Run DMC Has Haters on Their Heels

Good news, the media are already hating on our selection of McFadden, just as they were mocking us for considering McFadden prior to the draft.

You know you've done something right when the haters are nervous and chattering and making little sense, like saying the McFadden pick fits a typical Raiders pattern despite the fact that we haven't drafted a running back in the second round or higher for 13 years.

Witness this excerpt from the lead paragraph in the San Francisco Chronicle’s editorial—I mean, report—about the pick: "The Raiders, who start and end with Davis, decided outstanding talent trumped obvious need Saturday by drafting Arkansas running back Darren McFadden with the fourth overall pick of the NFL draft."

Ummm…We have an obvious need to score touchdowns, do we not? We're averaging 1.25 offensive touchdowns per game over the past two years, which is sub-pathetic. But that Al Davis, he’s just crazy for drafting a playmaker like Darren McFadden.

After all, in 14 games last year for the Vikings, rookie running back Adrian Peterson only scored as many touchdowns as our entire offense did in 2006.

I also love this argument about how we really shouldn’t have drafted an elite running back, and that we should have instead drafted a defensive lineman because…our top rivals have elite running backs.

In other words, remain scared instead of doing the scaring.

We’re stacked at running back? LaMont Jordan is essentially gone. That leaves us with Rhodes, who could barely crack our starting lineup last year; Bush, who is unproven at this point, and who couldn’t earn activation last year; and Fargas, who has scored six touchdowns for us in five seasons. Fargas has a history of getting injured, as does Bush. If you think any of our opponents was quivering at the thought of our running attack prior to drafting McFadden, I’ve got a bridge to sell you.

So was re-signing Fargas a mistake? No. He'll still play. If you're looking for a money mistake at running back, look no further than last year, when we paid Jordan and Rhodes millions to not play.

The anti-McFadden crowd acts like we’ve done nothing to shore up our defense. How about Gibril Wilson for Stuart Schweigert? How about DeAngelo Hall for Fabian Washington? By putting more pressure on the pass, and by having a safety who can take care of business in the open field, we will, by default, make progress in stopping the run. Kelly, Warren, Burgess, Richardson and company aren’t chopped liver, either.

Another argument I’ve heard is that running backs don’t win championships. Yes, that’s a distinction reserved for defensive tackles, right? How about we stop this nonsense about championships, anyway? How about first do something we haven’t done in five years, which is win at least six games. Then we can talk about championships.

McFadden, Russell, Bush and Miller could help us build a young foundation and offensive identity that, as we continue to plug holes on both sides of the ball over the next few years, could eventually take us to the promised land. That’s how I see it, and I’m all for it.

McFadden will light a fire under this offense. Just watch.