Raiders’ ninth loss confirms QB isn’t the problem

By Anthony Carroll  |   Tuesday, December 13, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

Oakland Raiders
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For the final three games of the season, it is irrelevant to who the starting quarterback might be. It is irrelevant to who plays and who does not. What is relevant is who is standing on the sidelines. Head coach Norv Turner is no longer piloting the Oakland Raiders. He is instead watching the Oakland Raiders, and his job, crash.

Facing a battered 2-10 Jets ball club, it appeared that Oakland was setup for a rare unchallenging opponent. However, Oakland themselves got battered, losing 26-10. Behind another poor performance by the offensive line, Marques Tuiasasopo struggled immensely. He completed 14 of 26 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown-but, more importantly, was the root of four offensive turnovers. Ty Law and David Barrett both came down with interceptions, while John Abraham forced and recovered two fumbles.

For the most part, the defense of Oakland kept the Raiders in the game for the majority of the contest. Jets kicker Mike Nugent was forced to kick four field goals on the game as a result of several Oakland red zone stands. The Jets also were held without a touchdown until the final quarter, where they finally scored two. On a singular positive note, defensive end Derrick Burgess added another two sacks to his season total-he now has 13 on the year.

Sunday's game did clarify one thing for the Oakland Raiders: Norv Turner cannot motivate and coach his players under adversity. For another week, Turner showed his inability to guide a talent-filled offense. After the game, LaMont Jordan criticized Turner's play calling, saying "I'm very frustrated. I sat back and watched a rookie get double the carries I had. Bringing in a new quarterback, you would think there would be more of an emphasis on the running game." For Jordan and Raiders' fans, this frustration is nothing new. LaMont isn't getting the ball, Randy isn't getting the ball, Jerry isn't getting the ball….

Hopefully Turner isn't getting another chance.
Any comments on this article? Contact Anthony Carroll at acarroll@realfootball365.com
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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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