MVN: Most Valuable Network

The last couple of days have been eventful for the Oakland Raiders as special teams ace Jarrod Cooper has retired, several players put on the disabled list, the cuts beginning, as well as a few players added to give Lane Kiffin the competition that he has been asking for. These moves which dropped the Raiders' active roster from 80 to 75 as mandated by league rules seem to give some indication of which way the Raiders are evaluating the talent pool currently on their roster. Some of the moves were obvious, such as moving Oren O'Neal and Drew Carter to the injured reserve or cutting Grant Irons, others were questionable such as Michael Waddell remaining on the team or no new receivers being added. Michael Bush's move to fullback is another bit of a head scratcher, but depending upon his usage could turn into a stroke of genius.

Injuries, pain, and loss:

In a move that was as inevitable as the sun setting in the west, Oren O'Neal and Drew Carter were both placed on the injured reserve Monday. Both of them were injured in the opening minutes of the first quarter on Saturday against the Cardinals with left knee injuries. Those moves took care of two of the five roster spots the Raiders needed to clear by today without losing their rights to the players. O'Neal's injury has been described as career threatening, whilst Carter's is a season ender. Losing these two will hurt the Raiders offensively, as Carter's big play ability was being counted on as was O'Neal's ability to knock defenders out of the way in the running game. Wide receiver depth has been an issue all camp, and the loss of Carter only magnifies this further.

In a move that does not make much sense, second year bench warmer John Bowie was also added to the injured reserve. Last season he was unable to see the field, and he has been injured all of training camp and preseason. Considering he has not shown much ability when he wasn't hurt, it doesn't make any sense to hold on to him. He could have been cut outright, or at the very least given an injury settlement and sent packing. The popular belief is that he is being held onto simply because he was the player the Raiders drafted with the pick acquired in the dumping of Randy Moss.

Reserve safety and special teams ace Jarrod Cooper was not able to come all the way back from his ACL injury last season. Citing knee pain and a decline in his speed, he announced his retirement from the NFL. Coop's presence will be missed most on special teams, as he along with Isaiah Ekejiuba and Ricky Brown were the heart and soul of the Raiders kick coverage teams.

Grant Irons never was able to get himself healthy this preseason, and set himself up to be one of the first guys cut. Irons was a long shot at best to make the team after being out of football in 2007, and prior to that being less than stellar when on the field. The bigger question was why he was brought in to camp, as opposed to why he was let go.

Robert Thomas capped off his disappointing preseason with a knee injury in practice today. If he doesn't get the IR treatment, look for him to be in the next wave of cuts. This likely sets up Sam Williams v Adam Archuleta for the final spot at linebacker.

Yer outta here!

Greg Spires was brought in as a free agent to compete for a spot on what looked like a depleted defensive line. Spires showed very little and was outplayed by second year man Jay Richardson, veteran Kalimba Edwards, and sixth round pick Trevor Scott. His being one of the first to go was likely one of those "mercy cuts" where the Raiders let a guy go in the first round of cuts so he has a better chance to find a new team. The Raiders defensive end position still has question marks, so it makes it unlikely that Spires will be looked at much by other teams.

Aaron Elling was brought in to fill in for Sebastian Janikowski. He did a great impression of Sea Bass when he blasted a 56 yard field goal against the Titans, but channeled Cole Ford the following week when he clanked a chip shot off the upright. He had no chance to make the team, and his release was inevitble once Jano was healthy. Had he not clanked the kick gainst the Cards, he would likely have set himself up as a viable option for a team who loses a kicker midseason.

Drisan James has seen no game action in the preseason, so his departure is nothing shocking. He couldn't even get himself into the game after the Raiders lost Carter in the first. Chaz Schelins was seen in the second quarter when the Raiders went to multiple wide receiver sets.

Entering the Black Hole:

The Raiders claimed fullback Luke Lawton off waivers and signed safety Nate Lyles, and defensive back Marviel Underwood. The addition of a fullback is not a surprise, as the Raiders rushing style requires a bruising fullback in the mold of Oren O'Neal. With O'Neal lost for the season, the Raiders need to fill that role, as Justin Griffith is more of a running/catching fullback. Undfrafted free agent H-Back who could stand to benefit from the loss of O'Neal, Marcel Reece, has been deemed too green by coach Lane Kiffin, who said "He had only been a wide receiver two weeks ago." The acquisiton of a safety is likely a nod to the retirement of Coop and the aweful play of the depth at the position, namely Michael Waddell who should have been on the gone list.

Lingering Questions:

The Raiders depth at wide receiver was perilously thin before the loss of Drew Carter. Javon Walker looks to finally be getting his head on straight, and Ronald Curry is shaking off some rust, but has been the most dependable Raider wide out for the last two years. Beyond those two it goes to Johnnie Lee Higgins who was disappointing in his rookie season, and unimpressive in the preseason. Behind him, there is Todd Watkins, Chris McFoy, Chaz Schelins, and the always hurt Arman Shields. The Raiders could use some expierence in that wide receiver corps to help out JaMarcus Russell.

None of the cuts came along the offensive line, nor did this much maligned unit get any reinforcements. This is a concern as they grossly underperformed against the Cardinals. Not that there would be much to be had on the waiver wire in teh way of offensive tackles, but at least a look at one could light a fire under someone Mario Henderson.

Micahel Waddell who is a double threat weakness at defensive back, in that he can't cover or tackle, has managed to stay on the roster through the first round of cuts. No wonder Kiffin wants competition for the depth positions. There has to be some one better avilable.

Addenda

Much is being made of Michael Bush getting some practice reps at fullback. With the stable of backs the Raiders have, him having some reps there only gives Kiffin more options. Don't expect him to be the next Jon Ritchie. It would more than likely be a way to get Bush and Justin Fargas or Darren McFadden in the backfield at the same time. OR as Jerry McDonald reported:

“Michael Bush is a tailback here,” Kiffin said. “We’re going to look at some things in certain personnel to utilize him because he catches the ball so well and he is a bigger tailback. But don’t mistake that. We claimed a fullback. We’ll look for another fullback to compete with this guy or, depending on how this guy does this week, the final waiver cut.

Michael Bush isn’t here to be a fullback. Michael Bush has a chance to be a spectacular tailback in this league and that’s what he’s here to play.”

Jake Grove has been named the starting center. With Grove winning the center's job outright, and Robert Gallery evolving into a much better guard the Raiders seem to be making something out of their 2004 draft class that had seemed headed for bustville. This also shows how bad the offensive line coaching was from the 2006 duo of Jackie Slater and Irv Eatman. Once again, Tom Cable deserves tons of credit here.

Javon Walker missed practice for "personal reasons." Walker finally showed up against the Cards, hopefully those personal reasons aren't anything major and he will be ready to face Denver on Sept 8th.

Rounding things up here as preseason wains at TFDS!