Regarding McFadden

Darren McFadden took a lot of heat from the NFL Network announcers earlier in the night for not reaching up and behind himself to catch a poorly thrown Andrew Walter ball on 4th and 2 and defy both gravity and momentum while doing so. But I think if we check the stats we may find that he's had the most tackles tonight. He hunts down San Diego interceptors and explodes into them like Eddie Anderson in his prime. He even put a hit on a defensive back early in the game on a downfield block that drew an unfortunate unnecessary roughness penalty and took the Raiders out of FG position.

Maybe he should start playing both ways? I thought I saw Michael Huff at CB earlier, so we are - as always - in need of a free safety.

Pathetic

I have run out of words to convey the atrociousness that we must endure as Raider fans. Commonly heard tonight on NFL Network:

• "Hapless"
• "Punch line"
• "Laughingstock"

Oh, what's the use. There were others, but like LenDale White, I don't care and I'm not paying attention.

I mean, Wow.

So JaMarcus throws an interception, and Zach Miller damn near gets Clifton'd, and JaMarcus leaves the field on a cart.

Good times. 

Just when I'm thinking of turning off the TV and doing something productive with my evening, Justin Miller takes it to the house. 

Entirely Logical

Who saw this coming? The Chargers blowing out the Raiders in San Diego? Wow.

My initial thought for my previous post was that an optimist might consider that the Raiders are playing to the level of their competition with a big win over division-leading Denver followed by a sloppy loss to cellar-dwelling (yes, somehow the Raiders are still ahead of the Chefs) Kansas City. Therefore, they might play an interesting game tonight. But the Raiders do not follow such paths of logic. Rather, they randomly (and quite infrequently) play a stellar game, then they lay an egg, then - instead of getting angry and focused and regrouping the next week - they get even worse.

Tonight, they are most certainly worse. We may in fact be exploring new lows. Well, I suppose we've been at rock bottom for years now, only this time it's (allegedly) in 3-D.

But...I wouldn't be the hopelessly hopeful Raider fan that I am if I didn't point out what would be truly illogical: a second half Raider comeback.

Other notes:

• Kristy's comment upon seeing Charger fans on TV: "I guess I never really realized San Diego had fans."
• Will Nnamdi be fined again for wearing black socks? I hope so, because every time he wears them the Raider secondary gets torched.

Logic does not apply

One might argue that logic doesn't apply much when picking NFL games these days, but it certainly does not apply to the two teams playing tonight. Just when we think the Raiders have stabilized and have a winnable game at home, they run the fat kicker toss (and do nothing else to overcome it) and lose to a team from Missouri. The Chargers, meanwhile, have offered as their encore to an AFC Championship appearance a 4-8 record in a very, very weak division.

So I too will avoid logic and will pick the Raiders to win, 26-24. I will also pick Raider fans to win the balance of the in-stadium brawls tonight, 31-15.

Fantasy side note: This season I selected LT with the first overall pick, and he dragged my team down to a 7-6 record. By some miracle of divisional organization, this record has earned me a first round playoff bye. I fear that tonight LT may torture me in both fantasy and reality terms.

Tonight's Game

You heard it here first: Tom Cable is rumored to be the leading candidate for the head coach opening at THE Ohio College of Clowning Arts.

Hopefully, they won't have to siphon cash from their tiny car fuel budget to pay him, the way Tennessee is having cut the heat off in their buildings to pay Lance.

I'm back to despairing the Raiders. Yes, I'm going to watch the game, but I don't plan on enjoying it. Norv's Chargers are probably going to roll us tonight, 27-3.

Can't wait to see Seabass lined up in the Wildcat.

Fat Kicker Toss: WTF?!

Here's a round-up of reactions to what will now be known as "Fat Kicker Toss:"

We'll start with Kawakami, since he's the one who coined "Fat Kicker Toss." He calls Cable an "amateur" and compares the interim coach's soon-to-be-brief tenure to the Gong Show.

Lowell Cohn: Nice knowing you, Coach.

Jerry Mac: No excuse.

Ratto: "I mean, in what universe does a play that relies on an 17-yard scamper by Janikowski make sense?"

Jason Jones: It wasn't the drunkenness; you saw that.

Gutierrrez: Silly? Dumb? Nah. It's the Raiders.

Peterson: Cable's mad, not a genius.

I'm sure there are more out there, but I'm kind of sick to my stomach after reading the above-linked pieces.