“Different and improved….”

   It has been 10 years since the Oakland Raiders and New England Patriots met in frigid Foxboro Stadium for an AFC Divisional Playoff game which has become to be known at the “Tuck Rule Game.”  Images of that snowy night still haunt many a Raider fan, including myself.  Although you may not need to relive the gory details, in the play, Raiders’ CB Charles Woodson got to and sacked Patriots’  QB Tom Brady, which in turn, seemed to caused a fumble that was recovered by Raiders’  LB Greg Biekert. Officials reviewed the play, and determined that Brady’s arm was moving forward, thus making it an incomplete pass. As a result, the original call was overturned, and the ball was given back to the Patriots, who then moved the ball into field goal range. With under a minute remaining in regulation, New England’s Adam Vinatieri kicked a 45-yard field goal to tie the game at 13, sending the game into a nail-biting overtime.. In overtime, Vinatieri kicked a 23-yard field goal to win the game for the Patriots, 16 to 13, crushing Oakland’s Super Bowl dreams that year.  As you know, New England went on to beat the St Louis Rams 20-17 in SB 36.. That was probably the lst time the Raiders and Patriots have met in a meaningful game until now.

This Sunday, Tom Brady, his hair, and the rest of the New England Patriots return to Oakland to face a much improved Oakland Raiders who are coming off a huge victory over the New York Jets and are looking to go 3-1.  A win Sunday against New England would quite possibly validate the coaching change from Tom Cable to Hue Jackson and also most certainly show the rest of the NFL that the Raiders are for real this year.  Said Coach Jackson earlier this week, “It’s a group that one, expects to win, It’s a group that works to win. It’s a group that is becoming something and they’re working at it each and every day. I think they can see the vision, that they have an opportunity, regardless of who we play, where we play to win.”

“But I hope the rest of the league can see this is a different and improved football team.”

“Different and improved..” Those are words that have been spoken many times since the Raiders last winning season of 2002, but without much backing.  Even though it is only week 4 of the 2011 season, a victory Sunday against the Patriots would indeed go a long way into finally giving the saying “different and improved” some real meaning.  Already a “big” game for both teams, Sundays match-up between Oakland and New England  could go a long way into looking into the crystal ball for the rest of the 2011 season. 

“Different and improved.”  We shall see how much different and how improved our beloved Oakland Raiders really are Sunday..

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This stretch run will be different for Jaguars

There’s no doubt a lot is on the line right now for everyone involved with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

It was easy to see this season was going to be pivotal for the Jaguars. Not only for the coach and the quarterback, but for an entire organization that wasn’t selling out games and had to run campaigns to avoid television blackouts. The team’s future in Jacksonville was also very much in jeopardy.

Everyone knew then that Jack Del Rio‘s job was up in the air. There was a lot of talk about whether David Garrard was the real deal and a franchise quarterback. Another failed season would bring about drastic changes, including the threat of the organization moving. Jaguars fans need to respond, but we all know they’re not going to respond to a team that drops the ball two Decembers in a row.

Last year, the Jaguars went 0-4 after a 7-5 start and missed the playoffs. Entering Week 14, the Jaguars found themselves right back at that 7-5 point. But what leads me to believe the stretch run will be different this time around is not only that Del Rio has taken a different approach, but also because young leaders have emerged for the Jaguars.

Del Rio has become more of a player’s coach this season. As Garrard told me, Del Rio is no longer coming down hard on players at stressful points. He’s enjoying the entire process, including coaching the young players, more this season. I think that manifested itself in the win over the Raiders.

The Jaguars are a young team that is growing up a little bit. I know that Maurice Jones-Drew pulled the team together at halftime against the Raiders and told them their time was now. Then they went out and did it. When Aaron Kampman went down, it was Terrence Knighton who called a meeting with the defensive line. Since then, their run defense has been stellar. When the Jaguars got behind last season, Garrard struggled to be a leader and displayed an inability to bring them back. Now he’s helping the team finish strong late in games.

I’m seeing young players step up and become significant leaders, and it leads me to believe the Jaguars have the right stuff.

Now they have to prove they can do it on the road in Indy, the ultimate test for this organization. That’s no easy task, but they stand one game away from accomplishing it. If they beat Indianapolis next week, you can go ahead and hand a playoff spot to the Jaguars.

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Tide's 'O' takes on different direction

Mark Ingram has never been one to get too caught up in numbers.

That is, unless you’re talking about wins and losses.

The number that gets his attention this season is Alabama’s 9-2 record and not the Crimson Tide’s rushing numbers, which are nowhere near where they were a year ago during their national championship run.

[+] Enlarge AP Photo/Danny JohnstonAlthough Alabama running back Mark Ingram is having a great season, the Tide running game isn't as prolific as last year.“There are reasons for that,” said Ingram, who rushed for 1,658 yards last season on his way to becoming Alabama’s first Heisman Trophy winner.

“But the main thing on our minds is putting forth our best effort this week and having our best week of preparation. We haven’t had our best game as a team yet. We’ve made some strides to accomplish that these past two games, but we all want to come together this game, make sure everybody’s on the same page, and that’s what will give us the best chance to have success in this game.”

Ingram and his talented backfield mate, Trent Richardson, have combined for 1,414 rushing yards heading into Friday’s Auburn game.

Those are solid numbers for any duo over 18 games. But when you consider they combined for 2,409 yards a year ago, it’s obvious Alabama’s running game simply hasn’t been what it was last season.

Everybody in Tide Land wants to know why.

Well, injuries have clearly played a big role. Ingram tore meniscus in his knee, underwent arthroscopic surgery in the preseason and missed the first two games. Richardson has also been banged up, battling a sore knee lately and resting the last two games.

There was also a period earlier this season where Ingram was having some swelling. But ever since the open date right before the LSU game, he said he’s felt fine and refuses to use his knee injury as an excuse.

“Ever since the bye week, my knee has felt better than ever,” he said. “There hasn’t been any swelling or anything else. So, it’s a lot better. These past two games, I’ve felt great as far as my knee is concerned, and my body feels good.”

Ingram has 780 rushing yards and Richardson 634 yards. Even more telling, Ingram has carried the ball just 136 times. He had 271 rushing attempts a year ago in 14 games. Richardson has 92 carries after carrying it 145 times last season.

The Crimson Tide finished last season with 601 rushing attempts and 346 pass attempts.

Already this season, they’ve thrown it 298 times, while running it 393 times.

With the way defenses are playing Alabama, Ingram said the Crimson Tide would be foolish not to take their chances throwing the ball.

“It’s how teams have played us, loading the box and leaving man coverage on the outside,” Ingram said. “That’s contributed to how explosive we’ve been in the passing game. It’s just not smart to run the ball right at where they’ve overloading to a side, so we’ve checked out a lot to pass plays.

“It’s just the way teams have been playing us, not to let us beat them running the ball.”

The good news for Alabama is that Ingram is fresh, really fresh.

“I’m feeling great as opposed to how most people feel at this point in the season,” said Ingram, who had limited work in the 63-7 rout of Georgia State last Thursday.

“All I can tell you is that I’m ready for whatever they need me to do to finish out this season the right way.”

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