In Oakland, “C” stands for…

By Os Davis  |   Wednesday, August 01, 2007  |  Comments( 72 )

Oakland Raiders
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Ten days away from the first preseason game and the Oakland Raiders are already down to "Plan C." That's "C" as in "Culpepper" and "con" and "crap, another sub-.300 season?"

"C" is also for "chagrin," which, with all due respect and issues of loyalty aside, quite a few in the Raider Nation have got to be undergoing mild anxiety attacks.

Daunte Culpepper signed a one-year deal yesterday after a private workout before the Oakland coaching staff, a workout which apparently consisted of taking a pulse and measuring blood pressure. The most amazing thing about this sequence of events is that the parties involved were somehow able to hold off on signing the contract before Daunte picked up his first pigskin.

To think that for months Raider fans have eagerly anticipated the arrival and imminent stardom of the most exciting QB to enter the league since ... well, since Michael Vick. To think that talks between Raiders, Inc. and JaMarcus Russell are reportedly worsening. To think that the silver and black may actually be pining for Aaron Brooks...
Seriously, folks, it's time for another application of The Emperor's New Clothes Principle. Daunte Culpepper is done and, as a corollary, the Raiders are already in trouble.

A quick look at the stats tells us that Culpepper had a monster year in his last full season as a starter: 4,717 yards passing on a 69.2 percent completion rate with 39 TDs against just 11 interceptions. Culpepper is a three-time Pro Bowler who has led offenses that were top five four times and twice No. 1 in the league.

On the other hand, that last full, Pro Bowl season was in 2004. Culpepper hasn't seen the playoffs since '04, when the Vikings amassed a mediocre 8-8 record in a terrible conference.

And then there his line from last year, a season in which Culpepper was replaced by the great Joey Harrington. For the Miami Dolphins, the QB managed just over a 60 percent completion rate with three interceptions against two TDs and an incredible 21 sacks suffered. (Given the propensity for the Oakland offensive line for allowing sacks, Culpepper may well feel right at home.)

Beyond the stats, though, is the evidence of one's own eyes, which seem to be dangerously ignored in today's sports world; Culpepper is the NFL's version of Chris Webber, another dude made lame enough from a leg injury that he's a physical liability to the team. The truth is that nasty knee ligament injury Culpepper suffered in 2005 may ultimately go down as the career-ender. Those who saw him in Miami last year know all too well that the man is damaged goods.

Further proof? He was excised from the Dolphins along with Harrington without a second thought once Trent Green came along, apparently in favor of Cleo Lemon. Culpepper himself was given the Steve McNair treatment from management earlier in the post-postseason and was "not invited" to training camps. The Jacksonville Jaguars, also somewhat desperate at QB, passed on Culpepper to pick up Tim freaking Couch. (What, Vinny Testaverde wasn't available?)

Incidentally, um, what about Josh McCown? Wasn't he supposed to be Plan B? Wasn't that Lane Kiffin praising McCown early and often for "doing really well," "making good decisions," "fitting in really well," and "having a great feel for the rush?"

Somewhere, Brooks is laughing the way Randy Moss did.

The Raider Nation will surely rally around Culpepper, and good on them for doing so. Heck, Culpepper's going to need all the support he can get. And by game, say, three of the preseason, the Oakland brass should realize just how urgent the Russell contract situation is.

Oakland needs its No. 1 overall on the field far more than it needs to give Daunte Culpepper another shot. In Raiderland today, it seems that "C" stands for "charity."

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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: 72  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
chackraider		02:10 AM
08/01/2007
Os-hole relax. Culpeper was just signed to put pressure on Russell. He is a good stop gap solution nothing more...
No.2
bIGROCK		02:14 AM
08/01/2007
I agree with the signing because it brings competition to the QB position. It will only make Josh McCown and Andrew Walter work...
No.3
the franchise		02:22 AM
08/01/2007
it's a huuuuuuge signing cause now we get the guy we wanted all along, russell once signed can sit and learn from culpepper, he's...
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