Workin' on a new team.

[mattgslater]

Ordered Impact! Desert Dogs last week... still haven't come in, but I'm working out the Norse roster with an Arabian theme.

I was originally going to go with the Arabzona Ayatollahs, but I decided that was a little edgy, and I got a bunch of Raiders puns in my head, so I present the beginnings of...

The Oilsand Raiders (better names?)
Non-Raiders puns ok, but I can come up with them on my own (listed in parentheses). Raiders puns would be best. Nothing offensive, please, but you can do a little stereotyping, as this is a bit of a parody* exercise and they're supposed to sound kind of threatening. It's best if actual good players are used, which means going back a few years to grab great names for punning.

* Not unlike the Raiders.

Team Owner model: Ayatollah al-Davis
Head Coach: Osama bin Madden (should go over well in Charger country)

Afrit (Snow Troll): (Afrit Attadark? Can do better...). Or could use a Warren Sapp pun.

Djinn (Ulf): Djinn ap-Shah, (Djinn Antoniq? Djinn Rumi?)

Runners: Omar Qusallan, looking for PG-rated Arabic-sounding pun on Fred Biletnikoff, Jerry Rice, James Lofton or Eric Dickerson.

Berserkers: Badr Asomugha, looking for pun on Howie Long.

Thrower: Mad Bomber reference? Or a Gannon thing?

Linemen: Looking for Warren Sapp pun! Also could use HOF Raiders Ronnie Lott, Art Shell, Rod Woodson, Willie Brown or current Raiders Robert Gallery, Zach Miller or Shane Lechler (I'd have to model a punter, but no matter...)

Ideas?

[Funksultan]

Sorry Matt. Gotta give a thumbs-down for concept. Edgy/funny Al-qaeda names might have been in fashion at one point, but it's doubtful.

Head em more down the "Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves" route if you still can.

[mattgslater]

Except for "Osama bin Madden", there are no al Qaeda jokes listed there, and that's not really what I'm looking for anyway (maybe 1-2, but I want to avoid disrespectful stereotypes unless they're really appropriate: Daryle Lamonica, known as the Mad Bomber, was an early Raiders hero, which is why I might go down that road for the Thrower). I just want something Arabian-sounding, hostile or intimidating enough for football, and funny enough that reading the entire roster will get a chuckle or two from most people. Again, Raider names are best.

But I make no teams except with common themes and 100% funny (or at least punny) names. I really dig Middle Eastern culture, so I really want an Arabian theme. Sadly, many Arabian themes that display the aggressiveness one would want for a football theme are too close to current events to seem apropos, but certainly it's not all of them.

Mostly, I don't want to refer to anything except the Oakland Raiders, and Arabic (or at least Islamic) men's names. If I can get some reference to Islamic culture into a Raiders pun (Djinn ap-Shah), or if I can make an Arabic/Raiders name that sounds funny in English (Badr Asomugha), then so much the better. If it's just an Arabic-sounding name that also sounds like a famous Raider (Omar Qusallan = Marcus Allen), that's fine.

[plasmoid]

Well call me insensitive, but I just don't see what is edgy about Arabzona Ayatollahs.
Is it using the word Ayatollah?
Geez - we have an entire team of sexy nuns. Did anyone ever consider these offensive?

If you had called them Mad Mullahs, or something like that, then I'd get it. But it would be the Mad, not the Mullah, that would make it offensive.
Wouldn't have a problem with a team called Power Popes or somesuch. I figure someone has already done Bad Habits for the nuns.

Sorry - rant over.
I just think the fine line between considerate and paranoid is being pushed here.
No offense meant
Cheers
Martin

[mattgslater]

The main issue is that I really like the Raiders puns that I've got (esp. Djinn ap-Shah; it was Osama bin Madden and Ayatolla al-Davis that got me to look at a new team name really, though I did catch a touch of flak: my earlier head coach name had been Sheikh Djibouti). And of course I'm paranoid: I'm a Yank on the Mexican border, constantly surrounded by other paranoid Yanks: many are armed, all are touchy, and most have no sense of humor. Nice weather....

[plasmoid]