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Raiders at Saints (-7.5) (Sunday, 10:00 a.m. PST, CBS)

THE SCENE:

The Superdome crowd bellowed a frustrating sigh on Monday night as (now ex-kicker) Martin Gramatica hooked a potential tie-breaking field goal wide left.  New Orleans lost 30-27, but Reggie Bush, who racked up 269 all-purpose yards in the loss, couldn’t have done anything more (short of booting the 46-yard field goal himself). And so go the Saints in 2008: Injuries and blown chances. Sounds a lot like a poor man’s version of the Raiders.

Oakland’s version of turmoil off the field has made any negative plays on it appear mild. Prior to their bye week, they surrendered 25 fourth quarter points to the division rival Chargers on the heels of a nine point lead blown in Buffalo. Lane Kiffin, essentially a member of the walking dead, was fired soon after. One day later, Al Davis- who looked eerily like that creepy pastor in Poltergeist 2- held a bizarro press conference, denouncing everything short of Kiffin’s first born child.

PERSONALITIES:

Raiders

Tom Cable. Where do we start? It’s his first game as interim head coach after tutoring the Raiders offensive line for two years and will be little more than a puppet in the Al Davis freak show. Good luck with that.

Darren McFadden, RB #20. The bye week came at a perfect time for the rookie running back, as his turf toe was obviously slowing him down two weeks ago against San Diego. Expect to see offensive coordinator Greg Knapp use McFadden as a running and receiving threat and even line him up in a single-wing formation on a few plays.

Nnamdi Asomugha, CB #21. Each week has been another opportunity for Asomugha to prove he’s the best corner in football. Keith Kidd from Scouts Inc. believes the sixth-year corner will be asked to lock up man-to-man outside versus New Orleans’ vertical passing game.

Saints

R.Bush, RB #25. He told Mike Tirico last Monday that he’s finally figuring out how to be  successful in this league. If that’s the case, Bush is getting smarter by the week.  He  currently leads the team in rushing, receiving and return yards and no back has caught as many balls (199) in their first three years in the league.

Jonathan Vilma, LB #51. The Jets traded him because he was a bad fit for the 3-4 scheme. Back in the 4-3 with New Orleans it seems like he’s beginning to get comfortable, with 44 tackles in five games (one more than he had in his seven games last year). His biggest strength is lateral quickness, which could be a major factor against McFadden or Justin Fargas.

Jason David, CB #42. Last season was a nightmare for David. He was repeatedly picked on by opposing quarterbacks and failed to live up to his four-year contract. There’s no doubt Knapp will try to avoid Mike McKenzie to exploit his diminutive (5′8″) counterpart.

ISSUES:

Saints pass defense: Ends Charles Grant and Will Smith pressured Vikings QB Gus Frerotte, but the secondary let New Orleans down. Defensive coordinator Gary Gibbs will likely stack the box again this week to halt McFadden, Fargas and Michael Bush, daring JaMarcus Russell to put the ball in the air.

Russell’s ability to do more than hand it off: The second-year QB has averaged close to 25 passes per game so far, but opened things up more against San Diego with a career-high 277 yards on 37 attempts. Knapp must trust Russell to protect the ball (four fumbles, one interception) and still take chances down field. The weakest component of the Saints defense is their secondary. Kevin Kaesviharn is a hard-hitter, but is not the most athletic pass defender.

A crowded backfield. Fargas returned to practice after missing most of three games with an injured groin. How will Fargas, who was the starter in week one, fit in with the mostly effective duo of McFadden and Bush?

The Shane Lechler factor. The Vikings should have never kicked to Bush, much less multiple times for a 35-yard average and two touchdowns. In effect, they nearly (and should have) cost themselves the game. An even greater dilemma is presented to the Raiders because of Lechler’s powerful leg. Do you gamble and let the punter who’s averaged nearly 50 yards per boot try and keep the Saints in poor starting field position? Or do you play it safe, directional kick and risk losing 10 to 15 yards?

Drew Brees and his band of backups. Playing the last four games without lead receiver Marques Colston and star tight end Jeremy Shockey hasn’t kept the Saints from leading the NFL with 326 passing yards per game. Lance Moore has filled in well, making tough catches inside and leading the Saints’ receiving corps with 22 receptions. Devery Henderson and Robert Meachem have been disappointing, but still provide speed to stretch the field.

TURNING POINT:

The Saints have averaged eight penalties per game and have a -4 turnover margin. By comparison, the Raiders have committed 7.5 penalties per game and are +1 in turnovers. The team with the fewest mistakes is likely to win. If that sounds blatantly obvious, think again. The Raiders have lost two consecutive games after playing shut down defense for three quarters and getting ultra conservative in the fourth. On Sunday, the deciding factor may be how Cable and defensive coordinator call the final 15 minutes, especially if Oakland is in the lead.

WEATHER:

Superdome, New Orleans LA. Indoors.

INJURIES:

Oakland: IR (this week) - Seth Wand, T (knee).

New Orleans: IR (this week) - Tracy Porter, CB (wrist); Gramatica (groin). Out - Sedrick Ellis, DT (knee); Aaron Glenn, CB (ankle); David Patten, WR (groin). Questionable - Colston (thumb); Shockey (hernia).

PREDICTION:

Despite not looking like it on Monday, New Orleans is too good to lose two straight at home. And I don’t trust an NFL coach (Cable) who’s last head job was at the University of Idaho in 2004. Saints 24, Raiders 20.

EP

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