Horse Tracks 8/19/08

on the running game could use some perspective.

He says that 2300 yards rushing is a magic number for making the playoffs, and he bases it on the historical record, but two things need to be highlighted:

The early playoff showings had TD as the back. The later playoff showings had unreliable QB play. All that time the running game was the strength of the team, but Shanahan is a head coach, not a Central Planner. If his players are more suited to being a passing team then that is what he will do. I wonder how many people plan on being surprised by our passing game…

The Broncos went to the playoffs for almost two decades on the strength of one QBs arm. They are about to do it again.

reports that Kiffin isn’t exactly pleased with Javon Walker so far:

So again, Raiders coach Lane Kiffin wants Walker to provide results worthy of the six-year, $55 million contract ($16 million is guaranteed) he signed in March.

Kiffin didn’t think the Raiders got their money’s worth from Walker in Friday’s 17-16 exhibition-game loss at Tennessee. He had a drop on the third play of the game, just as he did in the first exhibition game against the 49ers.

“There’s a couple of balls there that we would have liked him to come up with,” Kiffin said during the opening statement of his teleconference Saturday.

“That’s discouraging because he was paid an awful lot of money, paid like one of the top five receivers in the NFL. We need him to make those plays.”

Kiffin has been criticizing Walker since Raiders owner Al Davis brokered the free-agent deal with the one-time Pro Bowler.

During offseason workouts, Kiffin said Walker wasn’t in good shape. At training camp, Kiffin brought up Walker’s work ethic at practice, saying he was trying to break Walker’s mentality of turning it on only when the “lights are on.” He also worried out loud about Walker’s flirtation with retirement two weeks in.

last week. He had what should have been an easy catch for first down (on the third play of the game) that went through his hands.

On the next series he was in position, but didn’t make much of an effort to get at the high ball (even the fader commentators thought it was a pretty weak attempt at the ball).

I don’t think they threw to him after that.