Comments on The Eye Patch: The Newberry experiment begins

I think you also have to keep in mind that this is...

2007-03-09T04:54:00.000-08:00

I think you also have to keep in mind that this is the weakest group of free agents in recent memory. In past years, most of these guys would have been second or third tier options. In fact, I'm glad that Al has stayed out of the fray thus far. There's no reason to spend money just because your fans are bored during the off season.

And again, mark my words... This offensive line will be good, if not great, now that they don't have to deal with that fool Art Shell anymore. I'm telling you now.

JN, oh no doubt, I wasn't implying that it wouldn'...

2007-03-08T09:05:00.000-08:00

JN, oh no doubt, I wasn't implying that it wouldn't cost the Raiders anything to sign one of those other guys, and YES the non-gauranteed money part of the equation is certainly a great option for the Raiders.

My only point is, at the end of the day, would you rather have a fully functional Sherman tank defending you or a Sherman tank with one of its tracks knocked off defending you?

The Raiders have always been fanastic about bringing in free agents. Al Davis isn't afraid to spend money on talent. The fan in me wishes the Raiders did whatever it takes to put the best product possible on the field, but the realist recognizes the issue created by finance, the cap, etc. in todays game.

Look, before you analyze a signing you have to kee...

2007-03-08T07:31:00.000-08:00

Look, before you analyze a signing you have to keep it in a little context. Sure Steinbach or Davis would have been more of an upgrade, but they also signed for $20 million guaranteed. I don't know if you noticed, but Newberry got $0 dollars guaranteed. A slight difference don't you think? So if Newberry is a good addition, great. If not, too bad. But there is zero lost. And hey, he claims that his knees haven't felt better in five years. So it might turn out to been the best O-line signing of the off season.

Either way, there is zero risk.

Also, people that point to the failure of last years line are over blowing the situation. Not one single player in the NFL could have performed even adequately in that crappy system. The Raiders are going to be running a state of the art offense next season, with a capable line coach. The line is going to be just fine, you watch.