OK, after much deliberation I have decided to start with that which sickens me the least: The Raiders special teams play. Sebastian Janikowski had a fairly consistent season, going 19/19 on tries under 40 yards. His long distance numbers were not all that pretty (2/4 from 40-49 yards and 3/7 from 50+) but one of his misses was from this play where Lane Kiffin basically begged Al Davis to fire him. He was pretty solid on his kickoffs, tying his career high with 22 touch backs. He also managed to not drug or rape anyone (that we know of) and is pretty much now forever a part of the Raiders organization. While he has never lived up to the hype that comes with being a kicker drafted in the first round, he is at the very least an adequate kicker who has moments of awesomeness.
Drafted the same year as Janikowski, Shane Lechler is one of the best in the business. He lead the league in net average and is making his 4th trip to the Pro Bowl. He rules.
What can I say about Johnnie Lee Higgins that I didn't spend the better part of the season saying? He was balls out awesome, overcoming a rough patch in the middle of the season to return three punts for TDs and averaged 13 yards a pop. He is a legit weapon (pretty much the only one they have) and I am giddy about his future.
Justin Miller was brought in at mid season and was a revelation. Johnnie Lee was wearing down from pulling double duty and Miller was just what the doctor ordered. He ended up returning 2 kickoffs for touchdowns with a 24.8 yard average per return and appears to be 100% recovered from the knee injury that derailed his once promising career. He did a great job in reviving his game and I am hopeful that he sticks around.
The kickoff and punt coverage units were OK, which is a big step up from where they've been in recent years. Jon Alston and Ike Ekejiuba are coverage monsters who could end up being Pro Bowlers some day. John Fassel did a pretty good job coaching this unit and deserves to be back again, regardless of who ends up being the coach.
Overall Grade: A
Yep, a team that won 5 games had one really big bright spot. Lechler continues to cement himself as one of the best punters in history and Seabass was solid. Higgins, Miller, Alston and Ekejiuba made this special teams crew one to look out for and provide me with something resembling hope going into next season. The fact that I find comfort in special fucking teams play should tell you all you need to know about my outlook on next year, but we'll tackle that in due time.
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