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Taylor trade gives Oakland Raiders and Jordan hope

By Rob Calonge | July 21st, 2008

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Last man standing? That’s what the Raiders will need for a trade.

By now, you all must have heard about the trade between the Dolphins and the Redskins sending Jason Taylor north for a second round pick in the 2009 draft. Taylor needed to get out of Miami, the Dolphins needed to get value for the longtime veteran, and the Redskins needed a replacement for Phillip Daniels who just suffered a season ending ACL tear. Misfortune, like that of Daniels and the Redskins is exactly what the Raiders are betting on by holding on to Lamont Jordan. The question becomes, how long will they bide their time for a deal?

Jordan has already been informed by the coaching staff that his services are not wanted or needed at training camp. The Raiders have already given him permission to work out deals with other ball clubs, which he has been attempting to do. The problem has been that no team is ready to pull the trigger on a deal for a runningback that is already going to be available prior to the season opener.

The second most talented back behind former Seahawk Shaun Alexander, Jordan is sure to get someone’s attention if he’s let go. While still being part of the Raiders, it will take a catastrophic injury to someone’s starter to give Jordan more value in a trade. That is as long as the team that needs him doesn’t like Alexander more.

Jordan has 3,285 career rushing yards with an average of 4.1 yards per carry, but he’s never averaged more than 3.8 yards per carry as a Raider. Alexander has averaged 4.3 yards per carry over a career that has spanned 9,429 yards, but may be pricing himself out of consideration due to his inability to stay healthy and his age.

Both runners have been considered ’soft’ or prone to going down too easily during their respective careers, but many talent evaluators still hold Alexander higher in terms of ability. This is why Jordan and the Raiders need Alexander to find a home as soon as possible. As long as Alexander is available for the taking, Jordan’s value will remain minimal.

At age 29, the famous ‘Mendoza line’ for runningbacks is only a year away. After the age of 30, it’s common to see the skills and abilities of a running back erode until the day of their retirement. Luckily for Jordan, he’s looked at as a ‘fresh 29′ due to his many years as a backup while being in the NFL.

Big news today comes out of Denver, where former undrafted free agent Mike Bell was cut today. Don’t expect him to take too much of the limelight away from Lamont Jordan, but he could merit a look from a team needing depth. That could affect Jordan’s plan B, which is to catch on with a team as their depth. Hopefully, for Jordan, he’s working hard at staying in shape and healthy, because he’ll need to be both if he wants to get a decent contract.

It doesn’t help Jordan’s case when a future Hall of Famer ex-teammate calls him the, “worst offseason running back I’ve [Sapp] ever been around.” Those kind of reviews stick in the minds of general managers and head coaches. Nobody wants to pay roughly $4 million a year to a guy that doesn’t do what’s necessary to stay in shape. Alright, maybe the Clippers would do it since they’ve just given $15 million a year to B-Diddy, but I don’t think that Lamont can man the point. Maybe one of his favorite Terrapin’s could, but there aren’t any women in the NBA.

Regardless of what may be thought about Jordan, he’s going to play somewhere this upcoming season. Where he plays and ultimately how he gets there is the biggest question. Now that the example has been made with the Taylor deal, the Raiders and Jordan must have rested easier last night knowing that it’s only a matter of time. It’s only a matter of time before someone else gets injured, cut, or suspended and then they’re team will come calling for Jordan.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 21st, 2008 at 11:23 pm and is filed under Raider News, 2008 Raiders Preseason, Warren Sapp, 2008, Lamont Jordan, Raiders News, 2008 Oakland Raiders Training Camp, 2008 Raiders Offseason, Oakland Raiders Current Player Analysis, Oakland Raiders Analysis, Oakland Raiders Rumors, Trade Rumors, NFL News, Raider Nation, Training Camp, Transactions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

17 Responses to “Taylor trade gives Oakland Raiders and Jordan hope”

Patrick Patterson says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 2:01 am

I don’t care if we only get a six pack of Miller Lite and a bag of Doritos. Get him gone.
Jon says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 3:32 am

I wouldn’t push it that much. Teams need two DEs, and most only have one. Most teams only technically need 1 RB but have 2-3. There probably won’t much demand, especially since (unlike Taylor) it’s become a foregone conclusion that Jordan is going to be gonei… if not now, then later.

If I were the Raiders, I’d bite at any offer I get. If you’re this deep in the offseason and you’re still getting no offers, then just cut the cord.
Thoughts from the Dark Side: Taylor trade gives Oakland Raiders and Jordan hope | The RaiderCast says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 5:21 am

[…] Read more. Posted in Blog, Oakland Raiders | […]
KA1Z3R says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 6:40 am

I agree with Jon, you should have cut him before now and then had the money to work a deal with Asomugha.
inonewordraider says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:24 am

Lamonts a good, “fresh” back which plenty of teams would love to have. They’ll wait till he’s cut however
Bill says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:32 am

Hey Rob, I hear alot of people saying to just cut him. If the Raiders do cut him what are the cap ramifications? I do disagree about Taylor and Shockey for that matter having anything to do with Jordan. Taylor and Shocky are playmakers, they are in the mix to be the best players at their position. Jordan on the other hand falls way short of that. I do think some teams could use him like Detroit, Arizona, SF, and Denver to name a few. But jordan would not be a great upgrade to anyones roster, even with injury.
KUSHMAN says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 11:34 am

inonewordraider: are u talking about the same jordan? haha the man is a hopeless has been dude, gets hurt nearly every year.. and cant push through my grandma on the line.. so fresh isnt the best word to describe.. but i agree that he is worth a 7th rounder.

yea al loves to keep around the dead weight of the ppast.. he can’t let go of the past and never will, take care ofthe future al LIKE ASOMUGHA .. just let go.
Rob Calonge says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 12:18 pm

Bill - I could be wrong, but I’m fairly certain that the Raiders have zero cap implications by cutting him. They may have bonus money already on the books from before they reworked his contract at the beginning of last season, but as far as I know he’s making somewhere in the neighborhood of $4 million this year and it’s all in salary. If there is any acceleration on any bonus that the Raiders may have already paid him, it won’t count until next year since it’s after the June 1st deadline.

Great comments all around! Thanks to all for stopping by.
azraider37 says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 12:21 pm

I agree that Jordan and Alexander are pretty much of equal value right now. With that in mind Alexander got cut and still hasn’t been signed. Why do we think someone is going to give us anything for Jordan.
At least Alexander had a good career(MVP) and went to a bowl, he may be able to help with other young running backs he will be backing up. That’s not a role Jordan will take.
Let’s just dump this guy. Camp starts in a couple days; let’s get our cap figured out, maybe bring in some needed depth, and have all the players that will be playing on opening day ready for the start of camp.
Bill says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 1:01 pm

az makes a great point. Camp starts in a few days. The only thing I can think of is Al knows Denver will pick up on Jordan. Speaking of Denver, what in sam hill are the Jack Asses thinking? They just let another RB go. Do they have any left? I don’t think we have to much to worry about Denvers running game.
Coach Elkins says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 1:39 pm

You all are amazing….

LOL
Big John says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 7:14 pm

I think that beggars can’t be choosers and that we should accept ANY offer we get for Jordan. But then again, just accepting ANY offer is what happened to us in the Randy Moss fiasco. How awful would it be if Jordan turned into a pro-bowler when we let him go? Hopefully he leaves soon so we don’t have to deal with that distraction…
KUSHMAN says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 7:17 pm

Coach Elkins: in regard to your response to the russell article.. you really don’t know what lane can bring to the table yet dude, so it’s hard to pass judgement on him, i think he knows exactly how to execute a RB core like dmac and bush(uh lorenzo white and reggie bush for example?!)… and yes we were HORRIBLE at stopping the run, and havent done much to improve it.. yet the funny thing is in most games despite not being able to stop backs from romping and stomping on us, we were STILL very competitive in every game .. what was it ..8 games lost after leading going into the 4th quarter? 12 games losing going into half time. i think that’s way more than a coaching problem my man. all that is is LACK OF TALENT. i mean, name the talent the raiders had last year… you could count them on one hand dude, that’s how thin they were at play making ability (28th place in big plays).. its hard to take below average players and make them play .500 ball, simple as that. and also.. look at the last four games we played… IND GB JAX SD .. i mean cmon now that was just brutal. that would have been an 0-4 run for the majority of teams in the nfl .. and even tho the colts were hurtin last season(and still made it to the second round of the playoffs, god they’re scary) we BARELY lost to them, it came down to a catch from none other than the laggy ass jerry porter. go look at the raiders schedule this year, its the easiest it’s been in years my man! .. im sure there’s going to be a sleeper team in there somewhere(saints panthers).. but realistically dude, i forsee either 6 or 7 losses.

i respect your opinion tho elkins, you seem like a very knowledgable person, and you’re a realist. by all records show, the raiders will be choosing in the top ten of the first round in ’09s draft… but they have so much more potential in playmaking ability on both sides of the ball, 5 fold over last season. and we all know that the raiders wont be a championship team until BIG GAY AL kicks the bucket, but you have to keep the faith my brotha.. every underdog has its day.(just look at the ‘03 season)

RA RA RAAAIDERSS!!
KUSHMAN says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 7:18 pm

i meant 12 games lost after leading at halftime!!
KUSHMAN says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 7:27 pm

haha jordan will get hurt anywhere he goes.. look how easy it was for him to injure his back.. they couldn’t figure it on the replay?! he kinda landed on his ass and rolled over … looked perfectly fine, but the next thing you know he was out for the rest of the season.. the man doesnt have much talent left in him.. 3.8 ypc his entire career on the raiders people.. nuff said.
MrMojo4321 says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 10:55 pm

First of all, great read Rob although I’m sorry it had to be written. After reading the comments, I had a weird thought. Is there anybody in raider nation sitting on pins and needles hoping Jordan won’t be cut? In others words, is there still a person thats both a LaMont Jordan and Raiders fan? It’s not me, I’m personally rooting for Echemandu or a 3rd fullback instead of the fourth tailback.
One Nation…
Tim says:

July 23rd, 2008 at 6:10 am

Jordan should have been gone, he’s lazy. Runs like he has a load in his pants. By the time he hits a hole, I could go whiz and get back, although the defense usually tackles his sorry ass for a loss.