Misery

The forces of evil prevailed decisively.

Outplayed, outcoached, outwitted, outhustled, and overpowered, the Seahawks made fools of Tony Dungy and anyone else who mistook us for the best team in the NFC.

Our defense played respectably for much of the game. However, our offense’s inability to sustain drives forced the defense to stay on the field far too long, so our D naturally wore down.

We can’t pin this one on Hasselbeck. Despite poor play from the O-Line, getting nailed for nine sacks, and having zero run support, our quarterback performed impressively, putting ball after ball on target, only to get let down repeatedly by his stone-handed receiving corps.

Seattle’s offensive coordinator Jeremy Bates called another bad game, dialing up uninspired and predictable playcalls for much of the game. Bates has had success calling plays for Denver in 2008, but he seems to have lost his touch. Or perhaps our roster turns over so fast that he can’t adapt his playcalls to our personnel.

 Why can’t a giant like Mike Williams dominate corners who try to bump him at the line?

Leon Washington did his part, posting a few big returns. But our inept offense simply squandered the good field position granted by Hawks special teams unit.

When the normally clutch Olindo Mare misses his first two field goals, you know it’s a bad day for Seattle.

Even the ball bounced in the Raiders’ favor, first on the Immaculate Reception by Marcel Reece, and then again on the “interception” by Tijuan Branch. (It always bothers me when a quarterback gets charged with an interception when the ball was on target, but the receiver bobbled it into the defender’s hands. I think wideouts should be charged with the turnover in that case.)

Props to Oakland for converting UW alumnus Marcel Reece to fullback, and installing packages to exploit his ability as a receiver. Earlier today, I argued that the Raiders have never had a truly great fullback, but Reece could develop into one for them.

It’s nice to see Jason Campbell—unfairly maligned as a Redskin—have another good week, justifying the faith that his former coach Jim Zorn had in him. (Why does Tom Cable continue to insist that Bruce Gradkowski is the starter?)

Congratulations to Oakland, and to Raidergrrl. Also, thanks for the material, Raidergrrl.