Raiders’ quarter-season MVP: Tom Cable

By Anthony Carroll  |   Tuesday, October 02, 2007  |  Comments( 29 )

Oakland Raiders
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Someone somewhere is doing something right when Robert Gallery has made it through four games without allowing a single sack.

The man responsible for that is Oakland Raiders offensive line coach Tom Cable.

He's also the person responsible for the Raiders' two early wins this season.

Cable, who spent the 2006 season with the Atlanta Falcons, came to Oakland during the offseason, bringing a new, improved zone blocking scheme with him. Last season, the 42-year-old used the same system in Atlanta, and the Falcons finished first in the NFL in rushing offense with 183.7 yards per game.

This season, it's the same story, different team.

One-fourth of the way through the season, Oakland leads the NFL in rushing with 194.2 yards per game. In a 35-17 win over the Miami Dolphins this past Sunday, Cable's line led the way for 299 yards on the ground. They also allowed only one sack.

"[At first] I didn't like it," running back LaMont Jordan told Steve Corkran of the Mercury News, "but I had to buy into it in order to be successful."

Jordan definitely bought into it.

Despite suffering a back injury midway through Week 4 (the severity is still unknown), Jordan has recorded 424 yards and two touchdowns on 84 carries. That's 106 yards per game and 5.0 yards per carry.

Last season, with the highly disappointing duo of Jackie Slater and Irv Eatman leading the O-line, Jordan averaged 48.2 yards per game and just 3.8 yards per carry. The team as a whole averaged just 94.9 yards each outing; that's 99.3 yards fewer than the Raiders are racking up this season.

"This offense is built around the running game scheme, and we're doing a good job executing," Jordan added.

The same can be said in the passing game, too.

At this point last year, Oakland's line had already given up 20 sacks. This season, half of that: 10 sacks. As a result, the Raiders have put up a division-leading 102 points this season; the closest to that mark is the Broncos with just 72.

"I'm more pleased with our offensive line than any position on our team," head coach Lane Kiffin said last week.

As of Week 4, Oakland's starting front line is made up of tackles Barry Sims and Cornell Green, guards Robert Gallery and Cooper Carlisle as well as center Jeremy Newberry. Backup Jake Grove has also seen considerable time in replace of Newberry at center. Of the five starters, only two (Gallery and Sims) are returning Raiders, while Green, Carlisle and Newberry were all offseason acquisitions.

"I'm happy for the offensive line," Jordan said. "Those guys got beat up all last year."

Both physically and mentally.

Gallery surrendered 10½ sacks and quickly became the weekly center of criticism, while Grove gave up 7½ and Sims missed 12 games to injury.

Combined, the three have allowed just 3½ sacks this season and are yet to miss a single snap because of injury.

Attribute that success directly to Cable, who has utilized the players' strengths to the fullest.

"They study the game the right way and they're really intelligent guys," Cable said of his O-line.

It may have just taken the right teacher to bring out that intelligence.

Anthony Carroll, a senior writer for RealFootball365.com, can be contacted 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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CommentsComments: 29  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
raidersensation		02:33 AM
10/02/2007
Damn AC, you're reading my mind. I just posted a comment on another thread regarding our Points For/Against. Tom Cable definitely...
No.2
Blastin		02:52 AM
10/02/2007
Great read AC. It all starts with the line. I could be wrong, but I don't recall a bunch of Broncos being probowlers from their...
No.3
the franchise		03:51 AM
10/02/2007
leading the nfl in rushing, says alot about this guys coaching skills, the players bought in to it and now are reaping the...
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