Posted by Bill Soliday, Raiders beat writer for ANG Newspapers
Bill Walsh once said of Steve DeBerg that he was just good enough to get you beat. He’d probably say the same thing about the Oakland Raiders’ defense. And maybe about its offense.

The Raiders may be better, but the task ahead of them now is this: they still have yet to learn how to win.

Feel free to disagree. But against Philadelphia on Sunday, the Raiders simply looked like a team that knew that somehow, some way, when it was all said and done, the hammer would fall and they would lose in the end.

This is not to say they were looking for ways to lose. They just didn’t know the way home. They just seem to be good enough to lose.

Even after Kerry Collins and Doug Gabriel hooked up on that 27-yard touchdown, a play that could have been the very one they have been looking for – the one that turns their entire season around – there was almost a palpable sense of doom once the Eagles offense took the field for the game’s final 2:17.

At least that’s the way it looked from here … and it was visible after just two plays when Brian Westbrook hit them for 13 yards and then 17.

Now Westbrook is a fine player, but he is not a 208 yards of total offense player.

On the first play, the Raiders rush four, drop seven and Westbrook – catching the ball in his backfield – is free to run for nearly 20 yards. Eventually the dropping defenders catch up, but why is Derrick Gibson running the wrong way, backpedaling at the 25 while Westbrook is running toward him with the ball? Maybe attacking would be appropriate, ya think?

And on the next play, who’s protecting the sideline as Westbrook embarks on his sideline route? It isn’t Gibson, who’s caught inside. And it isn’t Renaldo Hill, who lined up outside but was dragged inside, presumably by a crossing receiver.

Pray tell whose responsibility was that? The play should have gained seven yards, tops. Ten yards later, Gibson shoos him out of bounds.

Two plays later, on third and-9, the Eagles get a 13 yard completion to Greg Lewis after taking their time calling a play and the clock running down towards one minute. Think they were confident this game was well in hand?

On that play, there was no palpable pass rush and McNabb calmly fired the ball between Nnamdi Asomugha, Hill and Kirk Morrison.

Three plays, 43 yards and at this point you could see the Eagles’ confidence grow and the Raiders’ sag. Not even a Philly holding penalty was enough to brace the sinking Raiders.

Completions to Terrell Owens for 14, 15 and 7 yards were all they needed to get a crippled kicker onto the field to ram a line drive between the uprights.

And next thing you know, 0-3 is staring this team dead in the face.

Yes, we are going to hear that there were aspects to this game that promise improvement.