Factoid
I was surprised the Raiders fired Tom Cable. They improved from 5-11 to 8-8, and their offense was a lot better.
Looking at the numbers closer, in fact, I see that their offense was the most improved since the Rams exploded into a powerhouse and won the Super Bowl after the 1999 season.
Since the move to the 16-game season in 1978, only a handful of teams have improved by over 10 points per game, and a lot of those teams are historically noteworthy. The undefeated Patriots, the 15-1 Vikings, the Saints from 2006 (that was the first year there for Brees and Payton). I also see the 1981 Bengals and 2006 Bears, who both went to Super Bowls.
MOST IMPROVED OFFENSES
Teams improving by at over 10 points per game since the move to the 16-game schedule in 1978:
Pts (Improvement) Year
15.1 (17.8 to 32.9) 1999 St. Louis Rams
13.3 (12.3 to 25.6) 2010 Oakland Raiders
12.8 (24.1 to 36.8) 2007 New England Patriots
12.6 (22.1 to 34.8) 1998 Minnesota Vikings
11.1 (14.7 to 25.8) 2006 New Orleans Saints
11.1 (15.3 to 26.3) 1981 Cincinnati Bengals
10.7 (19.6 to 30.3) 2000 Denver Broncos
10.5 (11.9 to 22.4) 1978 New York Jets
10.4 (16.3 to 26.7) 2006 Chicago Bears
10.3 (14.9 to 25.1) 2007 Cleveland Browns
—Ian Allan
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Posted by DAVID GARRICK | May. 04 at 03:18 AM
I think the improvement was less about Cable and more about replacing one of the most inept quarterbacks of all time, Jamarcus Russell, with guys who could actually play quarterback in the NFL.
Posted by IAN ALLAN | May. 04 at 03:21 AM
I don't consider Jason Campbell and Bruce Gradkowski to be good starting quarterbacks. I was very surprised the Raiders were able to rank 6th in the league in scoring with those guys behind center. And JaMarcus started only 9 games in 2009.
Posted by DAVID DIGREGORIO | May. 05 at 04:46 AM
Couldn't believe them getting rid of Cable and Asmougah. They'll never win with Davis leading the way.