
Saturday the Arizona Cardinals come to Oakland to face off against the Raiders. The results of this game will be forgotten by September 8th when the Raiders face off against the Broncos to open the season. For several players currently on the Raiders' roster this will be there one last chance to still be on the roster come the Bronco game. For some of them it will be a road-bump as they find a home with another team, but for others it will be their only chance at living their NFL dreams.
Higgins has been more up and down than a roller coaster. He will get a chance to redeem his disaster against the Titans mainly because the Raiders don't have any one else to use as a return man against the Cards. If he doesn't step up his game, the Raiders will find someone to replace him on the waiver wire. Tim Dwight is still unsigned, and he isn't a fumble machine.
Hiram Eugene
Eugene is the lesser talented Stuart Schwiegert. Eugene has been bad in coverage and tackling in his time with the Raiders. He was actually a step down when he took over for Schweigert last season. It was him being out of place and unable to tackle that gave the Titans the field position for their game winning field goal, which is a microcosm of his play in general.
Mario Henderson
Henderson nearly got Andrew Walter killed against the Titans, and the surprising thing is that it was only that close once. Henderson was a player the Raiders traded up to get in the 2007 draft, and to say he has been disappointing would be an understatement. If he doesn't step up against the Cards, he had better hope that he is on the Al Davis scholarship program, otherwise he will be on the unemployment line.
Chaz Schilens
The Raider wide receiver position is in flux. Ronald Curry, Drew Carter, and Javon Walker are the only locks to make the team. Schilens made a couple of eye popping acrobatic catches, that should get the staff's attention. His biggest competition to make the team is the aforementioned Higgins.
Robert Thomas
Thomas is a vet, who was expected to be the front runner for the starting strong side linebacker position. He has lost that role to Ricky Brown, and has looked lost on the field. If he doesn't come up big against the Cards, he is likely done.