19
Jan
2011
It’s official: Al Davis IS Monty Burns (PIC)
Apparently we’re into comparing NFL personalities to cartoon characters this week.
After yesterday’s terrifying press conference, it was only a matter of time before the someone capitalized on the increasingly striking similarities between Raiders owner Al Davis and Simpsons’ cartoon mogul C. Montgomery Burns, to comedic effect:
(Image via Reddit/r/nfl)
Other than the fact that he looks about 30-years too young for present-day Al and is missing a weeping sore on his forehead … well done, interwebs.
18
Jan
2011
Yikes … Al Davis looks like death warmed over (PIC)
Al Davis made a rare appearance in front of the press to introduce Hue Jackson as the Raiders new head coach today, and … GAAAAHHH! What in the hell is that?!?
(Image via MSNBC.com)
The 81-year-old Davis scared the holy bejeezus out of women and children throughout the land when he appeared before the assembled media with a troublingly emaciated face, and band aids covering what appear to be open sores on the legendary owner’s forehead. Davis has long been known to be in poor health, but this was shocking to just about everyone. His hands were shaking and his voice quivering throughout the press conference, which only contributed to the overall decaying appearance of the once virile owner.
As usual, whenever Al speaks, something interesting comes out of that decrepit old mouth of his, but we were too busy worrying about the poor guy to listen to anything he said today (OK, so we were really worrying that this zombie-like creature might come and eat our brains for sustenance late at night). The last time Davis spoke to the media, he was using an overhead projector to illustrate the reasoning behind firing Lane Kiffin, and also forgetting his new head coach, Tom Cable‘s, name. It had been over two years since we’d seen Davis up-close and personal, and quite frankly, we can’t help but wonder if it might be the last.
MORE PICS (in terrifying HD!) AND VIDEO OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE AFTER THE JUMP
21
Nov
2010
VIDEO: Richard Seymour puts the smack down on Ben Roethlisberger
Seymour leaves the field after being ejected (Image via KansasCity.com)
Raiders DT Richard Seymour was ejected from today’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, after delivering an open-handed punch to the face of QB Ben Roethlisberger.
The incident happened in the 2nd quarter as Roethlisberger celebrated a 22-yard touchdown pass. The QB got in between Seymour and a Steelers O-lineman (who were already engaged in some friendly chatter), and apparently said something that Seymour took exception to.
Roethlisberger probably took a dive to make sure the penalty was called, but you can’t help but wonder what Big Ben could have said to Seymour to elicit that kind of response. Maybe he was back to his old tricks and made some unwanted advances. Perhaps he though Seymour was “DTF”?
UPDATE: After the game, Seymour apologized for his actions … but not to Roethlisberger or anything:
“I apologize to my teammates,” Seymour said afterward. “I never want to do anything to hurt the team. You always want to protect yourself, but there’s no excuse. … I’m not sure why he [Roethlisberger] ran up on me. I just turned around and it was a natural reaction.”
Note to self: don’t run up on Richard Seymour. Ever. Good to know. Watch the smack down below (looped 3x in slo-mo for good measure):
VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
27
Sep
2010
Pro football legend George Blanda passes away at age 83
George Blanda, 1927-2010
George Blanda, the Hall of Fame quarterback and kicker best known for his late-game heroics, passed away today at the age of 83. Known as the “ageless wonder”, Blanda played professional football for 26-years, longer than anyone else in history, before retiring from the game one month shy of his 49th birthday. During a career spanning five decades (1949-1975), Blanda spent 10 years with the Chicago Bears, seven with the Houston Oilers, and then nine more seasons with the Oakland Raiders.
Blanda was the Brett Favre of his generation, throwing for a ton of yards and interceptions, retiring and un-retiring, but somehow always finding a way to come through in the clutch. He threw for almost 27,000 yards in his career and held the record with 277 interceptions until Brett Favre surpassed him in 2007.
But Blanda will be most remembered for a 5-game run with the John Madden-coached Raiders in 1970, now referred to by the Oakland organization as the “Miracle of George Blanda”. He finished his career with 2,002 points scored, kicking 335 field goals and 943 extra points, running for nine touchdowns and throwing for 236 more.
“George Blanda will always be remembered as a legend of our game,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement, “including his amazing career longevity of 26 seasons in four different decades. George’s multi-talented flair for the dramatic highlighted the excitement of pro football during an important period of growth for our sport.”
The news also came as a shock to Raiders owner Al Davis, who had been hoping to lure Blanda out of retirement yet again to give his club team a much-needed dose of toughness. (sorry, I couldn’t resist)
WATCH A VIDEO TRIBUTE TO BLANDA AFTER THE JUMP
26
Sep
2010
Janikowski misses 3 Field Goals as Raiders fall to Cardinals (VIDEO)
Janikowski in his post-miss squat (AP Photo/Matt York)
Don’t you just love it when a 60-minute football game comes down to the leg of a kicker? I know I sure do! And boy, Oakland fans must have just been loving life today during the big Raiders/Cardinals showdown in the desert. [end sarcasm]
It was a hard-fought (but mistake-filled) contest between the two clubs, with Cardinals QB Derek Anderson throwing 2 touchdowns, and Raiders RB Darren McFadden rushing for over 100 yards and a score. But it all came down to the closing seconds, with Arizona leading 24-23 and Oakland driving for a game-winning score.
With :04 remaining, Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski – who had already missed 2 field goal attempts earlier in the day – lined up for a 32-yard try and a shot at redemption:
WATCH THE VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP
21
Sep
2010
Hit(s) Of The Week: Troy Polamalu flying tackle, Rolando McLain & Patrick Willis (VIDEO)
We’re starting a new tradition every Tuesday here at ReadAndReact by bringing you the Hit of the Week! We’ll find the most brutal tackle (or block) from each weekend of NFL games, and present it for your viewing pleasure
We’ve gotta give some props to the Pittsburgh Steelers defense, who were the star of the show in Tennessee on Sunday, getting 4 sacks and SEVEN turnovers in their 19-11 victory over the Titans. Oh, and they also held wonderboy RB Chris Johnson to only 53 total yards (34 yards rushing).
On this play, S Troy Polamalu (and his million dollar hair) times the snap perfectly on a goal line attempt by the Titans, leaping over the offensive line to bring down QB Kerry Collins before he even has a chance to get moving:
It’s not necessarily a bone-crushing hit, but it’s one of the best players in the game making a beautifully-anticipated goal line stop. And yes, I realize the Titans scored a TD on that same series … but they lost the game, and Polamalu is one of the main reasons why.
HONORABLE MENTION: Rolando McLain Suplex Maneuver
(Photo: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images via BleacherReport)
We couldn’t give this one the award since he got flagged with a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty, but Raiders rookie LB Rolando McClain made his impact felt in yesterday’s 16-14 win over the St. Louis Rams … particularly on WR Danny Amendola. Watch as he violently slams the little guy to the ground:
5
Jul
2010
JaMarcus Russell Arrested for Sippin on Sizzurp
Is it me or does JaMarcus look slimmer in this mug shot? (Image: Press-Register)
In his continuing quest to be the biggest NFL draft bust of all time, former Oakland Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell was arrested today in Mobile, Alabama for possession of a controlled substance – namely codine syrup. Russell, the 2001 #1 overall draft pick, was released by the Raiders in May, and is seemingly intent on continuing his downward spiral toward oblivion.
For those of you unfamiliar with hip-hop culture, codine syrup is the main ingredient in a drug cocktail known as “Purple Drank”, syrup or sizzurp, which has been popularized in the music of the Three 6 Mafia and Lil’ Wayne, among others. ESPN’s Outside the Lines recently did a feature on the rise of the sizzurp in sports:
Russell was released on $2500 bail, and will appear in court on Wednesday, July 7th. And somewhere, Ryan Leaf and Todd Marinovich are high-fiving.
Now enjoy this educational music video from the Three 6 Mafia (after the jump):
7
May
2010
Is JaMarcus Russell the #1 Draft Bust of All Time?
Has Jamarcus Russell failed badly enough to make him the biggest flop in league history? (Original photoshop/hack job by ArtieFufkin)
When news broke that the Raiders released former #1 draft pick JaMarcus Russell yesterday, the sports blogosphere collectively wondered weather Russell had claimed the throne as the biggest draft bust in the history of the NFL. And while it would be easy to place the Rotund Raider at the top of the list, we’re not going to hand him the crown just yet.
Until now, the general consensus has been that Ryan Leaf – the #2 overall pick of the San Diego Chargers in 1998 - is the biggest draft bust of all-time. For our money, it’s Tony Mandarich, who the Packers selected with the #2 overall pick in 1989 (you can read our previous pieces on Mandarich here and here). But most people seem to think it’s Leaf, and since both he and Russell are QB’s, it makes things much easier for the purpose of this conversation.
The guys at Shutdown Corner put together a nice statistical comparison between the two quarterbacks, and while both players were godawful, the numbers paint Russell in a more favorable light:
So based on these figures alone, Leaf has the edge (for being worse, that is … 14 TDs vs 36 INTs?!? Ouch.) And when you take into account Leaf’s locker-room outbursts and the fact that he was universally hated by his teammates, Russell doesn’t really even come close to eclipsing the train wreck that was Ryan Leaf.
For us, the question of how big a draft bust someone is always comes down to one main thing: expectations. Sports Illustrated took a look back at the pre-draft hype on JaMarcus Russell from 2007, which includes some incredible gems from some of the draft’s top prognosticators, including Mel Kiper:
JaMarcus Russell is going to immediately energize that fanbase, that football team — on the practice field, in that locker room. Three years from now you could be looking at a guy that’s certainly one of the elite top five quarterbacks in this league. …You’re talking about a 2-3 year period once he’s under center. Look out because the skill level that he has is certainly John Elway-like.”
Way to go Mel. Good call. But he wasn’t alone … at the time, Todd McShay, Terry Bradshaw, and a slew of other “experts” were all drooling over Russell’s physical skill set.
Let's face it, we all saw this one coming
But while everyone seemed to agree that Russell’s physical skills warranted a roll of the dice, there were plenty of questions about his mental state of mind from the beginning. In the linked SI article, Peter King and Gil Brandt were among those who expressed serious doubts as to whether or not JaMarcus had the desire & work ethic to be a top-level NFL quarterback.
When Russell – who was the best QB in a weak draft class for the position – went to the Raiders, it seemed like a bust made in heaven. After all, Al Davis has made a living out of spending draft picks on physical specimens with questionable heads. And with Lane Kiffin taking over at the helm (if temporarily) for Art Shell, the Oakland organization was entering a dysfunctional heyday in 2007. We all knew how this story was going to play out, didn’t we?
27
Mar
2010
JaMarcus Russell weighs in at 290 pounds!
I used to think this photo was altered for comedic effect ... now I'm not so sure
Adam Schefter is reporting that QB JaMarcus Russell reported to the Oakland Raiders facilities yesterday, tipping the scales at 290 lbs. Apparently this is part of Al Davis’ new and exciting plan to have Russell run the Wildcat offense from the Left Tackle position. Schefter tweets:
Two people reported that Raiders QB JaMarcus Russell returned to Oakland and tipped the scales at 290 pounds. At least he was under 3 bills.
This news comes in stark contrast to earlier reports that the former #1 overall pick was working hard to transform his body, and was said to be in much better shape this year. Russell, who at 6′-6″ was listed at 260lbs on last year’s roster, was by many accounts pushing 300 during the season. And if this latest report is true, it appears that Russell is doing everything he can to solidify his place in history as the NFL’s biggest all-time draft bust.
Way to go, JaMarcus. Nevermind that $68 million you’re being paid. Whatever you do, don’t drive past that In-N-Out on your way home and hit the gym for a few hours.
15
Mar
2010
Jets land Tomlinson; Browns ship Quinn to Denver
It was a busy Sunday in the NFL, with the New York Jets signing RB LaDanian Tomlinson, and the Cleveland Browns sending QB Brady Quinn to the Broncos for FB Peyton Hillis, 2 picks and a $5 footlong.
Tomlinson – the eighth leading rusher in NFL history – chose New York and Rex Ryan over joining Brett Favre in Minnesota, and believes that the Jets will give him a chance to contribute and win a championship. LDT (sorry, there’s only one LT in New York sports lore) will replace the recently-released Thomas Jones, and will back-up Shonne Green on the Jets depth chart.
Meanwhile, Mike Holmgren continues to clean house in Cleveland, trading former 1st round pick Quinn to Denver for a fullback and two late round picks. Ouch. In addition, the Browns traded another former 1st round pick – LB Kamerion Wembley – to the Raiders. Apparently Holmgren wants to start fresh, and thinks the duo of Jake Delhomme and Seneca Wallace are an improvement over the tag team of Quinn & Derek Anderson … we shall see. In the mean time, it’s back to the drawing board once again for Browns fans.
