After not really talking to the media for the last two months, Raiders head coach Lane Kiffin opened up at the NFL owner's meetings this week. He basically answered every conceivable question about the team's off-season, but two comments stood out above the rest.
On trading for CB DeAngelo Hall: "Was cornerback our No. 1 need? No. But DeAngelo became available, and he is a player with great potential. . . . We couldn't pass him up."I understand the sentiment: DeAngelo Hall is a shutdown corner, blah, blah, blah. And I get that owner Al Davis loves speed and defensive coordinator Rob Ryan loves cornerbacks who excel in man coverage. Fine. But Colts' head coach Tony Dungy's take on the whole pass rusher vs. cornerback argument makes you wonder if the Raiders might've been better off solidifying the defensive line.
And that leads to quote No. 2:
On replacing retired DT Warren Sapp with DE Tommy Kelly:"Tommy has played three different positions for us. With Warren being a 3-technique, Tommy really hasn't been able to flourish at what we feel is his best position. But Rob (Ryan) feels Tommy is the best 3-technique in the league."Well, let's hope Ryan is right because Oakland dropped a lot of coin on a guy not many people thought much of. Of course, conventional wisdom is seldom conventional and often wrong, so Kelly could be a pleasant surprise next year.
If he struggles and Oakland's front four has trouble generating a pass rush, it won't matter who plays cornerback, however. Which was Dungy's point. Maybe it's not coincidence that consistently good defenses are more concerned with bolstering the front seven instead of the secondary. Or maybe God just hates the Raiders. It's one or the other, though.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-02-2008 @ 3:58PM
MIKEMAGSINO2000 said...
you can tell this writer is an idiot and doesnt know what he is talking about...first of all dungy and the cover 2 defense are completely different then what we run, wiht a cover 2 you are allowed two have average corners due to over the top help from the safeties now what we run is almost complete man to man where the safeties play closer to the box for run support...i hate writers who write shiieet they dont know crap about. THESE ARE COMPLETELY TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF D.
WE GOT HIM FOR A 2ND & 5TH PICK ...TWO TIME PRO BOWLER AT AGE 24....IDIOT
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4-02-2008 @ 2:36PM
MUGSTA said...
you can tell this writer is an idiot and doesnt know what he is talking about...first of all dungy and the cover 2 defense are completely different then what we run, wiht a cover 2 you are allowed two have average corners due to over the top help from the safeties now what we run is almost complete man to man where the safeties play closer to the box for run support...i hate writers who write shiieet they dont know crap about. THESE ARE COMPLETELY TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF D.
WE GOT HIM FOR A 2ND & 5TH PICK ...TWO TIME PRO BOWLER AT AGE 24....IDIOT
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4-02-2008 @ 3:22PM
BlueStarDude said...
Dear Mugsta,
Hate to break it to you, but making the Pro Bowl means very, very little as it relates to the quality of a DB's play - if it even means anything at all. Roy Williams has been to Honolulu about three times too many.
D-Hall is an average corner, at best. And that wasn't just any second rounder the Raiders gave up, but a high second rounder in a deep draft (maybe not "all time great" deep, but deeper than the draft has been in years).
Plus all that coin the Raiders are paying that average CB is money that can't be used for a higher priority position - like a defensive end who can play the run as well as the pass.
Now, Ryan, I think you're being a little harsh on Tommy Kelly. There's no question the Raiders over paid for him, but he's a fine player when healthy, and I think that's the added concern to paying out so much money for him.
I was recently watching a Raiders game from last season and Kelly can play, and I wouldn't be too shocked if he had a breakout season. That said, even a breakout season won't prove it was a smart signing by Al "The Man from Mars" Davis. The longer view is necessary.
Peace and potatoes.
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4-02-2008 @ 3:24PM
ryan said...
BSD,
Good point, and I tried to temper my criticism of Kelly because Rob Ryan certainly knows more than I do about him.
MUGSTA,
I agree that the Raiders and Colts run different defenses, but the Patriots don't run a Cover-2 scheme and they don't pay a lot for cornerbacks either. Know what the Colts and Pats have in common?
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4-02-2008 @ 3:34PM
beef said...
Because the pats run so much zone, they can get by with non-all-world corners.
I think you're still being mis-led.
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4-02-2008 @ 3:51PM
Eric said...
Don't worry MUGSTA, no one really takes Wilson seriously. The way he writes, you'd think Hall drove a stick up his @$$. His bias is astonishing. Just read his posts and laugh like the rest of us.
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4-02-2008 @ 5:07PM
Jan said...
I'm a dedicated Raider's fan despite the many, many games they lose. I jumped on the Raider's bandwagon when Tom Flores and Jim Plunkett were together. Some of the players and coaches should watch the films of these two to get a glance at moral integrity with no cheap tricks.
But Al Davis keeps drafting and signing losers (Randy Moss and Warren Sapp come to mind. Let's hope the new black and silver coach can turn this around.
Raiders, good luck from a dedicated fan.
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