Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 14, 2012
Raider head coach Dennis Allen spoke with the media Tuesday following a Monday night loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Oakland's first preseason game. The following is the transcript from the conference call: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Do we have any updates on Stefan Wisniewski’s injury? Nothing other than it’s his calf and we will be monitoring that as we go on here today. What did the film tell you and your coaching staff last night after looking at it? It told us that we have a lot of things to clean up, as far as the little things are concerned. Our execution wasn’t where it needed to be, but we still got a long way to go to get to where we need to get to. You said Streater’s stat line looked good last night but you wanted to see more on the film about what he did. What did you see on film from him? I thought he did a nice job. He executed like he’s been executing all camp. Caught the ball well, was able to get up the field, and not a lot of wasted movement. I thought Rod Streater played really well. Jack Crawford was active for the game, yet he didn’t play. Can you explain the decision to keep him on the sidelines? Yea, he’s still not ready to go as far as that foot is concerned. There’s still a little soreness there so we just thought it was best for us to hold him and not play him in the game. Any timetable of when he can come into the game? Will he play in this next game? I’m not sure about Arizona yet. Again, he really is a day-to-day situation. It’s not anything serious but it there is obviously still some discomfort there. We are trying to push him through it and try to get him out there as soon as we can. With how quick this next game is coming up on you, how much can you accomplish within the next couple of days of practice and what do you want to address? Well, I think we can get some things accomplished. Obviously we don’t have as much time to prepare as we would like but we are still in training camp mode and there’s still some things that we’ve got to work on from the execution standpoint. So that’s going to be my message to the team. That’s going to be our motto: to be able to execute the little things better. What jumped out to you on the tape as something that you really, really liked last night? I think the things I’ve talked about already. Darren McFadden was obviously very explosive. Two explosive gains in the three touches he had. I think the first team defense played exceptionally well. And what jumped out to you as something that you’re disappointed at? I think from a special teams standpoint, we had a couple of tackles inside the 20-yard line, we lost a punt, or two punts actually, and then we didn’t have good operations on our field goal attempts. Those were a couple of things. Offensively, I think the dropped passes were obviously a big issue. I think our tempo in and out of the huddle in the second half wasn’t where it needed to be offensively. Those were probably the biggest negatives, looking back at the game. Coach, did you expect that out of Darren McFadden last night, so early in the year coming back from , was that kind of a surprise to see him slash like that early in the game? Obviously it’s exciting. I don’t know I’d say it is surprising. Everytime he touches the ball, he’s a threat to go the distance. That’s the thing we expect out of Darren and I think our guys did a nice job of blocking up front, both on the screen play and on the explosive run. He’s really a guy that you just got to get him a crease, and next thing you know, he might break it this distance. Not a surprise, but obviously felt real good about it. Does Jacoby need to do a better job fighting for the ball on the Palmer interception? I think there’s obviously a couple things there: Carson kind of thought that safety was a little more centered out. It was middle of the field safety so it wasn’t a double coverage situation. It was a thing that you coach your quarterback to do to take that shot when you get those situations. I think Jacoby could have been a little bit better at the end of the route there, trying to break that thing up. Overall, you’re going to take that shot. We want to be aggressive there and we wanted to take a shot and get a big play, it didn’t work out for us. With McFadden, is it something where you want to try to increase his workload a little bit with each preseason game until the regular season, or are you still waiting to see how he responds? We are going to look at how the week plays out. Darren needs to get his touches so that he goes into the regular season ready to go. That’s the most important thing for him is to make sure he is fully ready to roll when the opening game comes up on Monday night. Which of the injured players do you expect to be back at practice tomorrow? You know, I’m not really sure yet as to who’s going to be back. I would hope that we might get a couple of the guys back. I think Mike Goodson will probably be back tomorrow. I will look at that again this evening, sit down with the trainer and find out more about who we might have back at practice. Regarding Mike Goodson, if he is good to go, or whenever he is good to go, what is the timetable when he is able to practice and be able to play in the game against the Cardinals? I think if he’s able to practice this week, we will get him in the game and let him play against Arizona. There no concrete cutoff time to getting him into practice prior to getting him into that Cardinals game? No. We’ve got Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and we play the game on Friday, so obviously I would expect you need to practice on Wednesday or Thursday to have a chance.
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Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 13, 2012
The Oakland Raiders played host to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday Night Football for their first game under the Reggie McKenzie-Dennis Allen era. Although he only played him one series, head coach Dennis Allen saw all that he needed to see from Raiders star running back Darren McFadden. Upon receiving the opening kickoff, offensive coordinator Greg Knapp ran three consecutive plays for McFadden. McFadden took the opening play from the line of scrimmage off the right tackle for a four-yard gain. Knapp then used some creativity by spreading McFadden out wide for a bubble screen that gained 18 yards. McFadden then gained another 16 yards on a rush to the left. "We got him a couple of touches early and he was able to make some explosive gains and that’s what we anticipate out of him," Allen said of McFadden. "We threw the one screen to him and he busted out on a run pretty good. He’s an explosive playmaker and we’ve got to find a way to get him the ball and give him an opportunity to be explosive for us.: The drive was forced to end abruptly when quarterback Carson Palmer threw a deep ball into double coverage for wide receiver Jacoby Ford and was picked off by Dallas free safety Gerald Sensabaugh. Oakland’s starting defense looked very good against quarterback Tony Romo and the Dallas offense. After stopping DeMarco Murray for no gain, Romo found his young wide receiver Dez Bryant on a back shoulder throw for a 24-yard gain on new Raiders cornerback Ron Bartell. But that was all Dallas would get from the Raiders defense on that drive. Murray rushed the ball once and Romo threw two incomplete passes before the Cowboys were forced to punt. Ford had a rough night on the field, dropping two catchable passes and also bobbling a punt. Punt return duties are new to Ford this season. Ford has had a solid training camp thus far. Allen believes that the entire offense needs to do a better job completing the play. "With the first group, we’ve got to make sure we catch the ball when we get those opportunities," Allen said of his first team. "We’ve done a good job of that so far, obviously we didn’t do it on a couple of drives today." Without McFadden, Palmer and the offense found little progress on the next drive but was fortunate to have the drive extended two times by penalties on the Cowboys during punts to give the Raiders two fresh sets of downs. The Raiders were unable to capitalize. After the Cowboys jumped offsides to give the Raiders a first down for the second time on the drive, Allen replaced Palmer with backup quarterback Matt Leinart. Backup running back Lonyae Miller was able to rush the ball three times for a first time, but then Leinart fumbled a snap which forced a 3rd and 8. Leinart then found Criner underneath for a short gain, not enough for a first down, forcing King back out on the field for a punt. The starting defense continued to look good with Romo back out with the Cowboys starting offense for the ensuing drive. Defensive end Lamarr Houston almost sacked Romo but instead forced a short throw to tight end Jason Witten for a loss. Romo found no luck in escaping on the next play when defensive tackle Tommy Kelly sacked him for a loss of 12. There, the Cowboys elected to run the ball before punting the ball back to the Raiders. After the first drive of the game, the Raider defense didn’t give up another first down to the Cowboys until about halfway through the second quarter. “I thought that they did a nice job,” Allen said of his defense. “They were attacking; they were aggressive; and that’s what we’re going to be. I though JT did a nice job calling the game. I thought in the second half there, I thought we kind of got a little tired and worn down a bit and let them run the ball a little bit too much on us, so we have got to get that shored up.” The only score of the game came on the Cowboys’ opening drive of the second half when kicker Dan Bailey gave the Cowboys the 3-0 lead. The Raiders had chances to score on their own, but kicker Sebastian Janikowski missed one wide right off of the dirt from 48 yards out, while backup kicker Eddy Carmona missed wide right as well on a field goal of his own. Safety Mike Mitchell had a good game, pressuring Cowboys quarterback Stephen McGee on a blitz, along with coming up with an interception. Mitchell has had a solid camp thus far and feels like the defense fits his style of play better. “I just wanted to be able to get an opportunity to show the world what I could do,” Mitchell said. “I really haven’t done anything, that interception, I don’t know what he was looking at but he kind of threw it right to me. All camp, I’ve felt like I’ve been in a position to make some plays and I’m healthy this year.” Quarterback Terrelle Pryor saw his first extended playing time since being taken by the Raiders in the supplemental draft last season and struggled for the most part. Pryor looked to scramble much of the time, finishing with six rushes for 21 yards and 8-15 passing the ball with one interception. The interception came late on a deep pass when trying to complete a fourth and 26 late in the game. Though he had a rough night, Allen noted that it had been a while since Pryor had seen the playing field. “For the first time to be on the football field in real game action, I was pleased that he was able to get out there and get some reps and get some experience,” Allen said on Pryor’s play. “Obviously we’ve got to do a better job of getting in and out of the huddle, and getting the play snapped a little quicker. But those are all things that can be corrected. He’s a work in progress, and just like i’ve talked to him about, I want to see him get a little bit better everyday.” In the end, neither Pryor or Leinart were able to lead the Raiders to the comeback victory, with Oakland falling 3-0 at home. The loss marked the first time in history the Raiders have been shutout at home in the preseason. The Raiders have a short week as they travel to Arizona to take on the Cardinals on Friday. While it is a quick turnaround, Mitchell believes that the team will be ready. “In the end of the day, it’s going to be a game,” Mitchell said. “There’s going to be another opponent out there, so i’m going to get myself ready. I’m a competitive guy and will try to beat you in anything that we’re playing in so it’s going to be easy for me. I think the way our culture is now, we are all competitive and we are all here to win games. Yea, our bodies are going to be a little sore but Arizona’s bodies are going to be sore so we are going to come read to play and definitely try to come out with the win.” Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 11, 2012
The Oakland Raiders stayed out of the pads as they practiced in shells and shorts on Saturday at their practice facility in Napa, Calif. After being disappointed in the team's focus the day before, head coach Dennis Allen may have wanted the team to remain focused mentally without having to worry about getting hit. The injuries remained the same for the most part: punter Shane Lechler (knee), tight end Brandon Myers (shoulder), running backs Taiwan Jones (hamstring) and Mike Goodson (neck), wide receivers Eddie McGee (hamstring) and Denarius Moore (hamstring), and linebacker Aaron Curry (knee). Curry is still in Los Angeles seeing a specialist for his knee, according to Allen. Goodson did return to working out on the side field with Moore, McGee and Jones on the side field. Two more players went down to injury on Saturday: linebacker Mario Kurn and wide receiver Duke Calhoun. Coach Allen said both injuries are believed to be "significant" but will have to see the MRIs. It appeared neither player could put any weight on their legs as they were helped off the field. With Myers out, tight ends David Ausberry and Richard Gordon saw an increase in snaps. Ausberry continues to run crisp routes and show his hands, as he caught a touchdown pass on a post route from quarterback Matt Leinart. Quarterback Carson Palmer avoided the interception on Saturday, showing poise in the pocket and looking comfortable, especially when throwing the deep ball. Palmer hit wide receiver Jacoby Ford in stride on a deep ball down the left sideline but had the ball clank off his hands for an incomplete pass. Terrelle Pryor had another up-and-down day, starting out by sailing some receivers but settling in late and hitting his target. With Jones and Goodson out with their injuries, halfback Lonyae Miller once again saw an increase in snaps. Expect Miller to see the majority of the carries on Monday night. Fullback Rashawn Jackson also saw an increase in his snaps due to the injuries. Jackson worked primarily with the third team over the past two days and will likely see a high number of snaps on Monday night as well. The Raiders have a shortened practice tomorrow morning before they head down to the Oakland Coliseum parking lot "B" for Raider Nation Celebration. Raider Nation Celebration is a free event for the fans, giving them an opportunity to meet the current Raiders roster, as well as Raider legends and the Raiderettes. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 10, 2012 Tight end David Ausberry took time to talk to SBReport.net's DeMarcus Davis and Chris McClain. Ausberry discussed the new offense, quarterback Carson Palmer, fiery coach Al Saunders and much more. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 10, 2012 Running back Mike Goodson spoke to the media for the first time following Friday's practice. Goodson went down with a neck injury and was taken to the hospital on Tuesday. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 8, 2012 Veteran cornerback Ron Bartell spoke with the media following Raiders training camp on Wednesday. Bartell discussed the injury to Mike Goodson, why the Raiders defensive scheme is set to succeed, the development of second-year corner DeMarcus Van Dyke, and much more. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 8, 2012 Cornerback DeMarcus Van Dyke (aka DVD), took time out to talk to SBReport's own Chris McClain and DeMarcus Davis about his progress as an NFL corner, playing in front of the fans, and reflecting on the injury to teammate Mike Goodson. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 8, 2012 Defensive end Jack Crawford talks about the dynamic of having a teammate injured and trying to remain focused on the task of practicing. Also, he delves into his training under Penn State defensive line coach Larry Johnson. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 7, 2012
The Oakland Raiders are set to hold Raider Nation Celebration on Sunday, August 12 at O.Co Coliseum. The family-friendly event is set to take place from 1-4:00 p.m. in parking lot "B," the south parking lot located off of Hegenberger Road in Oakland, Calif. The fan rally is free and open to the public and will offer numerous opportunities such as autography opportunities with Raiders legends and Raiderettes, an on-site Raider Image store, food and alcohol-free beverage concession stands and an interactive Kid's Zone for the children. Fans will also get a look at new head coach Dennis Allen and the 2012 Raiders and Raiderettes. Season ticket holders get an opportunity at an exclusive tour of the locker room and a food tasting is made available for suite holders. Raider Nation Celebration has been held by the Raiders since 1998 and has been located in various locations throughout Oakland. The event comes just one day before the Raiders take on the Dallas Cowboys in their first preseason game on Monday night, August 13. Originally published on SBReport.net on Aug. 5, 2012 Defensive End Matt Schaughnessy Speaks with the media following the teams final fan-attended training camp practice. |
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