There are a few different winning models in the NFL. The Patriots have been the most successful with their "team first" model. The Steelers have the balanced attack of running/passing on offense, and the aggressive defense. And then there is the "outscore the other guy" approach used by the Colts, Chiefs, and (until the Moss trade) the Vikings.
The Colts have decided to stick to their plan next year, even though it is a proven playoff failure. The Chiefs learned a hard lesson this year and appear to be going defense this off-season. And the Vikings have forced their own hand through the Moss trade and their fiscal stingy-ness, and are now pursuing a running offense and better defense.
Leave it to Al Davis to believe that he can buck the trends and win where nobody else has been able to. The Raiders have apparently abandoned all hope of playing defense for the next few years and are now stocking up on offensive weapons.
Oakland has signed Jerry Porter and has now acquired Randy Moss and Lamont Jordan. And to do so, they have used up most of their cap room, and given away some important draft picks. It looks like the Raiders have carefully studied the Colts, Chiefs, and Vikings, and decided that those teams are sooooo successfull that they must be duplicated.
The Raiders did get to the Super Bowl a few years ago, using a similar strategy. That Super Bowl was the last of the big-time blowouts. With Tampa Bay displaying the winning formula and Oakland showing once again that offense does NOT win championships.
The problem with next year's Raiders will be that the defense will be nowhere near the caliber of defense that they took into the last Super Bowl. And the offense will only be marginally better than that team's was, statistically speaking. Oakland is following the wrong formula, and will soon be experiencing what the Colts have been recently; regular-season success followed by multiple playoff failures.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment