Asher Mathews
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@Indy! It was a good signing for the Raiders to get a proven veteran and an outspoken leader in the locker-room.
Tight end will be interesting. It seems a long shot for all 3 rookies to make the final squad. I expect Leonard to maybe get on the practice squad, not the final 53. It seems likely that Ausberry or Gordon, but not both, will make the final squad. My guess is Ausberry over Gordon.
I think that Jennings will make the final squad and he and Murray will be the backups over Stewart and Williams. I think Williams will be cut soon, actually. He had a bad rookie camp and isn't able to be at the OTAs, either.
@Indy! Yes. Especially since as of now, at least, his #9 is taken by Conner Vernon. Vernon was initially given #16 but he gave that number to Josh Cribbs when Cribbs signed and took #9 instead.
@Indy! I agree, it seems unlikely to me that he'd start off the bat. But if the Raiders struggle, again, he could see time at the end of the year, definitely.
Do you feel I was judging Olson? That was not the impression I was trying to give. Looking at a coaches past successes or failures is not judging him, it's pointing out past history which can be applicable. It doesn't mean that Olson is doomed to failure, here, by any means.
@Auburn Raider Fan I think that's very well thought out. I disagree with some of the small details but that's just my opinion and clearly you've put a lot of thought into why you think what you think so I can't help but be impressed. It's getting ahead of my articles but I also think the ZBS will be back. I go back and forth with Veldheer going to RT but as of right now I'm of the mind he stays at LT because of the promise he's shown there. I'm not sure how many compensatory picks Raiders'll get and I wouldn't count on much. The guys they lost were, by and large, all backups and they had some offsets in picking up Bartell, Brisiel, Wheeler, Spencer, Tollefson, etc. I'd guess they get, at a minimum, a late 7th but if they get a second I'd think it'd be more like a 6th or 7th rounder, not much, unfortunately. But, again, I can't fault your logic and that's just my opinion. You bring up some good points, thank you for sharing.
I'm not super-thrilled about going with only 5 WRs but I don't see a good 6th receiver on the roster as is. As Nilby mentioned I could see the team signing another receiver to play as returner, however. Returner is an important position and the team just doesn't have many options there right now.
Allen said today that he's very confident that Moore will be ready to go for week 1 and maybe by the final pre-season game so that increases this scenario's likelihood. Ford is also getting better so that's a plus.
Kilgore could earn a spot over Stupar, yes. He's certainly flashed a bit more in games. I also considered Kilgore of Ihenacho which is a possibility.
What will probably happen, though, is that other players will make the final squad. I see Ihenacho, Cumbie and McCann as the players on this list whose positions are the least safe.
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@Jososi I think to look only at his total yardage only is not a good indicator of his talent. He has crossed 1000 yards the last three years, yes. He's also carried the ball a ton in that time. His average yards per carry is below 4 the last two years. In 2010, it was 3.5.
I took a look other big backs from last year to get a sense if bigger backs have a lower yd/carry average and they do not. Or, at least, the good ones do not. Of the good big backs, the lowest avg yd/carry I saw was 4.2 and most were higher in the 4.4 or 4.5 range.
The highest avg yd per carry Benson has ever achieved in his career was 4.2 and that was in 2009. That was the only time in the last 5 seasons that he was higher than 4 yds/carry.
Benson came out of college a workhorse RB with a lot of carries. He has carried the ball in the NFL over 1500 times. That sort of work takes a toll. Plus he's 29, now and will be 30 before the season ends.
I think he's not been a productive back just that the Bengals continued to give the ball to him. He's done much less with each carry than his fellow RBs which indicates that he's not a great player.
In addition, he's been one of the most worked players and he's nearing the end of his career.
So, what I think makes sense is that the Raiders sign him - if the money is low and not guaranteed - and give him a chance in camp. If Taiwan Jones or Goodson don't seem to be able to cut it of if any of the 3 get injured he can be in the final squad as needed.
What I think is unlikely but I also hope doesn't happen is that he make it in solely on name recognition. He's on the downside of his career and he's never been that amazing. That type of player tends to fade fast.
It makes little sense because Benson isn't as good at this point in his career as the two others. If he's tabbed as a short yardage back, only, what's the point? Reece or Schmitt can do short yardage situation. Keeping a pure RB that cannot be explosive is a waste of a roster spot. Are the Raiders going to keep 4 RBs and 2 FBs? Probably not. So, if Benson makes the team it'll be over one of the other other players. Do you want Benson more than Goodson or Taiwan Jones? More than Reece or Schmitt? I do not. However, if he comes on and really blows it up, he can earn a spot. If Jones or Goodson get injured, he can be a decent backup option as well.
@Harder2000 My comparison of Goodson to Bush is more of a backup to backup instead of similar players. They are not. Goodson is more like Taiwan Jones than he is to Michael Bush. As I said in there, he too quickly bounces it outside. however, he is much more dynamin than Bush who was deceptively fast for his size but still not very fast especially as the season went on - he tended to slow.
I think the Raiders could keep 4 RBs but wouldn't count on it. I'd guess they'd have the 3 - McFadden, Jones and Goodson and two FBs with Reece an obvious one. The second FB would be more traditional - Schmitt, Tonga, maybe Rashawn Jackson are competing for this spot. Reece could then also function as a pounder as needed with the other FB as lead blocker. It's just a guess, though.
You're right, I meant to include Schmitt. Interestingly, the Raiders have him as a RB not a FB in their materials. I don't know if that means anything, but it's interesting.
McClain's contract makes it unlikely he's going anywhere - the cap hit would be huge.
@hnoodle I see him as insurance. He'll compete in camp for RT. If no one steps up they can use Barnes but if they have more talent at OL that's young and has better upside he could be cut.
@LC Williams Murphy is certainly in the mix but I don't see him as a lock. The other four, I think, are going to be on the roster. Murphy will be competing against Eddie McGee, Thomas Mayo, Brandon Carswell and possibly others. If he can regain his earlier form, he has a good chance to make the squad but if he does not, I don't think it would be a shock if he didn't make the final roster.
@Harder2000 For some reason - I haven't determined why, yet - all reserve/future contracts have a minimum of 3 years. So, that doesn't mean anything, really. The Raiders aren't going to cut Lechler, no. They're probably doing their due diligence in case there was an injury.
@nilbymouth I think you make some excellent points. Thanks for weighing in.
I don't know if those of you in Litening status see the Twitter responses but there's some great discussion from @Jamalisms below
@JasonPeters Some excellent points, here.
@oaklandraider Where is the line in Singapore? More or less than in US?
@RaiderNation319 I made the point on Twitter that for one million dollars there would probably be people who would run across a firing range with people shooting at them. That doesn't meant that we, as a society, should stand aside and let them take that risk, does it?