The chatter in Oakland and around the league is that Al Davis just won't be able to help himself. Remember, this is Davis' passion -- he loves speed. And Darren McFadden has plenty of it. Thus, there are major rumblings that Davis will take the star running back from Arkansas with the No. 4 overall pick. It appears very likely that McFadden, he of the blazing 4.3 speed, will be available at No. 4 because it appears Miami, St. Louis and Atlanta will likely look elsewhere. A team such as Dallas could potentially try to wiggle its way in front of Oakland but the odds are that McFadden will be there for the Raiders. And the odds are increasing that McFadden will be too much for Davis to pass up. If McFadden ends up in Oakland, it will be juicy for so many reasons. The prime reason: McFadden is the type of back who could finally help turn around the franchise that has won a league-low 19 games in the past five seasons. Another reason is that it could squeeze another wedge in between Davis and his coach. At the NFL owners meeting, coach Lane Kiffin said he didn't think the Raiders would pursue McFadden because the position was one of Oakland's areas of strength and the team just re-signed Justin Fargas to a lucrative deal. Kiffin talked often about trading down from the No. 4 spot in an attempt to stockpile more picks. The Raiders also might take a defensive lineman, a position that is both top heavy in the draft and is one of Oakland's biggest areas of need. Yet, Kiffin also pointed out that Davis makes the decisions. So, if Al wants Darren, Al is getting Darren. With the draft 11 days away, this is sure to be one of the most intriguing story lines to follow. http://myespn.go.com/blogs/hashmarks/0-6-86/Raiders-preparing-to-take-McFadden-.html
