Raider Nation needs to be renamed to Raider Cult. The Raiders again served out a cup of the purple Kool-Aid this past weekend when they had the opportunity to take the best wide receiver in the draft and passed, instead selecting a guy who wasn't even the best wideout in his conference.
While all the pundits were quick to rip the Raiders, and especially Al Davis, first-year head coach Tom Cable was out playing public relations with the media and spinning the draft his way.
"I look at it now and I say, 'You know what? We can attack you all over the field now,'" Cable said to the San Jose Mercury News. "We've got guys who can catch and make a play somewhere, they can beat press coverage, and they can get up top and run away... We raised the bar at that position dramatically."
The purple Kool-Aid continued down the line to fans with forum and blog posts saying things like:
"Overall I give our draft a 'B-.' I am sure many of Raider Nation are still pissed we didn't get Crabtree. Because we would be much better off with a WR who does not want to play for us right and is most likely the next "T.O." with a hug ego ... I give Davis and Cable credit and I think this has been a good first draft for coach Cable."
"silverandblackattack.blogspot.com
"The Raiders may have reached for a player or two. Who cares as long as they end up contributing to the team?"
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Raider fans, WAKE UP! Al Davis has run this once proud franchise into the ground. The Los Angeles Clippers are thanking him for his efforts.
Al Davis thinks this is still the 1960s (as apparent by his wardrobe) and that speed is the deciding factor in the game. Well let me tell you, everyone can run good 40 time in the NFL. Offensive lineman Lydon Murtha ran a 4.89 and this from a guy who is 6-7, 306-pounds. Was he the first O-lineman drafted? No, he was the 228th selection.
The Raiders weren't done making their draft a laughing stock either. They took Michael Mitchell in the second round, a guy who some draft experts had pegged as a rookie-free agent.
I'm not giving credit to the draft gurus because Mel Kiper once called Andre Ware a sure thing.
Al Davis continues to make bad decisions and doesn't seem to be going anywhere, so my answer to cure his draft-day woes is for him to ask the gurus. As I just said, yes they don't always have good reads on guys either, but they tend to pick better than Davis. All Davis needs to do is follow the mock drafts, see what player the experts say he should pick and go with that guy.
The idea is absolutely ridiculous, but isn't that what Al Davis has become?