals and limits opportunities for big plays from the secondary.If the Raiders offense can be even mediocre the defense has a chance to be something special.

 

[Chaka]

The Raiders D also benefits from a nice schedule. They get to play Det, Cle, Mia, KC (x2), Ten, Hou, Chi, GB & Jax. Those 10 games will offer up plenty of ineptitude on offense for the Raiders to try to take advantage of.

The Raiders look like a great late round platoon defense with big upside (and big downside).

I did a little schedule analysis and the Raiders defense schedule matches up very well with NYG, Chi, Den, Ten, Ind, KC, Atl

 

[chris1969]

I actually think the Raiders Def was the best defense in the NFL last year. And their offense got worse this year. You guys can figure it out.

 

[Silver & Black]

I've been saying all off season that Oakland is going to surprise a lot of people this year.

I'm obviously a homer, but I'm telling you, Oakland is going to be 10-6 this year.

Oakland's defense is going to be elite this year. They are young and fast and motivated. They are going to keep Oakland close in a lot of games this season.

Like I've been saying all off season, Oakland's offense just has to be alright for the team to win this year, not great. I love what Kiffin has done and the atmosphere he has brought. Players are actually being coached and changes are being made to our blocking schemes and offense as a whole. I thought C-Pep looked absolutely great last week. Not so much his numbers, but how he moved in and out of the pocket. Clearly not the same QB he was 4 years ago, but much closer than he was last year. C-Pep will always give up that stupid fumble or untimely int from time to time, but I can live with those few mistakes given his performance as a whole and the defense's ability to pick up when he makes those mistakes.

With a much improved O-line performance this year, Oakland is going to score more than people are projecting as teams continue to look past the Raiders week in and week out.

Remember, you heard it here first....Oakland goes 10-6 this year baby!

 

[Asinine]

I've been saying all off season that Oakland is going to surprise a lot of people this year.I'm obviously a homer, but I'm telling you, Oakland is going to be 10-6 this year. Oakland's defense is going to be elite this year. They are young and fast and motivated. They are going to keep Oakland close in a lot of games this season.Like I've been saying all off season, Oakland's offense just has to be alright for the team to win this year, not great. I love what Kiffin has done and the atmosphere he has brought. Players are actually being coached and changes are being made to our blocking schemes and offense as a whole. I thought C-Pep looked absolutely great last week. Not so much his numbers, but how he moved in and out of the pocket. Clearly not the same QB he was 4 years ago, but much closer than he was last year. C-Pep will always give up that stupid fumble or untimely int from time to time, but I can live with those few mistakes given his performance as a whole and the defense's ability to pick up when he makes those mistakes. With a much improved O-line performance this year, Oakland is going to score more than people are projecting as teams continue to look past the Raiders week in and week out.Remember, you heard it here first....Oakland goes 10-6 this year baby!

I dunno about 10-6, but they'll certainly end near .500. I'm not a homer, but I live in the Bay Area and watched a lot of games, and the Raider D was the real D-eal last year. Solid front 4, aggressive LBs, 2 top 10 CBs, and hard hitting safeties, plus they added Darius. They've had a consistent scheme for a few years and the young guys got another year of experience, which only builds on their foundation.The problem was their offense was so pathetic that their D was on the field for 75% of the game and subsequently wore down by the 3rd period, hence the huge rushing attempts against. Ryan is a brilliant defensive coordinator who a lot of folks say should have been promoted to HC, however the Raiders probably got better overall by hiring on offensive minded and hungry HC who will let Ryan stay focused on their D. Top 5 finish on D, higher if Culpepper is starting at QB and their offense can chew some clock. He doesn't even need to be Culpepper of old, just Dilfer circa his BAL years will do.