Five fresh faces show up big, lead Raiders to win

By Anthony Carroll  |   Monday, August 11, 2008  |  Comments( 36 )

Oakland Raiders
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It was a weekend of new faces and second-year standouts for the Oakland Raiders.

The silver and black debuted its new roster on Friday in an 18-6 home win over the San Francisco 49ers to jump-start its preseason. A handful of first-time Raiders and second-year returnees propelled Oakland to the winner's circle.

It was an easy-to-watch effort for at least half of the Bay Area, with Oakland dominating San Francisco in nearly every statistical category. The Raider offense outran the 49ers’ by 78 yards, the ‘D’ forced four turnovers, and the special teams put a touchdown on the scoreboard.

Nearly all of those accomplishments came as a result of a play made by a fresh face -- either a first-year Raider or second-year player. Here are five of those players who led Oakland to victory Friday and showed they’re ready for the 2008 season.

• Johnnie Lee Higgins

Higgins didn’t get credit for all he did Friday. Even so, he still had a huge day. The sophomore wideout from UTEP had a 39-yard punt return negated by an illegal block to the back midway through the first quarter. The illegal block by fullback Oren O’Neal came after Higgins was already two steps past the defender; nevertheless, the long return was called back. A quarter later, though, the 24-year-old took back an Andy Lee punt 53 yards for a score, putting Oakland on the board for the first time of the ‘08 preseason.

• Darren McFadden

McFadden’s NFL debut came with a lot of cheers and no disappointment. The first-round running back was allotted 12 carries by head coach Lane Kiffin, and he averaged 4.0 yards per attempt. McFadden showed off his explosiveness early on, running off the edge and past a pack of 49er defenders on a third-and-1 situation to pick up 6 yards and a first down. On the Arkansas rookie’s first drive, pickups of 4, 3, 5, 6 and another 6 yards were made. There were plenty of positives to take away from the 20-year-old’s NFL debut.

• Louis Rankin

Oakland is probably the hardest roster to make if you’re an undrafted free agent running back. Yet Rankin did all he could Friday to make sure his coaches think twice before making any sudden decisions. The former Washington Huskies ball carrier led the team in rushing with 91 yards on just eight attempts, thanks largely in part to a 72-yard scamper on the second play of the fourth quarter. Last year with Washington, the Stockton, Calif., native rushed for 1,294 yards on 233 carries, good for 5.6 yards per try. He gained 11.4 yards per rush on Friday.

• Michael Bush

It was a long-awaited debut for the 245-pound second-year running back, but it was a good one. Bush’s first NFL carry went for a hard-earned 7 yards and his second went for 6. On the day, the ex-Louisville standout fell short of matching fellow RBs Justin Fargas and McFadden’s numbers on the ground, gaining 27 yards; however, he did win in the TD and pass-catching categories. The 24-year-old received a pair of throws for 29 yards, including a 23-yard screen that set up his 5-yard touchdown carry on the opening drive of the third quarter.

• Gibril Wilson

Wilson wasn’t all over the stat sheet: He had just three tackles on the day. However, he was all over the field. The 26-year-old, who signed with Oakland during the offseason for his ability to swarm to the football, did just that Friday. The fifth-year safety was in on nearly every play he was on the field for (two drives) and was very quick to respond in pass coverage. On the team’s defensive debut, the ex-Giant was in on two of the three tackles made on the drive. On the team’s second defensive stand, Wilson made the drive-ending tackle on running back DeShaun Foster for a loss of 4 yards. Only one exhibition game into the ‘08 season, it looks as if Oakland made a very sound free agent investment.

Anthony Carroll can be contacted at

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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal ...
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CommentsComments: 36  |  Sign Up  View all comments
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No.1
RaiderSensation		02:47 AM
08/11/2008
The players that stood out for me were: Michael Huff: It's hard to believe that's the same player from last year. He played ...
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No.2
The Shape		05:51 AM
08/11/2008
Nice article, A.C. lets hope these keep coming. I have to give a shout out to Todd Watkins. This kid could make the roster. At ...
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No.3
moose		08:44 AM
08/11/2008
i thought Andrew Walter was great going 10 for 12.....did you guys see that horse-collar on Rankin and no flags....good 1st ...
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