Bay Area Football Fans in for a Long Year

by Mark Ortega

                While September means the end of baseball’s regular season, it also means the NFL is finally set to kickoff. After four weeks of meaningless pre-season games, the final rosters have been set and the long road to the Super Bowl is just beginning.

                Last year’s season looks like it will be hard to be topped. Its many interesting storylines and surprises captivated fans of every team. The Kansas City Chiefs’ quest for perfection being destroyed by the lowly Cincinnati Bengals, the New England Patriots winning their second Super Bowl in three years and a Super Bowl halftime show costume malfunction all made last season one of the more memorable ones.

                To everyone’s surprise, the Oakland Raiders completely fell apart, less than one season removed from being thrashed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII. After being that close to winning their first championship in over twenty years, they went on to post a league-worst 3-13 record.

                Following the disappointing season, they fired head coach Bill Callahan, and now turn to Norv Turner to right the Raiders ship. It was a busy off-season for the Raiders, who signed the controversial Warren Sapp and veteran Ted Washington to improve last season’s third worst defense.

                On the offensive side of the ball, they let running back Charlie Garner go, picked up Kerry Collins to push Rich Gannon for the starting quarterback job, and cut fan-favorite and holder of most Raiders receiving records, Tim Brown. With the third selection in the draft they selected offensive lineman Robert Gallery , who looks to quickly improve the Raiders’ porous offensive line.

                Although they were able to compile a deeper team through the off-season, most analysts don’t think it will be enough to get them close to where they were two years ago. If they were to finish anything higher than 8-8, it would be a successful first season for Turner.

                While the Raiders were quite busy in the off-season, the San Francisco 49ers were almost completely idle. They’ve changed almost the entire squad, from the coaching staff to the offense. Both Jim Mora and Greg Knapp (their previous offensive and defensive coordinators) left the 49ers and joined the Atlanta Falcons.

                Along with a new coaching staff, their entire offense was revamped. Terrell Owens was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, Jeff Garcia joined the Cleveland Browns, and Garrison Hearst became a Denver Bronco. Tim Rattay, who started a few games in Garcia’s absence via injury last year, is in position to be the starter. If Rattay should falter, or not be fully recovered from a groin injury he suffered, former Heisman winning quarterback Ken Dorsey will take over.

                Kevan Barlow is the offense’s only proven weapon, but he has had problems battling injuries in the past as well. Through the draft they selected wide receiver Rashaun Woods, who will lineup along side Brandon Lloyd and Cedric Wilson.

                The team’s strongest point is their defense, which returns Julian Peterson, Andre Carter, and Tony Parrish among others. But the defense won’t be able to make up for the sub-par offense, and it looks like it will be a tough challenge for head coach Dennis Erickson.

                It looks like a year of rebuilding in the bay, and the only thing fans of the 49ers and Raiders can look forward to is which of their teams will post a better record.