Great offseason in Oakland continues

By Os Davis  |   Tuesday, April 07, 2009  |  Comments( 26 )

Oakland Raiders
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About the worst thing you can say for the Oakland Raiders’ moves in 2009 is: Why didn’t they do this stuff last year? Seriously, would even the biggest Raider fan have imagined in December that come spring, we’d be reading report cards that look like the following?

Offense: added Khalif Barnes, Jeff Garcia; presumably address needs at WR and O-line in draft. Grade: A.

Defense: Re-signed Nnamdi Asomugha (who this writer swore would not be back), Chris Johnson. Grade: A.

Special teams: Re-signed Shane Lechler. Grade: A.

Releases: Gone are Kwame Harris, Kalimba Edwards, Ronald Curry, Justin Griffith. Grade: A.

Backup quarterback Jeff Garcia is the latest acquisition by the Raiders, of course, giving the team a viable backup option for the first time since ... well, it’s been a long time.The fact that this reads like a trivia question indicates just how serious the paucity at QB has been in Oakland in the post-Rich Gannon era.

By the calendar, Garcia may be 39, but his NFL age is quite a bit younger than that, having begun his career in the league in 1999 after kicking around in CFL ball for years; plus, he hasn’t entered a season as a no-questions-asked starter since 2004 with the Cleveland Browns.

Tell you what Garcia can do, though: come in during a pinch to win ballgames. Since hooking on with the Eagles in 2006 and taking over in that season’s second half when Donovan McNabb went down, reliever Garcia has gone 19-11 as a starter in the regular season. In fact, before the mysterious nosedive in Tampa Bay last December, the former 49er had run up a record of 19-7 over three seasons.

Garcia’s slightly below-average arm strength aside and no offense to Andrew Walter fans (come on, there’s got to be a two or three), wouldn’t the Raider Nation have rather seen a four-time Pro Bowler like Garcia take the field for JaMarcus Russell in Week 10 than Mr. Walter? Assuming Oakland Raiders Football Inc. doesn’t quite fill all the gaps along the O-line, won’t you be more at ease with Russell’s development behind a ragged blocking quintet if the mobile, football-smart Garcia’s on the sidelines?

Finally, there’s the bigger question: What’s going on in the Raider front office?

Seriously, while the ESPNs of the world are providing fake rumors about Javon Walker’s departure, habitual slagging-off of the organization’s shoddiness, and lots of time for Warren Sapp to rant, why isn’t anyone finding out what’s behind this amazing run of sanity in Oakland?

Aside from the Gibril Wilson release (*still* can’t get the ol’ head around that one) and the stupefying reticence to cut Walker loose, 2009 has seen a nearly perfect Raiders offseason going into the draft: We’ve seen no outrageous contracts awarded, no real question marks added to the roster. We’ve seen needs addressed, and guys who should be lifetime Raiders (Lechler, Asomugha) duly rewarded. Even an adequate draft would give Oakland marks of a flying-color variety.

Garcia, without question, is the latest positive in Oakland.
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About Os Davis

Os Davis has taken a twisted route to get to RealFootball365.com in his nearly 17 years in professional writing, working in any number of capacities in the sportswriting, news reporting and film criticism worlds. In print media, Os has served as editor at a few publications, including Albuquerque's...
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CommentsComments: 26  |  Sign Up  View all comments
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No.1
The Shape		05:39 AM
04/07/2009
Also on offense is Satele/center. With the draft looming I would like a couple of things, with our first four picks take two...
No.2
Spoakland		06:16 AM
04/07/2009
You're so right, Mr. Davis. I think Al Davis has finally found the right man to Coach his team. Tom Cable has been an eager and...
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No.3
Raider Revenge		09:21 AM
04/07/2009
Does anyone know if the Garcia’s addition will place competition at the QB position? I think he has a very good chance to start...
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