With the Raiders sitting at 3-8 on the season right now it’s getting closer to the time that they should let Russell start because they have little to lose.  Daunte Culpepper has played decent for the Raiders this season but he doesn’t have much of a role in the team’s future.  Culpepper has completed 108 of 186 passes (58.1%) for 1,331 yards with 5 TD passes and 5 interceptions (78.0 QB Rating) so far this season.  Culpepper has been much better than McCown though.  McCown has completed 71 of 122 passes (58.2%) for 760 yards with 5 TD passes and 9 interceptions this season.  The Raiders should just turn the reigns over to Russell right now and get his feet wet.

The Oakland Raiders pulled out a nice road victory last Sunday.  Daunte Culpepper had a solid game as he completed 15 of 22 passes for 170 yards.  Justin Fargas had an outstanding game as he carried the ball 22 times for 139 yards (6.3 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 18 yards (9.0 avg).  LaMont Jordan pitched in with 3 carries for 4 yards (1.3 ypc) with a TD run.  Jerry Porter (3 rec, 75 yards) and Ronald Curry (6 rec, 39 yards) each pitched in on the Raiders passing game.  The Raiders finished up with 153 yards rushing on 29 carries (5.3 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 22 passes for 159 yards.

The Raiders defense was outstanding against the pass but not too good against the run.  The defense was lead by Kirk Morrison (11 tackles), Mike Huff (9 tackles, sack) and Derrick Burgess (5 tackles, 2 sacks) who all played at a high level.  The Chiefs finished up with 164 yards rushing on 37 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 23 passes for 128 yards.

The Raiders offense put up a good fight but the defense was truly awful in this game.  Daunte Culpepper played his best game as a Raider as he completed 23 of 39 passes for 344 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Justin Fargas found it tough to get yards against the Vikings front as he ran the ball 22 times for 60 yards (2.7 ypc) and he also caught 3 passes for 29 yards.  Ronald Curry (4 rec, 120 yards) and Jerry Porter (5 rec, 88 yards) each had one of there better games of the season yesterday.  The Raiders finished up with 61 yards rushing on 27 carries (2.3 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 39 passes for 311 yards.

Kirk Morrison (10 tackles, fumble recovery) and Warren Sapp (6 tackles, fumble recovery) led a poor effort by the defense.  The Vikings finished up with 228 yards rushing on 32 carrries (7.1 ypc) and they also completed 19 of 24 passes for 250 yards.

If Adrian Peterson were playing in this game it would probably have been a Vikings rout.  Without him however, the Raiders will have a legit shot and Daunte Culpepper will be playing another ex-team of his.  His Raiders rolled up a 35-17 against the Dolphins earlier this season.   The Raiders are a running team as they average 137.0 yards rushing per game this season but the Vikings only allow 75.9 yards rushing per game and 3.0 ypc so something has to give.  If the Raiders give Culpepper time to throw the ball he will be able to extract revenge on another team that gave up on him as the Vikings allow an amazing 285.9 yards passing per game.

The Vikings won’t change up their gameplan very much with Chester Taylor starting in place of Adrian Peterson.  After all, the Raiders allow 144.2 yards rushing per game and 4.8 ypc so the Vikings should be able to get a lot of rushing yards.  They better hope they can because the Raiders have a good pass defense and Tavaris Jackson stinks.

PREDICTION:  Culpepper will get his revenge.  RAIDERS 24, VIKINGS 17

The Raiders played a horrible game on offense and it cost them this football game.  Josh McCown was awful as he only completed 14 of 27 passes for 108 yards with a interception.  He also carried the football 4 times for 28 yards (7.0 ypc).  Justin Fargas seemed to be the only skill player on offense that came to play against the Bears last Sunday.  Fargas carried the ball 23 times for 81 yards (3.5 ypc) and he also caught 5 passes for 23 yards (4.6 avg).  The Raiders finished up with 113 yards rushing on 29 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 27 passes for 80 yards.

The Raiders defense was led by Kirk Morrison who had 9 tackles and a sack against the Bears.  The Bears finished up with 78 yards rushing on 34 carries (2.3 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 28 passes for 217 yards.

The Raiders have decided to go with Justin Fargas as their main running back.  Fargas has carried the ball 81 times for 437 yards (5.4 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 10 passes for 93 yards (9.3 avg).  Lamont Jordan will now come off of the bench for the Raiders.  He has carried the ball 129 times for 521 yards (4.0 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He also has caught 24 passes for 230 yards (9.6 avg).  This is probably a good move for the Raiders who must see what they have in their young players the remainder of the season.

The Raiders just couldn’t finish drives in this game and it cost them on the scoreboard.   Josh McCown was very ineffective as he completed 13 of 28 passes for 158 yards with 1 TD pass and 3 interceptions.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 31 yards (6.2 ypc).  Justin Fargas had an outstanding game as he carried the ball 23 times for 104 yards (4.5 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 2 passes for 15 yards.  Lamont Jordan came off of the bench in this game and he carried the ball 4 times for 10 yards (2.5 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 16 yards.  Jerry Porter was the top receiver for the Raiders with 4 catches for 55 yards (13.8 avg).  Tim Dwight caught his first (and only pass) in this game and it was a 28 yard TD.  The Raiders finished this game with 153 yards on 33 carries (4.6 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 28 passes on 157 yards.

Linebackers Robert Thomas (11 tackles) and Kirk Morrison (8 tackles) led the way on defense for the Raiders in this game.  Safety Stuart Schweigert also had a solid game with 8 tackles and a interception.  The Texans finished up with 178 yards rushing on 39 carries (4.6 ypc) and they also completed 11 of 19 passes for 181 yards.

The Raiders have signed Tim Dwight to a 1-year contract which could mean an end to Chris Carr returning kicks which is Dwight’s specialty.  Last season with the Jets, Dwight played in 9 games and he caught 16 passes for 112 yards (7.0 avg) and he also carried the ball 2 times for 28 yards (14.0 ypc).  Dwight returned 14 punts for 146 yards (10.4 avg) last year.  Dwight has now played in 110 games in his NFL career and he has caught 188 passes for 2,866 yards (15.2 avg) with 17 TD grabs and he also has carried the ball 51 times for 368 yards (7.2 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  Dwight also has returned 202 kickoffs for 4,723 yards (23.4 avg) with 2 TDs and he also has returned 176 punts for 1,719 yards (9.8 avg) with 3 TD returns.  This was a good move by the Raiders.

Defensive end Tommy Kelly was placed on the Injured Reserve List with a torn ACL.  Kelly’s season finishes with 30 tackles and 1 sack.  This will hurt the defense a little bit as Kelly played pretty decent this year for them.

The Raiders have released WR Mike Williams after he repeatedly dropped passes.  He finished up his Raiders career with 7 catches for 90 yards (12.9 avg).  It’s possible that his career could be over unless someone is willing to roll the dice and give him a chance.  After all, Kiffin coached him in college and didn’t want him around anymore.