According to Yahoo sports the Raiders claimed him off of waivers.

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP)—The Oakland Raiders claimed quarterback Bruce Gradkowski off waivers from the Cleveland Browns.

Gradkowski spent his first two NFL seasons with Tampa Bay, starting 10 games as a rookie in 2006. He briefly played for St. Louis last year before joining the Browns, appearing in two games and starting the season finale against Pittsburgh.

Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo were the Raiders’ backups for former No. 1 draft pick JaMarcus Russell last season.

I for one am glad to have him because to be honest with you Andrew Walter and Tui posed no threat to taking over JaMarcus' job. This at least pushes him to concentrate because no he knowas there is a guy that can step in and take his place. I for one love a healthy competition.

 

2008 All-Pro Team Voting

 OFFENSE

 

Quarterback
Peyton Manning, Indianapolis, 28; Drew Brees, New Orleans, 10; Philip Rivers, San Diego, 9; Chad Pennington, Miami, 2; Kurt Warner, Arizona, 1.

y-Running Backs
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota, 45; Michael Turner, Atlanta, 40; DeAngelo Williams, Carolina, 13; Clinton Portis, Washington, 1.

Fullback
Le'Ron McClain, Baltimore, 38; Madison Hedgecock, NY Giants, 5; Mike Sellers, Washington, 4; Tony Richardson, NY Jets, 2; Ovie Mughelli, Atlanta, 1.

Tight End
Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City, 33; Jason Witten, Dallas, 14; Dallas Clark, Indianapolis, 2; Antonio Gates, San Diego, 1.

Wide Receivers
Andre Johnson, Houston, 45; Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona, 21; Steve Smith, Carolina, 16; Wes Welker, New England, 6; Anquan Boldin, Arizona, 5; Roddy White, Atlanta, 4; Brandon Marshall, Denver, 1; Randy Moss, New England, 1; Calvin Johnson, Detroit, 1.

Tackles
Jordan Gross, Carolina, 34; Michael Roos, Tennessee, 32; Ryan Clady, Denver, 14; David Stewart, Tennessee, 3; Walter Jones, Seattle, 3; Jason Peters, Buffalo, 3; David Diehl, NY Giants, 3; Joe Thomas, Cleveland, 3; Chris Samuels, Washington, 2; Jon Runyan, Philadelphia, 1; Levi Brown, Arizona, 1; Ryan Harris, Denver, 1.

Guards
Steve Hutchinson, Minnesota, 40; Chris Snee, NY Giants, 32; Kris Dielman, San Diego, 10; Alan Faneca, NY Jets, 7; Logan Mankins, New England, 4; Leonard Davis, Dallas, 2; Travelle Wharton, Carolina, 2; Harvey Dahl, Atlanta, 1; Ben Grubbs, Baltimore, 1; Justin Smiley, Miami, 1.

Center
Kevin Mawae, Tennessee, 25; Shaun O'Hara, NY Giants, 18; Nick Mangold, NY Jets, 3; Jeff Saturday, Indianapolis, 2; Casey Wiegmann, Denver, 1; Todd McClure, Atlanta, 1.

Placekicker
Stephen Gostkowski, New England, 28; John Carney, NY Giants, 13; Rob Bironas, Tennessee, 3; Jason Hanson, Detroit, 3; Phil Dawson, Cleveland, 2; Jason Elam, Atlanta, 1.

Kick Returner
Leon Washington, NY Jets, 19; Clifton Smith, Tampa Bay, 16; Leodis McKelvin, Buffalo, 4; Josh Cribbs, Cleveland, 4; Darren Sproles, San Diego, 2½; Johnnie Lee Higgins, Oakland, 1½; Roscoe Parrish, Buffalo, 1; Justin Miller, Oakland, 1; Reggie Bush, New Orleans, 1.

 

DEFENSE

 

Ends
Justin Tuck, NY Giants, 26; Jared Allen, Minnesota, 21; Julius Peppers, Carolina, 20; John Abraham, Atlanta, 17; Mario Williams, Houston, 8; Dwight Freeney, Indianapolis, 4; Aaron Smith, Pittsburgh, 2; DeMarcus Ware, Dallas, 1; Trent Cole, Philadelphia, 1.

Tackles
Albert Haynesworth, Tennessee, 49; Kevin Williams, Minnesota, 25; Kris Jenkins, NY Jets, 11; Haloti Ngata, Baltimore, 6; Jay Ratliff, Dallas, 3; Casey Hampton, Pittsburgh, 2; Shaun Rogers, Cleveland, 2; Pat Williams, Minnesota, 1; Fred Robbins, NY Giants, 1.

Outside Linebackers
DaMarcus Ware, Dallas, 45; James Harrison, Pittsburgh, 38; Joey Porter, Miami, 13; Terrell Suggs, Baltimore, 2; LaMarr Woodley, Pittsburgh 1; Derrick Brooks, Tampa Bay, 1.

y-Inside Linebacker
Ray Lewis, Baltimore, 39; Jon Beason, Carolina, 18; Patrick Willis, San Francisco, 17; James Farrior, Pittsburgh, 12; London Fletcher, Washington, 8; Barrett Ruud, Tampa Bay, 1; James Harrison, Pittsburgh, 1; Stewart Bradley, Philadelphia, 1; Bart Scott, Baltimore, 1; Jerod Mayo, New England, 1.

Cornerbacks
Nnamdi Asomugha, Oakland, 32; Cortland Finnegan, Tennessee, 31; Charles Woodson, Green Bay, 17; Antoine Winfield, Minnesota, 10; Asante Samuel, New England, 3; Darrelle Revis, NY Jets, 2; Champ Bailey, Denver, 1; Ronde Barber, Tampa Bay, 1; Corey Webster, NY Giants 1; Will Allen, Miami, 1; Terence Newman, Dallas, 1.

Safeties
Ed Reed, Baltimore, 50; Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh, 46; Adrian Wilson, Arizona, 2; Quintin Mikell, Philadelphia, 1; Nick Collins, Green Bay, 1.

Punter
Shane Lechler, Oakland, 25; Donnie Jones, St. Louis, 10; Jeff Feagles, NY Giants, 6; Sam Koch, Baltimore, 5; Mike Scifres, San Diego, 3; Brad Maynard, Chicago, 1.

 

• x-one voter selected only one running back.

• y-one voter selected only one inside linebacker.

 

 

Continue reading this post »

Nnamdi and Lechler are named to the Pro Bowl. Lechler we knew was going to get in but i am glad Nnamdi finally got recognized. He should've been there last year.

 

 

AFC
Offense
Pos.	Starter(s)	Reserves
Quarterback	Peyton Manning, Indianapolis	Brett Favre, New York Jets Jay Cutler, Denver
Running back	Thomas Jones, New York Jets	Chris Johnson, Tennessee Ronnie Brown, Miami
Fullback	Le'Ron McClain, Baltimore
Wide receiver	Andre Johnson, Houston Brandon Marshall, Denver	Reggie Wayne, Indianapolis Wes Welker, New England
Tight end	Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City	Antonio Gates, San Diego
Tackle	Joe Thomas, Cleveland Jason Peters, Buffalo	Michael Roos, Tennessee
Guard	Alan Faneca, New York Jets Kris Dielman, San Diego	Brian Waters, Kansas City
Center	Kevin Mawae, Tennessee	Nick Mangold, New York Jets
Defense
Pos.	Starter(s)	Reserves
Defensive end	Mario Williams, Houston Dwight Freeney, Indianapolis	Robert Mathis, Indianapolis
Defensive tackle	Albert Haynesworth, Tennessee Kris Jenkins, New York Jets	Shaun Rogers, Cleveland
Outside linebacker	James Harrison, Pittsburgh Joey Porter, Miami	Terrell Suggs, Baltimore
Inside linebacker	Ray Lewis, Baltimore	James Farrior, Pittsburgh
Cornerback	Nnamdi Asomugha, Oakland Cortland Finnegan, Tennessee	Darrelle Revis, New York Jets
Free safety	Ed Reed, Baltimore
Strong safety	Troy Polamalu, Pittsburgh	Chris Hope, Tennessee
Special teams
Pos.	Starter(s)	Reserves
Punter	Shane Lechler, Oakland
Placekicker	Stephen Gostkowski, New England
Kick returner	Leon Washington, New York Jets
Special teamer	Brendon Ayanbadejo, Baltimore

It is being reported on Profootballtalk that Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride is a possible name for the head coaching job here in Oakland.

 

On Sunday, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that Raiders owner Al Davis is interested in possibly hiring Giants offensive coordinator Kevin Gilbride to be the team’s next head coach.

Gilbride, who has spent nearly five full seasons with the Giants, worked as quarterback Eli Manning’s position coach for three seasons before taking over the offense.

And Gilbride fits the profile of a potential Raiders coach.  The 57-year-old had one prior stint as an NFL head coach, losing 16 of 22 with the Chargers before being fired six games into the 1998 season.  In the following ten years, his name has yet to percolate back to the short-list of head-coaching candidates — possibly due to his failure in San Diego and possibly because his name still triggers for many images of the fist to the face he took from Buddy Ryan when both were working for the Oilers in the earlt 1990s.

“He has no business coaching the pros,” Ryan later said about Gilbride.  “He should be selling insurance. . . .  He’s a wimp.”

Still, Gilbride has presided over the developed of Eli Manning, and Gilbride might provide the Raiders with the last, best chance at salvaging the career of JaMarcus Russell, the first overall pick in the 2007 draft, three years after Eli was the top selection.

Of course, if Gilbride were to take the job in Oakland, Davis might finally have to part ways with defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, whose father is Buddy Ryan.

Something in the back of my head keeps screaming NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! Don't do it Al. I really hope this doesn't happen.

I normally don't like talking politics on a football blog but this article on Yahoo made me laugh.

 

A plane pulling a banner saying “McCain is a Raiders Fan” flew over Invesco Field on Sunday as fans gathered for the Denver Broncos’ game against the Miami Dolphins.

The liberal group ProgressNow hired the plane to link McCain to Denver’s archrival after hearing about the plans of John McCain supporters to hold a “hibachi tailgate” party in one of the stadium’s parking lots.

Here is the full link:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Accusation-John-McCain-is-a-gasp-Raiders-fan;_ylt=ApXhIvgIj_8DhSQ5gyucJjpDubYF?urn=nfl,119245

Thats enough politics for me. Go out and vote!

Damn. Damn. Damn. Another blow to our running game. First we lose Oren O'neal our best blocking fullback, then McFadden gets turf toe and now we have lost Justin Griffith for the season. Here is the article taken from Yahoo Sports:

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AqOY.oXpyimQ0HCyHLFTeq2R2bYF?slug=ap-nflbriefs&prov=ap&type=lgns

 

The bad news from the Oakland Raiders’ blowout loss at Baltimore carried over into Monday with the news that starting fullback Justin Griffith would need season-ending surgery on his knee.

Griffith tore the ACL in his right knee late in the third quarter of a 29-10 loss to the Ravens. He stayed in the game for a few plays and managed to score Oakland’s only touchdown on a 2-yard catch. He was hit hard by Ray Lewis on the play and knocked out of the game.

An MRI on Monday determined the severity of the injury. Oakland will place Griffith on injured reserve and look to sign another fullback.

“You lose a terrific person, a lot of leadership,” coach Tom Cable said. “He’s solid as a rock. He comes to work every day. He does things to the best of his ability every opportunity he gets. Someone who’s familiar with the system. You’re losing quite a bit there.”

The only healthy fullback on the roster is Luke Lawton, who has mostly played special teams after being brought in late in training camp when Oren O’Neal went down with a season-ending knee injury.

Lawton played in 11 games last season for the Colts at running back and on special teams. He had five rushes for 13 yards and four receptions for 29 yards, including a one-yard reception against Jacksonville on Dec. 2 for his lone career touchdown. Lawton also played four games for the New York Jets in 2005.

Cable said moving tailback Michael Bush to fullback, a position he worked at briefly in training camp, was an option, but that the team would probably have to bring someone in this week.

    In reading about our woes at the reciever position it looks like we might see more Chaz in the next couple of games.  In this article found in Yahoo Sports talks about the changes we are going to see at WR.

Cable wouldn’t say exactly what other changes he might make but acknowledged rookie Chaz Schilens will be more active in the passing game. Schilens has only three catches for 38 yards, but the 6-foot-4, 225-pounder is the biggest receiver on Oakland’s roster and has shown the ability to get open deep.

“Schilens is going to be involved more this week, that’s one thing I’m prepared to say at this point,” Cable said. “What we’re going to try and do is play guys a little more continuously and maybe not so much in and out.”

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AiZ4MlghflKv1hExJtq3UCOR2bYF?slug=ap-raiders-receivers&prov=ap&type=lgns

     I myself was excited because he played well in the preseason and has a tremendous upside. Our recievers have been a huge disappointment this year compounded with JaMarcus' accuracy problems(Lane was Right about our passing game). Too many dropped passes, lazy routes aren't helping out JaMarcus either. This should bring energy to our lifeless reciever corps.

Updated:

Per Jerry McDonald Schilens is starting over Ronald Curry:

Schilens, coach Tom Cable said, would start in place of Ronald Curry, who caught 117 passes the last two seasons but has been plagued by drops and inconsistency for all but about the first two weeks of training camp.

Javon Walker will continue to be the starter at split end.

“I’m excited. It’s like a dream,” Schilens said quietly, a smile splitting his face following practice. “I couldn’t tell you how excited I am.”

When told he didn’t sound that excited, Schilens said, “Trust me. Come Sunday, I’ll barely be able to contain myself. It’s a great opportunity.”

Schilens has three receptions for 38 yards through five games with no drops. At 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, he makes for an angular target for quarterback JaMarcus Russell, and he has shown no fear at making difficult catches in traffic over the middle.

When asked what attribute Schilens has he likes, Cable said, “I think his competitiveness for the football when it’s in the air. You look at a couple of the plays he’s made, some tough catches, having to get it in traffic, or having to get a high ball up in the air. Something that maybe wasn’t quite on target, he’s been able to go get those things out of the air, and the fact that he’s really starting to develop. And it shows every day at practice.”