Pro Football Articles Opinion & Fantasy – Football Diner

The Football Diner All-Time Draft
Pick # 4 – Oakland Raiders
by Sam Monson
19/8/2008
 
Believe it or not, there was a time when the Oakland Raiders wasn’t like being exiled to Siberia for players. There was a time when the Raiders were Superbowl Champions, a dominant band of renegades, led by one of the league’s great football minds, Al Davis.
 
The Raiders head into the 2008 season with some nice pieces in place to make some noise in the NFL. Jamarcus Russell has as much upside as any quarterback the league has ever seen, and after his holdout last season, he spent much of his first year sitting on the bench and learning. Whilst the Raiders might not have planned it that way, that might have been the best way for such a raw prospect to begin his NFL career.
 
Helping Russell out this season will be one of the most exciting running back stables in the league. Number 4 overall pick Darren McFadden will be out to prove the naysayers wrong and take the league by storm in the same fashion as Adrian Peterson did last season, but just in case he can’t do it all on his own, the Raiders have incumbent, hard-running Justin Fargas, and the supremely talented Michael Bush, playing his first football in over 20 months since breaking his leg at Louisville. This trio of runners rules out maybe the most talented player the Raiders have ever had on the Roster: Bo Jackson.
 
Jackson was a legendary combination of power and speed, who averaged 5.4 yards per carry over his brief NFL career. If there was ever a talent who was deserving of another shot at a career cruelly taken away by injury, it was Bo Jackson. Unfortunately, if there’s one position the Raiders are set, it’s running back.
 
They also have some weapons for Russell to find downfield. Javon Walker may be amongst the most talented receivers in the league if he can stay healthy, and on the other side Ronald Curry continues to make spectacular catches on a regular basis (even if he then follows them up with a routine drop) Zach Miller proved as a rookie that combine numbers aren’t everything, catching more balls as a rookie than any Raiders rookie since Tim Brown, and he figures to make a very reliable target from the tight end spot.
 
The Raiders have a wealth of star receivers in their past, but they end up being passed over for greater needs. Dave Casper was one of the best tight ends to play the game. He was a punishing blocker, and a fine receiver, seemingly at his best when the game was on the line. He would be an instant upgrade to pretty much any team in the league, but the Raiders have a young and talented TE, and simply bigger holes to fill.
 
Fred Biletnikoff was a 6 time Pro Bowl WR, a Hall of Fame player, and a guy so good they named a college award after him. Either he or Tim Brown would provide an instant upgrade on the outside for the Raiders, but Arizona have showed for several seasons now that even a pair of All-Pro receivers can’t drag a team out of mediocrity.
 
After that the depth becomes a little more patchy, but with the running weapons that Oakland have, and the arm of Russell, Oakland have more than enough firepower to make teams sit up and take notice. The question is, can the O-line live up to the skill positions around it?
 
The Defensive side of the ball tells a similar story. In Asomugha and DeAngelo Hall the Raiders might have the league’s best corner tandem, and Kirk Morrison is one of the league’s top young linebackers, but up front remains a concern. Al Davis threw a boatload of money at Tommy Kelly and there’s not a person alive who thinks he’s going to justify the deal with his play in 2008 let’s face it, not even Al Davis thinks that was a good move.
 
So in looking into their history books, it looks like the Raiders will be searching for someone who can dominate in the trenches for them. Luckily they have those players in abundance.
 
In Art Shell and Gene Upshaw, the Oakland Raiders have a Hall of Fame left side of the O-line to call their own. Those two were an integral part to the great Raiders sides of the 1970s that battled with the Steelers and Dolphins on a regular basis in the post-season.
 
Shell was an 8 time Pro Bowl left tackle, owns a pair of Superbowl rings and is one of the best left tackles to play the game. He would instantly provide a level of comfort and protection to Russell in his early years leading the team, which could prove invaluable. He would also step into the most important position on the O-line and address perhaps the Raiders’ biggest question on the line. Upshaw inside him deserves some props too. As a 7 time Pro Bowler, 11 time All-Pro, a Hall of Fame guard, and the only man ever to play for the same team in 3 Superbowl in 3 different decades, he would be a worthy upgrade at guard. Trouble is, when you’ve got a pair of Hall of Fame O-liners, you’re always going to choose the guy on the edge protecting the QB’s blindside. Art Shell gets the nod over Upshaw.
 
But how about the other side of the ball? The Raiders on Defense are without a real leader, a guy who can run the team, lead from the front, and set the tone. Warren Sapp has retired, and never really showed Oakland his best play. Kirk Morrison is a fine linebacker, and Namdi Asomugha might be the best cornerback in the league, but neither are vocal, intense leaders. Howie Long was.
 
Long was an 8 time Pro Bowler, a member of the NFL All-Decade team for the 1980s, and owner of one of the finest buzz-cuts ever known to man. He was a dominant blend of power and speed and more importantly, was a constant threat and high motor or intensity. He wasn’t just a constant Pro Bowler, but featured repeatedly in the All-Madden teams; designed to feature the kind of guys football should be about.
 
Put Howie Long on the Raiders D-line and you suddenly have an identity, not to mention a vastly upgraded Defense that starts to look pretty handy on paper.
 
So again in this draft we have a team that finds themselves looking at a Hall of Fame player on Defense, and one on Offense, but just the one pick to spend. Do they dare let Al Davis loose on this decision? Lane Kiffin, desperately trying to do SOMETHING sensible before Davis gets his hands on the controls, sends up a runner with the card bearing the name: Art Shell.
 
Kiffin has a $60m quarterback, and a $60m running back; he needs the Hall of Fame left tackle to help them both out.
 
With the #4 pick in the ‘The Football Diner 2008 All-Time Draft’, the Oakland Raiders select: