By Paul Wexler

RaiderBeat.com Staff Writer

More of the same – Quarterback JaMarcus Russell throws an interception on his second pass of the game.  The Chargers move 58 yards in two plays and the the Raiders are down 7-0 before most fans have sat down.

Where has that been — The Chargers have not scored a touchdown on the opening drive in 22 games.  San Diego broke out the wildcat formation and running back LaDainian Tominson was untouched going six yards into the end zone.

Are the Raiders distracted?– This morning a report came out on ESPN Over The Lines about coach Cable.  The link is available on RaiderBeat.com.  The allegations of verbal and physical abuse of former wives and a girlfriend may be too much for Cable to survive on top of the Hanson incident and the poor play of the Raiders.

The numbers don’t lie — This season Russell who the Raiders drafted for his ability to throw the long ball is 6.9% on passes over 21 yards.

Higgins must have proved he is over his injury — Playing more in the first quarter than he has in the previous two games, wide receiver Johnnie Lee Higgins seems to have move into the slot receiver position ahead of Todd Watkins.  Coach Cable has been holding Higgins out of games because he felt he was hesitating due to lingering effects from his injury.

Another quarter without a catch– The Raiders wide receivers went another entire quarter without a catch.  The only pass that looked like it was intended for a wide receiver was thrown in the direction of Louis Murphy and into three Charger defenders where it was picked off.

Jackson 5– Charger wide receiver Vincent Jackson had five catches for 56 yards including  an 8 yard touchdown in one drive without ever having to face the Raiders best coverage corner Nnamdi Asomugha.   Beating a combination of cornerbacks Stanford Routt, Chris Johnson, and safeties Tyvon Branch and Michael Huff the Chargers top receiver never had to test the top Raider corner.

Where is the pressure? – Charger quarterback Philip Rivers has not been touched by the Raiders in the first half.  The Chargers have amassed 254 yards in the first half.  Rivers has a streak of nine straight completions going into the second half.

Raider first half bright spots — Rookie defensive end Matt Shaughnessy has had his best game of his young career, with four tackles in the first half.  Kick returner Jonathan Holland had is best return with a 60 yard burst at the end of the half that led to three points for the Raiders.

Play calling – The Raider play book must not be very thick.  Or they have very little faith in the man running the offense.  Russell looks lost when he drops back and looks for a receiver, either taking a sack or bailing out and throwing to a back.  Russell has no idea how or when to get the ball out to receivers.

Play of the game– Raiders special teams (Gary Russell) recover Chargers punt returner Darren Sproles fumble.  The Raiders get good field position with just over four minutes left in the third quarter with the game still in reach.

Worst deep ball ever?– Russell seems to just toss it up for grabs every time he throws it down field to a receiver.   He puts too much air under the ball and just crosses his fingers hoping his receiver beats the cornerback down with the ball.

Where is Waldo?–  Second round draft pick Mike Mitchell was last seen posing for the side of a milk carton.

Blood in the bye? — All hopes for the playoffs, dim as they were are now almost extinct.  It would likely take an eight game win streak from a Raider team that has not won more than 5 games in a season since 2002.  If major changes are going to occur this season at either quarterback or head coach this is the week it will happen.  The Raiders are going into the bye week and have two weeks to prepare for their next opponent  the Kansas City Chiefs on November 15.

This entry was posted on Sunday, November 1st, 2009 at 4:15 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.