Raiders Fantasy News

Tuesday, February 7, 2012, 12:21pm

The Raiders confirmed the hiring of former 49ers and Stanford assistant coach Jason Tarver to be their defensive coordinator Monday as coach Dennis Allen continues to put his staff together.

Under the direction of Tarver and co-coordinator Derek Mason, Stanford's defense ranked either first or second in the Pac-12 in six categories, finishing first in rushing (84.4) and third-down conversion percentage (31.1 percent).
Stanford was second in total defense (337.6), sacks per game (3.0), scoring defense (21.9) and fewest first downs per game (17.5).

Tuesday, January 31, 2012, 1:47pm

Raiders coach Dennis Allen say Carson Palmer "absolutely" will be the Week One starter.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012, 1:16pm

Houston Texans offensive coordinator Greg Knapp has agreed to take the same position with the Oakland Raiders, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

Knapp helped the Texans finish 10th in scoring and 13th in total offense in 2011 despite injuries to wide receiver Andre Johnson and quarterbacks Matt Schaub and Matt Leinart.

Knapp served as the Raiders' offensive coordinator for two seasons (2007-08) under former head coach Lane Kiffin. He also worked with new Raiders coach Dennis Allen from 2004 to 2005 as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons.

Sources: Raiders to hire Broncos DC Dennis Allen
Wednesday, January 25, 2012, 12:17pm

The Oakland Raiders will hire Broncos defensive coordinator Dennis Allen as head coach, according to league sources.

The two sides spent much of Tuesday night hammering out an agreement and the contract is agreed to in principle but has not been signed, sources said.

New general manager Reggie McKenzie decided on his new coach exactly two weeks after he was hired. He immediately fired Hue Jackson, who went 8-8 in his only season as coach, and began the search.

Allen, a relative unknown to fans, was a finalist for the Rams' coaching job, according to sources, and would have been under strong consideration had Jeff Fisher not opted for St. Louis.

Wednesday, January 11, 2012, 1:44pm

"Carson Palmer will not be immune to a good player...pushing him." - Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie

Oakland Raiders fire coach Hue Jackson
Tuesday, January 10, 2012, 4:35pm

The Raiders new regime will not include coach Hue Jackson, the coach confirmed to the Bay Area News Group on Tuesday. Jackson was fired less than four hours before new general manager Reggie McKenzie was to be introduced at a press conference at the club facility, with McKenzie informing Jackson he wanted to hire a new head coach.

Jackson's status had been a matter of speculation since McKenzie was hired Friday to be the club's general manager. McKenzie and Jackson were scheduled to meet Tuesday morning after McKenzie returned from a trip out of town with his family.

Dismissing Jackson means the Raiders will be looking for their 10th head coach since the franchise returned to Oakland in 1995, with the others being Mike White, Joe Bugel, Jon Gruden, Bill Callahan, Norv Turner, Art Shell, Lane Kiffin, Tom Cable and Jackson.

The Raiders have reportedly already told some defensive staff members, including coordinator Chuck Bresnahan, that they won't be back.

That means McKenzie will be presiding not only over a makeover of the infrastructure of the organization, but of the Raiders offensive and defensive systems of football as well after their second straight 8-8 season.

Stevan Ridley impresses in his rookie season
Wednesday, January 4, 2012, 2:01pm

It would be easy to overlook the contributions of Stevan Ridley this season in an offense featuring names like Brady, Gronkowski and Welker. After all, 53 running backs had more rushes than Ridley’s 87 carries, and Ridley only scored one touchdown on the season. However, evidence is mounting that the Patriots found a pretty solid player with the 73rd overall pick in last year’s draft. Ridley’s 5.1 yards per rush is 10th among the 56 running backs with at least 85 rushes. Ridley has been among the league’s most powerful runners, averaging 2.6 yards after contact per rush. That trails only Ben Tate, Isaac Redman and Donald Brown among running backs with at least 85 carries. However, Ridley was far more than just a niche power rusher, averaging a 20+ yard run once every 17.4 carries. That was the seventh-best average among backs with at least 85 carries, trailing Darren Sproles, DeAngelo Williams, Darren McFadden, C.J. Spiller, Matt Forte and Fred Jackson.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012, 1:55pm

Coach Hue Jackson said on radio show that Darren McFadden would have practiced today if Raiders were in playoffs.

Sunday, January 1, 2012, 3:14pm

Raiders Inactives
Mason Brodine DE
Bruce Campbell G
Jason Campbell QB
John Henderson DT
Taiwan Jones RB
Darren McFadden RB
Terrelle Pryor QB

Coaching carousel: 10 names to keep an eye on
Saturday, December 31, 2011, 1:05pm

While many are now finished with their holiday shopping, some NFL owners are just about to get started. Beginning as soon as Sunday night, some NFL owners will be shopping for a new head coach to become the leader and the face of their franchise. Here are 10 names, in alphabetical order, that are likely to be on many of the shopping lists:

Broncos defensive coordinator Dennis Allen: Players consider him to be calm and charismatic, and it helps that he has learned from Saints head coach Sean Payton and Broncos head coach John Fox.

Seahawks offensive line coach Tom Cable: The Raiders have had a habit of watching some of their former head coaches, like Mike Shanahan and Jon Gruden, find success elsewhere, and Cable could do the same.

Panthers offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski: Carolina knows how in demand Chudzinski will be and will make it as tough as possible for him to the leave the Panthers.

Packers assistant head coach Winston Moss: An intense former player and current coach who has learned from some of the finest in the Raiders and Packers organizations.

Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey: After helping mold Matt Ryan into the quarterback he is, Mularkey's name has been whispered for a while now in Jacksonville.

Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer: New York might be struggling, but its red-zone offense is not, and Schottenheimer has the right pedigree and résumé to become a successful head coach.

Montreal Alouettes head coach Marc Trestman: A sleeper, off-the-chart candidate who might be able to build a champion just as he has done in the Canadian Football League.

Chargers assistant head coach Steve Wilks: His work in San Diego quietly has begun to get recognition around the league.

Vikings defensive backs coach Joe Woods: Considered to have a similar makeup to Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, who also once served as an assistant coach with the Vikings.

Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer: His players revere him and his defenses perform for him, and now the time should be here for him.

Saturday, December 31, 2011, 1:00pm

Wide receiver Jacoby Ford, who hasn't played since the last time the Raiders played the Chargers on Nov. 10, expects to play after practicing Wednesday through Friday.

"I'll be out there," Ford said. "If I practice this much this week and I'm not out there, I'd be mad. I'll be out there, though."

Jackson said he is not inclined to have Ford return kickoffs after being out for five games, leaving that duty to Bryan McCann.

Saturday, December 31, 2011, 12:59pm

Raiders RB Michael Bush is 89 yards shy of 1,000 for the season, and his offensive linemen are hoping to get him there. "He's kind of quiet about it, but I know he wants it, and we want it, too, as bad as he does," center Samson Satele said.