The Oakland Raiders looked like a good football team last night.  The Raiders kept the play calling close to the vest last night leaning heavily on a good running game and it was effective.  JaMarcus Russell started the game last night as he completed 2 of 5 passes for 13 yards.  Andrew Walter looked really good last night as he connected on 10 of 12 passes for 82 yards.  Marques Tuiasosopo only completed 1 of 3 passes for 16 yards but he also carried the football 2 times for 36 yards (18.0 ypc).  Louis Rankin led the Raiders in rushing with 91 yards on only 8 carries (11.4 ypc).  Darren McFadden made his NFL debut last night and he was solid carrying the ball 12 times for 48 yards (4.0 ypc).  Michael Bush rushed for 27 yards on 8 carries (3.4 ypc) and he had a TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 29 yards (14.5 avg) last night.  Starting running back Justin Fargas also looked good carrying the ball last night as he had 5 carries for 25 yards (5.0 ypc).  The Raiders finished up last night with 248 yards rushing on 41 carries (6.0 ypc).  They also completed 13 of 20 passes for 98 yards as they had possession of the football for 34:32 last night.

The defense looked pretty good last night for the Raiders.  Linebacker Isaiah Ekejiuba led the way for the Raiders last night with 4 tackles.  CB Michael Waddell was the star of the night however with 3 tackles and 2 fumble recoveries.  The 49ers finished up with 70 yards rushing on 19 carries (3.7 ypc).  The Niners also completed 20 of 37 passes for 199 yards last night.  This was a good first step for the Raiders and hopefully they will build off of this effort.

The Raiders couldn’t get anything going on offense and it killed them Thursday Night.  Daunte Culpepper looked decent again as he completed 11 of 19 passes for 108 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Josh McCown followed and he completed 5 of 12 passes for 75 yards.  Andrew Walter finished the game up by completing his only 2 passes for 1 yard.  Dominic Rhodes got in his last action before his suspension starts with 10 carries for 29 yards (2.9 ypc) and Lamont Jordan made a brief appearance carrying the football 2 times for 18 yards (9.0 ypc).  Mike Williams (3 rec, 51 yards) and Travis Taylor (3 rec, 45 yards) each looked sharp against the Seahawks.  Rookie WR Johnnie Lee Higgins made a huge impact in the return game as he returned 2 punts for 107 yards (53.5 avg) including a 90-yard TD!  The Raiders finished with 75 yards rushing on 21 carries (3.6 ypc).  The Raiders also completed 18 of 33 passes for 184 yards.

The defense was o.k. against the Seahawks.  The Seahawks rushed for 130 yards on 39 carries (3.3 ypc) and they also completed 12 of 26 passes for 181 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270830026

The Oakland Raiders played very well on Friday Night in their victory over the Rams.  Daunte Culpepper looked pretty solid again for the Raiders as he completed 4 of 8 passes for 47 yards with 1 TD pass and he also carried the football 3 times for 17 yards (5.7 ypc).  Josh McCown was also solid again as he completed 6 of 9 passes for 138 yards.  Andrew Walter didn’t look too sharp on Friday as he completed 3 of 6 passes for 26 yards.  LaMont Jordan did a lot of the heavy lifting for the Raiders running game as he carried the football 18 times for 41 yards (2.3 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 1 pass for 49 yards.  Adimchinobe Echemandu also was very busy with 14 carries for 60 yards (4.3 ypc).  Justin Fargas also got his work in with 7 carries for 32 yards (4.6 ypc).  Ronald Curry led the way for the receivers with 3 grabs for 27 yards and a TD.  The Raiders carried the football 46 times for 172 yards (3.7 ypc) and they completed 13 of 23 passes for 187 yards.

The Raiders defense was bending but it didn’t break on Friday Night.  The Rams rushed for 96 yards on 17 carries (5.6 ypc) and they completed 21 of 44 passes for 236 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270824013

The Raiders looked much better on offense in their second game of the pre-season.  Daunte Culpepper looked sharp completing 6 of 8 passes for 75 yards with 2 TDs and he also carried the football 3 times for 13 yards (4.3 ypc).  Andrew Walter followed and he completed 9 of 16 passes for 78 yards with an interception.  Josh McCown finished up the game completing 8 of 17 passes for 97 yards.  LaMont Jordan looked like a legit #1 running back Saturday Night as he carried the ball 8 times for 67 yards (8.4 ypc) with a TD run.  Justin Fargas got some work in for the Raiders with 9 carries for 30 yards (3.3 ypc).  Adimchinobe Echemandu had another solid effort with 4 carries for 18 yards (4.5 ypc).  TE John Madsen was the leading receiver for the Raiders with 3 grabs for 55 yards (18.3 avg) with a TD grab.  The Raiders offense was in high gear as they carried the football 31 times for 133 yards (4.3 ypc) and they completed 23 of 41 passes for 248 yards.

The Raiders defense had some issues with stopping the run.  The Niners carried the football 26 times for 125 yards (4.8 ypc) and they completed 17 of 29 passes for 187 yards.  The Raiders have a couple of weeks to straighten the defense back out but they should be fine.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=270818025

 

 

The Oakland Raiders looked like a decent football team last night.  Daunte Culpepper looked rusty last night but that should have been expected.  He completed 5 of 12 passes for 78 yards.  Josh McCown looked o.k. completing 5 of 9 passes for 42 yards.  Andrew Walter looked good for once last night as he completed 8 of 11 passes for 50 yards with a TD strike to WR Mike Williams.  RB Adimchinobe Echemandu was the workhorse in the running game for the Raiders as he carried the ball 17 times for 75 yards (4.4 ypc).  Justin Fargas (8 car, 24 yards) and Dominic Rhodes (8 car, 21 yards, TD) both got their work in but neither was especially impressive.  Rookie WR Johnnie Lee Higgins looked good as he caught 2 passes for 59 yards and Mike Williams made a good impression with 2 grabs for 17 yards and a TD.  The Raiders wound up carrying the football 35 times for 120 yards (3.4 ypc) and they completed 18 of 32 passes for 155 yards.  The offense has a long way to go but last night they looked a lot better than they did in 2006.

The defense had some trouble stopping the run as the Cardinals ran the ball 24 times for 103 yards (4.3 ypc).  But the defense was outstanding against the pass holding the Cardinals to 163 yards passing on 14 completions in 32 pass attempts.

http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/live/NFL_20070811_ARI@OAK