Dallas vs. Oakland
With the preseason starting up this week, I exchanged a friendly Q&A with a Cowboys blogger named Phillip from http://www.dallascowboysnation.com/. The Raiders play the Cowboys this Thursday night in Oakland for their first preseason game. It will be interesting to see how sharp the Raiders execute the game plan coming off of 2 weeks of training camp. I am excited to see some of the new players (Greg Ellis, Lorenzo Neal) and rookies (DHB, Mike Mitchell, Louis Murphy) perform for the 1st time in Raiders gear. Later this year, the Raiders visit the Cowboys on November 26th on Thansgiving Day for their 11th regular season game.These are my questions with Phillip's answers directly below. To see my answers to Phillip's questions, go to http://dallascowboysnation.com/2009/08/weekly-roundup-cowboys-raiders/.
1. Give the Raider fans some valuable insight on Greg Ellis as a player, teammate, and person. Do you think he will make an impact as a base DE in our 4-3 alignment?
Greg Ellis for the largest portion of his career with the Cowboys was an exceptional player! He is a very gifted athlete, strong, smart, and can play just about anywhere. No one has ever questioned Greg the person; by all accounts he is just an outstanding individual. Greg as a teammate, well that depends! If you are asking about the Greg Ellis that completely confident in his place on the team, well he is an exceptional teammate. On the other hand if you are asking about the Greg Ellis of today that is much older and much less confident on where he stands, well do not expect a lot of mentoring of younger players and such. Greg is just the type of person that wears his heart on his sleeve, and gets his feelings hurt very easily. He could be a very big contributor to your team as a DE, he fills that position very well. Greg is most comfortable as a DE.
2. Is the clock ticking on the tenure of Head Coach Phillips? Do you expect Phillips to be your head coach in 2010 or is it more likely that Mike Shanahan will be hired?
The clock on any coach in the NFL begins as soon as they accept the position! Wade Phillips is no different, Wade catches a lot of grief and some of it due to his making but quite a bit of it has nothing to do with him. This team must make a deep push into the playoffs this year or there will be a ton of heads rolling around Valley Ranch, one of those most assuredly will be Wade Phillips. From there though I have no idea what Double J may do?
3. Here in Southern California, I have noticed many proud, brash Cowboy fans at bars and in the general public. Have you noticed a strong contingent of the Raider Nation in Texas?
Other than the handful of times I have been to Southern California I have never seen a strong contingent of the “Raider Nation” anywhere much less Texas!
4. Which rival do you take the most satisfaction in beating? Is it the Giants, Redskins, or Eagles?
That is a very tough question, simply because I take a great deal of satisfaction in beating all of those teams! If I had to just pick one though, I must go with the Redskins. There is no better day than a day that includes a beat down of the Redskins!
5. Give us your prediction on the Raiders at Cowboys game on Thanksgiving Day ... your overall prediction for both team's records in 2009?
While I really like a few of your players there, the Raiders stand absolutely no chance at winning this game! As long as the Vampire is calling the shots in Raider Nation you guys are destined to lose! The Cowboys are just way to strong on both sides of the ball for this game to be any closer than 10 points.
6. You are probably aware of the Raiders recent 6 years of ineptitude. Set me straight ... is the current Cowboy playoff win drought eating you alive?
Of course it is! All of us longtime Cowboy fans though have been here before; it sucks to lose in the playoffs. What is more aggravating about it though is to see the likes of ESPN and Douchebags like them point fingers at unwarranted people for being the cause if this run. It took this team a long time to figure out how to work the salary cap; therefore it took a longtime to reload. Jerry Jones was a huge part of this problem, maybe even the entire problem. I can tell you this though, the problems this team had when this streak began are not the problems today. This is a young team, and all young teams go through growing pains.
posted by Calico Jack at 8:55 PM
27 Comments:
That is cool man it is just another cool thing about this season. My little nephew is a cowboys fan and how awesome that we face them twice this season and then i face my brother's wife's team the Ravens last game of the season and the Raiders already got revenge against my brother's team the Bucs last year and then we face my mom's team the bengals I think week 10 or something. On top of it being our 50th year, Keeping Coach Cable becoming a real team again and all of this it will be a real family event this season. I CANT WAIT!!!!!! Especially for that MNF FOOTBALL GAME THE OTHER HALF OF MY FAMILY ARE CHARGERS FANS SO THE TEAMS ARE ALL ACROSS THE BOARD BUT I WANT TO SEE THE RAIDERS SMASH THEM MOST OF ALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
CANT WAIT RAIDER NATION 2009!!!
Calico, I live in Austin, and I do see a lot of Raiders' fans here. Everytime I wear my jersey, I will always see 2 or 3 people that day wearing some type of Raider gear, and we nod. There have been a few guys I have met through it.
My last time out to Dallas (a month ago), I met 4 random people wearing Raider garb. Raider Nation lives in Texas. Tell the Cowboy guy to crawl out of his blue/silver world and look around.
Four people in a city of 2 million is not what I would call being "alive in Texas"! I am sure if you looked around you may find a fan or two of any of the other teams in the NFL. It is kind of hard to "Crawl out my Blue / Silver world" when 95% of what you see is Silver/Blue.
Cowboynation: A fan or 2? You've got at least 2 officially sanctioned Raiders booster clubs in Texas;
Texas Hardcore Oakland Raiders Boosters in El Paso
Alamo City Raiders Booster Club in San Antonio
Everywhere I go I see passionate, die hard Raider fans. I was on my honeymoon in Thailand checking into a hotel in Phuket and the guy in front of me in line was wearing a Raiders hat.
Raider Nation is global.
We consider El Paso part of Mexico so that does not count! Just kidding! Hey I realize the Raiders have a good following but here in Texas no one carries as much fandom as the Cowboys do, and that was my point! I see lots of teams being supported here in Texas, but honestly beyond the Cowboys and Texans around Houston, you could a blanket over all the other teams as far as fans go.
Lets be real the Raiders have been so bad for so long that aside from a few die hards scattered here and there they have lost most of their national fan base. They can not compare to the Cowboys popularity. At Arizona games there are more cowboy fans that cardinal. Last I checked the raiders do not even sell out half their games in Oakland.
Unfortunetly the Raiders are pathetic which is too bad because they used to be so entertaining and it must be killing Davis who deerves better as one of the few owners who really cares about his team and football not just a poser.
The Raiders are long removed from their glory years, since 83 they have been horrendous aside from a couple of couple of competitive years in the early 90s and at the beginning of this decade.
As an objective NFL fan and certainly not a Raider hater, 8-8 which is what I think this Calico predicted is wishful thinking.
Why? The running backs are solid, the linebackers are okay and the corners are above average. The rest of the team is full of holes, the o-line is below average, the d-line is crap, safties are weak, wr is pathetic lastly Jamarcus is a fatty, has no clue how to read defenses and is way to inaccurate to excel in the NFL.
Sammy in L.A.
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Sammy in L.A. -
I find it amusing that you think the Raiders are pathetic. Yes, I will openly acknowledge that the past 6 years the Raiders have been pathetic. But don't you think you are painting the kettle a tad black when you look at the facts?
Here is your reality ...
The Cowboys have not won 1 single playoff game since 1996. That is 13 years and counting. Give that thought time to settle. That is a long, long time since you tasted a playoff victory.
The last time I checked, unless you win in the playoffs, the season was a failure. 13 years of failed expectations and you want to talk shit?
In that span, the Raiders have won 4 playoff games, been to 2 AFC Championship games, and 1 Super Bowl.
Since winning a wild card game in 1996, your beloved Cowgirls have gone 0-6.
Both teams have storied, rich, and proud histories. It is funny that in your past 13 years you haven't been good enough to even win 1 single playoff game. That is a long, historical slide into pure INEPETITUDE. Deal with it Sammy. Win a playoff game and then come back and open your yap.
As far as fan popularity, you need to put down the crack pipe. The Raiders have the largest, strongest, most passionate NFL fan base, bar none. I didn't stutter, Sammy.
Go to any NFL city and the Raider Nation will be represented in huge numbers. Go to a Cardinal or Chargers game and you will think you are at a Raider home game. The Raider Nation is global. The Cowboy fan base (not Cowboy Nation) is regional at best.
The Raiders are clearly in a rebuilding mode with a core nucleus of young players. We will turn the corner and when we do, we will probably win a playoff game before you.
Cowboy fans can talk all the smack they want. You are a proud Cowboy fan. I get that. However, until you actually win a playoff game, all I hear is white noise. The fact that we've been to the SB more recently than you and won 4 times as many playoff games since 1996 should give you pause before you open you piehole. Deal with it Sammy.
"How bout' dem Cowgirls?!"
Last time I checked, San Diego forced Raider fans to buy multi game packages so the Chargers didn't have a road game at home with a sea of Raider fans clad in Silver & Black.
Sammy in L.A....
You make some points that are true but also make a fool out of yourself by being a "Shit Salinger" instead of a "Gun-Slinger" like a "CowBoy" should be....And by the way..."I'm a real cowboy...Road bare-back Bronc and worked cattle on a 95,000 acre ranch and were a "Bull-Hauler" down in Dalhart and the "Armadillo" so I knows what'em talken bout...Cha Hear!!!....
As for the fans nationally...I lived and worked in 16 states including Texas....South of the "CauseWay" down Galveston way...I also drove truck 7 seasons "OTR" coast-to-coast north-to-south Mex-to-KanooksVille so I have seen it all and everywhere I went there was that color...The "Silver-n-Black"....Of Course it was there because I flew that flag in all the opposing cities and the Raiders fans showed up and we had good times...Great times....Now I doubt you have ever gotten past your monies side so have no freakin idea what's out there in the real world....
Just for the record...The only other colors that I saw out there consistently were the "Silver-n-Blue" during the periods of time when you were winning but at times those colors completely disappeared from site...Back in the closet so to speak...And I was driving out-a LittleRock about the time "Double J" took over and fired Tom so I was there in Dallas listening to all the crying and talkin some shit of my own so it's fare that it all comes back at me now...You were 1-15 as I recall....
What really got those boys fired-up was me telling them that their team was moving north and being renamed the "Arkansas PlowBoys"....
It's easy to kick a dog when he's down...Just ask Vick...But there's one thing you know and you believe and you fear....
"WE WILL BE BACK AND FURIOUS!!!"...
Thanks for the kind words you sent our way...
it must be killing Davis who deerves better as one of the few owners who really cares about his team and football not just a poser.
That was real Bro and I do appreciate it...It's too damn bad that far too many of the Raider fans have now lost site of that fact....I guess it's the losing that displaces the love...
PantyRaider...See Ya Fer Some Thanks Few The "V" CowGirls!!!/_
I think winning a playoff game sometime in the past 13 years should be a prerequisite to talking smack. You need to complete junior college before you start acting like you're in graduate school.
First off where in my post did I say I was a Cowboys fan.
I was a Rams fan till they left LA. Now I just follow the NFL. I was merely stating two undeniable facts:
One, that the Raiders have been awful check the stats they have the worst record in the nfl over the last six years thats right worse than the Lions. I followed the Raiders while they were in LA so I am not hapy to see them in this state but the truth can not be denied.
Two, there are way more Cowboy fans in the US than Raiders fans, that also is undeniable. Raider fans might be the most passionate and delusional but certainly cowboy fans nationwide far outnumber them.
Panty Raider you mention I made a fool of myself you my friend sound like a fool yourself by rattling off your resume and work history
I am not talking smack just stating the sad truth not trying to dump on the Raiders. As I said I appreciate Al Davis and it would be nice to see them become relevant again, unfortunetly with Russel as quarterback that is not going to happen, they would be better off starting Garcia
Sammy
Sammy - It was easy to falsely assume you were a cowboys fan.
The NFL is cyclical with many peaks and valleys.
I agree that the Raiders have been awful the past 6 years.
I don't agree that the Cowboys have more fans. If you've got any hard data to back your "undeniable" claim, pass it along.
http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/lostfan/36299/
Sammy....
You made claims about how many fans were out and about and I took it that I was communicating with a "CowGirl" fan so that's what's up with the history...One of them would understand it if they have ever lived in Texas...
You should do a better job of identifying your position if you don't want this to happen again...
I also lived and attended games in LA and know some were angry about the departure the same way fans in "OakTown" were angry about the move south....But that's un-important to be as I have no loyalties to California or anything about it except my Raiders...
Wounds heal with time and perhaps yours will too but in the interim there are several teams to follow so that's up to you....
See ya...
PantyRaider....Who'd a thunk!!!/_
excerpt from http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/lostfan/36299/
"I think that the Cowboys have the most bandwagon fans of any other team by far. People who wear a Cowboys hat when they make the playoffs, but disappear with the team when they fall out of contention.
Cowboynation, I assume you posted that article as some sort of proof that the Cowboys have more fans than the Raiders, but it's not a very good article. There's nothing even approaching hard data there. Most of it is just nonsense. I'll need something a bit more conclusive than a blog post. Hell, the Raiders aren't even mentioned, so that's the amount of foresight that dude had. :)
I think, just based off what I know, that the Cowboys may very well have more fans in this country than the Raiders, but it's undeniable what a global impact the Raiders have. It's incredible. Go to England, Thailand, China, wherever and you'll find Raiders fans. I don't think that's entirely true with the Cowboys.
"I am not talking smack just stating the sad truth not trying to dump on the Raiders. As I said I appreciate Al Davis and it would be nice to see them become relevant again, unfortunetly with Russel as quarterback that is not going to happen, they would be better off starting Garcia"
You actually raised a couple interesting points, but here I have to raise a big NO! Perhaps you might be interested in finding out what happened last year when those two quarterbacks competed head-to-head. The results may surprise you. Jamarcus really started coming along toward the end, and wound up posting better numbers in his last two games than Garcia, or even God's gifts to football Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco. Try stepping outside of ESPN for awhile. It's really quite an incredible world out here...fresh air and everything!
dear cowboynation,
we will see if the rebuilding team full of youth stomps the crap out of your oh so formidable group of "jerry's kids". yours is a team of underachieving and overconfident players, ours is a team of kids coming of age. a team on the come. a bit of advise, before the game, ask everyone around you to hold hand and start praying for your cowgirls cuz da RAIDERS are coming to town!!!!
have a happy thankgiving.
frkyraider
Ha! Jerry's kids. That's great. :)
I am huge Raider fan since 75, man its sad to read a blog like this when as Raider fans the only thing we can find to argue about is whether we have a large fan base.
I terribly miss the days when we could argue about how good the Raiders are, now it is just a bunch of crap like how great our fans are or how many Super Bowls we won years ago.
I will love the Raiders till I die but this years team doesn't look so hot to me.
Sad Sad Sad
Philip from San Mateo
We shall see about this year, Philip. What I want to see is tangible improvement. I look at 2009 as a foundational year towards becoming a playoff caliber that hinges on the development and progress of our core nucleus of younger players.
I'm not quite sure what the big deal is about a few comments about fan bases ... this was a preseason Q&A post with a Cowboys blogger. If you look through the previous 198 posts, there are countless other topics debated with the vast majority of discussions centering on Raider football.
The link that I put up was the best of anything I could find, just merely something to look at when discussing fandoms. I honestly could care less how many fans the Cowboys have or how many the Raiders have. I have been unable to find ANY statistics on the matter. The problem is that both of our teams have been crap for a while now, and all of us are tired of losing! Trying to quantify who's team is less bad is retarded! I have been through many valleys and mountain tops in my 36 years of following the Cowboys, and there will always be two constants, my love for this team, and other fans talking smack!
Well, I wouldn't say I care particularly about which team has a bigger fanbase. It was raised for discussion and I had some things to add. I do think there are probably more Cowboys fans than Raiders fans at this point in America, but I had to mention the international appeal. Incidentally, the Raiders consistently lead merchandise sales, so that may be a barometer for determining. By the way, just to clarify, I have a lot of respect for the Cowboys and Jerry Jones. Good luck out there! Nothing personal, but I hope Pretty Boy Romo goes down hard. ;)
CowBoyNation...
I’m back…
In all fairness you had “Score-Board” for the 1st quarter which in the pre-season matters the most but that’s about it….You were able to run the ball for 127yds but gave up 170 on only 26 caries…Your weakness was in the passing game…Your depth behind Romo is sick…Would you be interested in Garcia…I think he is expendable as we have two good young back-ups and the old guy should be “Odd-Man-Out”…”TradeBate”…
Not to say we have it all together….Our Run “D” is very suspect on a night when the “O” put up good #’s but the “D” still gave up too much yardage to a team trying to play “Catch-Up”….But our passing game is greatly improved from what it was and the run is already great….
As for the meeting in November don’t expect to see the same “Off-Balanced” “O” as you saw tonight….We passed twice as much as what we ran and I think the regular season will show the opposite….We just came in and worked on our weaknesses instead of showcasing our strengths…It’s the preseason so that can be expected….
Look forward to the “TurkeyDay” with ya but my take is “You Lose”..
PantyRaider…Still Improving!!!/_
VA:F [1.6.1_878]
PantyRaider, Nice game by your Raiders last night! Honestly though neither team played anything above a high school scheme! The pre season is such a difficult thing to watch, because the teams will never again run such vanilla game plans. It is basically every man for himself after the starters leave the field, which in this case was about the ten minute mark of the first quarter. I was pleased with what I saw on both sides of the ball in that first qaurter from the boys. If you take away the phantom pass interference call for 48 yards, the Dallas #1s looked much stronger than the Raider #1s. Congrats on the win though your team played a much more complete game from beginning to end! I do have one question for you though? Last night I was forced to watch the game on NFL Network, and the broadcast was done by the Raiders station, OH MY GOD! How in the HELL can you all stand to listen to that on a weekly basis? That was the worst coverage of an NFL game I have ever seen!
I don't put a lot of stock in preseason games. For what it is worth, when I viewed the game last night I was looking to see if the Raiders played with effort, execution, purpose, and tempo.
You are right, CN, it was pretty basic schemes. Nevertheless, if you were to evaluate the game on tackling, blocking, running, catching, and defending, I think the Raiders looked more 'game ready'.
Preseason is a necessary evil and tool for each team to trim down to 53.
Good luck to you this season except on Thansgiving Day!
CowBoyNation...
I'm not sure what your referring to about the Raiders station...If it was our broadcast crew from the Raiders radio network with Plunket and Artie and JT the "Brick" than I have no idea why you think it's difficult to listed to...
May I remind you I lived in Texas and had to listen to far too many stale broadcast from their crews...From where I sit it's slooooow and boooring.....But that's just my opinion...South Texas folk seemed to like it....
You want to talk about a sick crew than talk about "MonDayNight" football without Madden....Now that's just plain sick...Who the hell can stand to listen to their stupid Republican "Jokester"...
ESPN is certainly not much better with all the hell else going on instead of the freakin game....
phantom pass interference call for 48 yards
Now your eyes are slanted in favor of your "Boys"....The fact is you were without 2 of your starting "CB"s and the ones who were playing couldn't cover a second year 7th rd pick...Chaz who lit you up under "Kid" Russels arm....Get over it and try to do better come "TurkeyDay"....You effectively shut down "DHB" deep but gave-up a lot to chaz now see if your "DC" can figure that one out...
As I already said next time expect a heavy dose of running and the passing mixed in and you should worry about your "O"....Without "TO" it was NOT impressive if our #32 "D" played that well against it....
PantyRaider...Food For Thought!!!/_
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