If you're looking for an interesting sleeper team this year, you may be surprised at what the Oakland Raiders could accomplish in 2010. Yes, the Raiders. No, I'm not kidding. Though the franchise has been quite the punch line in the past few seasons, recent additions to a strong front seven, a very solid 2010 draft, the acquisition of quarterback Jason Campbell(notes), and a weak AFC West could combine to give Raiders faithful something to cheer about for the first time in years.

And if you're looking for a sleeper player in either fantasy or reality football, second-year receiver Louis Murphy(notes) is one to watch. The fourth-round pick out of Florida started his rookie season strong, wasn't targeted as much in midseason, but stepped up near the end, especially in a 27-24 upset win over the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 13, when he caught four passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns.

He finished that rookie season with 34 catches for 521 yards and four touchdowns, but it's a good bet

Editor's note: Yahoo! Sports will examine the biggest weakness of the 2009 season for every team and explain how the franchise can address the issue. The series continues with the Eagles, who finished second in the NFC East (11-5).

Biggest problem in 2009: A very shaky linebacker group

The Eagles missed Stewart Bradley's(notes) energy and playmaking last season.
(Howard Smith/US Presswire)

There were several things that prevented the Philadelphia Eagles from going to the Super Bowl last season. Whatever plans the offensive brain trust had for Michael Vick(notes) seemed to go awry; for the most part, Vick was less a "Wildcat" option and more a speed bump for every offense drive in which he took part. The Eagles scored just seven rushing touchdowns in the red zone (as many as little-known Cardinals running back Tim Hightower(notes) did all by himself), continuing a longstanding issue with

Editor's note: Yahoo! Sports will examine the biggest weakness of the 2009 season for every team and explain how the franchise can address the issue. The series continues with the San Diego Chargers, who finished first in the AFC West (13-3).

The 2009 Problem: A pass defense with little depth

Chargers No. 1 draft pick, Ryan Mathews, hauls in a pass during football mini-camp.
(AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)

The San Diego Chargers are up against a surprising number of problems for a team that's gone 32-16 over the last three years. They were the worst rushing team in the NFL in 2009, though the selection of Ryan Mathews in the first round should solve that problem. But the way they got Mathews – with general manager A.J. Smith trading up to get Mathews and giving up other picks in the process – has led to a lack of depth at just about every position. Many of the team's best players are either at odds

According to an Associated Press report, the Philadelphia Eagles are seriously considering cutting quarterback Michael Vick(notes). The report says that the team is thinking of making this move no matter what the findings are in the current investigation into a shooting that happened at Vick's birthday celebration last week.

However, a source close to Shutdown Corner with knowledge of the situation believes that the $5.2 million the team owes the quarterback this season may play a larger part in the final decision, and that releasing Vick would be financially prohibitive unless NFL discipline was a factor. With former star quarterback Donovan McNabb(notes) off to the Washington Redskins, and Kevin Kolb(notes) still relatively untried as a successful starter, the Eagles are more in need of depth at the position than they have been in years. And the size of Vick's 2010 salary indicates that the Eagles have had bigger plans for Vick this season.

But that's on the field. What none of this

If you like the three-digit numbered route system, H-backs, single-back sets, the modern aerial game, tight ends breaking records out of the slot/flex positions, multi-purpose backs who lead the league in total yards, the route tree, the 1970s Cardinals, 1980s Chargers, 1990s Cowboys, and about half the offenses in the NFL today, you owe the late Don Coryell a hearty handshake and a heartfelt "Thank you".

Coryell, who passed away on July 1 in La Mesa, California, was to the vertical passing game what Mike Holmgren was to the West Coast offense. Perhaps not the ultimate innovator - Sid Gillman was the one who really took the downfield passing game into a new era, just as Bill Walsh cemented the precision passing offense - but the most talented of the second wave of innovators.

Coryell coached at San Diego State from 1961 through 1972, and not only did he have have some amazing assistants like John Madden and Joe Gibbs(notes), he was getting cribbed by pro and future pro coaches like

You often hear it said of successful athletes that if they wanted to run for office in the cities and states where they've brought championships, they'd have little trouble getting elected. Some, like Jim Bunning and Arnold Schwarzenegger, make longtime commitments to the political life. Should we expect to count New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees(notes) among those names when his NFL career is over? Judging from a recent interview with XX Sports Radio in San Diego, Brees has a mandate and he isn't backing off. Of course, it's easy to be outraged at what the BP oil disaster has done to the Gulf Coast, but remember that Brees brought his family down to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. When he talks about what the spill is doing to his home turf, there's some weight behind it.

It's ridiculous. Every time you see a picture of the underwater camera and the oil that is coming out, it is just swelling out of this thing. It's almost worse [than at first] because now it's in color.

"I'm a product of my environment. I'm proud of where I'm from."

Arizona Cardinals receiver Steve Breaston(notes) is one person who has not forgotten his beginnings. Growing up in North Braddock, Pa., Breaston saw the good and bad of inner-city life, and he's set up different ways to give back to his home community. He wrote a poem called "I Am What It Is," which detailed his childhood memories, and teamed with apparel manufacturer IMU to create a shirt, the sales of which will benefit his Steven Breaston Foundation

"I had started the poem about a year ago, and that's one thing when you're writing something, you try to get back and finish it," Breaston told me in a recent interview. "Then, when David Merritt, the CEO of IMU, asked me to get together on a T-shirt, I finished it. It started off being about me growing up as a kid, and just what I am. Things we did — playing whiffleball and football in the lots and stuff like that. One of the big things I wanted to do was to give back to

When former Eagles, Vikings and Dolphins receiver Cris Carter talks about overcoming difficulties and playing in the NFL for a long time, it would behoove young players to listen. Carter, who ranks third in NFL history with 1,101 regular-season catches, may have had the best hands of all time, was unquestionably the best sideline receiver in league annals, and will surely go into the Hall of Fame when the voters get a clue, came very close to missing his chance at greatness.

Selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 1987 supplemental draft, Carter was eventually cut by Buddy Ryan because he couldn't handle his off-field activities. But he cleaned himself up and went on to have one of the greatest careers among the last generation of NFL players.

Now, Carter gives his life lessons to the next generation every year at the Rookie Symposium. It's a great chance for players coming into the league to learn how important it is to keep their heads on straight, and what