Lane Kiffin got the Raiders to play hard most of the time but they just were overmatched most weeks talent wise.  Kiffin only has one more year on his contract so he will have to develop QB JaMarcus Russell quickly.  Kiffin led the Raiders to a 4-12 (.250 %) record which had them tied with the Chiefs for last place in the AFC West.

The Raiders made sure that they didn’t rush the QB of the future this season by surrounding him with veteran QBs.  But make no mistake JaMarcus Russell will be the starter as soon as Opening Day next season for the Raiders.  Russell flashed his potential in the 2nd half of the season when he got his first taste of playing time in the NFL.  Russell played in 4 games for the Raiders this season and he completed 36 of 66 passes (54.5%) for 373 yards with 2 TD passes and 4 interceptions (55.9 QB Rating).  He also ran the ball 5 times for 4 yards (0.8 ypc).

Josh McCown was the starting QB when the season opened but he really got beat up behind the Raiders still poor offensive line.  McCown played in 9 games for the Raiders this season and he completed 111 of 190 passes (58.4%) for 1,151 yards with 10 TD passes and 11 interceptions (69.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 29 times for 143 yards (4.9 ypc).  McCown has now played in 44 games in his NFL career and he has completed 609 of 1,052 passes (57.9%) for 6,582 yards with 35 TD passes and 40 interceptions (71.6 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 123 times for 572 yards (4.7 ypc) with 3 TD runs.

Daunte Culpepper was given a chance to revive his career and he had some good moments.  He played in 7 games for the Raiders this season and he completed 108 of 186 passes (58.1%) for 1,331 yards with 5 TD passes and 5 interceptions (78.0 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 20 times for 40 yards (2.0 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  Culpepper has now played in 92 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,867 of 2,927 passes (63.8%) for 22,422 yards with 142 TD passes and 94 interceptions (89.9 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 484 times for 2,536 yards (5.2 ypc) with 33 TD runs.

Andrew Walter even made a very brief appearance this season for the Raiders.  He played in 1 game and he completed 5 of 8 passes (62.5%) for 38 yards (74.0 QB Rating).  Walter has now played in 13 games in his NFL career and he has completed 152 of 284 passes (53.5%) for 1,715 yards with 3 TD passes and 13 interceptions (56.3 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 14 times for 30 yards (2.1 ypc).

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The Raiders put up a good fight against the Chargers in JaMarcus Russell’s debut as a starting QB.  Russell completed 23 of 31 passes for 224 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Dominic Rhodes had a great game for the Raiders as he carried the ball 29 times for 122 yards (4.2 ypc) with a TD run and he also caught 6 passes for 42 yards (7.0 avg).  Zach Miller (8 rec, 84 yards) and Jerry Porter (2 rec, 36 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Raiders.  The Raiders finished up with 122 yards rushing on 29 carries (4.2 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 31 passes for 194 yards.

Kirk Morrison led the way for the Raiders on defense with 9 tackles.  The Chargers finished up with 120 yards rushing on 33 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 15 of 27 passes for 133 yards.