Cultural Cuisinart

Back in the day I used to be an Oakland Raiders fan when I was young. So even though I'm not really a supporter anymore, I still have a soft spot for the old Black and Silver. That's why the current state of the franchise is such a bummer to see.

Al Davis is a loon. Plain and simple. No coach in his right mind would take the Raiders job last year, so young Lane Kiffin stood up and took a chance. It wasn't a great season, but I think Kiffin had the team on the right path. So what does Davis do? He tries to force the guy out. He retains the defensive coach that Kiffin wants gone. What a slap in the face. I just can't see how any halfway decent coach in the future would EVER take a chance on the franchise.

Davis's mis-management extends beyond the staff to the players as well. SI reports that the Raiders are likely to take Darren McFadden in the draft. Now, McFadden will likely have success in the league, so it's not like I think he's not a good player. But frankly the Raiders weren't that bad in rushing last year. It was one of the few things they didn't suck at. Why waste the 4th pick on the one thing your team ISN'T terrible at? Yeah, the rushing core could be better, but compared to the rest of the team, particularly the receiving corps, it's doing alright. I mean, is Javon Walker really the solution here?

All of this indicates a team locked in a deadly death spiral. They can't get good coaches because the team is awful. They can't get great players because the coaches are terrible (or unsupported by management). They can't get better because good coaches and players are staying away in droves. But they can't attract those people until they get better. It's a catch-22.

This is very sad. It's got to hurt Howie Long to know that his beloved Raiders have fallen into such a state (though he defends them half-heartedly on FOX NFL Sunday). Still, you got to think that he's secretly praying that they don't draft his son Chris.