Since losing to Tampa Bay 48-21 in Super Bowl XXXVII, the Oakland Raiders have fallen on rock-hard times -- 20-64 to be exact -- and no sniff of the postseason the past five seasons.
But owner Al Davis is convinced the game has not passed him by, steadfastly maintaining his proud franchise's slogan "Commitment to Excellence."
"We'll get back, we'll be back, "
Davis said Oct. 1, the day he fired Lane Kiffin and named offensive line coach Tom Cable head coach on an interim basis.
"The Raiders will be back, "
Davis said. "I have unshakable confidence, the will to win, and I just know that the fire that burns brightest in this building is the will to win, and we will win. We will win."
After taking a week off, the Raiders resume trying Sunday against the Saints at the Superdome.
LAST TIME
The Saints beat the Raiders 31-26 on Oct. 24, 2004, at Network Associates Coliseum in Oakland. The Raiders lead the series 5-4-1, with the first game in the series ending 21-21 at Tulane Stadium on Nov. 7, 1971.
RAIDERS ON OFFENSE
Look for offensive coordinator Greg Knapp to open up the offense on early downs for second-year quarterback JaMarcus Russell of LSU. Consider: When the Raiders go into the shotgun, Russell's passer rating is 96.7. When they use three wide receivers (which happens occasionally in the shotgun), his rating is 103.3 -- fourth best in the NFL. Running backs Darren McFadden (turf toe) and Justin Fargas (groin) practiced together for the first time since Week 2 and are expected to be close to full strength. "To win games, you've got to be tough at the end of the game, and I think having them back will really give us that opportunity, "
Cable said. No Raiders wide receiver has more than five receptions. Tight end Zach Miller leads the team with 11 catches for 153 yards and one touchdown.
RAIDERS ON DEFENSE
One matchup to watch is Raiders' weakside linebacker Thomas Howard against Saints running back Reggie Bush, who leads the NFL in receptions with 38 for 321 yards and two touchdowns. Howard likely will be the designated "spy"
and has the speed to hang with Bush in pass coverage. Howard led the Raiders with six interceptions in 2007 but has none this season. This unit is more than capable of putting up a good fight. It is athletic, with cornerbacks DeAngelo Hall (two interceptions) and Nnamdi Asomugha (10 tackles), strong safety Gibril Wilson (team-high 33 tackles), defensive tackles Tommy Kelly and Gerard Warren, defensive ends Derrick Burgess and Kalimba Edwards (three sacks), and Howard (21 tackles).
RAIDERS ON SPECIAL TEAMS
This is a solid unit, beginning with kicker Sebastian Janikowski, who has made nine of 10 field-goal attempts. His only miss came from 76 yards right before halftime against San Diego in Week 4. Don't expect the Raiders to punt away from Bush; they didn't last season against Chicago's Devin Hester. Instead, look for Pro Bowl punter Shane Lechler to challenge Bush, who returned two punts for touchdowns against Minnesota. Lechler is averaging 49.6 yards, with a net average of 41.8 and eight punts downed inside the 20. Return specialist/wide receiver Johnnie Lee Higgins handles both kick and punt returns, with a long kick return of 69 yards.
FYI
The teams have played their other 10 games at four different venues -- Tulane Stadium (one), Oakland/Network Associates Coliseum (three), Superdome (four) and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (two).
BY THE NUMBERS
Ԩ.2 -- Percentage of incomplete passes that have been deemed "poor"
throws by Russell, the highest figure in the league among the top-20 rated quarterbacks.
WORTH REPEATING
"I love JaMarcus Russell. I'm married to him. He's our quarterback of the Oakland Raiders, and as the head coach, he's my quarterback."
-- Cable.
