The Autumn Wind is a Raider

[Aurabolt127]

So, yeah, it's time for a new franchise. I've had some issues with save files, life, work, etc. and finishing some franchises I've left offline... and it's time for one more. This time I've got multiple saves, so no worries there. I'm always looking for the best story I can to get me hooked, and while I came up with a WHOPPER with the Texans, they've been done a couple times over the last year or two or whatever. So, it'll keep. I decided to go back to Oakland, to my Raiders, and get that dang Lombardi trophy no matter what.

So, to get things started, here's a piece from ESPN that details how Al Davis tried to get rid of Lane Kiffin all the way back in January of 2008. This will pick up assuming that it happens...

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3214665


Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis has been pushing for coach Lane Kiffin to resign and is considering Dennis Green as a potential replacement, sources close to Kiffin and the team said.


Davis has gone so far as to draft a letter of resignation for Kiffin to sign, a source said. Kiffin has refused to do so but has dared Davis to fire him instead. The letter, the source said, was sent to Kiffin two weeks ago.

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Kiffin, who was 4-12 in his first season as coach, has two years remaining on his contract at an estimated $2 million per year.
In the letter sent to Kiffin's legal representatives, Davis stated that only he would have control over his staff and full personnel decisions, sources said. According to a source close to Kiffin, Davis had promised Kiffin when he hired him that he would have more control over staff and personnel matters than recent Raiders coaches. Kiffin was allowed five offensive assistants and to name his own staff when he took the job after the 2006 season.


"I'm not going to comment on anything that has transpired in the past three weeks," Kiffin said from Mobile, Ala., where he and the Raiders staff are coaching the North team in the Under Armour Senior Bowl college all-star game.
According to John Herrera, senior executive of the Raiders, "it's a non-issue. It hasn't been an issue and Dennis Green has already debunked the report," he told Bay Area reporters.


Kiffn and Davis clashed near the conclusion of their postseason evaluation meetings when Kiffin expressed his desire to fire defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, a source said. Ryan wanted out to join the New York Jets in a similar capacity, but the Raiders released a statement asking for speculation to cease about the defensive coordinator's future.
Just this week at the Senior Bowl, Kiffin and Ryan said their relationship was fine and expected to be coaching the team in 2008. But Davis has not rescinded his request for Kiffin to step down, a source said.


As for Green's candidacy, while team sources said Davis has reached out to the veteran coach, Green said Friday, "I haven't really talked to Al about any coaching job but, really, how many times has my name been mentioned every time something goes on with the Raiders?"


The Raiders will interview James Lofton on Monday for a job, a source said. Oakland is looking for a wide receivers coach and Lofton, who has interviewed in the past to be head coach of the Raiders, was recently fired as San Diego's receivers coach.




Chris Mortensen covers the NFL for ESPN.

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What does this mean for the Oakland Raiders? Is Dennis Green coming to sunny California? Is James Lofton a dark horse candidate or merely a position coach looking for a job with his former team? Time will tell...

[Aurabolt127]

February 14th, 2008
The Beginning of the NFL Offseason
Oakland, California

Today, the Oakland Raiders held a press conference to introduce their new head coach, and the surprise and pandemonium created put a huge smile on the legendary Al Davis's face.

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"Today, we start a new chapter in the great book of the Oakland Raiders.", began Mr. Davis. "We have stumbled a bit over the last couple of years; but our goal has never changed, and our spirit has never wavered. Here to write the story of the soon-to-be once-again WORLD CHAMPION OAKLAND RAIDERS is the man who's going to take us to the top once again, ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce the new Head Coach of the Oakland Raiders, Houston Nutt!"

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{Nutt} "Let me start by saying thanks to Mr. Davis, the Oakland Raiders franchise, the players, the alumni, the fans, and the future stars. It is humbling to be here before you today. Let me clear up a few things right off the bat before I really get into the mean and potatoes.

As you know, November 26th, 2007, I resigned my position as Head Coach of the Arkansas Razorbacks football team. We had just defeated the #1 team in the nation, the eventual National Champions. We handed them their only defeat of the year - but my own personal enjoyment was quickly replaced by despair.

I could no longer shield myself and my family from the countless attacks and allegations. Even our greatest success seemed to only fuel the fires. Some say it was a witch hunt, some say it was past due. I have no desire to get into the how's and why's. Let's just say everyone knew it was time for me to protect my family and my players and move on.

I was hurt, angry, betrayed. I was lost. Then the phone rings. It's Ole Miss calling. Without thinking I jumped at the chance to stick it to the higher ups at Arkansas. I was determined to build Ole Miss into a powerhouse that would dominate the SEC, and look down on those who disparaged me. That was wrong.

There's no place for hatred like that in my life. It would burn me up and burn me out. My players would suffer, my family would suffer, and I would suffer. I felt trapped and lost.

Fast forward two months. January 26th. I start getting texts that an NFL Head Coach has been fired. That's too bad for him, I thought. I hadn't really been mentioned in NFL Head Coaching conversations; but my wife said she had this feeling... and the next day the phone rang. Mr Davis was on the line. He was asking me to come to California and talk. Of course I went. The conversation went well, I'd say, I'm here, aren't I?

I feel the need to keep most of the conversation private, but I can tell you that we both were on the same page. Where I was in my life, staying with Ole Miss, staying the SEC - not only was it not right for me, it wasn't good for me. I needed to get out of the SEC, the NCAA, heck, that side of the country. I needed to find myself, and to repair the damage done to my name. The Raiders and I have that same goal - to return to being what we used to be.

Mr. Davis himself called Ole Miss and talked with them at length. They understood, and publicly supported my decision. I wish them nothing but the best in the future. As for Arkansas, I wish them the best as well. I know there will be a ton of gossiping and bitterness with the way Coach Petrino left the Atlanta Falcons and "took my old job". That was one more clown in the circus I needed to distance myself from; and I can assure you that I will be staying here in Oakland for years to come; and WILL NOT abandon the Raiders to return to a college coaching job, no matter the offer. I give you my word.

As for the state of the Raiders, I was told up front the staff was to remain in place. It's too late for them to have a fair shot at new jobs, and it would help me transition to the NFL. I was made aware about incident with Coach Ryan and Coach Kiffin; and I assured Coach Ryan that no matter what happened this season, I would support him making a run at a Coordinator or Head Coaching position 100%. I'm not here to hold anyone back. The only new member of the staff is Coach Lofton, who was hired last night. I am beyond excited to work with him - he was a legend on the field, a former Raider, and a hell of a coach.

As far as the players go, give me some time to meet with them and talk with them. JaMarcus is our quarterback of the future. Mr. Davis and I agree on that point as well. Does that mean the future is week 1? That's up to so many variables we'd need a new press conference just for that! I will be evaluating all positions; and we have a good Cap Strategist to help Mr. Davis and I get the best players we can.

I think I've talked long enough. Thanks for you time."

{Al Davis} "Just one more thing, Coach Nutt has won 111 NCAA games in his career. I expect him to top that before his time in Oakland is done. JUST WIN, BABY!!!

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A quick timeline based on what happened (with my narrative added)

11/26/2007 Houston Nutt resigns at Arkansas
11/27/2007 Houston Nutt accepts the job at Ole Miss
12/10/2007 Bobby Petrino resigns from the Atlanta Falcons
01/11/2008 Al Davis sends the resignation letter to Lane Kiffin to sign.
01/25/2008 Lane Kiffin refuses to sign the letter, daring Al Davis to fire him. The article from ESPN is published amidst news reports.
01/26/2008 Houston Nutt meets with Al Davis
02/14/2008 Houston Nutt is introduced as the Raiders Head Coach


Coach Nutt is 111-70 overall in his coaching career, and went 75-48 during his time in Arkansas, including 2-5 in bowl games.

[Aurabolt127]

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Here's some quick info, behind the scenes:

Houston Nutt (age 51)
Headliner, rating 13
chem 3 (his players loved him and tended to play "up" for him)
playcall 2
strategy 2
performance 2

All 5 offensive positions (qb, rb, wr, te, ol) have level 2 in all three developmental trees: Physical, Intagible, Play Knowledge.

This is because he's a great recruiter and developer of talent. I kept everything but Chemistry at 2 to show he has some skill, but he's still a novice NFL Coach.

The only thing else I gave him was the Charm special skill to again help reflect the way players tend to feel about him and rally around him.

Since Al Davis is pretty stubborn about things, I put all the Position coach to give up some power (even lane was able to bring in some coaches his first year) and GM to give up a lot of power. Al is pretty set as the GM too and final say on players, the game-created GM is (story-wise) just there to help with the dollars and cents. Unless it's 100% stupid, I will take WHOEVER the GM says to draft. The only change I am making is we will trade out of the top pick if one particular player isn't there. We blew our load on JaMarcus the year before, and have no picks in round 2 and 3 - so there's some wisdom to moving down.

Also, just for the extra challenge, my GM wants me to keep 3 million in cap room. I will also bench media complainers. Everything else is pretty normal - no sense typing it all in. In most cases, things will be set to an Al Davis team standard - speed, speed, speed! Man coverage, physical, blitzing. Raw talent, mean streaks, etc... We'll see what happens. Next time I update it will be right before game one, so I'll get the offseason and preseason set.

Lastly, I'll play the games, won't go after the same old, same old sleepers and cheap players. won't pull any funny business like signing and trading right away, etc. However, since the GM is controlling this draft, no idea what's going to happen. (again, if he does something stupid like try to make me draft a running back 3 straight picks or something, I'll override him and try to take the player we actually took in 2008, or a player from the same position as 2008.)

Anyhow - time to get rolling!

[Mike3207]

The GM makes some pretty horrible decisions, but that's a personal choice.

I'm also not convinced that you couldn't win games with a team of average ratings with players as well as Pro Bowl level ratings. My experience with Sweetney where you have very few sleepers is where I draw that conclusion from.

[Aurabolt127]

Quote: Originally Posted by Mike3207

The GM makes some pretty horrible decisions, but that's a personal choice. I'm also not convinced that you couldn't win games with a team of average ratings with players as well as Pro Bowl level ratings. My experience with Sweetney where you have very few sleepers is where I draw that conclusion from.

The GM does tend to make poor decisions, but that's part of the challenge, a rookie NFL head coach isn't going to be able to pick his whole draft without the GM and Owner having their say - even more so if your owner is Al Davis or Jerry Jones. Hopefully I'll have some success and in year 2/3 my coach will have the clout to take that part over.

The second part of your comment I don't understand. Not sure what you're trying to say. I think anyone can win with 'average' players and few 'pro bowl' players. It's too easy to grab those sleepers every single year, and make sure you max out your roster with all 90+. No offense to anyone, if someone likes drafting the same players every franchise or whatever, that's cool. Lots of ways to play the game. I really only worry about realism, going back over old articles, looking at player histories, realistic playbooks if I don't use a premade one, etc. Same with my coaching staff, etc. I enjoy going as deep as I can into things. I've got a few more stories I really want to do at some points, Texans, Chiefs, re-do the Browns one. Guess whatever way we play it, it works, since you and I are the only people left on here really after all these years.

[Aurabolt127]

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Oakland Raiders 2008 Offseason Recap: February 14th, 2008 up to draft day.

February 18th: The Raiders chose not to Franchise Tag any players this season. While Nnamdi Asomugha developed into a top cornerback, he was going to be far too expensive to sign long term considering the cap struggles we were facing. Using the tag to hang on to him while we tried to trade him was a possibility; but the 8 million plus dollar tag could have put us in quite a bind while we looked for a trade partner. We parted on good terms, and Nnamdi knows he's going to be a very rich man soon.

February 25th: RFA decision: CB Chris Carr. Allowed to walk. Chris came over and immediately made an impact on special teams as a kick returner. He even had a beautiful 99 yard interception return against Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers in 2006; but he's just too far down the depth chart to sign him to a contract that outpaces his playing time here in Oakland.

February 26th: RFA decision: LB Isaiah Ekejiuba. Allowed to walk. Isaiah is merely a depth chart filler. He really hasn't done anything to distinguish himself during his time in Oakland and will be allowed to test the open market.

March 3rd: The Start of Free Agency
Salary Cap 30.67 million free
Not wanting to add to the list of questionable contracts over the last couple years, the Raiders decided to keep a low profile during free agency. There were 8 players we decided to cut right out of the gate, and 4 players we decided to put on the trade block.

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After 2 injury-plagued seasons, LaMont Jordan will be looking for a new team in 2008.

The 8 cuts were:
RB LaMont Jordan (saved $5.82 million, cap hit 740k) A no-brainer. LaMont gave us his all, but he's been injured, and his salary is far too high. Down the road, if he gets healthy, and we need help, we might bring him back in for a workout.

RB Dominic Rhodes (saved $3.82, cap hit 500k) Dominic was really the MVP of the Colts 2006 Super Bowl victory, but he quickly wore out his welcome. He was suspended the first 4 games of 2007, and then only managed 300 yards over the next 10 games for Oakland. His salary was far too high as well.

OG Cooper Carlisle ($2.09 million, 200k hit) Cooper's a good reserve lineman, but we have plenty of younger options that are a bit cheaper. He'll get a job quickly somewhere else.

OLB Robert Thomas ($1.98m, $1.0m hit) This one was a bit of a tough pill to swallow, as the cap hit to release him was pretty steep. However, Robert's a smaller reserve-caliber linebacker who never did much over the last few years in St. Louis and Oakland. We need to add a little size to this position since the LOLB will be on the field a little more now, and he's got to be able to handle run defense.

TE Tony Stewart ($600k, $10k) Tony's not a bad receiving tight end; but we've got Madsen ready to step into that role. Tony's age was really the issue here, since he'll be 30 soon, and we need to get younger as we rebuild.

OLB Sam Williams ($550k, $0) Sam is a big olb, and a better fit for a team who's looking for a 3-4 edge rusher. He had a few good moments over the course of his Raider career, but he can't cover well. He was inexpensive, and we really thought about keeping him; but in the end decided to let him test the market and try to be a starter somewhere.

MLB Ricky Brown ($230k) Ricky's had a couple years in the league now, but he's merely a reserve. I want to improve here, and find a guy who can play the outside too when needed.

FS Hiram Eugene ($390k) He's not a bad backup, but he's getting older too, and not worth signing to a long term deal since he's in the last year of his contract and we're rebuilding.

2008 Trade Block

QB Andrew Walter. This is JaMarcus's team now. Andrew had a great college career, and with his size and arm, his NFL career still has hope. I need to bring in a mentor-type though for JaMarcus, and Andrew has the talent to start a few places, he doesn't need to hold a clipboard here in Oakland. Traded to Chicago along with our 2009 5th rounder for DE Alex Brown. Alex is a productive pass rusher who has been a starter with the Bears the last few years, including the Bears Super Bowl team of 2006. He's still on the right side of 30, and should start opposite Derrick Burgess and teach the young guys we'll be bringing in.

CB Chris Johnson. He's really fast, and a great guy; but we've got some high draft picks tied up in our seconday; and this year we're really going to push Fabian and Stanford as our #2 and #3 corners behind DeAngelo Hall. Last year's 4th rounder, John Bowie (acquired with a pick we got from the Randy Moss trade) is locked as the 4th cb this season. Traded along with our 2008 and 2009 6th round picks to the Cowboys for OG Pat McQuistan. Pat's twin brother, Paul, starts for us at RT, and the chance to get a young, powerful guard to line up next to Paul was too good to pass up. Won't have to worry about our right side of the line lacking chemistry!

FB Justin Griffith. A really good fullback, a decent runner and receiver; but we drafted Oren O'Neal last season; and his blocking ability is really impressive. Justin's too good to sit, and a lot of teams need a good fullback. Traded along with our 2009 4th round pick to the Eagles for LT Winston Justice. We have Mario Williams (also acquired with a pick from the Randy Moss trade) set to start at left tackle, but he's young and raw. Winston, 22 years old, is also young and raw. He was one of the best tackles ever to come out of USC, and with his size and youth, he'll be there to develop and push Mario. They both have the ability to start and the battle will only make them both better.

DT Terdell Sands. Terdell is a behemoth at 6'7" and well over 300 pounds. One of the few DTs with his vast proportions, Terdell could easily anchor a line at the nose in a 3-4 too. We're going to try to get a little smaller and faster at DT though, and try to get guys who are better able to react and chase runners. Our run defense was 31st in the league, so having big pluggers like Terdell and Gerard Warren (6'4", 325) obviously wasn't working for our system. Traded to the Eagles for OLB Akeem Jordan The Eagles called us back and we made the swap of a reserve defensive tackle for a reserve linebacker happen. Akeem's young, and could compete to start at our now vacant LOLB position.

So, that's it, we cut 8 guys and traded 4. We don't have many picks in the draft this year, and traded away a few of our picks for 2009; but I think we got a few players we needed; and once we sort through the preseason cuts, we should have a pretty solid roster to build off of.

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DE Alex Brown played in 95 straight games for the Bears before splitting time with newcomer Mark Anderson. He'll look to continue his great play in Oakland in 2008.

[Aurabolt127]

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2008 Oakland Raiders offseason summary and draft preview

According to Coach Nutt, the Raiders are really happy with the way their offseason played out. They were able to add a couple solid players, with 2 of the 4 players traded for expected to start; and the other two will compete to start. They were also about to free up nearly 11 1/2 million dollars in cap space.

As for the 2008 draft, sources say the Raiders have keyed in on one player, and if he's not available, they will trade down and try to get some more picks. Currently, they have no 2nd or 3rd round picks, and really want to change that.

Last year they had a multitude of picks, but not all of them panned out. Here's a look back, before we start looking ahead:

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JaMarcus Russell, the Raiders 2007 1st round pick. 1st overall.

Round 1 - JaMarcus Russell. JaMarcus is still on the team, and is being counted on to start. A contract disupute wasn't resolved till the season started; and Russell didn't start a game till the end of the season. Coach Nutt already said they're going to try to bring in a mentor for Russell, and that "future starter" doesn't mean week one if he's not ready. He will start games in 2008 though, make no mistake.

Round 2 - Zach Miller, TE - Zach is already developing into a top receiving threat. He was definitely a great pick.

Round 3 - Quentin Moses, DE- Quentin was the first "miss" of the draft. He showed up out of shape and unmotivated; and was cut before the season started. He then went to Arizona, but was cut again, and finally ended up playing in a few games for Miami near the end of the year.

Mario Henderson, LT - Mario is a tall, long armed prospect out of Florida State. He spent 2007 as a reserve, getting time in at both tackle positions. He's expected to start at LT, but will face some competition.

Johnnie Lee Higgins, WR - Experts said taking Johnnie in the 3rd round was a little early; but he's developing into a dangerous return man and deep threat. His hands are suspect, but he'll have time to work on them.

Round 4 - Michael Bush, RB - A powerful back from Louisville, Michael seemed destined for the big time after a 23 touchdown season in 2005. A severe leg injury ended his 2006 season early; and people wondered if it was even wise to draft a bruising back coming off an injury. The Raiders are banking on his potential, and had him sit on IR his entire rookie year. He should be fully healthy now and ready to show the Raiders he was worth the investment.

John Bowie, CB - Bowie is a corner that fits Al Davis's style to a T. He has elite speed, and isn't afraid to man up on receivers. He is the #4 corner in the depth chart, but should see the field plenty. He will be pushed by rookies from the 2008 class.

Round 5 - Jay Richardson, DE - Jay is a big, but quick DE that we've converted to DT his 2nd year in the league. We think that he'll be able to team up with Tommy Kelly to really reinforce the middle of the line and get behind the lines, instead of just taking up space the way mammoth tackles like Terdell Sands did.

Eric Frampton, S - another miss. Eric didn't seem to have the killer instinct needed to rush up and challenge runners, despite his label as a big hitter. Like Quentin Moses before him, he played for 3 teams in 2007, finally getting some playing time with his third team, the Minnesota Vikings.

Round 6 - Oren O'Neal, FB - A feel-good story, as Oren earned his stripes as a walk on, before suffering from a debilitating illness that required part of his lung being removed. He fought back and was a solid starter during college. His rookie season was a great success, and was named the Raiders rookie of the year.

Round 7 - Johnathan Holland, WR - Jonathan was injured in the preseason of his rookie year and released with an injury settlement. He's trying to work his way back to football shape in hopes of another chance.

So, as you can see, there are a few starters and expected starters that came out of this draft. Any time you miss with a few picks, it hurts; but luckily these misses were later in the draft, and didn't cost the team much.

Up next, the Raiders 2008 draft begins!!!

[Aurabolt127]

The 2008 NFL DRAFT
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The day has finally come, the NFL Draft is here! Hundreds of hopeful players eagerly gather amongst family members to see if their dream of playing in the NFL will come true... Here's the summary of the first round.

2008 NFL Draft, Round 1
Pick	Team	Player	Pos	Ht	Wt
1	Miami Dolphins	Jake Long	OT
2	St. Louis Rams	Vernon Gholston	LB
3	Atlanta Falcons	Matt Ryan	QB
4	Dallas Cowboys	Chris Long	DE
5	Kansas City Chiefs	Ryan Clady	OT
6	New York Jets	Darren McFadden	RB
7	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Glen Dorsey	DT
8	Baltimore Ravens	Leodis McKelvin	CB
9	Cincinnati Bengals	Sedrick Ellis	DT
10	Denver Broncos	Keith Rivers	LB
11	Buffalo Bills	Brandon Albert	OG
12	New Orleans Saints	Derrick Harvey	DE
13	Carolina Panthers	Jeff Otah	OT
14	Chicago Bears	Gosder Cherilus	OT
15	Detroit Lions	Dominique Cromartie	CB
16	Arizona Cardinals	Joe Flacco	QB
17	Kansas City Chiefs (2)	Mike Jenkins	CB
18	Houston Texans	Rashad Mendenhall	RB
19	Philadelphia Eagles	Jerod Mayo	LB
20	Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2)	Chris Johnson	RB
21	New England Patriots	Aqib Talib	CB
22	Oakland Raiders	Lawrence Jackson	DE
23	San Francisco 49ers	John Carlson	TE
24	Tennessee Titans	Dustin Keller	TE
25	Seattle Seahawks	Felix Jones	RB
26	Carolina Panthers (2)	Antoine Cason	CB
27	San Diego Chargers	Kenny Phillips	SS
28	New England Patriots (2)	James Stewart	RB
29	Pittsburgh Steelers	Chris Williams	OT
30	Green Bay Packers	Sam Baker	OT
31	St. Louis Rams (2)	Brandon Flowers	CB
32	Miami Dolphins (2)	Kentwan Balmer	DT