This is definitely some conspiracy theory propaganda, but I do see some possible underlying truths in it. There's no doubt that Al is the black sheep owner of the NFL, and that ESPN and the rest of the NFL enjoy nothing more than to see his Raiders fail.

Give it a read...

Dear Raider Nation,

The Raiders are one of the best franchises in pro-sports; not talking about in the past or morally I mean they are literally as good as New England or Baltimore. Al Davis is being forced out and is involved in a battle with minority owners who side with the NFL is getting out the league. A mutiny of minority owners backed by the league and their corporate partners to take over the Raiders so they can relocate and join most other teams in brown nosing the league office.

Its' hard to accept that Al isn't to blame for the slump but its true and the losing is on purpose. To discourage fans from attending games. The NFL hopes Al will go into debt and have to sale more shares and the whole team by 2011; with lowered attendance the new ownership would have excuse to relocate the team. Its' not about only revenge against Al but cold business. The NFL doesn't want any family owned clubs unless the family are billionaires who can finance their own stadiums. So, the Raiders are in a bad place and have no support from the media or law enforcement (Feds).

It looks like they may lose hugely and embarrassingly against the Chargers - something the NFL really wants to happen and because of the people the league has inside the Raiders to cause it to happen. But what we can do is intercept them and show our support for Mr Davis and his/ our Raiders. If you know anyone attending the game tonight tell them to e-mail others and:

1. Make signs supporting Raiders regardless of losses.
2. Booing ESPN and NFL Network
3. Letting the NFL know the fans support the Raiders.

This won't stop any fixed games but it may stop them from doing it in the future by exposing their corruption. Let high morale dominate our emotions instead of anger at Al and the Raiders when they lose this season; understand the NFL is behind most of their problems.

Monday's event will be hosted from 2:00pm - 6:30pm

Highlights of Raiderville will include:

• Half Pipe snow mountain sponsored by Coors Light, complete with a snowboard stunt demonstration.
• Raider Legends and Raiderettes will be on hand to sign autographs for fans.
• Football's Fabulous Females will be performing live, as will the new Raiders drum line.
• A 9 foot LED television screen will be available so fans can catch other NFL action.
• Food and beverages will be available for purchase.

This Monday's schedule:

• The Coors Light snowboard half pipe show will happen at 2:00pm and again at 4:30pm.
• Raider Legends Jim Otto and Daryle Lamonica will be on hand to sign autographs from 4:00pm to 5:00pm.
• The Raiders new drumline will perform at 5:15pm.
• The Raiderettes will be available for autographs at 5:15pm and will close out the event with their performance at 6:00pm.

Source: Raiders.com

Tomlinson is looking to prove his claims that he's still the best back in the NFL by running all over the Raiders on Monday Night Football.

The Raiders lead the all-time series over the Chargers (54-42-2) and also possess an impressive 15-6 win record on Monday Night Football home games.

San Diego has won the last 11 straight meetings vs the Raiders, and are expected to trounce them on Monday night in Oakland. The Chargers are 9 1/2 point favorites over the Raiders.

Seymour apparently wasn't expecting the last minute trade from New England, as he likened the news of his trade to Oakland as being "blindsided". The sudden trade didn't leave Seymour with much time to prepare for his relocation to the west coast, but he's rolling with it. He's pumped over the idea of playing in the seaoson opener and told the Boston Herald that, "I'll be the guy on top of the quarterback".

The Bay Area's unemployment rate has reached nearly 10 percent, leaving the Raiders' fan base in terrible shape economically. With fewer than 33,000 fans in attendance for the final pre-season home game vs New Orleans, it's doubtful that the Raiders will sell many tickets this season.

Unless a last minute price reduction goes into effect, ticket sales are expected to be possibly the lowest in the NFL. If six straight losing seasons, including the worst record in the NFL over the past six seasons weren't enough to dissuade fans from buying tickets, the 45-7 debacle vs the Saints may have been the deciding factor.

Unless the Raiders deliver on Monday Night Football, which is somewhat doubtful considering their recent record vs San Diego, they're in for some rough seas as far as home game ticket sales are concerned.

The San Diego Chargers are 9 1/2 point favorites over the hosting Oakland Raiders.

Frye's career began with the Cleveland Browns where he was a starter in 2006, throwing for a career best 2454 yards and 10 touchdowns. The following year he was benched after the opening game due to him showing signs of struggle in the season opener. He was later picked up by the Seatte Seahawks who ended up releasing him at the end of last season.

The Raiders are notorious for bringing in players and offering them a second chance, with Frye being no exception. Although he's been out of work since the end of the 2008 season, the Raiders are looking for him to come in and compete. the Raiders are also looking to bolster a position that's been inconsistent ever since the Gannon era.

"We really just want to have enough arms and to create competition," head coach Tom Cable said. "It's a little bit of both, just have enough (quarterbacks) to throw and have guys around."

Tom Cable
Raiders Head Coach

Source: AP News

Frye is eager to begin training camp in six weeks and hopefully prove his worth by securing the number three spot behind Garcia. After being out of a job for awhile and knowing that he doesn't have much time to prepare for the 2009 pre-season, Fry knows he's got his work cut out for him.

"I'll just camp out up here," Frye joked following Wednesday's OTA practice. "I'll probably put one of those air mattresses in the QB room and just hang out."

Charlie Frye

Source: AP News

Heyward-Bey wowed scouts at the NFL combine when he turned in the fastest 40 time of any of the receivers entering the draft. Those familiar with the Raiders organization and their drafting habits know that speed has always been a commodity held in the highest regard by Mr. Davis.

Obviously, the Raiders are looking for Darrius Heyward-Bey to be a real playmaker for them coming into the '09 season. The Raiders are currently lacking any real threats at the WR position, so it'll be important that the first round pick be able to step in right away and make an impact for his football team.

Many analysts feel that the more polished recievers, Crabtree and Maclin, would have been a safer bet at 7th overall. However, Oakland is viewing Heyward-Bey as their speedy gem in the rough. Hopefully they're right about this guy.

Curry struggled along with the rest of the Raiders offense last season, amassing a mere 19 receptions for 181 yards. Prior to that, he averaged 50 plus catches in three out of four seasons, with the exception being the 2005 season where he was out most of the year because of an injury to his achilles' tendon. Curry hopes to make a positive impact on the Lions' squad and plans to re-invent himself in Detroit.

"I talked to a lot of other teams, but a lot of teams wanted to wait until after the draft, and I felt like the longer I waited, the worse position I was going to be in", said Curry. "Right now I'm just basically trying to make the team. It seems like a talented receiver group, but I talked to the coach and he said it's a great place to reinvent yourself. So I'm just looking for the opportunity to go out there and still show people I can play."

Lions' coach Jim Schwartz recognizes Detroit's need for a reciever in the slot position, and sees Curry as a perfect candidate for that role.

"He's had a lot of production in the slot and with Calvin and Bryant Johnson outside, we have a need for a slot receiver. As a defensive coach, I've gone against him a lot of times and he fits there."

Curry is optimistic about his role as the slot receiver for Detroit. He feels his best years with the Raiders were when Norv Turner was head coach, and was working Curry in the slot position.

"That's kind of how I really became who I was in Oakland. When Norv (Turner) was there, he really worked me in the slot, making a lot of plays. With three receivers, I can play outside, but I'm more effective inside. And I think I could help this team out a lot in the slot."

Curry will be playing with a familiar face in former teammate Daunte Culpepper. Culpepper was among the list of starting Quarterbacks for Oakland during the 2007 season. Curry had some of his better games with Culpepper throwing to him, and he looks forward to the chemistry continuing in Detroit.

"I think our chemistry will be good," Curry said. "We had good chemistry in Oakland, the time that he played. The playbook was a little limited for him, because he joined us late, and then he wasn't playing and then he was playing and then he got hurt at the end.

"But he looks great now. He looks like he's in better shape than he was when he came out to Oakland. He's real fiery right now, and I think he's gonna do a great job."

Source: The Detroit News

The first of which is wide receiver. Last year Johnnie Lee Higgins led all receivers with 22 receptions during the 2008 season. It doesn't get much more abysmal than that. The Raiders are predicted to take either Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree or Missouri's Jeremy Maclin with their 7th overall pick. Darrius Heyward-Bey, who's projected as a late first rounder or possibly early second-rounder, may also be in the runnings. Heyward-Bey ran the fastest 40 of any receiver at the scouting combine, and anyone who's followed the Raiders' trend of drafting speedy receivers knows how important that is to Mr. Davis.

Secondly, the Raiders need some help on their offensive line. Oakland has sorely needed some capable blocking at tackle since they drafted Robert Gallery back in 2003. So far gallery hasn't demonstrated first-round quality for the Raiders, so their need for talent at the tackle position has yet to be fulfilled.

Right now it's looking like Baylor's Jason Smith, Virginia's Eugene Monroe, and Alabama's Andre Smith are the top prospects. By the time the Raiders are on the clock, Jason Smith will most likely have already been picked up. Andre Smith is a controversial choice, and could likely be a detriment to an already troubled and dysfunctional locker room. If the raiders are to move on an offensive tackle at number 7, then Monroe would probably be their guy.

Lastly, after ranking 31st against the run in 2008, it's certain that the Raiders need a big run stuffer on the defensive line. Boston College's B.J. Raji should still be around at number 7 and could step in right away and make an impact for the Raiders.

Another scenario has the Raiders doing the unthinkable, which would be trading down. The Raiders have never traded down in the first round, but this year would be a good time to break that rule. If the Raiders were to trade their 1st round pick to a team like Philly who is looking to trade up, they could almost assuredly pick up a great receiver like Heyward-Bey and a solid DT. Chances are that won't happen, but you never know. This offseason has been very promising and fairly unpredictable where Oakland is concerned.

Two other receivers, Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree and Missouri's Jeremy Maclin have both been linked to the Raiders as being possible first round picks in the upcoming NFL Draft.

Heyward-Bey may have caught the raiders' attention after he turned in the fastest 40 at the NFL scouting combine (4.3 seconds). No one who follows the Raiders has to be told that speed on offense has always been a priority of the silver and black. Listed at 6'3" and 206 lbs, Heyward-Bey would bring a lot of speed and toughness to the WR position for Oakland. He's also regarded as one of the best jump-ball receivers in the nation.

At least two prominent prognosticators have recently penciled in Darrius Heyward-Bey as the Raiders 7th overall pick in the 2009 draft.