Perhaps it's a good thing the Raiders' game against the Denver Broncos
on Sunday wasn't televised locally. Otherwise, fans would have seen the
Raiders at their worst this season and just how far the gap is between
them and first place in the AFC West.
The Raiders entered the game with a chance to move into a first-place
tie in the division. They exited the field two games behind the Broncos
and light years behind in terms of execution and scheme after a 23-3
loss at the Oakland Coliseum.
"We have to play better," Raiders coach Tom Cable said. "These fans
deserve a better football team than what we showed (Sunday). How do (the
players) handle that? Obviously, you hope it ticks them off, and they
deal with it the right way, they put more attention to the details
during the week, that we demand more from them during the week and we
play better on Sunday."
The outcome was never in doubt.
Denver running backs Correll Buckhalter and Knowshon Moreno combined for
198 yards rushing, quarterback Kyle Orton completed 13 of 23 passes
without getting his uniform dirty, and Brett Kern wasn't called upon to
punt until midway through the fourth quarter.
Cable said he had an inkling things weren't quite right with his team
when it misfired in practice Friday.
"We had some issues (last) week in terms of preparation, and I thought
it reflected just how we played (Sunday)," Cable said. "We have to clean
that up. We have to take responsibility, all of us."
To a man, the Raiders called Sunday's outing an all-around dud. The fans
directed their venom toward quarterback JaMarcus Russell, in particular.
The less-than-sold-out crowd booed Russell during cornerback Andre
Goodman's first-quarter interception return and kept it up the rest of
the game.
The crowd chanted, "Russell sucks! Russell sucks!" after he was sacked
on a third-down play early in the fourth quarter. The crowd also booed
when he returned for the ensuing series.
Cable said last week that he "never" considered removing Russell from
the Kansas City game in favor of Bruce Gradkowski, even though Russell
completed only 3 of his first 18 passes for 42 yards. He held firm
Sunday, as well.
On the surface, it appeared as if Russell performed well in the first
half. He completed seven straight passes at one point and 9 of 13 overall.
But the stats were deceiving. Russell was intercepted on back-to-back
drives in the first quarter on passes that sailed over wide receiver
Darrius Heyward-Bey.
Russell said he felt as if the officials should have called pass
interference on both plays.
"I can't control that," Russell said of the non-calls. "I can just
control the way I prepare for the game and continue to come out and play."
Renaldo Hill returned the first interception to the Raiders 23-yard
line, and Denver turned it into a touchdown. Goodman returned the second
interception 30 yards to the Raiders 34, setting up a Matt Prater field
goal.
The crowd expressed its displeasure with Russell and, perhaps,
Heyward-Bey during and after Goodman's return by booing in unison.
"We've seen it all around here," running back Justin Fargas said, "but
we have to play above that and really just keep ourselves out of
situations to where that type of stuff happens.
"We support each other on offense, and we support our quarterback. So
whatever's going on on the outside, we try to do our best not to let
that affect us."
Russell said he is satisfied with his progression as an NFL quarterback.
"When you get tough looks like that, and a tough crowd, hey, it's the
NFL, you have continue to progress yourself in becoming the person that
you want to be," the third-year quarterback said. "I know I'm not there
yet."
The team's frustration spilled forth on to the sideline, where rookie
receivers Louis Murphy and Heyward-Bey exchanged words and had to be
separated. Murphy calmed down and spent at least five minutes talking
with his teammate on the bench, and Heyward-Bey said it was over his
route running.
Murphy declined comment after the game. Heyward-Bey dismissed it as
something that happens in the heat of battle.
In the end, cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha said he hoped the Raiders would
have an idea what kind of team they have this season. Sunday's clunker
clouded the picture.
"There's some glaring problems that need to be fixed, in all phases of
the game," Asomugha said. "So, I don't think we have quite a read on who
we are. And that's concerning because at this point you want to know
what type of team you are and have an idea of what the outcome is going
to be, based on who you're playing."
The number
1: Total yards passing by JaMarcus Russell in the second half. His final
statistics: 12 of 21, 61 yards, two interceptions.
