There is no greater indictment of a team than the stricken look that comes upon a player’s face when he realizes he must go to the Raiders, the NFL’s wasteland. Sure, plenty of players, such as safety Gibril Wilson, cornerback DeAngelo Hall, defensive tackle Tommy Kelly and running back Justin Fargas, lined up to take the money. That’s why when the Raiders pick at No. 4 overall on Saturday, some player will manage a smile for the cameras. And if he smiles, he should get an Oscar with his Raiders jersey.
Oakland has only 1 pick in the top 100, and that's at #4. Kiffin wants to trade down, which is sensible, but all indications are not only that Al Davis will stay put, but that he will use the pick on RB Darren McFadden, who is a fine athlete but not a need for a team full of holes at virtually every other position.
If McFadden is picked, chances are that Lamont Jordan will either be renegotiated or traded, and Dominic Rhodes may be as well. There's just no reason to have five starter-level running backs, especially with so many other compelling needs, especially on both sides of the line.
So here we go. Hopefully Kiffin gets his wish and the Raiders can deal down, pick up Sedrick Ellis and maybe a decent o-lineman.
[Update: Ten teams in, and the only real surprise so far is New Orleans, whose defensive secondary was a joke last year, trading up with the Patriots to get Sedrick Ellis, who will definitely make their line better, but still leaves their defensive backfield right where it was. This is likely an effect of the Giants winning their season with a ferocious pass rush, a trend that's sure to be repeated around the league -- except, of course, in Oakland, where they threw $50 mil at Tommy Kelly (a good player, but not that good) and drafted McFadden, as predicted. So now they have to try to shop Jordan and possibly Rhodes, preferably outside the division.
Raider legacy Chris Long was taken off the table at #2 by the Rams, the only team besides the Raiders that Long visited. (Howie Long is said to have had a falling-out with Al Davis over the way Davis has lawndarted the team in the past five years, and did not want his son to go to Oakland.)
Two other prospects that would have filled an immediate need for the Raiders, DT Glenn Dorsey (LSU) and DE Vernon Gholston (Ohio State), went at #5 and #6 to the Chefs and Jets respectively. It's going to be yet another long season in Oakland, even in a weakened division. Six wins tops, fewer if they can't find a decent left tackle to protect Jamarcus Russell, who is reportedly around 280 pounds. This is not even a football problem, so much as chronic mismanagement and failure of leadership.]
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