Houston Bias NFL Preseason Power Rankings #31 - Oakland Raiders

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Don't expect this smile to be around for much longer.. 

      When you start out training camp with the likes of Matt Flynn, Terrelle Pryor, and Tyler Wilson competing for the starting QB position, there isn't much to get excited about. The Raiders have been a team on the decline for awhile now as a series of bad drafts have put them in the position that they find themselves in today. The most recent of these draft busts, Darrius Heyward-Bey, was allowed to walk which shows some positive signs of life at the GM position for the Raiders. Reggie McKenzie hasn't been at the the helm long enough for a verdict to be put out, but it certainly seems like the Raiders are attempting to take steps in the right direction. The Raiders used their first selection this year on CB DJ Hayden out of Houston and could have a huge payout if he can remain healthy and return to the form he had before his life-threatening injury. Other than some positive steps that management is making, the rest is all downhill for the Raiders. They have one legitimate receiver in Denarius Moore and he certainly isn't making any of those QBs look better than they are. Darren McFadden has proven to not be the most durable of backs and needs to remain 100 percent healthy for the Raiders to have a shot at competing this year. If he goes down, the Raiders are left to rely on a passing attack that rivals the Jets for the worst in the league.  Things might be even worse on defense, as the signing of Charles Woodson clearly suggests. This is a team that has been putting a makeshift secondary together for years ever since Asomugha left for the Eagles. Things won't be any different this year, even with the stellar addition of Hayden to that unit. With no names worth mentioning on the D Line after the departure of Richard Seymour and Tommy Kelly, teams will be looking to run all over the Raiders this year. There is almost no run D to speak of and as mentioned earlier, the secondary isn't quite there this year. Look for the Silver & Black to stumble out of the gates this year and trip all the way to the finish line.