OAKLAND
– For the Raiders, the script couldn’t have played out any
better.
OAKLAND – For the Raiders, the script couldn’t have played out any better.
Playing Tampa Bay for the first time since that joke known as Super Bowl XXXVII, Oakland picked apart former coach Jon Gruden and his Bucs, 30-20. If you saw the game, you know it wasn’t even that close.
Dispatch columnist Brett Edgerton saw the game – ignoring all security risks to make his first trip inside the Coliseum.
Much to the dismay of Raider fans itching to send angry e-mails, the Edge was hard-pressed to find anything but positives.
A look inside his glass-half-full notebook:
– Tyrone Wheatley: Where did this come from? After looking atrocious the first two weeks, the running back tallied 102 yards on the ground, a mark he topped only once last season. His 60-yard burst up the middle on the team’s first drive put the Bucs on notice and opened up plenty of chances for play-action passes later in the game.
– Kerry Collins: Let the debate begin. Once starter Rich Gannon left the game after a helmet-to-helmet collision, Collins stepped right in and proved why many (including yours truly) believed he deserved a better shot at the No. 1 spot. The ex-Giant still forces way too much into traffic, but looked sharp while finishing 16-of-27 for 228 yards.
On the team’s first touchdown drive, he racked up 80 yards on 6-of-7 passing. Differing from his air-it-out preseason, Collins was more methodical – his longest pass going for only 30 yards.
– Offensive line: This unit was a major reason for the strong quarterback play. “The biggest thing for me tonight was my offensive line,” Collins said. “They gave me incredible amounts of time.” Against a usually-stout Bucs’ front, the holes for Garner weren’t bad, either.
– The Jerrys: A week after his first catch-less game since 1951, Rice caught a pair of key passes, including a beautiful one-hander for 18 yards. The ageless one also threw a devasting block that allowed Ronald Curry to trot in for the team’s first touchdown. As for Porter, the fellow who that Gruden guy used to not have much use for, he notched 84 yards on five catches. After the game, he said his spectacular third-quarter catch by the sidelines was probably the greatest of his career.
– The other guys: Talk about mixing it up. A total of 11 Raiders caught at least one pass against Tampa Bay.
– Defense: OK, so the offense this unit went up against was somewhere between horrible and unwatchable. Nevertheless, new coordinator Rob Ryan’s constantly blitzing D would’ve given any team outside the Indianapolis city limits trouble. Led by Danny Clark and a now-healthy Napoleon Harris, the linebackers – yes, the same ones I ripped in the preseason – were outstanding.
– Raider fans: Usually when you hear “Oakland fans” and “class” mentioned in the same sentence, a misdemeanor or felony is being assessed. Not Sunday night. Yeah, so every seat was inexplicably not occupied. Whatever. When Mr. Raider Tim Brown caught a touchdown pass for Tampa in the second half, he was given a nearly unanimous standing ovation – even in the Black Hole. As he trotted off the field after the game, the love he received from the Raider Nation was geniune. Maybe this isn’t West Philadelphia after all.
