Gone are Aaron Brooks and Marques Tuiasosopo and they’ve been replaced with first round pick JaMarcus Russell and Josh McCown.  McCown and Russell will battle for the starting job this season but the Raiders are hoping that JaMarcus Russell will win the job.  Russell has unbelievable talent as he routinely can throw the ball 65 yards as he has a rocket launcher attached to his right shoulder.  He also has enough mobility to avoid the pass rush and playing behind the Raiders offensive line makes that an essential skill.  If Russell wins the starting job, look for the Raiders to play a vertical type passing attack to stretch the football field.

Josh McCown has bounced around from Arizona to Detroit to Oakland.  McCown isn’t that special as a QB but he can make all of the throws needed to succeed.  He’s also a good athlete that can avoid the pass rush and run when he has to.  McCown played in 2 games last season for the Lions and believe it or not it was at WR.  He caught 2 passes for 15 yards last season.  McCown has played in 35 games (22 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 498 of 862 passes (57.8%) for 5,431 yards with 25 TD passes and 29 Interceptions (72.1 QB Rating).  He also has carried the football 94 times for 429 yards (4.6 ypc) with 3 TD runs and he’s caught 3 passes for 10 yards (3.3 avg).

Poor Andrew Walter is still around after the severe beating he took last season.  It was almost impossible to judge anything about him last season as he was often getting drilled before he could set his feet to throw the football.  Walter played in 12 games (8 starts) last season and he completed 147 of 276 passes (53.3%) for 1,677 yards with 3 TD passes and 13 INTs (55.8 QB Rating).  He also carried the football 14 times for 30 yards (2.1 ypc).  Walter can breathe easy this season as he will only see the field if Russell and McCown both get hurt.

The Raiders drafted Jonathan Holland because he’s a good athlete.  Holland is 6′0″, 191 pounds and he runs a 4.45 40 which sounds great.  But Holland is a very soft player who doesn’t make a lot of big plays.  Holland played in 48 games (29 starts) at Louisiana Tech and he caught 85 passes for 1,426 yards (16.8 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  He also carried the football 11 times for 112 yards (10.2 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  Holland will likely have to make the team on special teams because the Raiders have a lot of WRs ahead of him.

Oren O’Neal is the classic fullback in the mold of Lorenzo Neal.  O’Neal would prefer to blow up a defender on a block than carry the football.  When O’Neal runs the ball it’s usually just full speed ahead with very few cuts as he just tries to run defenders over.  He has good size at 6′0″, 244 pounds and he runs a 4.78 40 which isn’t great speed but all that matters is that he packs a wallop in the running game.  At Arkansas State, O’Neal played in 43 games (40 starts) and he carried the ball 57 times for 281 yards (4.9 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He also caught 17 passes for 122 yards (7.2 avg) with 3 TD catches.

Eric Frampton is an excellent athlete with a lot of upside like John Bowie possesses.  When Frampton got to Washington State he was a corner, but he moved to safety and that’s where he has excelled.  Frampton is 5′11″, 205 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40.  He packs a wallop in the running game and he’s a pretty decent coverage safety.  He played in 46 games (23 starts) at Washington State and he made 219 tackles, broke up 18 passes, intercepted 6 passes (86 return yards), forced 3 fumbles and recovered 2 fumbles.  Look for Frampton to be a backup as a rookie and he’ll likely play a lot on special teams but he could develop into a starter in the near future for the Raiders.

Jay Richardson is a big guy for an end at 6′5″, 276 pounds but he’s not the fastest guy around as he runs a 4.9 40.  Richardson is very good against the run as he’s good at holding his ground due to his immense strength.  Richardson doesn’t make plays in the passing game due to his lack of speed.  Richardson played in 39 games (19 starts) at Ohio State and he made 52 tackles, had 7 sacks, 12.5 tackles for a loss, batted down 9 passes, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble.  Look for Richardson to play some on running downs for the Raiders as a rookie.