Two bad feet and a bum shoulder sum up Darren McFadden's rookie season.
Well, we all knew about the feet. The shoulder is something new.
The Raiders confirmed a report from the San Francisco Chronicle that McFadden had "minor" surgery on his left shoulder.
Tom Cable was asked repeatedly if McFadden was healthy when the No. 4 overall pick in last year's NFL Draft was grossly underused during several games.
Cable said injury wasn't the reason for not playing McFadden more, but that's the only logical reason the team's most dangerous offensive player saw the field as often as me for long stretches.
McFadden missed three games because of turf toe.
The shoulder injury, according to the Chronicle, happened Week 2 at Kansas City. That's also the game in which he suffered his first toe injury.
The shoulder injury might explain why Cable chose to Justin Fargas run most of the time. McFadden had 10 or more carries only five times and ran for more than 100 yards just once - the second game of the season.
McFadden finished with 499 rushing yards and four touchdowns as a rookie, far below preseason expectations, some that had McFadden earning Rookie of the Year honors (including yours truly).
That total was sixth among rookie running backs.
*JaMarcus Russell had surgery to remove bone chips in his right ankle last week. Raiders owner Al Davis mentioned last week that Russell might need surgery.
*The Chronicle reports cornerback Chris Johnson has agreed to a four-year deal for "starter's money."
I'm assuming that starter's money is still less than what the man Johnson replaced made. DeAngelo Hall made $8 million for his eight games with the Raiders before being waived.
Davis said if it weren't for Hall, the Raiders would have beaten Denver in the season opener, which the Raiders lost 41-14.
--Jason Jones








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