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News Archive
July - September 1997
Greg Townsend was released by the Raiders today. As is usual with the Raiders, the news leaked out only this evening. No reason or further details were provided by the team, nor was there any immediate word as to who will replace him on the roster.
Townsend played exceptionally well in the preseason and looked good in the first regular season game. Recently he had seen little action.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
Raiders.com will have a live online chat with TE Rickey Dudley tonight at 7:00 p.m.
This HOT FLASH you've all been waiting for: the Raiders will see their former disgruntled receiver, Daryl Hobbs, twice more this year—with Seattle.
New Orleans traded Hobbs to the Seahawks today for a 1998 draft choice after he got into his second argument in two months with offensive coordinator Danny Abramowicz.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
By now most readers will have read in the Articles section about the lawsuit filed yesterday against the Raiders. An attorney held a press conference to announce that the City of Oakland and Alameda County have filed suit in Alameda County Superior Court, seeking a court order which would prohibit Al Davis from moving the Raiders, and further seeking to enjoin the Raiders from interference with a proposed plan to sell the Coliseum stadium name to UMAX Data Systems.
According to the attorney, Jeffrey Kessler, the Raiders stalled the name rights deal by writing a letter to UMAX saying the team might vacate the stadium within the decade. That move has apparently killed the deal—originally expected to be approved in time for the Monday night game against Kansas City—for this year and thus cost Oakland and Alameda County the expected 1997 revenue.
As for the charge that the Raiders may be planning to leave Oakland again, the team still has 14 years left on its Coliseum lease. But the Raiders, often talking through blabbermouth attorney Joe Alioto, have consistently taken a position that they have the right to break the lease because the city and county failed to sell out all home games. The Raiders claim local politicians made a verbal promise that they'd sell all the tickets.
This truculence on the Raiders' part has NOT helped to foster goodwill with the local politicians.
Alameda County Supervisor Mary King, in the past a staunch supporter of the deal which brought the Raiders back to Oakland, told KRON-TV the team was trying to get more money out of the city and county.
"I think they are the kind of organization that will try to get blood out of a turnip," said King.
<Soapbox Alert!>
This observer has had little positive to say about OFMA, the agency charged with selling tickets, in the past. It was badly mismanaged at first, but it has tried to right the ship with the hiring of Richard Rogers as General Manager. Perhaps if the Raiders would put a better product on the football field—they've finished either fourth or last in the AFC West for two straight seasons—and perhaps if they'd lower their ticket prices—currently the highest in professional sports—by 25% or so, OFMA would have an easier time selling out the home games.
I also find it not remotely credible that, as Alioto claimed yesterday, a crucial part of the extremely complex deal that brought the Raiders back to Oakland was a verbal promise by local politicians. Alioto is a loquacious and extremely aggressive attorney who wouldn't give a homeless person a dime without first insisting on a 25-page promissory note.
<Off the soapbox>
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The Raider secondary, already depleted by the injury to Terry McDaniel and the general ineptitude of Larry Brown, became even more short-handed Sunday when Albert Lewis pulled a hamstring muscle on the infield dirt part of the field.
Lewis is unlikely to return to action until after the bye week.
Oakland will face a stern test this Sunday in San Diego's Tony Martin, who's been hot. He had 4 catches for 155 yards and 3 TDs last week. Martin also tore up the Raiders last year at the Coliseum with 10 catches for 138 yards. He repeatedly burned the Raider corners with an out-and-up move, the same pattern Andre Rison ran for his game-winning TD in the Monday night loss to Kansas City.
Coach Joe Bugel's comment: "Tony Martin is a dangerous player. He's exceptional."
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Where Are They Now Dept.: Jerry Ball signed recently with Minnesota. Supposedly he checked in at 335 pounds.
Source: San Francisco Examiner
The Raiders will go with only five cornerbacks active for tomorrow's game.
Coach Joe Bugel said both Larry Brown and Calvin Branch will be inactive, as will T Scott Whittaker and FB Chad Levitt.
Bugel also described Terry McDaniel's status as "very doubtful."
Source: San Jose Mercury News
CB Terry McDaniel returned to practice yesterday, but Lionel Washington will start again in his place on Sunday, with Perry Carter the nickel back. Larry Brown is officially The Forgotten Man.
Sources: The Sporting News, San Jose Mercury News
WR Tim Brown doesn't want to, but he may have to become more of a team leader. At least that's how Brown himself sees it.
"I have to take a more active role on this team," he said Wednesday. "For years, I've been the guy who has gone out and tried to play as hard as I could possibly play. But when it came to verbally leading this team, that wasn't my deal."
The Raiders could clearly benefit from more vocal leadership by Brown, both on and off the field. What Brown may be coming to realize is that leadership isn't something players seek out. The great ones are those upon whom it's thrust, whether or not they want it, and who accept the responsibility.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The Rams' strength thus far this season has been its defense, currently ranked 3rd overall in the NFL, and it would behoove the Raiders to take their opponents seriously despite being favored by a touchdown. The Rams' front four is highly underrated, they have an excellent pair of safeties, and they improved their linebacking with the off-season acquisition of free agents Mike Jones and Robert Jones.
The St. Louis defense has allowed only 158 yards passing per game—third-best in the league—on 44 percent passing. It leads the league with eight interceptions (S Keith Lyle has 4), and has forced five fumbles. And the Rams' turnover ratio of plus-5 is second in the league.
There will be some interesting matchups to watch Sunday. Rookie T Orlando Pace, as huge and as talented as he is, is still raw and will have his hands full with Anthony Smith, who's having a monster year. (The much-ballyhooed matchup of Pace and Darrell Russell is unlikely to occur much. When Pace isn't facing Harlow he'll be looking at DE Lance Johnstone.) The Raider linebackers will have their hands full dealing with "Ironhead" Heyward, who, after $20,000 worth of fines by the Rams, is finally down to a 'svelte' 265 pounds and playing assertively again. The Rams will try to run Lawrence Phillips outside and Heyward inside.
When the Raiders have the ball, watch the tackles. Pat Harlow will be blocking DE Leslie O'Neal (115½ career sacks, 3 this year) and Lincoln Kennedy, playing on a badly sprained ankle, will square off against young Kevin Carter, who is very active. If QB Jeff George is forced to rush his passes, the Rams could get some picks.
Source: Contra Costa Times
Coach Joe Bugel says last Sunday's kicking miscues were due to poor mechanics, which can and will be corrected. He has no plans for immediate personnel changes.
Some of the more melodramatic sports rags had earlier suggested that K Cole Ford should be watching the waiver wire this week. But the Raiders like the strength of Ford's leg. He routinely booms his kickoffs well into the end zone.
Both Bugel and special teams coach Rusty Tillman said Ford was over-striding into his kicks with his "plant" (left) foot. The problem was exacerbated * by Adam Treu's low snaps, which in turn created problems for holder Leo Araguz. In short, a chain effect . . .
"No, we're not going to bring out any extra kickers, any extra snappers, any extra holders," said Bugel. "It's all mechanics."
* Exacerbate: To make worse, aggravate. :-)
Source: ESPNet SportsZone
<SOAPBOX ALERT>
T Lincoln Kennedy wasn't happy with his performance Sunday. What's startling, though, is that he was entirely honest about it.
"I do not enjoy looking up at the fans here or on the road and have them look at us as though they are thinking 'What is going on?'" said Kennedy.
"You feel as though you are letting them down in some way. Me, I didn't have a good game (Sunday). I gave up a sack. I jumped offsides on the very first extra point, which seemed to be costly. I didn't feel good about it. I don't feel good now."
What a refreshing change! This is perhaps the only Raider who's being even remotely honest with himself right now. While his teammates blather on about how much talent the team has and how confused they are why they don't win, Kennedy's looking at how he as an individual could have played better. His honesty sticks out like a sore thumb amidst the delusions of greatness seemingly held by many of his teammates.
This observer has taken his share of pot shots at Kennedy in the past, mostly for his pass blocking. But if 52 other Raiders would take a hard look at themselves in the mirror, as Kennedy seems to be doing right now, the team might just stop throwing away games.
<Off the soapbox . . .>
Source: Oakland Tribune
It's not yet clear whether CB Terry McDaniel will be available for Sunday's game against St. Louis. Bugel said he'd have a better idea about T-Mac's condition after Wednesday's practice. McDaniel is officially listed as questionable.
Source: Oakland Tribune
Sunday's game is almost certain to be blacked out in the San Francisco Bay Area. According to an OFMA spokesman, as of yesterday, only about 40,000 tickets had been sold.
KTVU-TV (Ch. 2), which would have carried the game, plans to show Chicago-Dallas instead.
Source: Oakland Tribune
Wednesday's preliminary NFL injury report:
St. Louis: Out: WR Isaac Bruce (hamstring). Doubtful: LB Britt Hager (neck). Questionable: RB Jerald Moore (elbow). Probable: TE Ernie Conwell (knee); C Mike Gruttadauria (ankle).
Oakland: Questionable: T Lincoln Kennedy (ankle); CB Terry McDaniel (knee); DE Darrell Russell (shoulder). Probable: WR Olanda Truitt (groin).
Source: USA Today
K Cole Ford is the obvious scapegoat for Sunday's loss, but he wasn't the only special teams player to perform miserably. Ford missed four field goals and an extra point, but on at least three of the FG tries the snaps were either low or mishandled.
"It was a low snap and a low kick," coach Joe Bugel said of the decisive block that led to Ray Mickens' game-winning touchdown. Asked how many of the snaps were poor, Bugel added, "Probably all of them."
The Raiders gambled earlier this year when they elected to cut veteran Danny Villa, an experienced long snapper, and keep rookie Adam Treu instead, even after Treu had struggled at times during the pre-season.
To his credit, Ford refused to blame his misses on low snaps. "Who knows? I felt comfortable with everything," he said. "Joe (Bugel) might be trying to take some pressure off me. I don't think I ever missed a kick on turf."
The Raiders were also caught napping on a fake punt. Facing a 4th-and-11 at midfield late in the third quarter, the Jets gambled and won. The play kept alive a New York drive that resulted in a field goal and got the Jets to within a touchdown at 22-16.
"We actually had a punt-safe call (where the punt coverage team waits to drop back to block for the runback until the punter has committed) and took it off because we didn't think they would do it on fourth-and-12," said Bugel.
"(We thought) they were in poor position so we had a return on," Bugel said. "(In that instance) you chuck your guy, turn your back and run. If we had it to do all over again, we'd have stayed with the punt-safe call."
Sources: ESPNet SportsZone, Oakland Tribune
DE Anthony Smith, one of the few consistently bright spots for the Raiders this year, got the defense's only sack. Coming into the game the Jets had surrendered 15 of them. Smith leads the NFL with 5½, one more than Buffalo star Bruce Smith.
The Jets got four sacks against the Raiders and hurried QB Jeff George on many other occasions.
After four games, the Raiders have given up 11 sacks and gotten 10 themselves. At this pace they'll allow 44 for a full season, only one less than last year's total.
The team has ranked in the bottom quarter of the NFL in sacks allowed for the past four years.
Sources: USA Today, Team NFL
Joe Bugel continues to sound like a coach in denial.
"I thought we played really good football, especially in the first half," Bugel said after the game. "The quarterback was magnificent. I think we played good as a team. We were in a pretty good rhythm. We just need to score some more points."
Wouldn't playing "really good football" include winning the game?
Bugel also offered this gem: "Hey, things happen. We played good football, except I knew we needed to score more points in the second half."
Perhaps Bugel should talk to Corwin Brown, whose perspective is a little more realistic. "For a team to win," said Brown, "you can't get a kick blocked or have a fake punt work. It's like a turnover. That negates some other stuff."
Sources: Sacramento Bee, ESPNet SportsZone, Associated Press
The only apparent injury for the Raiders may be a costly one. T Lincoln Kennedy suffered a severe ankle sprain and left the rocker room on crutches.
Source: Oakland Tribune
T Orlando Pace, that fella whom the Raiders almost had a chance at drafting, will make his first NFL start Sunday against the Raiders in Oakland.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
Both CB Larry Brown and FS Eddie Anderson were inactive last week. With Terry McDaniel unlikely to play, both will probably be activated this week against the Jets.
"I'm thinking about dressing all the defensive backs," said coach Joe Bugel. "New York comes at you with a lot of different packages—four wide receivers, five wide receivers with no backs. We've got to be super alert and well equipped on defense."
Desmond Howard may also see his first regular-season action as a receiver for the Raiders with Olanda Truitt out. Tim Hall might be used at that position as well.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
From Wednesday's preliminary injury report:
Raiders: Questionable: WR Olanda Truitt. Doubtful: CB Terry McDaniel.
Jets: Questionable: DE Hugh Douglas (groin); C Casey Wiegman (shoulder). Probable: DT Ronnie Dixon (ankle).
Note: According to the Mercury News, Truitt's injury isn't a hamstring at all, as the Raiders have been saying, but a groin pull, which could take much longer to heal.
Sources: Nando.net, San Jose Mercury News
Several Raiders wondered aloud after Sunday's game about the offensive playcalling. It wasn't until the second half that the team opened up its offense against a slow Atlanta secondary.
"I'm just sick that we didn't take advantage of Timmy (Brown) more," said QB Jeff George. "Once we get him the ball, everything else takes over."
He added, "We felt we could take advantage of their corners—better late than never."
Tim Brown said something similar: "A win's a win, I guess, but we sure can make them ugly. If you detect a little frustration in my voice after a victory, that's why. We have to starting putting teams away."
"We had that opportunity today. (The Falcons) aren't the best pass-coverage guys. They play hard, but they don't match up well with our speed. It's frustrating. I understand people want to get their money's worth watching these games, but my goodness!"
Brown's first reception didn't come until the second quarter, and Rickey Dudley's two catches came in the fourth.
Sources: Sacramento Bee, Knoxville News-Sentinel
As expected, the NFL fined Darrell Russell for his late hit on Atlanta QB Chris Chandler. The cost? $7,500—relatively modest as recent NFL fines have gone.
Russell said he will appeal.
Source: The Sporting News
CB Terry McDaniel's knee strain isn't as bad as first feared, but he will almost certainly miss at least this week's game against the Jets. McDaniel didn't play in the second half of Sunday's win over Atlanta.
Lionel Washington will probably start in T-Mac's place.
This turn of events may result in Larry Brown getting back on the game day roster despite his petulant behavior of late. Brown, inactive for the Atlanta game, declined to watch the game on the sideline with his teammates, sitting in the stands instead.
Bugel refused to commit this early in the week on whether Brown will be active or not.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle
Rookie DT Darrell Russell said he thought his late hit on Atlanta QB Chris Chandler, which drew an unnecessary roughness call, wasn't all that late.
"It wasn't like a late hit," said Russell. "I hit him square on. I thought he was pump-faking. Once I was at full speed, I couldn't slow down. I wasn't coming head first, it was a picture-perfect tackle."
Replays showed Russell took a full three steps after the ball was released before plowing into Chandler. The rules allow one. Don't be surprised to see Russell get hit with a league fine on this one, especially given the rate at which starting quarterbacks are getting injured this year.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The Raiders may have hit a new low in field awareness when they actually defended an entire play against Atlanta with only 10 men on the field. What's more, they even got a safety out of it. :-)
Late in the game they had Atlanta's offense backed up almost to its goal line. On third-and-29 from the 1, the Raiders called on their prevent defense but had only 10 men on the field.
"We had some people calling 'Pirate' and some others calling 'Bandit'," said CB Albert Lewis, referring to five- and six-DB sets. "We have different personnel for those. And I think in the confusion we lost a DB."
You better believe owner Al Davis noticed it. In the press box he yelled "There are only 10 guys out there!" to no one in particular. Not that it helped . . .
Source: San Jose Mercury News
After seeing the film, Bugel had high praise for the downfield blocking on Napoleon Kaufman's two long scoring bursts (58 and 61 yards). He singled out WRs James Jett and Tim Brown, TE Rickey Dudley, and—believe it or not—T Lincoln Kennedy.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
This week's stats show a marked improvement for the Raiders offensively, but the defense remains the worst in the NFL.
Source: Team NFL
As expected, the Raiders were fined for closing the locker room to reporters following last Monday night's game. The amount of the fine announced by the NFL was $25,000—less than some observers had speculated.
Cincinnati was fined $30,000 by the NFL some years ago when then-coach Sam Wyche refused to allow a female reporter in the locker room.
Senior assistant Bruce Allen said the team will not appeal the fine.
"We understand the rules. It was wrong, even though there were extenuating circumstances," said Allen.
"I realize (the media) has a job to do, too," coach Joe Bugel said. "I was wrong. It won't happen again."
Sources: Associated Press, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee
In a puzzling development, Bugel says Jerone Davison, not Derrick Fenner, will start at fullback against Atlanta.
Bugel said earlier in the week that he'd deactivated Fenner against Kansas City because he wanted Davison available for the special teams coverage units. But the Raiders' special teams coverage against the Chiefs was awful, and a look at Team NFL's Gamebook stats—the best available—shows that Davison had 0 tackles and 0 assists.
Meanwhile, Fenner, the Raiders' best short-yardage runner, was in civvies during the fourth quarter, when the Raiders tried to run up the middle to use up the clock. Both Napoleon Kaufman and Joe Aska were ineffective.
Go figure.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle
This observer can't remember the Raiders ever before announcing in advance who would be their inactive players for a game, but Bugel did just that yesterday, revealing the names of four players who won't suit up.
WR Olanda Truitt will not dress because of a hamstring pull. The others who will be deactivated are rookies: FB Chad Levitt, DT Grady Jackson and T Scott Whittaker.
Source: Sacramento Bee
In a welcome development, Tim Brown has suggested that the Raiders ought to stop talking about what they're going to do to their opponents and start concentrating on their own individual assignments and responsibilities.
"I've never been one to make comments, but I think it's time for me to speak up more," said Brown.
"Shut up. That's what I'd say. Don't talk about what you're going to do. Don't tell me. Shut up and get ready to play."
Sources: The Sports Xchange, San Francisco Examiner
The Raiders' offensive line will get a test Sunday protecting QB Jeff George. Atlanta leads the NFL in sacks with 10 in two games. Their defensive ends, Lester Archambeau and Chuck Smith, are very active.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Truth is stranger than fiction: CB Larry Brown says he doesn't understand why he was benched in Monday night's game.
"I guess at that moment I didn't understand why it was happening," Brown said this week. "I never heard of a guy getting pulled for getting two balls caught on him, and they weren't even touchdowns." (Brown gave up two TDs in the preseason and one in the season opener against Houston, oops, Tennessee.)
"I know what kind of player I am," Brown said. "I know what I've accomplished in my seven years in the NFL. If you're going to pass judgment on Larry Brown, then watch film on Larry Brown. . . . If the standards have been raised so high where a guy can't even catch a ball on me, you're setting yourself up for failure. That's not real."
Meanwhile, back to reality . . . Joe Bugel says he's undecided whether or not Brown will even be active for Sunday's game. Lionel Washington is now listed as the team's fifth, or Pirate, defensive back, replacing Brown in that role.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner
Correction: RB Harold Green, not rookie Byron Hanspard as reported here yesterday, will probably start for Atlanta in place of Jamal Anderson, but Anderson's status has been upgraded from doubtful to questionable. Hanspard should see significant action, too.
Sources: San Francisco Examiner, Team NFL
Injury report:
Raiders: Questionable: S Lorenzo Lynch (broken hand), WR Olanda Truitt (hamstring). Probable: LB Rob Fredrickson (shoulder bruise). The Raiders have said flatly that Lynch and Fredrickson, at least, will play.
Falcons: Out: G Scott Davis (chest), LB Ruffin Hamilton (hamstring), DE Anthony Pleasant (knee). Questionable: RB Jamal Anderson (ankle), CB Ronnie Bradford (abdomen). Probable: CB Michael Booker (shin), S William White (knee), G Gene Williams (ankle).
Source: Team NFL
Coach Joe Bugel said FB Derrick Fenner has volunteered to play special teams this week. Bugel said he wants to keep Fenner on the game day roster and is considering using him in the backfield together with Jerone Davison.
Bugel's explanation earlier this week for deactivating Fenner against Kansas City was that he wanted to emphasize special teams, where Davison is a solid performer on the kickoff coverage units.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The NFL is expected to announce a decision tomorrow on the amount of the fine likely to be levied on the Raiders for closing their locker room after Monday's game and because Bugel failed to appear for the post-game press conference.
The Sacramento Bee cited "rumors out of New York" that the fine may be $50,000 or more.
Here's a piece of good news: Atlanta RB Jamal Anderson is doubtful for Sunday's game.
Anderson goes about 240 and has excellent speed for a big man. In fact, he's a slightly bigger Eddie George.
Rookie Byron Hanspard will probably get the start for the Falcons.
Sources: Associated Press, Raiders Fans Mail List
RB Napoleon Kaufman admits he made a booboo late in Monday night's game, but insists it wasn't due to fatigue.
With 3:16 remaining in the final quarter, the Raiders faced a 3rd-and-14 at their own 35. Kaufman caught a flare pass and made the first down yardage (and more), but then went out of bounds with 3:06 left on the clock—in effect, giving Kansas City a timeout.
Kansas City had already used all its timeouts, so the wiser thing at that point in the game would have been to stay in bounds and keep the clock running.
"I just brain-locked on the play," said Kaufman. "It's nobody's fault but mine. I didn't run out of gas. I was dealing with a deep thigh bruise I suffered in the second quarter."
"I was running down the sideline with him, yelling, 'Stay in bounds! Stay in bounds!'" said Bugel. "The coaching point is this: When you get the first down and they start closing in on you, don't be a hero, just go down on the ground and protect the football. Let the clock run. That's basic football."
Sources: San Francisco Examiner, San Jose Mercury News
The NFL team stats after two weeks of play are discouraging. Oakland ranks dead last in the NFL in both rushing and overall defense. The offense is in the upper third of the AFC overall, but the Raiders' rushing game is the third worst in the AFC, averaging only 76.5 yards per game.
Source: Team NFL
Well, what's to say? Another appalling loss . . . For the third straight year the Raiders are a team in crisis. I'll be writing an opinion piece with my own views on what's wrong in the next day or two. Stay tuned.
In am embarrassing display, the team's locker room was closed to the press after the game, and coach Joe Bugel declined to appear for a post-game press conference, sending out Albert Lewis instead to answer questions. Raider players left by literally sneaking out the back.
The team will be fined by the league; NFL policy requires both that teams allow media access to their locker rooms after games, and that the head coach participate in a post-game media session.
FB Derrick Fenner and FS Eddie Anderson were deactivated for Monday's game against the Chiefs. The Anderson decision really wasn't much of a surprise, since he was completely ineffective in the season opener at Memphis. But Fenner? He's the team's best all-around back, and a guy this observer thinks the Raiders need on the field in order to win.
Asked why he didn't suit up, Fenner would say only, "The Raiders can tell you. Ask Al Davis."
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Injury report for tomorrow's game:
Raiders: LB Greg Biekert (knee), T Pat Harlow (back), G Lester Holmes (calf), TE John Henry Mills (knee, shoulder), and S James Trapp (knee) are all listed as probable. Biekert and Trapp are currently wearing knee braces, Biekert for a sprained medial collateral ligament, Trapp for what he claims is only a bruise.
Chiefs: Questionable: DE Vaughn Booker (ankle), LB Troy Dumas (hamstring), S Kevin Ross (knee). Probable: LB Bobby Houston (quadriceps), RB Donnell Bennett (knee), WR Brett Perriman (hamstring), LB Derrick Thomas (triceps).
Source: Sacramento Bee
Poor Marty Schottenheimer!
It seems the Kansas City coach, famous for his "Hate the Raiders" speeches to his players, admitted recently he's having a hard getting worked up for the upcoming game because of his friendship with Raiders coach Joe Bugel.
"That actually changes my perspective of the Raiders a little. It's hard for me to get my fury up when it's Joe Bugel," said Schottenheimer.
Source: The Sports Xchange
Mid-day update: Monday night's game will be locally televised, according to today's street edition of the Mercury News. This development had not appeared on the web.
ABC and affiliate stations purchased the remaining unsold tickets to avoid a blackout.
Thanks to Raider diehard Mark Del Secco for the update.
Less is more: there's still no official word yet on the blackout situation.
The Sacramento Bee reports this morning that there were several thousand tickets remaining unsold as the deadline approached, and that the Raiders were trying to work out a deal in which affiliate stations would buy them to avert a blackout.
Late update: The Silver & Black Cyberspace site has an unconfirmed fan's report that only 1000 or so tickets were still unsold as the deadline approached. If that's true, it raises the possibility that ABC or its local affiliate might have bought the remaining tickets to avoid a blackout.
NFL rules ostensibly prohibit that practice, but it has been known to occur anyway. :-) Local stations want the advertising revenue Monday Night Football brings in.
One way or the other, there should be definite word in the morning.
On Thursday the Raiders received a 24-hour extension from the league, until tonight at 6:00 p.m., to try to avoid the local blackout of Monday night's game. They argued successfully that the Labor Day holiday last Monday had effectively shortened their window for selling tickets.
As of 8:30 p.m. there's no word officially, but it was almost certain the Raiders weren't going to sell 10,000 remaining tickets by the deadline.
Source: San Francisco Examiner
RB Napoleon Kaufman is apparently still not completely recovered from the effects of the dehydration he suffered in last Sunday's game at Memphis. Coach Joe Bugel indicated yesterday that Kaufman probably won't be at 100%.
"I'd like to give him the ball 20 times a game, but we may have to give him a rest and bring in (Joe) Aska to get that burst we need," said Bugel.
"We didn't get any explosion runs in our first game. The Oilers clogged up the seams. Kansas City also does a good job of that. Our passing game will have to open some things up."
Source: Sacramento Bee
As of late yesterday, Monday night's game with Kansas City still had 10,000 unsold tickets. Under NFL rules, if the game is not sold out 72 hours before kickoff, i.e., by 6:00 p.m. PDT tomorrow, it can't be shown locally.
The Raiders are reported to have requested an extension from the league on unspecified grounds.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Injury notes: T Pat Harlow skipped another practice to rest his back yesterday. Also missing practice was SS James Trapp (bruised knee). LB Greg Biekert—wearing a brace to protect his sprained knee—did practice.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
According to the Sacramento Bee, Coach Joe Bugel has instituted a no-profanity rule in an apparent effort to instill more discipline in the team. He's also decreed a (relatively informal) dress code for charter flights.
This cynic believes the problem with a lack of discipline runs just a bit deeper than that . . . but you can't fault Bugel for trying.
Bugel, for his part, denied that any firm rules had been instituted. "I don't know where they got the information for that article," Bugel said (referring to the original report, which ran in USA Today). "There's a lot of falsity in that article. There's no rule. We just ask the players how they want to be. It's part of being a pro."
Bugel said he only asks the players not to talk trash and to refrain from taunting.
Former Raider Matt Millen had an amusing reaction when told of the report: "It's an oxymoron," said Millen. "If no cursing is the first rule, the second rule has to be no breathing, because they are both the same in Raiderland."
So did Big Ben Davidson, who said with a straight face, "Ken Stabler never swore. Now, Fred Biletnikoff, you might have to check on."
Sources: Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
It seems the Coliseum naming rights are worth less than was thought. A figure of $3 million per year had been mentioned in the press some weeks back, but two reports today place the fee at between $1.7 and 1.9 million annually.
The buyer is UMAX Data Systems, a Taiwanese Macintosh clone maker, and the new name will be UMAX Coliseum. The tentative agreement runs for 10 years.
UMAX has offices in Fremont, in the Bay Area. Along with naming rights, it will receive two luxury suites valued at $210,000 each season, and additional perks.
What an UGLY name!
Sources: Associated Press, Contra Costa Times
Robert Jenkins has returned to the Raiders, accepting the assistant offensive line coach position which was offered to him when he retired. He'll work primarily with the young linemen.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
After Sunday's depressing game, there isn't any important Raiders news. So—here's a tidbit for fanatics who are really hard up.
Where Are They Now Dept.: A Southern California judge issued an arrest warrant today for former Raider QB Todd Marinovich after he failed to appear three times on a charge of cultivating marijuana.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
Smooth Rationalizations for Failure, Part 671: CB Larry Brown appeared to accept responsibility for his horrible lapse Sunday when he said after the game, "On that one play of the game, I wasn't focused. I've got to make sure I stay focused on every play. I've got to make that play. I took my eye off the guy and he got behind me."
Oilers QB Steve McNair, however, later told a somewhat different tale. Tennessee ran the play because they'd already seen Brown napping earlier in the game.
"The first time we ran that play, the corner came off the coverage, so we came back to it," McNair said.
Source: Sonoma County Press Democrat
Coach Joe Bugel sounded suspiciously like his predecessor, Mike White, after yesterday's loss. In case you've somehow forgotten, White was often derided for his habit of saying something positive about the Raiders after each loss.
Yesterday's game was lost when the Raiders could mount no run defense when it counted—in the fourth quarter. It's a depressingly familiar theme, one which has happened repeatedly over the last two seasons. The Raiders lose close games not because the officials hate them, not because the media hates them, but because their defense can't play a full four quarters of football. To listen to Bugel after the game, though, you'd think there'd been a lot to cheer about.
"We'll take something positive from the fact that we battled back after getting shut out in the first half," said Bugel. "It took us awhile to get going, for reasons I don't know, but we fought back, and we can take that with us."
It "took awhile" to get going because the offensive line did no run blocking, plain and simple. RB Napoleon Kaufman got no holes. He spent much of his time desperately trying to bounce plays to spots where they weren't intended to go. Kaufman finished with 32 yards on 12 carries.
The offense only got going when the team pretty much abandoned the run.
To Bugel's credit, another post-game comment of his was more realistic.
"It's a bitter disappointment," he said. "We're not into moral victories and all that kind of bull. When we tied it up and went ahead, I had no doubts our team was going to win the football game. Our team expected to win the ball game today, so we have a lot of distressed people in (the locker room)."
Sources: Sacramento Bee, San Jose Mercury News
Kaufman missed the second half, a victim of heat exhaustion and dehydration.
The Raiders reported no serious injuries after the game.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle
As of last Friday, the Raiders still weren't close to selling out their next game, the Monday night home contest against Kansas City. More than 16,000 seats remained unsold.
Source: San Francisco Examiner
WR Tim Brown will do a live on-line interview on Raiders.com tomorrow evening at 7:00 p.m. Pacific.
Today's Press Democrat has a nice article on the vertical game.
Bad News: T Pat Harlow missed practice yesterday with a sore back. Coach Joe Bugel tried his best to assure reporters that Harlow's not seriously injured and will play Sunday.
Harlow, the starting left tackle, has a long history of back problems dating back to high school and missed six games last year with back trouble.
The Raiders can ill afford to lose him. His immediate backup, Rick Cunningham, is a journeyman, and all the other backups at tackle are rookies.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Oilers QB Steve McNair will provide a test for the Raiders' defense on Sunday because of his ability to scramble.
"That's the one thing that worries me—his scrambling," said CB Albert Lewis earlier this week. "You know there's going to be times when he's not going to like what he sees and he'll tuck the ball away and run. The danger for us as defensive backs, especially corners, is that we play a lot of man-to-man and we'll be running downfield with our backs turned to him. That gives him the opportunity to make runs and keep his offense on the field."
Joe Bugel said that keeping McNair in the pocket will be a priority for the defense.
"He wants out of the pocket, and he will get out of the pocket on bootlegs, sprints. He's most dangerous when he's outside the tackle area."
Sources: (Sonoma County) Press Democrat,
Bugel announced yesterday that Derrick Fenner will be the starter Sunday at fullback.
"Fenner ended up preseason strong," Bugel said. "Fenner will be the starter."
Earlier in the week, FS Eddie Anderson told reporters that he and James Trapp have been told they'll start at free safety and strong safety, respectively.
John Henry Mills is now practicing at tight end and wearing jersey No. 87.
Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, Contra Costa Times, The Sporting News, Raiders.com
Wednesday's preliminary injury report for Sunday listed only two Raiders, both probable: FB Jerone Davison (pulled gluteus) and FS Eric Turner (groin pull).
For Tennessee, WR Derek Russell is out (broken collarbone). Listed as questionable are LB Joe Bowden (hamstring), OL Jason Layman (hip), CB Darryll Lewis (hamstring), and safety Armon Williams (ankle).
Source: (Sonoma County) Press Democrat
WR Tim Brown said—again—that he doesn't want to be just a short receiver again this year.
"We will do some things differently," said Brown. "I will do some things up the field. Basically in preseason I was the underneath guy."
"It's going to be incumbent upon (offensive coordinator) Ray Perkins to make sure that happens. Once I get labeled the underneath guy, it's the same old program. I don't want people to be sitting on my routes. I want to go upfield sometimes."
Source: Contra Costa Times
I hadn't realized this before—this year is the first time in Raiders history that all the team's draft picks made the squad.
Source: USA Today
Today's Contra Costa Times has some interesting comments by WR James Jett concerning his role in the Raiders' passing game over the last several years. They're all the more interesting because Jett usually doesn't talk a whole lot.
"In the past, we had a quarterback whose arm had been shot; he was kind of beat up, and they couldn't get the ball downfield," said Jett. "Most of my routes were 25 yards. I was just clearing out the zone so the (other) guys could come through underneath. A lot of times, the defense would just roll a guy up on me and cut the field in half and we never did anything to change it."
"It looked bad on my part, but there wasn't much I could do. It was just a situation where I had to make the best of it. When the plays come my way, I just have to make the best of it."
Speaking of this season, Jett added, "The vertical game will stretch things out. I think this is going to be a very important year. Other guys are going to make the plays, so I have to be ready."
The same reporter also managed to get a provocative comment out of Olanda Truitt, who's usually described as modest and reserved.
"One of us will have to emerge and prove we can beat single coverage and create a problem for opposing defenses," Truitt said. "If they give me the opportunity to be the No. 2, I guarantee you Tim and I will break the record set by Jake Reed and Cris Carter for receptions."
That's big talk for a fellow with 15 career receptions. :-)
Source: Contra Costa Times
Oilers' strong safety Blaine Bishop, who had been holding out for a long-term contract, signed a six-year deal today.
Bishop was the Oilers' leading tackler the past two seasons and had been designated as Tennessee's franchise player. He's a two-time Pro Bowl selection.
Bishop said he wanted the deal done so he could play Sunday against the Raiders.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
Signed to the practice squad yesterday were WRs Kenny Grace and Kenyan Branscomb, DE Shatony Sargeant, LB Shay Muirbrook and TE Robert Rosenstiel.
Both Grace, a Bay Area product, and Branscomb spent time on the practice squad last year as well. Sargeant, an unheralded and undrafted rookie out of Fresno State, was a pleasant surprise in training camp.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The Raiders have hired Bill Musgrave as an offensive assistant for "quality control." In the Raiders organization, that translates to watching hours of video and breaking down their opponents' game plans.
Musgrave was a backup quarterback with both San Francisco and Denver. Ironically, his best reference as a potential coach may have come from Denver coach Shorty Shanahan when Musgrave announced his retirement during the off-season.
"It's a tedious job," said coach Joe Bugel. "His idea is he wants to get into pro coaching. We said if you want to be a Raider, then this is the way to do it."
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Afternoon update: DT La'Roi Glover, one of yesterday's last seven cuts, was claimed off waivers by the New Orleans Saints.
Source: ESPNet SportsZone
Yesterday's roster cutdown didn't really contain any major surprises, save perhaps that all six draft picks made the roster. It's unlikely that all of them will play that much this year, but clearly the Raiders weren't about to risk exposing any of them to waivers in order to put one or more on the practice squad.
Aundray Bruce was versatile, able to play all the defensive line positions, but he missed nearly all the pre-season with a severe ankle sprain. The team's depth on the line, and particularly the surprise play of Greg Townsend, made Bruce expendable. (Not to mention that Townsend is playing this year for the league minimum for vets—$275,000.)
Carl Kidd had been a big-time special teams performer for the last two years but was slow to develop as a coverage cornerback. The coaches like Perry Carter's physical play at the corner, veteran Lionel Washington had a good camp, and finally, the team wanted to keep rookie project Calvin Branch.
Coach Joe Bugel said the off-season acquisitions of John Henry Mills and Desmond Howard would help compensate for the loss of Kidd on special teams. "Not to be a smart aleck, but somebody had to get cut," said Bugel.
Dallas has been said to be interested in Kidd for several years now and might well claim him off waivers.
DT La'Roi Glover lost out to Grady Jackson because of the size differential. Kevin Johnson has earned the No. 2 spot at nose tackle. Glover's undersized, Jackson's huge, and the coaching staff also liked the rookie's versatility.
"Grady's a big load," Bugel said. "We played him inside and outside, he's got a bright future ahead."
Veteran offensive lineman Danny Villa was squeezed out by rookie Adam Treu. Treu's long snapping, shaky at first, improved noticeably in the final two exhibitions. Also, Treu, like Villa, can play all the interior line positions.
The Raiders elected to keep six running backs, including rookie Chad Levitt, at the expense of No. 3 tight end Marcus Hinton. Hinton had been something of a disappointment since being signed as an undrafted rookie, although he played better in this year's final two exhibitions.
Bugel noted that either Mills or Derrick Fenner could play tight end if needed.
The team also elected to keep eleven defensive backs.
"Teams could come at us with four wide receivers early in the season," Bugel said. "We have to be ready for those situations. You never want to run short on defensive backs."
Finally, WR Ed Hervey and LB Shay Muirbrook were released.
"This is our family right now," said Bugel. "Now we shut down the hatches, tighten up the screws, and the bullets are for real."
The team can name five players to the practice squad at 1:00 p.m. Pacific today when the 24-hour waiver period ends. Of those released yesterday, only Muirbrook would be eligible.
Sources: (Sonoma County) Press Democrat, San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle
Late update: For Bay Area fans, Chester McGlockton will be a guest on SportsFinal tonight at 11:30 p.m. PDT on KRON-TV (Ch. 4).
Source: Raiders Fans Mail List
KNBR's earlier report of the roster casualties, immediately below, has been confirmed. The Sonoma County Press Democrat has published an article with more details and some comments by coach Joe Bugel.
All six of the Raiders' draft choices did indeed make the team.
The Raiders trimmed their roster to the required 53 players today. According to radio station KNBR, released were:
OL Danny Villa, TE Marcus Hinton, WR Ed Hervey, LB Shay Muirbrook, DT La'Roi Glover, DL Aundray Bruce, and CB Carl Kidd.
Interestingly, almost all the rookies thought to be on the bubble—including Tim Kohn, Scott Whittaker, Grady Jackson, Chad Levitt and Calvin Branch—made the team.
This list isn't official, and nothing has appeared on the web yet.
Source: Raiders Fans Mail List
With the final roster cutdown from 60 to 53 players required by 1:00 p.m. today, at least one paper is speculating this morning that the Raiders might be talking trade with Miami.
Supposedly the trade would bring left tackle Richmond Webb to the Raiders in return for rookie RB Chad Levitt and second-year DT La'Roi Glover.
Miami coach Jimmy Johnson is thought to covet Levitt—whom he wanted to draft—and needs help on his defensive line. Webb, once a perennial Pro Bowler, is past his prime and no longer the physical player he once was, but is still a better pass blocker than incumbent Pat Harlow.
Coach Joe Bugel was non-committal but said he had talked with senior assistant Bruce Allen several times yesterday.
"Anything can happen, really," Bugel said. "I'm sure some people are not happy with their rosters. Some have had some big-time injuries. You look at where you have the depth."
"We're in pretty good shape, although in the offensive line we may be a little thin."
Source: Sacramento Bee, Aug. 24, 1997
Readers who checked out R8der's training camp report last week saw the comment by Jim Otto that the Coliseum won't be called that much longer.
Yesterday's Contra Costa Times reported that the new name will likely be UMAX Coliseum. UMAX is a Macintosh clone maker and is said to be purchasing rights to the name for $3 million annually, to be divided between the Raiders and Oakland/Alameda County.
Yesterday's game summons up quite a few cliches about the Raiders of the last few seasons:
Sadly, they were all true in last night's loss to Arizona. You can read the game recaps, the best of which is the AP account on Nando.net.
Some lowlights:
Special teams ace John Henry Mills was flagged three times. One of them negated a field goal, although K Cole Ford made good on the retry. QB David Klingler twice tried to force the ball into coverage, resulting in interceptions. At one point the Raiders had six attempts from the Arizona two-yard line. The result: one of the Klingler interceptions in the end zone.
TE Rickey Dudley failed to adjust to a ball and had what should have been a TD go off his hands in the end zone. He tried to make up for it later with an illegal motion call. WR James Jett got behind the entire Arizona defense on a post pattern, but QB Jeff George's throw was badly underthrown and to Jett's back side.
DT Chester McGlockton showed the fans his specialty—an offsides giving Arizona a first down. DTs Darrell Russell and Kevin Johnson showed they're paying attention by copying Chester's accomplishment shortly thereafter.
S James Trapp tore at a receiver's head when he was already about three yards out of bounds. A flag? You bet! Smart move, James—we were beginning to worry you'd gone soft with all this nice guy stuff.
CB Perry Carter mugged Arizona receivers all night long. Amazingly, he got away with it—some might consider this a plus—but this observer thinks that during the regular season that kind of defense will attract yellow hankies the way doodoo attracts flies. Remember, it's been pre-season for the officials too.
WR Tim Brown fumbled without being hit on the Raiders' first play from scrimmage.
RB Joe Aska also lost a fumble.
Among the few highlights:
CB Larry Brown had one of his now-patented interceptions. Nowhere near an Arizona receiver, Brown was hit with a ball right in the numbers and ran it back for a score. Zowie! Look what Santa brought me!
Joe Aska played very sparingly with the first unit. Playing with the second- and third-string linemen in the fourth quarter, as the players became exhausted— kickoff temperature was 104—Aska got some huge holes and ripped off some nice gains. (Poor Tim Hall, playing mostly with the first string, ran hard but got absolutely no blocking and often found himself surrounded by Cards while still in the backfield.)
S Lorenzo Lynch, fighting to make the team in this observer's view, showed his experience with a nice interception, reading rookie QB Jake Plummer's eyes.
Cole Ford continued to deliver. He has yet to miss this season.
WR Olanda Truitt had seven receptions, most of them from Don Hollas.
Rookie FB Chad Levitt hustled all the while he was in the game. He was wide open quite a few times, but no one threw to him.
Injury report: The Raiders reported no serious injuries. DL Aundray Bruce did play; S Eric Turner didn't.
Coach Joe Bugel and his staff will hit the film room for another marathon. The deadline for the final roster cutdown to 53 is tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. Pacific.
Rick Cunningham has become the official backup at left tackle now that Robert Jenkins has retired. Cunningham spent extra time after practice this week working on his techniques.
"He's like our sixth man right now," said coach Joe Bugel. "When you know what your role is, and it's clear and defined, I think you pick it up a little bit more. You spend quality time on the football field before and after practice. He's been bouncing around and now all of a sudden, boom, you could be the left tackle in a heartbeat."
"Starter Pat Harlow, beaten twice last weeks for sacks by no-name Joe Johnson, draws a heavyweight opponent this week: DE Simeon Rice. "Rice is for real," Bugel said."
As with most final exhibition games, the Raider starters are likely to play only a quarter at most tomorrow. No one wants to risk injury at this point.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Oakland Tribune
Speaking of Jenkins, a Bay Area native, he's been offered a job as assistant line coach with the Raiders and is thinking it over.
"An offer has been extended to me," Jenkins said. "I'm in the process of evaluating some things. I have some business opportunities in the works, but right now I'm seriously considering coaching."
On his retirement, Jenkins said, "It was a combination of a lot of things, but I had the feeling of knowing when it's time. And it was my time."
"The Raider family has been extremely good to me. They allowed me to come back home and finish my career in the proper fashion."
Source: Contra Costa Times
DL Aundray Bruce finally returned to practice yesterday and says he thinks he'll play Friday. He's been bothered with a severe ankle sprain—a problem he's had in past seasons as well—and has missed all the pre-season games.
Source: Contra Costa Times
Depending on how Sunday's final roster cuts shake out, Jerone Davison's misfortune might just be Chad Levitt's good fortune.
Davison pulled a muscle in his buttocks in yesterday's practice and is out for the time being. As a result, Levitt and Derrick Fenner will play most of the final exhibition game tomorrow night against hapless Arizona.
For Levitt, a fourth-round draft pick, it's a golden opportunity to impress the coaches two days before the team must trim seven final players from the roster.
Speaking of the competition at fullback, coach Joe Bugel said, "Those three kids are battling their rear ends off. There's no lock on that position, believe me."
"I almost cried walking off the field yesterday (after being injured)," Davison said. "I'm used to being the free agent-walk on . . . usually when people like me get hurt, we're facing the ax the next day."
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Oakland Tribune
Where Are They Now, part 739: Regular readers of this site may recall that one-time Raider starting left tackle Gerald Perry had told the Rams he'd play this year after quitting last season during camp. Then he failed to show up for camp. Well, here's the sequel, proving once again that truth is really stranger than fiction. :-)
Perry, who finally showed up for training camp on August 4, then got caught for steroid use, was released by St. Louis today after walking out of a team meeting. Definitely a motivated individual . . .
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
The big news yesterday for Raiders fans was the retirement of T Robert Jenkins. Increasingly bothered by arthritic knees the past several seasons, after multiple surgeries he could no longer play an entire game or finish an entire season. Nevertheless, Jenkins played very well when he was able to—he didn't surrender a sack last season while playing roughly 50% of the snaps.
The loss of Jenkins leaves the team dangerously short of depth on the offensive line, especially in view of starting left tackle Pat Harlow's history of back problems.
Asked yesterday who would replace Jenkins, coach Joe Bugel said, "Rick Cunningham has to play all four positions right now. The thing is when you dress eight guys on game day, you have to have some guys that are pretty versatile. Curtis Whitley played guard in college, Barret Robbins played both guard and tackle in college as well. Rookies Tim Kohn and Adam Treu both played left tackle in college, next week we will start rotating those guys into that position. You better look for some big things on game day, if something goes wrong. These guys have to be familiar with not only one position, but two or three positions."
Also released yesterday were offensive linemen Jeff Kysar and Joey Wylie. Kysar suffered a reoccurrence of the problem which sidelined him all last year—apparently an arthritic ankle joint—and missed the entire pre-season. Wylie, despite being tenacious, had marginal skills and saw no action during the last two exhibition games.
On defense, the "name" among those released was veteran Aaron Wallace. Wallace actually played decently during the exhibitions, but despite being a great pass rusher he's never displayed an ability to master pass coverage.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle, Raiders.com
Carl Kidd will play at safety against the Cardinals on Friday.
This observer has often wondered why the Raiders don't try Kidd at safety. He has good size and is very physical but gets burned a lot in man-to-man coverage on the corner. It seems he's well suited to play safety.
Aundray Bruce may finally see game action this week.
Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
Late evening update: Finally! The San Jose Mercury News published the casualty list for today's roster cuts. Oddly, the names never appeared on any of the sites with SportsTicker or AP feeds.
T Robert Jenkins, he of the arthritic knees, retired after 11 seasons. Rookie LB Adrian Ioja went on injured reserve with an undisclosed knee injury.
The following players were released:
OFFENSE: QBs Jason Davis and Todd Studer; RBs Derrick Clark and Ricky Ervins; WRs Obadiah Cooper, Kenyan Branscomb and Kenny Grace; TEs Robert Rosenstiel and Kevin Smith; T Jeff Kysar, and G-C Joey Wylie.
DEFENSE: DTs Ta'ase Faumui and Gabriel Oladipo; DE Shatony Sargeant; LB Aaron Wallace; and S Lamar Lyons.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Score one for Raiders.com, the team's official site. Although the Team NFL site ran a prominent teaser for the chat session session with Bruce Allen, it was moderated by Rick Tracewell, who maintains the Raiders site, and apparently held on Raiders.com.
As of 5:50 p.m. PDT, there's still no word on those roster cuts . . .
The Sporting News site has several "front-page" features on the Raiders this afternoon. There's also a poll on who, besides Jeff George, will be the key to success for the team this year.
You'll find links in the Articles section.
It appears that the online chat with Bruce Allen being touted on Raiders.com may actually be conducted on the Team NFL site. Both sites have teasers; neither refers to the other. Confusing . . .
FS Eric Turner, on whom the Raiders were counting to help solidify a porous secondary, now appears likely to be out for some time.
Turner had practiced last week after missing virtually all of training camp with a groin pull. He played Saturday for a brief period—foolishly, in this observer's view, since groin injuries can be very slow to heal—and re-aggravated the injury.
Turner may miss the season opener at Memphis on August 31.
"We have to be smart about this," said coach Joe Bugel. "We may have rushed Larry Brown last year on his foot injury. I feel if you have quality players and depth at a position, you have to be 100 percent sure before you do anything (with an injured player)."
WR Terrance Warren, who hadn't appeared in any of the exhibitions, retired, reducing the roster to 78.
Injury report: LB Aaron Wallace missed yesterday's single practice with a sore hamstring. S Dan Land practiced despite a sore hamstring. DL Aundray Bruce was excused from practice to see a specialist about his continuing calf/ankle problem.
Sources: Scripps-McClatchy Western (Nando.net), Contra Costa Times
Well, whoop-tee-doo! This site's been picked as The Gate's Raiders Site Of The Week.
The Raiders' official web site, Raiders.com, will have an online interview with senior assistant Bruce Allen tomorrow (Tuesday) at 7:00 p.m. PDT.
It's high drama time as the Raiders approach tomorrow's mandatory roster cutdown to 60 players. The present count stands at 79 with the recent retirements of Tom Robsock and Pat Swilling.
The Raiders virtually never announce roster changes until they absolutely have to, so don't expect to see anything definite until Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning. Barring a trade, that is. Rumors of possible trades involving G-C Joey Wylie and DT La'Roi Glover have been making the rounds. Both players are young, show potential, and play at positions that are overcrowded on the team roster. The Raiders might well try to get something in return for them.
Swilling retired again over the weekend, and this time it's probably carved in stone. For one thing, the news came from the Raiders and not the press.
The team made the announcement prior to Saturday's game. Bruce Allen said, "This (retirement decision) was different than the first time. Then, it was abrupt. This time he gave it some thought. He didn't feel he could compete."
"He did all we asked of him his first two seasons here, but he just never had the fire in his belly this year."
Eddie Anderson, a good friend of Swilling's, said, "You play this game long enough, your number is going to come up some day and your role is going to change. If you can't accept it, the best thing is to step away."
CB Albert Lewis had a more trenchant comment. "We kind of used up all the drama in the first one," he said.
Swilling almost certainly would have been cut this week anyway. Old geezer Greg Townsend has been a major, pleasant surprise at the outside end position and would have claimed a roster slot ahead of Swilling.
There's a touching tribute to Swilling by Mercury News columnist Ann Killion in the Articles section.
Sources: Associated Press, San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee
Coach Joe Bugel had said he wanted to see the offense put together some long, time-consuming drives against New Orleans. Up to now, the offense has shown the ability to strike quickly but not to grind down an opponent.
It didn't happen. The Raiders' one touchdown came on a quick drive in which the offense moved the ball by throwing four short passes to WR Tim Brown. While Harvey Williams actually caught the scoring pass—a four-yard bullet—every completion during the drive went to Brown.
The offensive line still hasn't displayed the ability to grind out the physical, in-your-face kind of running yardage that's necessary to make the vertical passing game work consistently.
A look at the game stats shows that New Orleans had the statistical advantage in almost every department. The Raiders' starting offense is still sputtering at this point.
The ball was never thrown James Jett's way. As for Kenny Shedd, he had two chances. He caught one, but also dropped a throw that hit him in the numbers.
Heroes: DT Russell Maryland dropped Saints QB Heath Shuler in the end zone for a safety that turned out to provide the winning margin. Shedd came up with a big play on special teams, blocking a punt when New Orleans let him get in untouched. Desmond Howard had two sparkling returns, on a kickoff and a punt. And DT Kevin Johnson probably assured himself a roster spot with a four-tackle effort in just one quarter of play. Goats: In one half of play, T Pat Harlow was beaten for two sacks and committed a dumb penalty. DE Lance Johnstone's offsides penalty early in the game wiped out a fumble recovery that would have given the Raiders the ball at the Saints' 30.
The Raiders improved only marginally in the continuing effort to avoid penalties. They had 7 for 63 yards, better than previous efforts but still more than twice as many as New Orleans.
K Cole Ford, who won Saturday's game with three field goals off the dirt infield, including a 50-yarder, got a welcome vote of confidence from Joe Bugel.
"He told me, 'That's how much I trust you, Cole (referring to the distance),'" said Ford. "That's very important to hear from a coach."
Source: Sacramento Bee
LB Sedric Clark, a seventh-round draft pick by the Raiders in 1996, was waived by Carolina.
Source: Associated Press
With a Tuesday noon deadline looming for paring the roster by 20 players, the Raiders will play the starters for a half today, then try to get a final look at players on the bubble.
"That's the toughest part of the job," said coach Joe Bugel. "I don't look forward to it at all. But decisions have to be made."
"We're going to have a long day Sunday grading the tapes," he added.
"We want to see how a lot of our young people perform," Bugel said. "You don't want to make any mistakes before the first cut-down."
"We want to make sure everyone gets an opportunity. The worst thing would be for someone to come to you and say he didn't get a chance. You have to find out who the quality backups are."
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee
To this observer, the next-to-last exhibition game is always one of the most dramatic events of a given season because the fates of so many players hang on it.
This year is no exception. It's a tale of individual struggles to try to start—or hang on to—a career in professional football.
Rookie Adam Treu will again do all the long snapping today. Special teams coach Rusty Tillman has spent extra time with him this week after Treu had a shaky performance against Green Bay.
"I really feel that New Orleans is going to come after our punter. I'm going to see what Adam can do when they come after it," said Bugel.
Tackle Jeff Kysar, who's been out with the same foot problem (an arthritic joint) which put him on injured reserve last year, is going to try molded shoe inserts this week in a last-ditch effort to salvage his career. He's missed virtually all of this season's training camp.
"I'm kind of desperate right now," Kysar said. "I'm trying to get back on the field as soon as I can. I've got every reason to be pessimistic, but I'm trying not to be. The doctors want me to give this a shot."
C Curtis Whitley, the self-described "wild child," looks as though he'll make the roster despite the less-than-flattering revelations about meth use which came out this week.
"Whitley is primarily a center, and he's a darn good one," Bugel said. "He's a power guy. I've loved him over the years. I looked at him down in San Diego on my year off (1994). Unfortunately there they had another good center, Courtney Hall. So this kid Whitley is for real. What he does for us is make the long and short snap."
(Actually, Whitley's being taught long snapping at the moment. It's not something he's done before.)
Another saga, perhaps becoming anticlimactic, is that of veteran DE Pat Swilling, who un-retired in a hurry after the Raiders apparently threatened to make him repay $1.67 million in signing bonus money.
Comebacker Greg Townsend has been such a pleasant surprise that there doesn't seem to be any room for Swilling at the outside end position. Camp insiders have described Swilling as just hanging around until he's released. If cut, he won't be liable for the bonus money.
As reported earlier, FS Eric Turner is unlikely to play today. "He's sore today," Bugel said yesterday. "Am I concerned? Yeah. I don't want to put him in the game if he can't cover the deep pass." Bugel will wait until after pre-game warmups to make a final decision.
Cornerback watch: Lionel Washington is doubtful due to sore ribs. Albert Lewis will start ahead of Larry Brown on the right corner, and Perry Carter will be used before Carl Kidd in the dime package.
There's a good summary of some of the interesting position battles to watch in today's Contra Costa Times.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
Another account of Wednesday's heated discussion between senior assistant Bruce Allen and DE Pat Swilling appeared late last evening.
The San Jose Mercury News claims Allen walked away from the conversation twice, but returned each time.
The Raiders organization continues to do poorly in the credibility department. A day after coach Joe Bugel denied that the team had interviewed candidates for a quarterbacks coach position, former Raider Jim Plunkett said he was offered the job by owner Al Davis last March. Plunkett turned down the offer.
"I was very interested, but my kids are at an age where they need me around," Plunkett said yesterday. "Al wanted me to move to Alameda, to be close to the offices. I half wanted to do it."
"It's still in the back of my mind. It really intrigued me. I wanted to help the Raiders and their quarterbacks."
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Television update: According to today's Chronicle, tomorrow's game will be shown on Bay-TV tomorrow night at 11:00 p.m. PDT rather than 11:30 p.m. as previously announced. Also, KRON-TV (Ch. 4) will run a tape-delayed broadcast at 1:00 a.m.
Today's edition of SABER has some flat-out wrong "facts" in it.
We're told Chris Naeole will start at right guard for the Saints tomorrow. That would be pretty amazing considering that he's out with a torn medial collateral ligament in his knee.
And Larry Brown is the starting right corner? Ha! Expect to see old man Albert Lewis back there again this season, folks. Brown's play during the pre-season has varied between mediocre and atrocious.
Finally, one writer says WR Kenyan Branscomb has retired from football. Make that G Tom Robsock. Branscomb's still on the roster.
QB Jeff George sat out two practices, Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, with a strained stomach muscle.
The team claimed they were just giving George a rest, but George himself admitted to reporters that he'd suffered the injury when dropping back and rotating his hips to throw during one of the many repetitive passing drills.
"I just wasn't stretched out right," George said. "I had something like it back in 1990 and I didn't do anything about it then and ended up missing six or seven games. But it's nothing, no big thing."
George returned to practice yesterday afternoon.
Also missing practice was DT Chester McGlockton with spasms in his upper back.
McGlockton said he's never before had problems with his back and said he was "day to day. I'll see how I feel tomorrow."
FS Eric Turner, recovering from a groin pull, will not play Saturday against New Orleans. Coach Joe Bugel said Eddie Anderson will start at free safety and James Trapp at strong safety.
"Eric is not totally well yet," said Bugel. "He still gets a little fatigued and soreness there (in his groin). We have to watch him real close. If there is any bad feeling at all, we won't play a guy."
Sources: Associated Press, Oakland Tribune, San Jose Mercury News, (Sonoma County) Press Democrat, Contra Costa Times
Bugel flatly denied yesterday's San Francisco Chronicle report that the Raiders have interviewed three candidates for the job of quarterbacks coach.
"We haven't done that, we really haven't," said Bugel. "It's a good rumor, though. . . . I really haven't talked to anybody about a quarterback position."
Bugel said offensive coordinator Ray Perkins will continue to work with the quarterbacks. "I feel very comfortable with that," he said.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Contra Costa Times
The Raiders failed to sell out Saturday's game with New Orleans by the 72-hour blackout deadline, so the game will not be televised live locally. A tape-delayed broadcast will be shown at 11:30 p.m. Saturday on Bay-TV.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
The Raiders are practicing something new, using Tim Brown as a wingback in their goal-line offense.
"He's a guy that can cross the field and make catches," Bugel said. "The 49ers used Jerry Rice there over the years. I think it puts a little dimension into that situation where people can't just pack everyone in and play the run. They've got to be a little more cautious when you've got Harvey (Williams), Rickey (Dudley), and Timmy Brown in there as pass receivers."
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Quite a few media have speculated that because rookie Adam Treu has handled all but one of the long snaps in the Raiders' two exhibitions, the Raiders won't keep the higher-salaried Danny Villa. Bugel reiterated yesterday that that's not necessarily so.
Bugel said he already knows what Villa—an 11-year veteran who plays every position on the interior line—can do. The coaches are trying to teach Curtis Whitley (right now MLB Greg Biekert is listed as the third snapper on the depth chart). In the meantime, they wanted to see if Treu could handle the job.
Treu's snaps against the Packers were repeatedly low. "He bounced a few back there, so we've got to keep looking at him," Bugel said.
Bugel also refused to be pinned down on who will be the starter at right cornerback. "Not yet," he said, shaking his head.
The Raiders have been giving Larry Brown extensive playing time in the pre-season to get a good look at him. His performance has been decidedly mixed. His primary competition, Albert Lewis, didn't play particularly well against Green Bay either.
"It was the plan to let Larry have pretty much all of training camp and the first couple of games," said Bugel. "I wanted to get him in there in the Austin scrimmages and in Dallas. When Albert felt ready to go, mainly when he got in pretty good condition, then it was time for him to go cover."
"(On Saturday) most likely our starting corners will be Albert and Terry (McDaniel). Larry will come in on pirate and bandit (nickel and dime coverages) this week. The reason we are doing this is Albert went one-a-day in practices."
"Now is the time to catch up on a lot of reps. We'd like to mix it up in there. He needs some snaps."
Source: Oakland Tribune
There's a nice article today on FB Jerone Davison, who's gotten extensive playing time because of the late re-signing and subsequent injury to Derrick Fenner. While this observer would be shocked if Fenner isn't the starter come August 31, Davison has a good shot at making the final roster.
Finally, this odd note about DE Pat Swilling, who's definitely on the bubble with both Lance Johnstone and Greg Townsend playing well in his absence. You'll recall that Swilling retired, then un-retired, then was injured in his first practice after returning. He hasn't practiced since.
According to the Contra Costa Times, yesterday Swilling and senior assistant Bruce Allen "engaged in an animated conversation, complete with finger pointing and arm waving." Doesn't sound good for Swilling . . .
The Raiders may be shopping for a full-time quarterbacks coach, something they haven't had since Larry Kennan departed.
Today's San Francisco Chronicle quotes an "NFL source" as saying the team has already interviewed three candidates: Jim Plunkett, Steve DeBerg and Bill Musgrave. Plunkett currently does radio work for the Raiders. DeBerg was the QB coach with the Giants the past two years, and Musgrave just retired from football last month.
Musgrave has said he wants to coach and is reported to have interviewed with managing general partner Al Davis while the Raiders were practicing in Texas.
Curtis Whitley is quoted in the upcoming book as saying, "I know I'm not at all a poor innocent victim here. I'm a wild child. I've done some bad things. But I've had a good time . . ." But now Whitley is said by a close friend to be considering suing the authors, which suggests he denies saying what he's quoted as having said.
Whitley, who served a four-game suspension last season for what the league and Carolina Panthers said was alcohol abuse, but what Whitley says was drug abuse, refused to comment directly when asked about excerpts from the book by a Sacramento Bee reporter. He said only, "I don't know what you're talking about. I've got to go."
According to another paper, however, Whitley also said, "I'll sue anybody who writes that story."
Senior assistant Bruce Allen had this response: "We're not worried about what he did in Carolina. We're worried about what he does now."
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee
Individual game tickets for regular-season home games go on sale at 10 a.m. this Saturday at all BASS ticket outlets. Fans can also purchase individual game tickets or a package of three to eight games from OFMA (Oakland Football Marketing Association).
Source: Contra Costa Times
New Raider Curtis Whitley certainly knows how to liven up an otherwise slow news day.
The AP reports that Whitley admits in a new book due out this week to having snorted crystal methamphetamine last fall while with Carolina. Not the brightest thing to have appear in print, given the NFL's substance abuse policies . . .
Whitley's comments appear in "Year of the Cat," an account of the Pathers' 1996 season written by Charles Chandler and Scott Fowler, two newspaper reporters who cover the team.
Whitley told the authors that he joined a friend of the family last October in the women's bathroom of a Charlotte-area restaurant to snort crystal methamphetamine. Whitley said his wife remained at their table, unaware of what he was doing.
"I'm a wild child. I've done some bad things," said Whitley, signed by the Raiders several weeks back.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
Monday's plays of the day in practice: back-to-back bombs from QB Jeff George to Kenny Shedd and James Jett—both perfect spirals just over the defender. Neither receiver had to break stride.
Source: Contra Costa Times
The Raiders are using John Henry Mills at fullback in this week's practices.
"We are always looking for that goal-line blocker, and the guy can come out of the backfield and catch the football," said coach Joe Bugel. "He can play so many darn positions. I think his favorite is on the offensive side of the ball. We're going to give him the benefit of the doubt this week and let him play there."
G Tom Robsock, who didn't get into Friday's game, has retired and gone home to Pennsylvania.
"I had a conversation with him, and he wants very much to coach high school football," Bugel said. "He feels that is his life's work."
Robsock hopes to coach with the nationally prominent Berwick High team in Western Pennsylvania. But he'll begin teaching and coaching junior high ball in Uniontown, Pa.
Source: Oakland Tribune
QB Jeff George said a few more times recently that he hates pre-season. Yawn . . .
Sources: Oakland Tribune, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
S Lorenzo Lynch missed practice yesterday with low back pain and the team says he's out "indefinitely." The 34-year-old veteran, fighting for a backup job, has apparently developed sciatica, a very painful (and chronic) condition. He couldn't have picked a worse time to be injured. The Raiders have as much as handed this season's starting strong safety job to speedster James Trapp.
"Hopefully I can play Saturday," said Lynch. "It's been something that's been bothering me all last week. I tried to work through it, but it got to a point where I just couldn't do it. I think I'll be all right, though."
"I practiced all last week (hurt)," Lynch added. "I'll take a couple of days off to see if it feels better, and if it doesn't, I play with it. I don't think this will put me back. I played Friday night. There are some things I need to work on, but I feel I'm where I need to be."
FS Eric Turner finally practiced Monday for the first time in a month. He might play Saturday. FB Derrick Fenner also returned to practice.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee, San Francisco Chronicle
Bugel was philosophical about the poor defensive showing in giving up 37 points to Green Bay.
"The one thing about the game I get to see that you don't is I get to see it about nine times. The thing that is really impressive is the way our guys are hustling and going to the football. That's the best thing you can ask for in the preseason—effort."
"If there are weaknesses, you work on them, and that's what we did today. We did a lot of teaching. I think we are ahead of schedule right now."
"I like to win, but the most important thing to me in the preseason is development. If you pass over a kid in preseason, that will come back to haunt you every time. It would be unfair, if you didn't play the guys in preseason. Right now, we are playing a lot of mixes and matches on both sides of the ball."
Source: Oakland Tribune
FB Wes Bender, who spent some time on the Raiders roster in the past, is on the New Orleans roster.
Bender has limited skills but endeared himself to many Raiders fans in the past with a take-no-prisoners, smash-mouth style.
Source: The Sporting News
Coach Joe Bugel still won't reveal a team depth chart. He's previously said he doesn't want to demoralize anyone and wants to maintain all the players' motivation.
"We've got quality depth on this team. That's one reason why I don't want to get into a starting lineup right now," Bugel said.
Source: Sacramento Bee
There's a feature today on punter Leo Araguz in the Chronicle.
One comment this observer would add: the article mentions that Araguz averaged only 34.6 yards per punt against Green Bay. For those who weren't able to see the game, Araguz had to field low snaps from rookie Adam Treu on nearly every punt.
Here's hoping the team keeps veteran Danny Villa to do the long snapping this season.
S Lorenzo Lynch is grumbling again about no longer being a starter.
"I haven't been running with the second team in five or six years," said Lynch recently. "I'm a boiling pot right now. I play hard in practice. I play hurt. I'm from the old school. I just want respect."
Although the Raiders appear to have given James Trapp the starting strong safety job to lose, it's not as though Lynch isn't getting his own reps in the pre-season. He's started alongside Trapp in both games so far, filling in at free safety for the injured Eric Turner. So, if he remains at No. 2 on the depth chart, one has to think it's because he belongs there.
For the record, officially the coaches insist no starters have been chosen. Said DB coach Steve Shafer, "Lorenzo is not a backup. We don't have our starting safeties. That's a helluva battle. I've got a bunch of good safeties. (Lynch) is saying he's a backup? I'm telling you he's wrong, unless he wants to give it to the guy."
Of Trapp, who played safety in college, Shafer commented, "He's doing as well as I could expect. It's new to him. He's out there practicing, talking, communicating. Now, he just needs snaps. That's why these preseason games are going to be great for him. He's very capable of being an excellent safety."
The third possibility, Lamar Lyons, has played very well on special teams thus far.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Despite Coach Joe Bugel's best efforts at spin control—see Quotes of the Week, above—the Raiders' defense against Green Bay Friday night was appallingly bad. The Packers ran up nearly 500 yards of offense, held the ball 65% of the time, and enjoyed nearly a 2-1 edge in first downs (33-17).
(Think I'm exaggerating? Read the game recaps.)
Particularly unsettling was the 341 yards of passing yardage surrendered by the Oakland secondary. Frankly, there wasn't a single Raider cornerback who looked good—not one.
The coaching staff worked this weekend while the players had two days off following two games in six days. Bugel said he intends to continue two-a-days Monday through Thursday this coming week, once per day in pads and once in shells (uniform only). And although he tried to portray the defensive debacle in a positive light, Bugel's concern surfaced when asked during an interview for the team's official Web site what his priorities would be for the final two weeks of the pre-season.
"We're going to have extended periods of technical football, how to pursue the ball, how to pass rush, how to use our hands, go back to the bump and run theory," replied Bugel. "Basically get back to a lot of the individual work that we need to refine right now."
In other words, work on defense.
And don't forget the Raiders' old nemesis—penalties. They had 11 against the Packers Friday night. Among the dumbest: CB Larry Brown lining up offsides, and TE Marcus Hinton drawing two flags in only limited playing time. That's three in two games for Hinton, who was once highly considered but now is better described as something of a disappointment.
Sources: Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times, raiders.com
According to the Sonoma County Press Democrat, Bugel had said before the game that QB Jeff George might play less, and that rookies Jason Davis or Todd Studer might take a few snaps at quarterback.
They didn't. George played the first quarter and part of the second. David Klingler relieved him and played until half-way through the fourth. Don Hollas finished up.
Neither Davis nor Studer has seen any game action so far this year. Nor, as far as I know, have RB Ricky Ervins, WR Terrance Warren, or TE Kevin Smith.
WR Kenny Shedd did play but was essentially invisible. Nothing was thrown his way. Harvey Williams made his first appearance at tight end during the first half. He blocked on some plays and ran routes on others.
Bits and pieces: KR Desmond Howard finally made his debut against Green Bay, fielding one punt and one kickoff each in the first half. His returns were quite ordinary—no fireworks.
The Raider who sparkled on kickoff returns was pint-sized Obadiah Cooper, who has little chance to stick because of the team's depth at wide receiver. He returned two, showing both great speed and good moves.
The team reported no injuries suffered during the game.
Only ten days remain until the Raiders have to reduce their roster to 60 players. They currently have 81 (one over the normal limit because of a WLAF exemption for La'Roi Glover), so 21 guys will soon be out of work. Consequently, look for more and more media articles in the coming days speculating as to who may be cut.
Coach Joe Bugel expects WR Kenny Shedd to see more playing time in tomorrow night's game, and said he's looking forward to seeing how Shedd does against the Packers' first-string defense.
"A lot of time receivers look good because they're playing against second or third people," said Bugel. "The plan this week is to make sure X-amount of guys intermingle with the first groups in there. I think that's the real test. That's the real deal."
CB Larry Brown, who surrendered a TD to Dallas in the first quarter last Sunday, got beaten by WR Tim Brown in yesterday's practice for a 30-yard score.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Because of the short week, after Friday's game the players will get both Saturday and and Sunday off. The team will break camp in Napa a week from tomorrow.
Source: Sacramento Bee
Articles on interest: This week's Sports Xchange team report is very detailed and worth a read, although this observer is rapidly growing weary of the knocks on WR James Jett for allegedly "disappearing" last year. I'll have an opinion piece on that subject within the next several days.
The Chron has a feature today on Darrell Russell and his mom. Awww . . . :-)
And while you're in the sentimental mood, check out the Press Democrat article on Grady Jackson, too.
Joe Bugel's diplomatic when asked about Desmond Howard's chances as a wide receiver. Howard has missed nearly three weeks of training camp with a hamstring pull, while Kenny Shedd and Olanda Truitt have each been making their case for more playing time this year.
"We are not in that big a hurry because of the great development of Kenny Shedd and Olanda Truitt," Bugel said. "We have four guys we like. We'd like to mix Desmond in, but right now, we'd like to get him comfortable with our special teams. He has plenty of time to get into that receiver rotation."
Source: Oakland Tribune
Only about 38,500 tickets were sold by the 48-hour deadline, so tomorrow's game will not be shown live.
For those in the Bay Area, a tape-delayed broadcast will air at 11:35 p.m. PDT on KRON-TV (Ch. 4). The tape will also be shown Saturday at 10:00 a.m. on Bay-TV.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Afternoon update: It's official—former Raider QB Billy Joe Hobert will ride the bench in Buffalo. Coach Marv Levy confirmed that Todd Collins will be the Bills' starter for the season opener.
Hobert had an inconsistent camp. In April he'd reported to minicamp weighing close to 250 pounds, although he subsequently got down to 230 for the team's training camp.
Source: Associated Press (Nando.net)
With the temperature in Napa hitting 100 degrees during the afternoon, coach Joe Bugel harped on two subjects in yesterday's practices—penalties and pass protection.
Of the penalties—the Raiders committed nine against Dallas—Bugel said, "We're trying to get their attention. We had a couple of these penalties that stopped drives against Dallas and we're trying to make the point that we won't tolerate this. We aren't going to beat ourselves. We talk about this in meetings before every practice, and now, we're trying to make the point on the field."
When an unidentified offensive lineman jumped offsides yesterday morning, Bugel ran onto the field and yelled, "When are we going to stop this?" On the next play a lineman jumped again. "Get another group in there," shouted a clearly disgusted Bugel.
As for pass protection, Bugel said, "I think it will help the offensive linemen to be working against our big guys in practice. The teams in our division all have those 300-pounders. We've been a little light in the defensive line the last couple of years, and that's hurt when our offensive linemen have to block the big guys in games. But now, they'll be banging the big guys in practice."
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
TE Harvey Williams returned to practice yesterday. He didn't want to discuss his reason for missing Sunday's game in Dallas.
"It was something I had to take care of that I don't want to get into," he said. "It was a family matter—it was real bad, trust me."
Also returning to practice were DL Ta'ase Faumui (calf) and linebackers Rob Fredrickson (shoulder stinger) and Rob Holmberg (groin).
K Cole Ford broke the fourth and fifth fingers on his left hand while making an unassisted tackle on a kickoff return Sunday. He's sporting a cast on the hand.
WR Ed Hervey, a real long shot for a roster spot, caught three touchdowns in yesterday's morning workout.
WR James Jett continues to be described as looking somewhat lackluster in team practices, while Kenny Shedd is having a camp similar to last season's—spectacular. He made another circus catch yesterday morning.
Don't forget, though, that by and large Shedd's dramatic plays in real game situations have come against reserves, while Jett routinely faces front-line defenders. Shedd's a lock to make the final roster, but he will probably be the No. 3 wide receiver on the depth chart.
Sources: Oakland Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, Contra Costa Times
Yesterday's Contra Costa Times ran an in-depth article on Jerone Davison, known to his teammates as "Rev." Today there's a feature on undrafted rookie Scott Whittaker
Where Are They Now Dept.: Former Raider RB/WR Ty Montgomery made his debut last Friday night for the CFL's Winnepeg Blue Bombers. Reader Fred Wall reports that he was equally ineffective returning kicks and running the ball.
Coach Joe Bugel said one thing which pleased him about Sunday's game was that the players stayed calm as Dallas' first team offense shredded the Raiders D for two quick touchdowns in the opening quarter.
"You have to get a lot of things done in the preseason—not just blocking and tackling, but how you react to certain situations," he said. "If the sideline becomes chaos, you don't have a chance."
"There was no hollering and screaming. Everyone stayed calm. That was very pleasing."
Bugel also added a comment which pleases this observer, saying it was just as well that the Raiders' opener wasn't simply an easy victory.
"This year our objective is to find a way to win on the road," Bugel said. "Adversity was the greatest thing to happen to our football team, being down 14-0. Sometimes in the preseason, if you're too good, too quick, and things don't come hard, it can be a tough way to open up the season."
Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee
Injury update: KR Desmond Howard (hamstring) should finally practice at full speed this week and play Friday. Also expected back are linebackers Rob Fredrickson (neck/shoulder) and Rob Holmberg (groin). Unlikely: FB Derrick Fenner (neck), FS Eric Turner (groin). Definitely out: DE Pat Swilling (abdomen).
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee
Roster battles: Offseason acquisition G Lester Holmes has moved ahead of Rick Cunningham on the depth chart at right guard. That's hardly a surprise—Cunningham, a career backup, missed more than a week of practices with a sore back.
The team is using Cunningham as a backup at both guard and both tackle positions.
"He's our John Havlicek right now," said coach Joe Bugel.
Bugel indicated that he's leaning toward keeping five wide receivers and nine defensive linemen on the final roster. Speaking of the D-line, he said, "We have quality depth there. We'll mix and match."
Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, Contra Costa Times
AFC West rival Seattle has agreed to terms with former Kansas City DT Dan Saleaumua.
Seattle has greatly improved its defense from last season.
Source: ESPNet SportsZone
Fans hoping to evaluate this year's Raiders' passing offense aren't likely to get a very realistic idea from today's game. The opponent, Dallas, doesn't have a single cornerback on the roster who's available to play.
Unless the Cowboys can dig up some free agents in a hurry, two backup safeties, Montrell Williams and Charlie Williams, are likely to start at CB.
Dallas coach Barry Switzer said the game against Oakland "could be embarrassing because we don't have corners right now who can cover their receivers. We've lost four cornerbacks and have another one who is stealing bases."
What will be of interest is how well the Raiders' starters on the offensive line perform, especially on passing downs. Of course, as in any first exhibition, the starters won't play all that much. Still, the question mark with this year's Raiders, if there is one, is the O-line.
QB Jeff George had to scramble around on his first four passing attempts in Thursday's scrimmage, not a reassuring indicator given how depleted the Cowboys' defensive line is at the moment.
Also intriguing will be the play of CB Larry Brown. Brown had a mixed week, playing well in Thursday's scrimmage but also getting badly beaten by Michael Irvin on a post pattern during practice. Brown starts at right corner tonight and the coaches are likely to take a long look at how well he's come back from last year's debilitating foot injury.
Definitely out for the Raiders because of a personal matter is TE Harvey Williams, who's still in the Bay Area at the moment. RB Emmitt Smith, although not seriously injured, won't play for Dallas.
Among the front-line players, not expected to play because of injuries are S Eric Turner (groin), DE Pat Swilling (abdomen) and LB Rob Fredrickson (shoulder).
Sources: Associated Press, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
Injury update: TE Harvey Williams missed practice Friday to return to the Bay Area for an undisclosed "family matter." He may miss tomorrow's game.
Also missing Thursday's scrimmage was LB John Henry Mills (knee).
FB Derrick Fenner (neck stinger), LB Rob Fredrickson (shoulder stinger) and FS Eddie Anderson (shoulder) all returned to practice yesterday and should play tomorrow.
Eric Turner missed practice again because of his groin pull and almost certainly won't play.
Speaking of tight ends, several recent reports from Texas have claimed that despite expressions of confidence by Raider coaches and Jeff George, TE Rickey Dudley is still having trouble holding on to the ball.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Contra Costa Times, Press Democrat
Some follow-up notes from Thursday's scrimmage:
The Raider offensive line allowed two sacks, one each by DE Shante Carver and DT Darren Benson. The media report didn't identify which Raiders were beaten on the plays.
Also, QB Jeff George was under pressure on the play which produced the 65-yard TD pass. He had to roll right before throwing to avoid a strong rush.
The Raider starting defensive line consisted of Russell Maryland—bulked up 10 pounds to 295 this year—at the nose, Chester McGlockton and Anthony Smith at tackles, and Lance Johnstone at outside end. Rookie Darrell Russell spelled Smith and Greg Townsend gave Johnstone breathers.
In the secondary, James Trapp started at strong safety and Lorenzo Lynch, who looks to be his backup this year, played free safety because of the injuries to both Eric Turner and Eddie Anderson. Surprisingly, Larry Brown started at right corner ahead of Albert Lewis.
Dallas, already shorthanded in the secondary before the controlled scrimmage, got even more nicked up at the cornerback position. Starter Kevin Smith sprained an ankle, rookie Kenny Wheaton separated a shoulder, and Artis Houston—beaten by Truitt on the touchdown—suffered a quadriceps bruise. That leaves only one corner, rookie Montrell Williams, entirely healthy.
Coach Joe Bugel, asked yesterday whether KR Desmond Howard would see action tomorrow night, evaded the question.
Correction: The Dallas running back tackled by Johnstone for a loss was incorrectly identified by the Mercury News as Emmitt Smith, who didn't play. The victim was Sherman Williams.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Associated Press, raiders.com
Television coverage: Tomorrow's exhibition opener at Texas Stadium is sold out and will be carried nationally by TNT starting at 5:00 p.m. Pacific. The game will also be shown in the Bay Area on Channel 44, with a 60-minute pre-game show beginning at 4:00 p.m.
Source: San Jose Mercury News
News to gladden a Raider fan's heart: QB Jeff George hit WR Olanda Truitt in stride with a perfect pass in last night's scrimmage for a 65-yard score.
Now, the teams weren't exactly playing in real-game conditions. Sacking the quarterback wasn't allowed, and Dallas' cornerback position has been decimated by injuries (Alundis Brice, Wendell Davis) and the absence of Peon Sanders (still playing baseball). Still, the good news for the Silver and Black is that for the first time in a number of years, the team has a quarterback with a live arm. Jeff Hostetler hadn't hit a receiver in stride on a long pass in at least two years.
"That's going to be happening on a weekly basis," said an exuberant coach Joe Bugel. "We might get off the bus throwing downfield, even before we put our uniforms on."
The Raiders won the controlled scrimmage, 12-6. The teams played four quarters with 12 offensive plays for each team, beginning at the 35-yard line. RB Joe Aska led the Oakland rushers with 9 carries for 36 yards. George was 3-of-5 for 101 yards and a touchdown. Backup QB David Klingler went 5-of-5 for 32 yards and the other touchdown.
Dallas got its score near the end on a 12-yarder from third-string QB Jason Garrett to TE Scott Galbraith. Neither team attempted conversions.
Several defensive linemen came up with big plays. Rookie DT Darrell Russell collected two "sacks"—touching the quarterback with the hands—and batted down a pass. DE Lance Johnstone tackled RB Emmitt Smith in the backfield for a 6-yard loss and also had a "sack," and DE Greg Townsend got a "sack."
Johnstone's "sack" came against starter Troy Aikman. Russell didn't start; his big plays came against reserves (38-year-old QB Wade Wilson and Garrett).
On offense, RB Tim Hall made a great diving catch of a poorly thrown George pass, and rookie RB Chad Levitt turned a swing pass from Klingler into a nice 8-yard gain.
Klingler's TD pass was a 5-yard bullet to WR Ed Hervey, a one-time Cowboy.
Starting RB Nip Kaufman didn't play, both to rest him and also for the coaches to get longer looks at Aska and Hall. Held out because of injuries were free safeties Eddie Anderson (shoulder) and Eric Turner (groin), linebackers Rob Fredrickson (shoulder/neck stinger) and Rob Holmberg (groin), DE Pat Swilling (stomach muscle), and FB Derrick Fenner (neck stinger). FB Derrick Clark twisted an ankle during the scrimmage.
KR Desmond Howard participated in special-teams drills yesterday but didn't play. Bugel said he doesn't know if Howard will play in Sunday night's exhibition. He said Turner definitely won't play.
Sources: San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times
Where Are They Now Dept.: By all accounts, ex-Raider QB Billy Joe Hobert has had a very inconsistent training camp with Buffalo.
When traded to the Bills for a third-round pick, it was assumed Hobert would inherit the starting role vacat