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| WR Ronald Curry's one-handed heroics helped the Raiders upset the Broncos on November 28, 2004 at INVESCO Field at Mile High in Denver. |
Tony Gonzales |
THIS WEEK: The Oakland Raiders, members of the American Football Conference Western Division, face the AFC West Broncos for the second time in 2008 on Sunday, this time in Denver. The Raiders faced every AFC Western Division opponent in the first four weeks of the 2008 NFL regular season—Denver in Week 1, Kansas City in Week 2 and San Diego in Week 4.
TELEVISION: The game will be televised on CBS with Dick Enberg providing play-by-play and former NFL performer Randy Cross handling color analysis. The game will air locally on KPIX Channel 5. The game will also air in Sacramento on KOVR Channel 13 as well as on KHSL in Chico, KION in Monterey and KJEO in Fresno.
RADIO: The game will air on Raiders Radio originating on KSFO 560 AM, the Silver and Black Flagship for the multi-state Radio Network. Greg Papa and former Raiders player, assistant and head coach Tom Flores will man the booth for the 12th straight year. The radio pregame show and postgame show will feature Raider Legends George Atkinson and David Humm along with KGO’s Rich Walcoff.
SPANISH RADIO: Univision radio station KLOK 1170 AM serves as the team’s official flagship station for The Oakland Raiders Spanish radio broadcasts. Armando Botello and Angel Dinamita handle announcing duties. Popular radio personalities Victor Zaragoza and Sal Acevedo are the sideline reporters.
RAIDERS-BRONCOS SERIES: The Raiders lead the series 54-40-2 over the Broncos in regular season play since the teams first met in 1960. The teams are 1-1 in the postseason.
LAST TIME: The Oakland Raiders lost to the Denver Broncos, 41-14 in the 2008 regular season opener in Oakland.
LAST WEEK: The Oakland Raiders lost to the Dolphins in Miami, 17-15. Sebastian Janikowski connected on two field goals, Jay Richardson recorded a safety and Johnnie Lee Higgins returned a punt 93 yards for a score.
NEXT WEEK: The Oakland Raiders play the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, November 30 at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.
Raiders Kickers Rewriting Record Books
JANIKOWSKI SETS RAIDERS SCORING RECORD: After converting on two field goals on November 11 against the Carolina Panthers—from 38 and 45 yards—K Sebastian Janikowski became the Raiders’ all-time leading scorer with 865 points. He moved past Pro Football Hall of Famer George Blanda (863) for the Silver and Black’s all-time lead in scoring. Janikowski scored 11 points (3-3, field goals, 2-2, PATs) on September 14 at Kansas City to move past Chris Bahr (817) into second place on the Raiders’ all-time scoring list. Janikowski has averaged 101 points per season since entering the NFL as the Raiders first round choice in the 2000 NFL Draft. He has scored more than 100 points in a season four times during his career. Bahr scored 817 points during his Raider career which spanned from 1980-88. Blanda spent 1967-75 with the Silver and Black.
BIG BOOTS: Sebastian Janikowski’s 57-yard game-winning field goal in overtime on October 19 against the New York Jets at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum broke his own team record for longest field goal in Raider history. The kick marked the second time in 2008 that Janikowski broke his own team record. Janikowski’s 56-yard field goal during the September 14 contest against the Chiefs in Kansas City broke his own team record. Janikowski also tied a then-team record with a 55-yard field goal in the November 12, 2006 contest against Denver which he set on a 55-yarder on November 2, 2003 versus the Lions in Detroit.
RECORD FOR OT: Sebastian Janikowski’s 57-yard game winner against the New York Jets set an NFL mark for longest field goal to win an overtime game in league history, surpassing Green Bay’s Chris Jacke’s 53-yarder on 10/14/96 in a 23-20 Packers win over San Francisco.
RECORD ATTEMPT: Sebastian Janikowski set a Raiders record for longest field goal attempt with a 76-yard try on September 28 against the San Diego Chargers. Janikowski set the previous Raiders mark last season, attempting a 64-yard field goal against Houston on November 4, 2007.
LECHLER MOVING UP PUNTING CHARTS: P Shane Lechler is now second in Raiders history in number of punts and total yards. He has also increased his career average to 46.7.
LECHLER PUNTING AVERAGE TOPS IN NFL HISTORY: Shane Lechler’s 46.7-yard punting average is the highest in NFL history for players with at least 250 attempts. He reached the qualifier of 250 punts during the 11/23/03 contest at Kansas City. He surpassed Pro Football Hall of Famer Sammy Baugh (45.1).
LECHLER AT 50: P Shane Lechler has picked up where he left off, recording punts of more than 50 yards in every game of the 2008 regular season. Lechler had at least one punt of 50 yards or longer in 13 games in 2007. He set an NFL record with 33 straight games with a punt of 50 or more yards, the longest streak since the NFL/AFL merger in 1970. The streak extended from 11/30/03 vs. Denver until 12/11/05 at N.Y. Jets. During the record-setting streak, he topped 50 yards 65 times with 12 punts of over 60.
BIG BOOT: Shane Lechler’s 70-yard punt in the first quarter of the Raiders’ September 28 contest against the San Diego Chargers marked the sixth 70-plus yard punt of his career. Lechler fell just three yards short of his career-long punt, set exactly five years prior (9/28/03) against San Diego.
OVER 60: Shane Lechler has also posted 10 punts of 60 yards or longer in 2008. He boomed multiple punts of 60 or longer in three contests.
CAREER-HIGH: Shane Lechler set a career-high with 11 punts against the Panthers on November 9, eclipsing his previous career-high of 10 set against San Diego in 2000. The total is tied for the second-highest single-game punt total in franchise history. Leo Araguz punted 16 times against the Chargers in a 1998 contest.
Raiders at Broncos Game Notes
PUNT RETURNS: Johnnie Lee Higgins got his first punt return for a touchdown on a career-long 93-yarder on November 16 against the Dolphins in Miami. The 93-yard score late in the contest put the Raiders ahead, 15-14, and was the second-longest in team history, topped only by Greg Pruitt’s 97-yard return for a touchdown on 10/2/83 against the Redskins at Washington. Higgins’ previous long for 2008 was 35 yards on 10/12 against the Saints in New Orleans. Higgins recorded the longest punt return by the Raiders in 2007, a 54-yarder on 12/30 against the San Diego Chargers in Oakland.
SAFETY SACK: DE Jay Richardson was credited with a sack and safety during the November 16 contest against the Dolphins in Miami. It was the second safety for the Raiders defense this season, as S Gibril Wilson made a tackle in the end zone against San Diego on September 28.
MILLER TIME: TE Zach Miller leads the Raiders in catches (29) and yards (430) so far during the 2008 season. He led the Raiders in catches in the 2008 regular season opener on September 8 versus Denver with four and tied for the team lead with two during the September 14 contest at Kansas City. Miller also tied for the team lead with three catches on October 12 at New Orleans when he was first in passing yardage (46). Miller has one or more pass receptions in 24 of 26 pro games. He caught the longest pass of his pro career on September 28 against San Diego, connecting with QB JaMarcus Russell for a 63-yard score.
HIGHEST AVG. IN NFL AMONG TEs: TE Zach Miller is averaging 14.8 yards per reception, which is tops among NFL tight ends with at least 25 catches. Miller, the Raiders’ second round pick in the 2007 draft out of Arizona State, led all NFL rookie tight ends with 44 receptions in 2007.
SACK ATTACK: The Raiders have recorded 24 sacks in 2008, registering multiple sacks in seven contests. The Raiders registered five sacks during the September 14 contest versus the Chiefs at Kansas City.
FOUR IN FOUR: DE Kalimba Edwards recorded a sack in four consecutive games. He registered his fourth sack of 2008 in as many games on October 12 against the Saints in New Orleans and had sacks in each of the previous three games. Edwards added another on November 2 against Atlanta to total a team-leading five. Edwards was inactive for the 2008 regular season opener due to injury.
BLOCKED PUNT: LB Isaiah Ekejiuba recorded the first blocked punt his pro career during the November 2 contest against the Atlanta Falcons. The last Raider to block punt was Nnamdi Asomugha on November 11, 2004 at Carolina against the Panthers.
WILSON PICK: S Gibril Wilson, who led the Silver and Black in tackles during the October 19 win over the New York Jets in Oakland with 11, intercepted a pass in the end zone to thwart a potential Jets scoring drive in the second quarter. The interception was his first as a Raider and the 12th of his pro career.
GO LONG: QB JaMarcus Russell completed the longest pass of his two-year pro career, connecting with WR Johnnie Lee Higgins for an 84-yard score during the September 21 contest versus the Bills in Buffalo. He connected on the second-longest on September 28 against the San Diego Chargers, hooking up with TE Zach Miller for a 63-yard score. Russell had a 60-yard completion to rookie WR Chaz Schilens on October 26 against the Ravens in Baltimore.
BUSH OUT OF THE BACKFIELD: RB Michael Bush led the Raiders with five receptions for 43 yards against the Carolina Panthers on November 9, marking the third time this season that the first-year player has led the team in receptions. Bush hauled in a career-high seven passes for 80 yards against San Diego on September 28, and he ranks second on the team with 18 receptions for 156 yards so far this year.
FORCED FUMBLE: CB Chris Johnson recorded his first forced fumble as a Raider versus the Dolphins at Miami on November 16. The fumble was recovered by S Gibril Wilson, his team-leading second of the year.
KICKOFF RETURNS: Johnnie Lee Higgins returned a kickoff a career-long 69 yards to set up the first score of the day during the September 21 contest versus the Bills in Buffalo. Higgins also returned a punt 20 yards against Buffalo, the longest of his two-year pro career. Higgins also returned a kickoff 42 yards in the fourth quarter of the September 14 contest against the Chiefs in Kansas City, which at the time was the second longest of his professional career. He had a 58-yard return in the season opener against the Broncos on September 8 and a 39-yarder on September 28 against the San Diego Chargers.
PICK FOUR: The Raiders intercepted Panthers QB Jake Delhomme four times on November 9 versus the Carolina Panthers at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. It was the first time the Raiders had four interceptions in a game since October 29, 2006 when the Silver and Black recorded a 20-13 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers at McAfee Coliseum. S Rashad Baker had two of the Raiders’ four picks, matching his career total entering the season. CB Nnamdi Asomugha intercepted his first pass of the year, and the 10th of his pro career, while LB Sam Williams collected his first career interception as a pro. The franchise record for interceptions in a game is six, set on October 29, 1972 against the Los Angeles Rams in Oakland.
BAKER’S PAIR: S Rashad Baker, who recorded two interceptions on November 9 versus the Carolina Panthers at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, is the first Raider to record multiple interceptions in a game since current teammate Nnamdi Asomugha collected the first two picks of his career against the Cleveland Browns on October 1, 2006.
QUARTERBACK ACTION: QB Andrew Walter made the start against the Carolina Panthers on November 9 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, marking his first regular season action since December 9, 2007 versus the Packers at Green Bay. It was also Walter’s first start since the 2006 season when he started eight times and saw action in 12 games for the Silver and Black. Marques Tuiasosopo also saw time at QB against the Panthers, subbing for Walter in the fourth quarter. It marked his first action since October of 2006 when he played in two games for the Raiders. Tuiasosopo also saw time under center versus the Dolphins at Miami on November 16, playing in one series during the second quarter.
Firsts in 2008
Justin Miller saw his first action as a Raider, returning four kickoffs for 84 yards with a long of 40 on November 16 versus the Dolphins in Miami. Miller, who went to the Pro Bowl in 2006 as a kick returner, was claimed by the Raiders after being waived by the New York Jets.
Rookie WR Chaz Schilens started his first game as a pro against the New York Jets on October 19.
S Hiram Eugene started his first game in 2008 and sixth of his pro career on October 19 against the New York Jets at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.
CB Chris Johnson intercepted the first pass of his pro career during the September 28 contest against San Diego, returning it 12 yards.
DE Trevor Scott recorded the first sack of his career, collecting two against the Jets on October 19.
Rookie Tyvon Branch recorded the first interception of his pro career on September 14 at Kansas City. Branch, who has been placed on IR, got his first chance to return a kickoff during the October 12 contest at New Orleans, returning it 11 yards.
WR Todd Watkins saw his first action of 2008 and as a Raider during the November 2 contest against the Atlanta Falcons at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. Watkins, who had been inactive for the first seven regular season games, saw action on both special teams and at wide receiver.
FB Luke Lawton made his first career start against the Falcons on November 2.
LB Marquis Cooper, DT William Joseph and CB Michael Waddell saw their first action as Raiders during the November 9 contest against the Carolina Panthers at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. All three were signed during the week leading up to the game versus the Panthers.