The Curse of the Blindly Loyal
Blindly loyal.
That’s me.
Won ton at Bleacher Report writes exactly what I feel, though I have about 10 more years as a Raider fan on him. I’m not going to be spending any ticket or tog money on them, but I’m not jumping ship. I can understand how others might be and I can’t say that I blame them. My nature dooms me to endure the pain.
Jarrod Cooper gives a frank assessment of the team on KNBR and he speaks the unfortunate truth.
It’s nothing that isn’t now totally obvious. Take what NY Giant Antonio Pierce, who grew up a Raider fan, said about playing against the pathetic Raider offense. It sounds a lot like what the 49ers were saying in a pre-season scrimmage, but at least that actually was a scrimmage.
It’s a truly depressing situation where hope is dwindling. I never thought it would come to this, but Ray Ratto is now a voice of reason and someone whose writing I am know plugging. Read his latest on the Raiders and what they’ve become. Us Raider fans like to point out the 2002 Super Bowl but it really has been sandwiched by about 20 years of some pretty sad football…
Yes, quarter-century. Going back to 1986, the Raiders have made the playoffs six times; of the teams that have existed that long, only Arizona and Cincinnati have been less January. The last six years and change have been spectacularly awful, but this has gone on a lot longer than anyone wants to admit.
Obviously, the pre-2000 slump pales in comparison to what we’ve been seeing the past 6-7 years and it appear to not be getting any better. I should have seen this coming with the selection of Heyward-Bey at number 7 this spring. Oh, and by the way, the guy I wanted, Jeremy Maclin, had a great game last week and will undoubtedly be showcased against the Raiders on Sunday. I hope Al is watching. And it will add to the Raiders embarrassment when Crabtree, just across the bay, starts playing at first rounder’s level while Heyward-Bey continues to struggle.
And JaMarcus Russell? I’ve almost lost all hope in him. I don’t see any improvement in him. I don’t think an inaccurate passer can suddenly become accurate. I don’t think he’ll work hard enough to be a good quarterback and I don’t think he has the leadership qualities (see Antonio Pierce’s comments). I also think that Al Davis is totally off base in comparing him to other, slow-starting QBs that became great ones. That’s like the Heyward-Bey pick – a reach. And wishful thinking.