With Jeff Garcia authoring his own release the Raiders better hope nothing happens to JaMarcus Russell.  Because now the Raiders have by far the worst backup QBs in the NFL right now.  28-year old Charlie Frye and 26-year old Bruce Gradkowski are now the backups and I doubt either of them could throw a 30-yard spiral with no wind.  Frye played in 2 games for the Seahawks last season and he completed 12 of 23 passes (52.2%) for 83 yards with 2 TD passes and 2 interceptions (53.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 2 times for 30 yards (15.0 ypc).  Frye has now played in 23 games in his 4-year NFL career and he has completed 366 of 590 passes (62%) for 3,573 yards with 16 TD passes and 25 interceptions (70.4 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 68 times for 306 yards (4.5 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  As awful as Frye’s numbers are….they are still way better than Gradkowski’s.  Gradkowski played in 2 games for the Browns last season and he completed 7 of 21 passes (33.3%) for 26 yards with 0 TD passes and 3 interceptions (2.8 QB Rating).  He also carried the ball 1 time for 2 yards.  Gradkowski has now played in 19 games in his 3-year NFL career in which he has completed 197 for 373 passes (52.8%) for 1,817 yards with 9 TD passes and 13 INTs (59.9 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 49 times for 183 yards (3.7 ypc) in his career.   Raiders’ fans should unite and pray for JaMarcus Russell to remain healthy all year long.

The Oakland Raiders recent acquisition, defensive lineman Richard Seymour, has failed to show up to Oakland for the second straight day.  Neither the Raiders nor the New England Patriots have commented much on the situation and it is looking more and more like the five-time Pro Bowler just doesn’t want to go to Oakland.  There hasn’t been any explanation as to why he has not shown up, so the only reasoning I can think of is that Seymour just doesn’t want to play for the one of the worst franchises in the NFL.

The Oakland Raiders traded their 2011 first round draft pick to the New England Patriots for defensive lineman Richard Seymour.  The trade was announced on Sunday, however the five-time Pro Bowl lineman has yet to show up in Oakland and the deal has not been finalized.  Seymour has apparantly told Raiders’ coach Tom Cable that he wants to play in Oakland but needs to work things out with the Patriots first.  It doesn’t look like Seymour is being honest, because who really wants to play for the Raiders these days?  Seymour, who will turn 30 this year, is going from the most successful franchise of the last decade to the least successful. 

The Raiders do need help with stopping the run, as they had the worst run defense this preseason, and although Seymour is one of the best run stoppers in the league, he is aging and will be a free agent after the season.  So, this trade isn’t really looking like a good move by the Raiders.  That 2011 draft pick they are giving up will most likely be a top 10 pick and Seymour probably won’t want to stay in Oakland after this season (that is even if this trade is official).

Four time Pro Bowl quarterback Jeff Garcia is unemployed… again. Today he was cut by the Oakland Raiders, which would make them the second team to cut him this year. Earlier in the year, Tampa Bay cut ties with the quarterback that helped lead them to the playoffs in 2007. Now that he is without a job, what is his next move?

Apparently, it won’t be as a backup. Some are speculating that part of the reason that Garcia was cut is because he was unwilling to be a backup in Oakland. As a weak armed, limited offensive system, 39 year old quarterback, Garcia may not have many options as a potential starter. However there are plenty of teams that could use a solid backup with a resume as distinguished as Garcia’s.

Baltimore, Seattle, Denver, and New England are just a few teams that wouldn’t mind an upgrade at backup quarterback, and there are probably more. Garcia should have his pick of the litter – as long as he’s willing to hold the clipboard until his number is called.

The Raiders had another poor all-around effort in this game.  JaMarcus Russell completed his only pass attempt for 4 yards.  Jeff Garcia followed Russell in the game and he completed 3 of 6 passes for 12 yards.  Bruce Gradkowski had a night to forget as he completed 6 of 10 passes for 75 yards but he lost two fumbles.  Charlie Frye was also so-so at the end of the game completing 5 of 10 passes for 58 yards.  Louis Rankin led the Raiders in rushing last night with 60 yards on 6 carries (10.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Gary Russell was also busy with 12 carries for 59 yards (4.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  The Raiders finished up with 277 total yards in this game (144 rushing, 133 passing). 

Safety Jerome Boyd led the way for the Raiders’ D with 8 tackles.  The Seahawks finished up with 345 total yards on offense (134 rushing, 211 passing) in this game.  The Raiders finished the pre-season with a 1-3 record. 

The Raiders will be without 28-year old CB Nnamdi Asomugha for a couple of weeks as he recovers from a chipped bone in his left wrist.  Asomugha played in 15 games for the Raiders last season and he made 40 tackles, defensed 9 passes, forced 1 fumble and he picked off a pass.  He has now played in 92 games for the Raiders and he has made 257 tackles, defensed 52 passes, has 2 sacks, forced 2 fumbles and he has 10 interceptions (1 returned for a TD).  Asomugha vows to be ready for the season opener and that’s a good thing as teams don’t test him much.