Category: NFL

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon

photo credit Wikipedia Matt Stafford in 2014 Detroit Lions

OAKLAND — Last Sunday’s 30-14 home loss to the visiting Minnesota Vikings certainly left a bad taste in the Raiders’ mouth dropping Oakland to 4-5 on the season.

In a game where Oakland racked up 371 yards of total offense, the Raiders managed just two second quarter touchdowns.

Raiders’ starting quarterback Derek Carr, who had thrown for at least 300 yards and two touchdowns in each of the last three games, was neutralized by the Vikings by throwing two interceptions, one in the end zone to Vikings’ cornerback Terrance Newman in the fourth quarter that iced the game.

Carr had just four interceptions coming into the game.

The Raiders look to snap their current two-game losing streak when they travel to Detroit to face the Lions Sunday at 10:00 a.m. PT.

With the year-long suspension of starting outside linebacker Aldon Smith, Oakland lost arguably its best defensive player not named Charles Woodson.

But over the past two games, Oakland has been torched by the opposition’s running game.

Steelers’ running back DeAngelo Williams gashed the Raiders for 170 yards and two touchdowns in Pittsburgh’s 38-35 victory over Oakland in Week 9.

Adrian Peterson registered 203 yards on the ground, including a crushing 80-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter last Sunday. The hole in the Raiders’ defense that Peterson ran through was big enough for a truck to run through.

Detroit (2-7) has been a relatively dumpster fire this year with in-season firings of front office personnel and assistant coaches, but are coming off a 18-16 victory over Green Bay at Lambeau Field Sunday sending the Packers to their third-straight loss.

Quarterback Matthew Stafford threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns  helping Detroit pick up its first win in Green Bay since December 1991, snapping a 24-game road losing streak.

The Lions punished Packers’ starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers by sacking the former league MVP three times, and frustrated Green Bay’s offense all day by playing aggressive defense.

Stafford threw for 391 yards and four touchdowns, and wide receiver Calvin Johnson had nine catches for 214, including the game-winning touchdowns with 39 seconds left in Detroit’s 28-27 victory on Dec. 18, 2011 at Oakland.

The win was Detroit’s third straight over Oakland.

 

 

 

by Jeremy Kahn

ALAMEDA–On the Raiders podcast a discussion on the recently suspended linebacker Aldon Smith who says he’s ready to get started with rehab for substance abuse. The question is can he overcome it and stay with it in 2016 when he returns? Smith says he’ll be a changed man after rehab and says he’s looking forward to getting back to work with the Raiders.

Former Oakland Raider the late Gene Upshaw whose widow Terri Upshaw and sons have no contact with their father or grandfather former owner of Tadich Grill Steve Buich because according to Terri her father says she married a black man. Upshaw and she were cut out from the family. Buich released a statement to the San Francisco Chronicle saying the family breakup between his daughter and him was not over race but because of Upshaw’s “character”.

Terri insists it was race and that Buich doesn’t even want to meet his grandsons. Terri has said that the only contact that she’s had with her family is just with cousins on facebook. Meanwhile Terri’s brother Michael says the parties who are having this problem are neither owners of Tadich Grill in San Francisco or Washington and that the grill doesn’t practice discrimination. Terri brought this issue up about being banned by the family after Tadich expanded their business to Washington recently as Terri lives in nearby Arlington Virginia.

Terri thought it was about time to bring up the fact that her father Steve banned her from the family because Upshaw was black and that she was no longer welcome in the family. Terri has attempted once to try and communicate with the family but says they will not speak to her even to this day.

Jeremy Kahn covers Oakland Raiders football at http://www.sportsradioservice.com and does the Raiders podcast each week

Bing photo: Gene and Terri Upshaw

 

by Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon

photo credit AP Raiders Aldon Smith

ALAMEDA–Aldon Smith who was busted for DUI on August 6th and faces DUI charges in Santa Clara it was at that time the San Francisco 49ers released Smith. Smith had served a nine game suspension for DUI during the 2014 season for substance abuse. This time in 2015 as an Oakland Raider Smith has been found to be a substance abuser again and will serve a one year suspension immediately according to the Raiders.

The Raiders really counted on Smith this season and was hoping that he finally would break through his drinking habit but he just couldn’t handle it any longer. Smith said a in a statement released on Tuesday “First I want to thank the Raiders, my teammates, the fans, our coaches and our owner in supporting me throughout all of this. I’m taking this time to work on myself and become the man I need to be. I had lost my love for the game and it led me to some poor choices, but I’m thankful to the Raider organization for believing in me this season and will continue to get better myself and grow from my experiences. I look forward to rejoining the team next year.”

Smith will lose $323, 529 in per game salary, he’ll miss out on the $514,000 base salary and $1.75 million in roster bonuses. The Raiders will depend on Khalil Mack and Mario Edwards to pick up the slack where Smith left off. The Raiders have another problem with linebacker Ray-Ray Armstrong who taunted and barked at a Pittsburgh Police Dog when the team was at Heinz Field. The action by Armstrong is considered a felony and if prosecuted and convicted Armstrong could face a seven year prison sentence and a $15,000 fine. Sources say that the Pittsburgh Police are prepared to prosecute.

Jeremy Kahn and Joe Hawkes Beamon cover the Oakland Raiders for http://www.sportsradioservice.com