Oakland Raiders - The Vertical Game

News Archive
October - December 1997

Monday, December 29, 1997

Two San Francisco Examiner writers have included ex-Raiders punter Ray Guy among their seven favorites for election to this year's class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Between four and seven new inductees will be announced on Super Bowl weekend.

Unfortunately, Greg Lewis and Dwight Chapin don't have a vote. As far as this observer knows, the one Bay Area writer who does is the Chronicle's Ira Miller.

The Associated Press ran an article last week with team game highs and lows for the 1997 season. The Raiders appear in the list quite a few times. Unfortunately, their performances weren't generally among the high points.

For each category the AP included the five best and five worst. Here are the Raider entries:

Thursday, December 25, 1997

There are several Raiders stories to report. There are also several other stories which don't directly concern the Raiders, yet which say a lot about the Raiders and the present state of the team organization.

First, the story that hasn't happened. Head coach Joe Bugel has not been fired—yet.

In this observer's view that's really no surprise, and shouldn't be taken to mean that Bugel's job is necessarily safe. Team owner Al Davis took a lot of heat last year for dismissing former coach Mike White on Christmas Eve. More than one sportswriter called Davis a "grinch" because of the timing of the move.

Despite protests to the contrary, Davis has always been extremely sensitive to how's he portrayed in the press. So expect the Bugel firing, if it happens, to occur some time after Christmas.

Veteran CB Albert Lewis, 37, underwent arthroscopic surgery on his knee Monday. He said later that whether or not he'll be back as a player next year depends on the team's willingness to make necessary changes. He intends to meet with Al Davis and Joe Bugel to discuss his future plans.

Lewis is an exceptionally articulate man and one of the very few Raiders who never quit trying this year no matter how bad things got.

"There's always a commitment (to winning) around here," he said, "but there has to be some changes in our approach to things and the way we try to achieve things. Our overall philosophical approach to winning has to change."

For his part, Bugel said he hopes Lewis will play again. "Hopefully he doesn't retire because there's a spot on this football team for Albert Lewis," Bugel said.

Lewis has made it plain he wants to retire as a Raider. He's also indicated he'd be interested in an assistant coach's position with the team when he does retire.

By way of contrast, three other defensive backs who are also long in the tooth said this week that they'd like to continue playing but preferably not for the Raiders. CB Lionel Washington and safeties Eddie Anderson and Lorenzo Lynch all indicated a desire to play for some other team.

Think before you knock them for saying that. Lynch lives in Oakland and sold peanuts at the Coliseum as a kid; playing for the Raiders was a lifelong dream for him. Anderson signed with the team as a scab during the 1987 players strike and was a personal favorite of Al Davis. Although his talent has deteriorated as he's grown older, he's always played hard and been willing to sacrifice himself trying to make a tackle. Lionel Washington is a classy guy, too. Last year, when Kansas City cornerback Dale Carter threw a cheap shot cut-block at the back of Washington's knees—something which could have ended Washington's career—he went out of his way to avoid saying anything inflammatory.

The fact that these three want out is a sad reflection of just how bad the disarray is within the Raiders organization.

As has been widely reported, WR Tim Brown broke a passel of team receiving records in Sunday's season-ending loss to Jacksonville. First he passed Fred Biletnikoff for career receptions, then Todd Christensen for season receptions. Next he broke Art Powell's record for season receiving yardage. Finally, he broke the record held by himself and Dave Casper for single-game receptions.

It's too bad the records seemed to come at the expense of a serious effort to win the game. Jeff George had completed 11 passes to Brown by halftime—more receptions than Brown had in any entire game this season. Nearly all of it was short, safe stuff over the middle, unlikely to produce any points. In the meantime Jacksonville had taken a 14-3 lead. Once again George ran up impressive numbers without getting any points on the board. And the rest of the offense just kind of stood around watching George play pitch-and-catch with Brown.

In the second half, when George had to attempt some serious throws trying to get points on the board, he spent most of the time running for his life and getting sacked.

To his credit, Brown was honest in admitting after the game that he'd been after the personal records.

"After I got 11 (receptions) in the first half," he said, "I was shooting for 20, honestly."

"With the year going so bad, at least guys could say, 'Well, Tim broke the record.' It gives you something to hang your hat on, something positive to build on."

Biletnikoff, a Hall of Fame member and now the team's receivers coach, said, "It couldn't have happened to a better guy." And Brown said, "I told him I couldn't have done it without you."

New York Giants head coach Jim Fassel was named by the Associated Press as NFL Coach of the Year this week. Not only did the Giants go undefeated in the NFC East—something no team had ever done before—they did it without a decent quarterback, relying on a great defense. Fassel's defensive coordinator? None other than John Fox, much maligned by the Raiders when he was squeezed out at the beginning of the 1996 season.

Funny how some coaches seem to bloom as soon as they depart the Raiders organization. Denver's Mike Shanahan also comes to mind . . .

Think about the blame dumped on Raiders offensive coordinator Ray Perkins this year for the unimaginative and conservative play-calling. Perkins ran New England's offense last year, and the Pats played in the Super Bowl. Their offensive scheme was productive and anything but conservative, mixing Curtis Martin's running with the long ball to Terry Glenn. Then remember how conservative Fassel's play-calling seemed to be when he was with the Raiders. Hmmm . . . Next, consider the anonymous comments of several players last week, suggesting not only that Perkins isn't free to call the plays as he'd like, but that he's actually given a list of plays he can call by Al Davis.

To this observer the conclusion is obvious and inescapable. The one common denominator year after year is Al Davis. The media's been right—Davis does meddle in the play-calling, to the detriment of the team.

Indianapolis, which finished the season at 3-13, wasted no time making changes in its front office. Coach Lindy Infante and Director of Football Operations Bill Tobin were both fired Monday. Then the Colts lured Bill Polian away from Carolina and named him President.

Polian's a proven winner. As general manager at Buffalo he developed the Bills into a consistently winning franchise. Then he got Carolina, an expansion team, into the playoffs faster than anyone could reasonably have expected.

An ESPNet SportsZone article this week points out that wise teams don't hesitate to give up draft choices to get the top football minds. Along this same line, an Oakland Tribune analysis some weeks back argued that the Raiders should pay whatever it takes to get Ron Wolf—a former Al Davis protege—back from Green Bay. How? By naming him President of the Raiders.

The problem with all such scenarios involving the Raiders, of course, is Al Davis. He cannot let go, and—as the offensive coordinator situation noted above seems to prove—he continues to meddle in virtually all facets of the team's day-to-day operations. The Raiders can't get any top coaching or personnel candidates because no self-respecting person with talent will work under those conditions.

In this observer's view, it's time for Al Davis to step back. I'll be discussing this at more length in an opinion piece during the offseason.

Finally, Baltimore LB Peter Boulware was a runaway winner of the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Darrell Russell, drafted with the number two pick, didn't receive a single vote.

Sunday, December 21, 1997

CB Albert Lewis went on injured reserve yesterday, and rookie LB Shay Muirbrook was signed from the practice squad to fill the open roster spot.

Muirbrook is unlikely to be active for today's game, but could have been drafted by another team had he remained on the practice squad. He played collegiately at Brigham Young but wasn't drafted.

"We wanted to keep him because we think he's going to be a pretty good player," said coach Joe Bugel.

Remember two weeks ago, in the Kansas City game on Monday night, when Chester McGlockton went over to the opposing sideline during a second-half timeout and spoke with Marty Schottenheimer?

Well, it took a while, but it's finally leaked out—by way of Kansas City—what McGlockton had to say, and it really shouldn't surprise anyone. He was pitching his services for next year to the enemy.

According to Chiefs players, McGlockton said, "Hey, Marty. Tell your players to stop cutting me. I want to come here."

Remember now, this is the man who just this week told reporters how much he wants to be back as a Raider next year.

The entire story's even more sordid, actually. Kansas City players say that throughout the game, McGlockton repeatedly told Chiefs guard Tim Grunhard to stop cut-blocking him on running plays because he (McGlockton), who becomes a free agent after today's game, wants to play for Kansas City next year.

The NFL fined reserve WR Olanda Truitt $5,000 earlier this week for throwing an elbow at Seattle safety C.J. Richardson in last Sunday's game.

Truitt, who saw less and less action this year as the season progressed, scored a touchdown early in the game. But he later fumbled the kickoff to open the second-half, then got himself ejected from the game.

Truitt expected the fine and has characterized his own action as a "selfish act."

Saturday, December 20, 1997

The Oakland Tribune has an article today covering the "other side" of the Joe Bugel story. The paper, while not disputing reports in other media of dissension among at least some of the players, suggests that a "fair cross-section" of the players still support Bugel.

Bugel once again suggested that the Raiders' problems can be fixed relatively easily. He told the Tribune, "A lot of research has got to be done in the off-season, but, with free agency, it can be done overnight. It's not a five-year plan."

Friday, December 19, 1997

CB Albert Lewis, originally diagnosed with a sprained knee ligament, has a torn meniscus and will probably have surgery, according to coach Joe Bugel. The meniscus is a major piece of cartilage in the knee and tears in it are common with athletes who play contact sports.

This ends Lewis' season and could end his career as a Raider. Lewis, 37, has refused to say whether he plans to play again next year. But his son was flying out from Kansas City to attend Sunday's game and there was press speculation that he was coming because his father would announce his retirement following the game.

This observer certainly hopes Lewis returns. Even at his age, he's still the Raiders' best cornerback. He's savvy and keeps himself in magnificent physical condition year-round. More importantly, he is a major positive influence in the locker room. If you recall the episode earlier this season when Bugel hid from the press following an embarrassing loss, Lewis was the one person associated with the team who was responsible enough and had the character to come out and talk to the press afterward.

Lewis has indicated he might like to coach. If I owned the Raiders, I'd offer him the head coaching job today, no strings attached.

In a somewhat underwhelming roster move, the Raiders put Harvey Williams on injured reserve Wednesday and re-signed DT Ta'ase Faumui to replace him. Faumui was cut by the team in August.

It's largely irrelevant because Faumui isn't in game shape and likely won't even dress Sunday.

Joe Bugel, clueless to the end, told reporters Thursday he thinks he deserves another year as head coach.

In fact, Bugel went so far as to suggest that the Raiders only need some minor tinkering to become contenders. There's no way to know if he genuinely believes that or is just saying what he thinks owner Al Davis wants to hear.

"If I'm the problem for everything that's happened, then I should get my just due," said Bugel. "If I'm not the total problem, things can be worked out. Because this is an organization where you may get hit in the face one year, but you're going to come back the next year. It's not like a five-year rebuilding process."

(For what it's worth, FS Eddie Anderson, who's played under five different coaches as a Raider, suggested otherwise.

"The next guy who comes in here," said Anderson, "won't be able to turn around what's wrong in one year.")

Bugel also claimed that much of what has been reported this week about dissension among the players has been exaggerated, even though most of the local papers each claim to have talked to a number of Raider players.

"The thing that concerns me is that in any workplace, you can interview one malcontented person who doesn't know what he's talking about and it's printed," Bugel said. "You take it with a grain of salt."

Raiders: Out: RB Harvey Williams (knee); CB Albert Lewis (knee). Doubtful: DE Anthony Smith (shoulder-quadricep). Questionable: T Pat Harlow (back-hip); WR Desmond Howard (toe). Probable: DT Chester McGlockton (calf).

Jaguars: Questionable: T Tony Boselli (ankle); G Brian DeMarco (ankle); RB Ty Hallock (neck); RB Randy Jordan (shoulder); WR Keenan McCardell (knee); DT Seth Payne (shoulder). Probable: DE Tony Brackens (ankle).

CB Perry Carter will start for Lewis and Aundray Bruce will replace DE Anthony Smith. Chad Levitt will start again at fullback, and Bugel has indicated the rookie may finally get some chances to run the ball. Levitt has yet to get a carry during the regular season.

Wednesday, December 17, 1997

If Coach Joe Bugel gets the axe, as most think is inevitable now, one man who'd like to interview for the job with the Raiders is Don Matthews.

Matthews, head coach of the Canadian League's Toronto Argonauts and the winningest coach in CFL history, is hoping to make the jump from the CFL to a head coach's job in the NFL. He's hired ex-Chicago Bears GM Len Vainisi as his agent.

One team Matthews is said to be interested in is Oakland. And, according to the Toronto Globe and Mail, Oakland is interested in him.

"Don Matthews's name is starting to circulate around the NFL," New Orleans Saints president Bill Kuharich said. "People in the NFL know he's a winner. I don't know whether anyone will be willing to give him a shot, but I do know he'll get some consideration."

"I always have an open mind," said Brown. "I just want to get on the field. If they're not going to put me on the field, then I don't want to come back (next year)."

The Contra Costa Times quoted unnamed team sources as saying that the Raiders don't want Brown back, either.

If the Raiders release Brown before June 1, they'll take a $2.14 million hit against next season's salary cap. If they wait until after June 1, the hit would be substantially less next season and extend to the 1999 season.

Jeff George threw for 274 yards last Sunday in the loss to Seattle. In the process he broke Ken Stabler's team record for season passing yardage (3,615), set in 1979.

People forget that the great Raiders teams of the '70s and early '80s didn't need to pass on every down. They had great power running games to go with the passing attack.

Monday, December 15, 1997

Embattled Head Coach Joe Bugel yesterday denied the truth of previously published accounts of last week's tense team meeting which turned into a near-mutiny. At the same time, several more local papers confirmed that the gist of the reports was in fact correct, and provided considerably more detail as to the causes of the players' loss of respect for, and bad feelings toward Bugel.

This story has a richness of character aspect befitting a classical Greek tragedy. (Sorry, folks, but I did major in Classics in my salad days in college. :-) Call it the Rise and Fall of Joe Bugel, if you like. In its drama it has far eclipsed the sordid saga of the Raiders' final few games this season.

The news of the fateful team meeting was originally reported by both the San Francisco Examiner and the New York Times, and was covered here on Saturday.

Yesterday Bugel, while not denying that there was discord at the meeting, took vigorous exception to the manner in which the events had been portrayed by the media.

"The article was so far off the wall it was unbelievable," Bugel told the Oakland Tribune. "I don't know where they got their information . . . some of the things in the article weren't true."

But the Tribune also quoted an unnamed Raiders player as saying the story was basically correct. And a second article in the Contra Costa Times quotes a "veteran defensive player" as saying, "That was a pretty touchy meeting. If anybody had any respect (left), it could've been lost in there because it wasn't a pleasant meeting."

Asked how the team was handling the latest horrible loss, Bugel, who says he doesn't swear, replied, "I don't know how they're dealing with it. How the hell do you feel after you lose a football game? Terrible. I don't thing there's any laughing in the locker room. Just another giveaway, another gift. I'm sure everybody feels awful. At least I hope they do."

The Contra Costa Times ran a lengthy article today in which it quotes a number of Raiders—all speaking anonymously—as to the causes of their disenchantment with the head coach.

Said one player, "If a person says, 'I am what I am' and the players see that that's the case, they respect that. Even if the ship is sinking, they'll respect you."

"But every player in this locker room lost respect for him when he changed. That's what happened (to Mike White) last year, too. It's sad because one of his big points was he was going to be big on the respect factor between coaches and players."

Players complained that Bugel has unfairly singled out younger players while refusing to confront veterans.

"Everybody wanted him as the head coach because he was stern," said another unnamed player. "He was stern the year before (as offensive line coach), across the board. That's the thing we liked about him and the thing this team needed. He meant what he said and he said what he meant."

"Now he's soft on the vets. He calls out the younger guys in meetings and rips them. If he sees a veteran make a mistake, he won't say anything to him. There's a double standard. He's catering to the vets, who don't take no noise from anybody. That's where it's his job to make them coachable."

Additionally, there was the all-too-familiar refrain from several that Bugel has lost respect because he's nothing more than Al Davis' stooge. At least one player offered the opinion that offensive coordinator Ray Perkins is not really at fault for the recent demise of the offense because he lacks the authority to call the plays he wants.

"Look at Ray Perkins' track record," a Raiders running back said. "He took New England to the playoffs and helped them put up big numbers (offensively), and they didn't have the players we have. If he can take that team to the Super Bowl and lead the league in passing and be high in rushing, then what's happened since he got here? It doesn't make any sense."

Said another team member, "Al Davis is trying to go back to his Hall of Fame coaching days. He can't let coaching go. He just hired somebody to be the front (man) and take all the hits. He has to let it go. Nineties football is a lot different from the '60s or '70s or whenever he coached. When you hire somebody to be the head coach, offensive or defensive coordinator, you have to let them do their job."

"We've had three offensive coordinators in four years. The coaches and players have changed, we've spent a lot of money on good players. Yet the same thing keeps happening. If that happens when you have new coaches and new players, what else can you do but look up?"

Another complaint voiced by some was that Bugel hasn't been honest with the players and has at times told them what they want to hear, only for them to find out differently on game day.

One player, citing an example of how Bugel has apparently changed, reminded the reporter of Bugel's pronouncements during his first months as the new head coach: "In mini-camps he would tell us to do this, do that. He told us, there would be no profanity, we'd be a clean-cut, physical team. That changed in training camp and has been the case all season."

Not a pretty tale. Bugel tried at first to be the players' best friend. More recently, as the season has disintegrated around him, he's apparently tried to be an authority figure. It's fair to say he hasn't succeeded in either role.

There's a feature on ex-Raider QB Billy Joe Hobert, now the Saints' starter, on Nando.net today if you're interested.

Saturday, December 13, 1997

Late update: A startling article has appeared on the web this evening, due to hit the streets in tomorrow's printed edition of the San Francisco Examiner. It claims to reveal details of a stormy team meeting held last Monday in which at least one player and one coach walked out and coach Joe Bugel went on a lengthy, profanity-laced tirade at his players.

It portrays an utterly clueless, lame-duck coach who seems to have lost the respect of his players. With the Raiders, that's deja vu . . .

According to the article, Bugel began the meeting—which was supposed to be the usual Monday film session following a game—by chewing out SS James Trapp for having used the word "losers" in comments he made about the Raiders following last week's game. Bugel carried on sufficiently long that Trapp walked out of the meeting. Bugel allegedly cursed freely during his tirade.

(In fairness to Trapp, what he'd actually said was that the Raiders needed to stop playing and thinking like "losers," quite a different emphasis. And this is the same coach, you'll recall, who not too long ago told the press that "professionals" don't need to curse.)

Chester McGlockton then objected to Bugel's use of obscenities, as did Eric Turner. Turner also said something about special teams coach Rusty Tillman, who barked at Turner, then left himself.

Bugel then implored the players to keep problems inside "the family" and not to discuss their complaints in front of the media. Whereupon, having been told to keep such matters in-house, several players stood to speak about some perceived grievances.

Apparently Bugel couldn't handle what he'd asked for. He cut the meeting off abruptly, sending everyone to their individual film sessions with their position coaches. But the players all simply went home rather than to any of the meetings. They'd heard enough.

Not surprisingly, none of the players was willing to go on the record about what took place. Bugel, for his part, said only, "It was an in-house thing. It was between the family. I had every right to do what I did and I'm just disappointed that it got out."

The Examiner also reports that before Monday's meeting, some players were mocking Bugel in the locker room, pondering what weak speech he would deliver after yet another humiliating loss.

Jack-of-all-trades Harvey Williams went under the knife yesterday to have a loose bone chip removed from his knee. He's out for Sunday but might be available for the season finale against Jacksonville.

Williams' knee locked up on him suddenly during practice Thursday. Coach Joe Bugel, trying his best to sound as though there's still some meaning attached to the season's final two games, said that having the arthroscopy performed immediately meant Williams could possibly play against Jacksonville.

Actually it would make more sense to give rookie FB Chad Levitt an extended look in the final game. It's no secret that the Raiders need to start planning for the future.

WR Tim Brown was elected as a starter to this year's Pro Bowl, and DT Chester McGlockton made the team as a backup.

It's a surprise in the case of McGlockton. A tackle with immense physical talent but a highly questionable attitude, he's had what is for him a mediocre year. He has 60 tackles and 4½ sacks. By way of comparison, here are the figures for some other well-known tackles: Minnesota's John Randle has 10.5, the Whiners' Dana Stubblefield has 15, and Arizona's Eric Swann has 7.5. Even little-known Maa Tanuvasa of Denver, who became a starter only this year, has 8.5.

Named as first team alternates—they'll go if a starter or backup is injured and can't play—were G Steve Wisniewski, TE Rickey Dudley, and RB Napoleon Kaufman. Punter Leo Araguz finished sixth in the voting for AFC players and QB Jeff George finished seventh.

So what became of the so-called "palace revolt" this past week over offensive coordinator Ray Perkins' play selection? Apparently, not much.

It started immediately after last Sunday's blowout at Arrowhead. Tim Brown complained that the way to beat the blitz is to invite it, then burn the defense with quick passes to the "hot" receivers. The Raiders recently have gone the opposite way, keeping all but two wideouts in to block. Opposing teams have blitzed repeatedly with great success.

Brown argued that the Raiders need to attack defenses more with three- and four-wideout formations, and threatened to call his own plays in the huddle if need be.

By mid-week Joe Bugel was playing down the discontent and playing up his respect for Tim Brown. One paper called it a regular "love-in." Another described Bugel as doing his "best ostrich imitation." (Bugel, in case you haven't noticed, is increasingly being ridiculed as having lost control of the team—a not unfamiliar situation with recent Raiders coaches.)

Bugel's initial reaction to Brown's criticism was essentially, "No way." Said Bugel, "The first thing for me, as coach, is to protect the quarterback. Sometimes you keep six, seven guys in to protect. Now your (remaining) three guys have got to win downfield. But we're not going to be foolish. We're not a football team that's going to spread everybody out . . . We're not a run-and-shoot team, we're not a shotgun team, and we're not spreading everybody out where the quarterback has two open edges."

Later in the week, however, Bugel seemed a bit more willing to open things up offensively against Seattle. The reality, after all, is that keeping everyone in to pass protect hasn't worked. QB Jeff George was sacked six times in each of the last two games, so the scheme obviously isn't sound.

"We've gotten more people involved as far as distribution," Bugel said. "We have a very creative game plan going in this week. We're using different people, putting people in different spots on the field. The players have responded well."

Sources: San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, Oakland Tribune, Sacramento Bee, Contra Costa Times

Chester McGlockton, who has criticized Raider management perhaps more than any other player on the team, said he hopes nevertheless to remain a Raider after this season, when he finishes out his six-year contract.

"I've always told (management) I wanted to finish my career as a Raider," said McGlockton. "I said it to them two years ago, last year, but they never made that commitment to me, so we'll have to see what happens after the season."

Finally, tomorrow's game fell approximately 20,000 tickets short of selling out and will be blacked out locally on television.

The Ticket (KTCT, 1050-AM), which carries Raiders games in the Bay Area, has recently added an AudioNet channel (by way of BayInsider.com), so you can hear the game via RealAudio.

Tuesday, December 9, 1997

Yet another relative unknown will get a chance at instant stardom against the Raiders' defense Sunday when Seattle comes to the Coliseum. The Seahawks will start Jon Kitna at quarterback in place of Warren Moon, who bruised his ribs last weekend.

The Raiders' porous defense, worst in the NFL, has acquired the unfortunate habit of surrendering national exposure to little known opposing players. Remember rookie RB Fred Lane of Carolina?

Kitna, who played collegiately at Central Washington, had a big year in the World League last season. More importantly, he was impressive in the Seahawks' pre-season. In fact many observers thought he outplayed both veteran quarterbacks, Moon and John Friesz. During the exhibition season Kitna completed 42 of 51 passes for 420 yards and five touchdowns with one interception.

Monday, December 8, 1997

Justifiably or not, during recent years team owner Al Davis has often been ridiculed for living in the past. Slogans such as "The Team of the Decades" are increasingly difficult to reconcile with a team that's been on the decline for fifteen years and has pretty much hit rock bottom this season. Plainly, the Raiders are one of the worst teams in the NFL at the moment.

Davis is also a very private man. And because he feels he's often been misquoted by the press in the past, he rarely speaks to reporters any more.

Thus—to this observer, at least—it's big news when Davis admits publicly that his team stinks. And he did just that yesterday.

As usual, Davis didn't want to be quoted directly, so there aren't any eloquent statements to repeat here. But, commenting on the 30-0 drubbing the Raiders absorbed at the hands of Kansas City, he told writer Carl Steward of the Oakland Tribune, "We'll take our lumps. We deserve it."

Big Al also had an extended discussion following the game with Tim Brown, who's furious at the lack of imagination in the offensive play-calling of coordinator Ray Perkins. Brown caught only two passes yesterday.

Brown feels the play selection has become so conservative and predictable that he's threatening to change the plays himself in the huddle. Whether his teammates would join him in an on-field mutiny of sorts is an open question, but the point is that criticism of Perkins by the players has continued to intensify since QB Jeff George first grumbled openly about the game plan following the loss at Carolina.

Brown argued that the Raiders should use more three-wideout sets to pressure opponents' defenses. He also complained that the Raiders don't make effective adjustments in the offense during the games (a criticism made in this corner repeatedly last year, when I characterized the Raider coaching as "brain-dead").

"We definitely didn't have a game plan for what they were doing. The name of the game is making adjustments on the run," said Brown.

He continued, "You have my word, in the next couple weeks, things won't go down like this. If I have to have plays taped to my wristband, if I have to change a play on the field, I'll do it. I have a lot of pride and too many people to see in the offseason. I'm not going out like this."

Jeff George added, "We're not doing the same things we were earlier this season. That wasn't our original offense out there."

Not to defend Perkins, but an irony of all this fuss over his play-calling is that it's temporarily put him on the hot seat, even though defensive coordinator Fred Whittingham is clearly the most incompetent of the coaches. The Raiders' defense has ranked between 28th and dead last in the league all season long, but to listen to the complaints right now you'd think the biggest problems had been with the offensive unit.

Sources: Oakland Tribune, The Sporting News, San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Examiner

Tuesday, December 2, 1997

Better late than never: In Saturday's news I referred to three principal stories involving the Raiders during the last 10 days or so. I covered one, the Derrick Fenner saga, and promised a further update later that day. I never did get the opportunity to write that update, so herewith the other two stories I mentioned, as well as a non-story that's gotten some Raiders fans riled up.

First, starting RG Lester Holmes's back is ailing. He initially injured it during the Denver game. At that time C Barret Robbins—who played center and both tackle positions in college—moved over to guard and backup Curtis Whitley—the self-described "wild child" :-)—took over at center for Robbins.

Against Miami Sunday, Holmes was on the inactive list and the same position shift involving Robbins and Whitley was utilized.

The Raiders initially described Holmes' problem as back spasms, but at last report he was due to undergo an MRI.

Everyone knows that defensive coordinator Fred Whittingham is on the hot seat. Rumors of his demotion have been circulating for weeks. Evidence of the pressure that Whittingham seems to feel to do something to improve the defense was readily apparent in the Denver game. Unfortunately, it cost the Raiders dearly.

CB Albert Lewis is one of the very few guys in the NFL who can cover Denver TE Shannon Sharpe man-on-man. Sharpe, not much of a blocker, is really an oversized receiver, and he eats up most 185-pound cornerbacks who draw the assignment of trying to cover him. Lewis, at 6-2 and 205, has exceptional size for a cornerback and is also physical enough to match up well with Sharpe. He essentially shut down the Denver star in both games against the Broncos last year.

Yet in the Monday night game at Piled High Stadium, the Raiders elected to try a brand new scheme. On most plays Sharpe was either covered by a linebacker—a disastrous matchup—or by no one at all, as the Raiders played some strange variation of the zone defense in which the object seemed to be to leave the middle of the field wide open. The result? Sharpe had a big night with 10 catches.

It is high time the Raiders started trying to surprise opponents by mixing up their defensive coverages better. They are much, much too predictable. Still, throwing away the one advantage the Raiders had just for the sake of change was stupid. In this observer's view, Fred Whittingham is in way over his head as an NFL defensive coordinator.

Finally, the non-story. At the beginning of the Monday night telecast, announcer Al Michaels commented that the Raiders were the "most underachieving team in the league."

A day or two later, Mercury News beat reporter Sam Farmer, apparently hard up for a headline, made a big deal of the remark in a column. You know, the sort of "Did you hear what he said about our team?" line designed to create a tempest in a teapot. Farmer's comments have in fact gotten some Raiders fans riled up about Michaels.

Michaels was, if anything, being charitable in what he said about the Raiders. This observer has been watching NFL football for four decades, and in all those years has never seen a bigger group of underachievers than the 1997 Raiders. Perhaps the team would get laughed at less if the quality of its play weren't so laughable.

Saturday, November 29, 1997

One courageous fellow—I say that sarcastically, because he didn't have the fortitude to use his real name or address—e-mailed yesterday to say that like the Raiders, I've quit for the season. He signed himself ALDAVIS@RAIDERS.COM.

He was presumably referring (as best someone like that can clearly make any kind of point) to the fact there haven't been any news updates for a week.

Well, I haven't quit. I have been sick, extremely busy, broke, and otherwise occupied in a number of ways with something called "life." But apart from that, and more importantly, there hasn't been any Raiders news of late that you couldn't read for yourselves in the articles I link each day.

But, in case you've just returned from a vacation on Mars, or finished a two-week bender, herewith I bring you the latest (depressing) major stories from Raiderland.

(1) The defense remains the worst in the NFL. This observer hasn't seen a team that's worse at tackling in many years.

(2) Special teams stink. Desmond Howard wouldn't even be returning kickoffs or punts were it not for his $6 million dollar deal. Tim Hall could do a better job on kickoffs, and Kenny Shedd would be an improvement on punt returns. John Henry Mills has been a bust too.

(3) The offense, which started the year with a bang, has been almost completely shut down in the last month. The biggest reason? The offensive line is terrible. It can't pass block, and it doesn't open holes consistently for Napoleon Kaufman. Most of what Kaufman gets he earns through his own effort and remarkable abilities.

(4) Joe Bugel continues to duck tough questions and tell the press half-truths. Asked about almost anything after a game, his usual response nowadays is that he'd like to see the film first before saying anything so rash as that the team stunk. He said Derrick Fenner had a severe ankle sprain as a pretext to get rid of Fenner for reasons unknown. (In fact he has bone spurs and could have played, albeit with pain.) And Bugel never did clearly explain starting Perry Carter for a game ahead of Terry McDaniel.

(5) Things aren't going to get any better real soon—like in the next several years—because of the team's free agent follies of the past three years. The Raiders are said to be more than $20 million over the projected '98 cap. Worse, that money is tied up in substandard or only average players like Larry Brown, Russell Maryland, Pat Harlow, and Harvey Williams. Since the Raiders obviously lack the gumption to admit bad mistakes and bite the bullet economically—witness Larry Brown—don't expect to see many good, young players coming in. The Raiders couldn't afford it.

Seriously—there have been three stories of interest in the past week—the Derrick Fenner news, the changes on the offensive line, and the idiotic game plan of defensive coordinator Fred Whittingham unveiled for last Monday night's game in Denver.

First, Derrick Fenner, the team's best power back for the past two seasons, has been dumped. I call it that because there's serious doubt he couldn't have played again this season from a physical standpoint. Observers at the Raiders' Alameda facility saw him jogging there just the day before he was moved to the injured reserve list, ending his season.

Coach Joe Bugel claimed it was a matter of numbers, that the Raiders couldn't be sure when Fenner could play again and needed the roster spot to beef up special teams. But with stiffs like Larry Brown and Jerone Davison still occupying roster spots, that logic is open to question. It's also been revealed that Fenner's injury isn't a sprain at all, but rather bone spurs. Painful, to be sure, but not normally a season-ending injury.

Fenner, you'll recall, was not re-signed at the end of last season because incentive clauses in his contract would have meant he earned a 1997 salary of slightly over $1 million. He was left dangling in the free agent market, where he attracted little interest, then was re-signed by the Raiders late in the summer, after the mini-camps had been concluded. Then the Raiders insisted on listing Fenner down on the depth chart behind Davison, a journeyman who's never carried the ball in an NFL game and has managed to work his way down to third-string fullback as this season has gone on. Yet it was clear from the outset that Fenner was the best fullback.

Do the Raiders have a grudge against Fenner? He is vocal, and has periodically complained he'd like to touch the ball more. But Tim Brown says that almost weekly, and Harvey Williams has to be reassured regularly, too. They're still in management's good graces. Some fans have expressed the opinion that Fenner's a bad (negative) influence in the locker room, but I've never seen any Raider quoted as saying anything to that effect.

Last year Fenner scored eight touchdowns as the starting fullback for then-coach Mike White. Under Bugel this season, Fenner had only seven carries, scored no touchdowns and was involved in only 21 offensive plays.

Whatever the reasons behind the team's decision, Fenner says he's through as a Raider, and it's hard to fault him for feeling that way.

"I'm ticked off," he said, in something of an understatement. "I don't know if this (move to the IR list) preserved me. I just hope it didn't destroy me."

"I don't know if bitter is the word for it. I feel mistreated, disrespected, all of that."

"You get running around looking for answers all the time, but you've got to deal with it," added Fenner. "I've been running on short yardage, taking shots, so on and so forth. For lack of a better word, I'm (ticked) off. But it's the Raiders. What can you say?"

Asked if he expected to play for the Raiders next season, Fenner said, "Not at all." He also said he would not have re-signed had he known how little he would be used.

Not surprisingly, both Bugel and senior assistant Bruce Allen said they were "surprised" at Fenner's reaction. Yeah, right . . .

Thursday, November 20, 1997

In a truly strange development, coach Joe Bugel announced yesterday that starting FB Derrick Fenner has been placed on injured reserve because of his sprained ankle. That status means Fenner—the team's best blocking back—will not be able to play again this season.

Bugel said Fenner was still two to three weeks away from game readiness, and the team couldn't hold the roster spot open that long.

"It's going to be a couple to three weeks, and we needed to make a decision on some depth," said Bugel. "With the injuries to (Mike) Morton and not knowing Lorenzo's (Lynch) status, that really hurt us."

As mentioned here yesterday, the Raiders did re-sign LB Aaron Wallace to replace Morton. That still left one roster spot open.

The Raiders filled that spot by signing rookie TE Bob Rosenstiel, an undrafted free agent from Eastern Illinois, off the practice squad. He'll back up Rickey Dudley now that Williams is—at least nominally—the starting fullback.

Angela Trapp, wife of SS James Trapp, gave birth Monday to a 7-pound, 7-ounce baby boy, Amir Justus Trapp.

Wednesday, November 19, 1997

Harvey Williams' four touchdowns on Sunday may have grabbed the lion's share of the headlines, but this week's bigger story is an unsettling one for Raiders fans—the extremely untimely injury to LB Mike Morton.

Morton suffered a ruptured disc in his lower back against the Chargers and is gone for the season. Coach Joe Bugel said a determination on whether surgery will be needed won't be made for two weeks.

Morton had suffered back spasms all last week but wanted to play against San Diego. The spasms got worse as the game wore on, until eventually he couldn't even stand up under his own power.

"Mike was having a solid year," Bugel said. "He's a linebacker who made a lot of plays because of his hustle. He gets his share of tackles, and he's going to be a real, real good linebacker in this league. You don't have to take him off the field."

Morton's loss leaves an already thin linebacking corps in even more precarious shape. Rob Fredrickson was already hurting with a painful plantar fascia injury to one heel, and James Folston has played a lot of downs recently in Fredrickson's place. Now, with Morton out, backup Rob Holmberg will presumably start in place of Morton, with Folston playing on the other side for the hobbled Fredrickson.

Middle linebacker Greg Biekert has no real backup at present, should he be injured.

Aaron Wallace, signed to replace Larry Brown while Brown was suspended, was released last Thursday after Brown's return. The Raiders might look to re-sign Wallace now, or else to activate Shay Muirbrook from the practice squad.

SS Lorenzo Lynch also got pretty banged up Sunday. He fractured his thumb and also broke two ribs. Lynch underwent surgery on the thumb Monday and hopes to return after the Denver game.

Game heroes: DT Russell Maryland, whose intensity has been questioned by some sportswriters this year, had a huge game—probably his best as a pro. He registered seven tackles (six in the first quarter alone), two sacks, a deflected pass, and blocked a field goal attempt. Now if only Chester McGlockton would play like that . . .

RB Napoleon Kaufman, with 109 rushing yards against San Diego, officially broke the 1000-yard mark for the season.

And WR James Jett had a big game. Jett's stats for the day appear modest—4 catches for 58 yards—but he made them count. In the second quarter the game was still very much up for grabs, the Raiders leading 14-10, when Oakland mounted a 9-play, 67-yard drive. Jett made two big catches over the middle, including a clutch 3rd-down completion, to keep the drive alive. The effort culminated with a third pass to Jett, a 9-yard TD, which gave the Raiders a 21-10 lead and forced San Diego into catch-up mode.

The Raiders' official web site, Raiders.com, will have a live online interview with DT Russell Maryland today (Wednesday) at 1:30 p.m. Pacific.

Thursday, November 13, 1997

CB Larry Brown wasn't even back with the Raiders for 24 hours following his four-week suspension before he started mouthing off yesterday.

"I don't think the suspension was a valid suspension. I don't think it was fair, I don't think it was just," Brown said Wednesday. "I don't think I've done anything since I've been in the NFL that was conduct detrimental to any club."

Brown claimed to hold no bitterness toward anyone, but he also claimed—rather disingenuously, in this observer's view—that he's still not sure why he was suspended.

"I don't know what to expect, honestly. I just come out and do what's asked of me, and that's all I can do. They make those decisions. Not me."

"Honestly, I think I've played well," Brown said. "Many of you (reporters) have put the expectation on me that no one can catch a ball on me, or no one can score on me. It's the same expectation you're putting on Desmond Howard, that (he's) Mr. Invincible. And that's not the case. It's a part of the game. I could have 50 good plays. And if I have one bad one, I'm not a good player or I can't cover or something else."

In point of fact, Brown was benched for repeated poor play in one game after another, and he was suspended because he refused to practice hard. Period. Brown's lengthy comments to the press were one of the very few occasions this year when he's even been willing to speak to reporters.

Brown was also asked about owner Al Davis, whom Brown had initially accused of conspiring against him.

"When I said Al was involved, someone asked did I think Al knew," Brown said. "I said of course he knew. Then they asked do you think he is involved. Well, if you know about it and you stay with the decision (to suspend), then you know about it."

"Most writers will take that and put it how they want to put it. If you are going to quote me, quote me right. I just said I believed he knew, and he is still behind the decision."

The NFL has given the Raiders a roster exemption for Brown until Saturday, so the team doesn't have to release someone to make room for Brown until then.

Napoleon Kaufman's wife, Nicole, gave birth to a 7½-pound baby boy on Tuesday. The Kaufmans have named their son Napoleon IV.

FB Derrick Fenner's still hobbling on an ankle that turns out to be more badly sprained than originally thought, so Harvey Williams will probably start at fullback Sunday.

LB Rob Fredrickson may sit, too, in which case James Folston would start in his place.

Larry Brown returned to practice yesterday and wasted no time resuming his whining that he's been treated unfairly.

Raiders: Doubtful: RB Derrick Fenner (ankle). Questionable: LB Rob Fredrickson (heel). Probable: CB Lionel Washington (hamstring).

Chargers: Out: LB Lew Bush (hamstring); K John Carney (knee); QB Stan Humphries (concussion). Doubtful: CB Dwayne Harper (hamstring). Questionable: QB Jim Everett (elbow); LB Toran James (knee).

The likely starter at QB for San Diego Sunday will be Craig Whelihan, who grew up admiring the Raiders. There's an article about Whelihan in the Previews section.

Tuesday, November 11, 1997

QB Jeff George wasn't thrilled with the playcalling of offensive coordinator Ray Perkins in last Sunday's game.

George wanted the Raiders to throw the ball more. Yet ironically, he got little protection from his line and was running for his life most of the time on passing downs. And out of 24 first-down plays, the Raiders threw on 13 and only ran on 11.

"Maybe we did get caught up in all that stuff with wanting to run the ball too much," George said after the game. "Maybe we just should have had an open attack. We need to strike fear with our offense and we didn't have that today."

George made the point that the Raiders made no adjustment when the Saints brought their safeties up to help stop RB Napoleon Kaufman. "We still tried to run the ball. We knew what they were doing. We wanted going into the game to get Napoleon his carries. We were running the ball wide and our passing game was anemic early. We didn't have any passing game."

"When that (running) didn't work for us, we didn't have any ammunition really to attack them. We didn't create plays. We didn't do anything different. It was just a bad all-around offensive performance."

In fairness to George, most sportswriters have expressed a similarly dim view, not only of Perkins' calls, but also as to the overall coaching on Sunday. Various report cards graded the Raider coaching as D or F, and the Chronicle's Glenn Dickey called it "brain-dead" and "incredibly stupid."

Sources: Oakland Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, The Sporting News, CBS Sportsline

CB Larry Brown was eligible to return today after serving his four-week suspension. There were conflicting reports as to whether the Raiders will reinstate him.

Several papers insisted the Raiders have not yet made any decision. However, Brown's agent, Scott Casterline, said reinstatement was certain.

Casterline said Brown will practice with the team Wednesday and has been assured he will remain a Raider for the rest of the season.

Coach Joe Bugel skirted the issue. "We've got bigger issues than Larry Brown. Right now, all we want is to find a way to win. Let's not talk about frustrations or distractions."

The major factor, no doubt, is the huge salary cap hit which the Raiders would take should they release Brown. The Oakland Tribune reported last week that the team is already some $20 million over next year's projected salary cap, and cutting Brown would add over $2 million more to that deficit.

The Raiders continue to suffer the consequences of their ill-advised decision during the 1996 offseason to pay more than $19 million to sign free agents Brown and Russell Maryland.

If Brown is reinstated to the roster, most likely to be released to make room would be LB/DE Aaron Wallace. Wallace was signed a day after Brown was suspended. He has been inactive for all the games during Brown's absence.

Friday, November 7, 1997

The week's big story has revolved about the porous Raider defense, ranked dead last in the NFL against the run, against the pass, and overall.

First, WR Tim Brown fueled speculation that defensive coordinator Fred Whittingham would lose his job with remarks he made during his regular Tuesday radio appearance on KTCT.

"At this point, no one can escape the blame," said Brown. "It doesn't matter what we've done to prepare or what the game plan has been, it hasn't been enough."

"Not only do the players have to put the blame on their shoulders, of course the coaches have to put some of the blame on their shoulders. If they had to do it again, I'm sure they would do things a little differently."

Brown went on, "Many times our defense, giving up the kind of points it's giving up and the yards it's giving up and where it has been ranked, maybe a coaching change is inevitable."

"At the same time, the guys believe in Fred (Whittingham). Fred is the coach right now, and I was going up to him the other day, any time he made a great call, saying, 'That's the way, way to get after those guys.'"

"The players are going to support Fred, and if they make a coaching change this week, next week, at the end of the year, they're going to support that guy, whoever it may be."

The plot thickened on Wednesday when the San Francisco Examiner, citing an unidentified source, stated flatly that Whittingham would be demoted, with linebackers coach Dave Adolph replacing him. Adolph has previously served as a defensive coordinator with four NFL teams, including the Raiders when they were in Los Angeles.

The Examiner said the change had been ordered by team owner Al Davis. The San Jose Mercury News also reported that a source had told it that the Examiner story was accurate.

The story of Whittingham's impending demotion and/or firing was quickly denied by coach Joe Bugel. "Nothing has been discussed and I've met with Al (Davis) the past two days," he said.

As of this writing, late Friday night, Whittingham remains in charge of the defense.

Sources: San Jose Mercury News, Oakland Tribune, San Francisco Examiner, Contra Costa Times

As expected, the NFL levied large fines on the Raiders involved in the fight which broke out near the end of last Sunday's game in Charlotte. Chester McGlockton was socked $17,500, and Russell Maryland, who was also ejected, was fined $5,000.

Other Raiders who were fined for fighting were DE Darrell Russell ($5,000), CB Calvin Branch ($2,500), FS Eric Turner ($2,500), and CB Perry Carter ($1,000).

Strangest of all, though, was a $5,000 fine assessed on Albert Lewis, a gentleman if ever there was one. Lewis wasn't even remotely involved in the scuffle. His transgression? He allowed his socks to drop too low, violating the league's uniform rules. Go figure . . .

Lewis' comment: "They've gone too far. You get two guys entering a fight (area), and I get fined more than both of them."

"I was showing skin. Black socks and black skin. Who can tell the difference? Fashion police."

Injury report: LB James Folston will probably start Sunday in place of Rob Fredrickson, who's been increasingly slowed lately by plantar fasciatis in his heel.

Folston is a former second-round draft pick from Northeast Louisiana, where he played defensive end, who's never quite seemed to play up to his potential. He was moved to the middle earlier this year to back up Greg Biekert. Folston's strength, however, is his speed and mobility, and he's probably better suited to playing on the outside.

"I'm ready," Folston said. "I've been ready for a while. I've just been waiting for an opportunity."

Folston said it was difficult learning to play linebacker after the Raiders moved him. "Adapting to the linebacker position is like trying to learn Spanish," he said. "It was hard for me at first."

QB Jeff George has bruised ribs but is expected to play. CB Lionel Washington will miss another game with a hamstring pull.

Anticlimax Dept.: Sunday's home game against the Aints will almost certainly be blacked out locally. As of Wednesday night, only 38,000 tickets had been sold.

Saturday, November 1, 1997

Scott Casterline, the agent for suspended CB Larry Brown, says Brown will definitely rejoin the Raiders when his suspension ends.

"Larry's coming back after the 10th game, no doubt," Casterline said yesterday. "They've left the door open, and Larry's going to walk through it."

Despite a midweek injury report which listed a half dozen players as questionable, the Raiders will be in relatively good physical shape for tomorrow's game. Only CB Lionel Washington, out with a hamstring pull, and DE Lance Johnstone, still bothered by an ankle injury, should be unavailable. (Johnstone has a sprain with stretched ligaments, not serious enough to warrant surgery.)

Now that some time has passed since he was re-signed, DE Aundray Bruce should be in better game condition. On the other hand, RT Lincoln Kennedy is likely to be hobbling for the rest of the season because of his plantar fascia problem. That type of injury can't heal if he continues playing every week. And LT Pat Harlow continues to skip some practices each week to rest his back.

WR Tim Brown said this week he thinks the Raiders should go to him more on third down. As has been widely reported, Oakland has a dismal third-down conversion rate—the second worst in the league.

It seems that this year's Raider offense either scores in three plays or it punts.

"I can count probably on one hand (this year) the times my number's been called on third down," said Brown. "The ball's not coming my way as much in those situations."

This observer isn't sure it's quite that simple. The players manning the skill positions for the Silver and Black this year are truly explosive. The Raiders' offensive line, however, has been mediocre. They can pass protect well enough on first and second down, when the opposing defense is off balance and can't mount an all-out pass rush. But the line has been a sieve in obvious passing situations.

One example: 240-pound Seattle LB Chad Brown ran over LT Pat Harlow last week despite giving away 50 pounds to Harlow. Oakland surrendered 5 sacks last week, and 6 in the San Diego game. The team has given up 25 sacks in 8 games, on pace for 50—even worse than last year's 45, which ranked in the bottom quarter of the league.

Similarly, RB Napoleon Kaufman gets most of his yardage on his own, not because the Raider line is blowing opponents off the ball. The O-line has been anything but dominating.

The long-range solution, in this writer's view, remains getting a better pair of starting tackles.

Finally, five-time Pro Bowl CB Terry McDaniel is back in the starting lineup, with Perry Carter the nickel back. With Lionel Washington out, Coach Joe Bugel said rookie CB Calvin Branch will be activated for the Carolina game as the fourth corner. Both James Trapp and Dan Land can also play the corner in an emergency.

Of T-Mac's practice week, Bugel said, "He took advantage of his opportunities. He's a pro. He handled himself well last week and I'm sure he'll do that this week."

Bugel never did explain convincingly why Carter started ahead of McDaniel against Seattle. It's true that T-Mac let two possible interceptions go through his hands the week before against Denver, but at least McDaniel got his hands on the ball. Carter never even turned back to look for the ball last week. He invariably had his back turned to the ball as Warren Moon completed one pass after another over Carter.

Wednesday, October 29, 1997

Nominated previously, and still eligible this year, are coach John Madden, quarterbacks Ken Stabler and Jim Plunkett; WR Cliff Branch, TEs Dave Casper, Ray Chester and Todd Christensen, LBs Matt Millen and Jerry Robinson, CB Lester Hayes, and punter Ray Guy.

Tuesday, October 28, 1997

Terry McDaniel is as quiet and dignified a man as there is in professional football. When he speaks, it's worth listening.

Asked his reaction to the astonishing decision to start CB Perry Carter ahead of him last Sunday against Seattle, T-Mac said, "I definitely have a problem with it. But you'll have to ask Joe (about it)."

"I definitely haven't played great," McDaniel said, "but I haven't played bad (enough) to deserve what I got. I can't say I played under standards."

Carter was toasted for three touchdowns and a costly interference call. The penalty came because Carter, despite having good position on the play, lacked the sense to turn and look for the ball before contact with the receiver occurred.

Coach Joe Bugel equivocated when asked whether the change was a permanent one. He said there a strong chance McDaniel would start this weekend against Carolina.

"It's not for the whole season," Bugel said. "I've told everybody to have a starter's mentality. Things could change from day to day."

What on earth prompted Bugel to sit McDaniel—a five-time Pro Bowler—in favor of an inexperienced journeyman? That's the question the press is asking, and rightly so.

"I just made a game-day decision to start Perry and Albert (Lewis)," he said. "We've got four corners ready to play in this football game because we really prepared for what we call 'quad,' you know, four receivers."

That contradicted what Bugel had said only a minute or two earlier, that Carter and McDaniel knew of the decision during the week.

"He (McDaniel) knew a couple of days ago because we rotated him around in practice," Bugel said. "It wasn't a demotion or anything like that. We just decided to go that way."

Sources: Contra Costa Times, Sonoma County Press Democrat, San Francisco Examiner

The offensive line, never deep to begin with, has a big problem. RT Lincoln Kennedy's revealed that he's been suffering from plantar fasciatis since the summer.

That's the same injury—a very painful separation of tissue in the arch of the foot—which sidelined Larry Brown much of last year. The only effective treatment for it, normally, is rest. Kennedy, however, vows he'll play on.

Injury report: S Dan Land dislocated an elbow Sunday and RB Napoleon Kaufman suffered a knee bruise, but both are expected to play Sunday. The only question mark for the Panthers is CB Lionel Washington, who strained his hamstring in the third quarter.

Sunday, October 26, 1997

This morning's San Jose Mercury News has an entertaining column on Web-savvy Raiders players.

For Seattle, WR Joey Galloway probably will play despite a groin pull, but his fellow WR, Mike Pritchard, probably won't. Seattle announced earlier this week that RB Steve Broussard will start following the news that Lamar Smith is out for a month with a stress fracture of the fibula. Broussard has good quickness and has given the Raiders problems in the past on kickoff returns.

The Raiders are hoping for another big game today from moody DT Chester McGlockton. McGlockton had a sack and five tackles against Denver and showed the most animation anyone had seen from him in a long time.

McGlockton insists it's because of a change in the Raiders' defensive alignment. Earlier in the year he'd been asked to line up opposite an offensive tackle most of the time. Now he's back to positioning himself over a guard on nearly every play.

"I like playing where I am now," said McGlockton. "I'm more confident and I feel more comfortable. I could have played that other position, but it would have taken me a year to adjust."

Saturday, October 25, 1997

Coach Joe Bugel said after yesterday's practice that DE Lance Johnstone will be inactive for Sunday's game. Johnstone missed all this week's practices because of his ankle.

Either LB Aaron Wallace or DT Grady Jackson may dress in place of Johnstone.

Several papers reported yesterday that the Raiders have reached a settlement with CB Larry Brown. Brown will drop his grievance against the team. In return the Raiders will not fine Brown an additional week's paycheck as they had originally said they would.

Brown's agent, Scott Casterline, negotiated throughout the week with senior assistant Bruce Allen, and had been quoted on Wednesday as saying he expected a resolution of the situation by yesterday.

Casterline equivocated when asked if he expects Brown to play for the Raiders again. "I don't know at this point," he said. "We're working through the philosophical differences. We're trying to get to the bottom of it."

Casterline added that he expects Brown will apologize for his earlier comments that team owner Al Davis was behind the decision to suspend him.

The San Francisco Chronicle quoted "sources" as saying the Raiders won't decide whether or not to reinstate Brown until his suspension ends, after the New Orleans game on November 9.

This observer would be surprised if Brown returns after all that he's said, although the salary cap considerations probably still militate against his release. The amount of the hit the Raiders would take if they cut Brown has been reported as anywhere from $2.1 million to "more than" $2.5 million.

RB Tim Hall has officially passed Joe Aska on the depth chart and is now Napoleon Kaufman's backup.

"I'm real excited about it," Hall said. "Considering it's my second year and I came from a small school, I feel like I've accomplished a lot. I wasn't active last year, but now I'm playing on a lot of special teams and backing up Napoleon."

Aska had the one seeming breakthrough game last season against the Jets, but has seemed to regress since then. His running is tentative again, and he still shows poor blocking skills and a tendency to fumble.

Aska was a one-time pet project of Al Davis, but this might be his last year with the team.

DT Chester McGlockton missed two days of practice this week with a sore shoulder but is expected to play Sunday. The one Raider who's still questionable is DE Lance Johnstone, still favoring a tender ankle.

Wednesday, October 22, 1997

Afternoon update: RB Napoleon Kaufman was named the NFL Offensive Player of the Week.

There really isn't any Raiders news of note. A few semi-decent quotes for the Quotes of the Week section, but that's about it.

Well, there's this—Harvey Williams is unhappy that he's getting almost no playing time. And coach Joe Bugel is aware of it. Bugel said Monday he might put Williams back in the backfield to try to give him some reps.

"Harvey Williams has got to be on the field in some capacity, whether it's as a blocking back or running back," Bugel said. "I know he's hurting inside right now, but he doesn't complain."

Yawn . . . This observer might be more sympathetic if Williams weren't getting such a fat salary for his minimal contribution.

Bugel also praised the blocking of rookie FB Chad Levitt, who was activated for the first time during the regular season. On Napoleon Kaufman's 83-yard run in the 4th quarter, Levitt lined up on the wing, then came in motion and led the way into the hole. Derrick Fenner followed Levitt as the Raiders used two lead blockers to spring Kaufman.

Saturday, October 18, 1997

If you've read the recent articles linked on this site, you know the Raiders are taking a fearful beating this week at the hands of the press. The Raider mystique is a joke, the Broncos laugh when asked if they fear playing Oakland, etc., etc. ad nauseam.

Unfortunately the team set itself up for this with incessant pre-season talk, from coach Joe Bugel on down, of winning the AFC, winning multiple Super Bowls, etc. They would have been wiser—coming off a 7-9 season—to have kept their mouths shut. Now the Raiders are the object of ridicule. Ouch!!

Fortunately there's one easy way to quickly silence the press—a convincing thumping of Denver tomorrow would remedy everything. We'll see how this team responds . . .

CB Larry Brown filed a grievance with the Players Association this week, protesting his richly deserved four-game suspension. If the dispute isn't resolved, Brown's agent could formally take it to the league.

Sports Illustrated opines that the NFL might rule in Brown's favor in view of the Raiders' leniency in the past (Anthony Smith, Scott Davis). This observer would note, however, that Smith was also suspended for the maximum four games allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

Said Brown, "If the relationship is going to remain the same, I'd like for them to release me and let me go on my way. If I'm not going to have an opportunity to play—if I'm going to be benched after two catches—then I don't want to come back."

The Raiders have been reluctant to bite the bullet and simply cut Brown. They'd take a salary cap hit of more than $2.5 million because the remainder of his huge signing bonus would be accelerated.

Denver: Doubtful: WR Patrick Jeffer (hamstring). Probable: CB Ray Crockett (shoulder).

Oakland: Questionable: T Pat Harlow (back); DE Lance Johnstone (ankle). Probable: CB Albert Lewis (hamstring); S James Trapp (ribs).

Note that T-Mac is no longer listed at all. Troubling, though, is Harlow's status as questionable. The dropoff in talent from him to backup Rick Cunningham is a substantial one.

Friday, October 17, 1997

WR Tim Brown is as dedicated a team player as you'll find. So it's fair to assume things have to be pretty bad before Brown sounds off about a teammate.

On his weekly radio show yesterday on KTCT-AM, Brown as much as said CB Larry Brown needed to be suspended.

"I remember three weeks ago I had to go to his defensive coaches and say, 'Look, whatever the guy's problem is, I don't know what it is, but if he's not going to give us (the maximum effort in practice), we've got to get him off the field,'" said Brown. "Because all he's doing is getting in our way. Sooner or later, somebody's going to get hurt trying to get away from him."

"He would give you two or three steps, then he'd stop. Sometimes, if you had to run an underneath route, you'd wind up running into him."

"It was a situation where Larry wasn't comfortable, wasn't playing the way he should have been playing, wasn't practicing the way he should have been playing. And for some reason he just wasn't into it. . . . (The suspension) was the best situation for the team. When you're 2-4, you're struggling, you need all the guys who are fighting with you, you need everyone to be on the same page with you."

Once again the Raiders will have a big home game blacked out. The team had 9500 tickets still unsold as of Thursday's 1:00 p.m. deadline.

It's likely that all this year's remaining home games will be blacked out on local television.

Wednesday, October 15, 1997

Late update: Joe Bugel skirted the Larry Brown issue in his press conference this evening, insisting that the matter was personal between Brown and himself.

"It's between the player and me. It's over," said Bugel. "I'm not going to talk about it any more, period. It wasn't an organizational decision, it was mine. I felt in my heart I had to do something with Larry."

Today the Raiders re-signed LB Aaron Wallace, cut during the pre-season, to fill Brown's spot on the roster.

The career of ex-Raider QB Billy Joe Hobert hit rock bottom today when he was waived by Buffalo after publicly admitting he hadn't studied last week's game plan. Hobert, forced into action last Sunday when starter Todd Collins was injured, threw two quick interceptions in a 33-6 loss to New England.

4:00 p.m. update: The Raiders have called a news conference for 7:00 p.m. tonight, at which time coach Joe Bugel will address the Larry Brown suspension.

The SportsFan Radio Network—not a reliable source—claims that Brown has been released and Bugel will announce the move this evening.

Two stories dominate the recent Raider news: the continuing Larry Brown saga, and the reshuffling on the defensive line.

The Raiders announced late yesterday that CB Larry Brown has been suspended for four games—the maximum allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement—for "conduct detrimental to the team."

Brown himself told reporters that coach Joe Bugel said he (Brown) wasn't practicing hard enough. The San Jose Mercury News also quotes a "source" as saying that Brown got into a heated argument with Bugel during Monday's practice.

The team's only comment, from senior assistant Bruce Allen, was a terse one. "It's unfortunate, but sometimes these things occur," said Allen. "This was not unexpected, but something that Coach Bugel said is necessary at the time."

Brown, who hadn't spoken to the press since being demoted some weeks back, suddenly had lots to say, complaining that he's being "singled out" by the team.

"They're just out to get me," Brown said. "They won't play me and they won't release me. The only thing they can do is mess with me."

As expected, rookie DL Darrell Russell will move into the starting lineup at base end. (The base end in the Raiders' alignment plays opposite the opponent's strong side.) Anthony Smith will move to outside end, and Lance Johnstone will go to the bench. Johnstone will be used as a situational pass rusher from here on.

Russell has played very well so far this season, and the Raiders are anxious to get his increased bulk on the field for more plays. Johnstone, who weighs only 245, is undersized and vulnerable to the run. He's also failed to mount a strong outside pass rush despite his speed.

Sunday, October 12, 1997

Raiders.com will have a live on-line interview with Jack Tatum on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. PDT.

Saturday, October 11, 1997

The Raiders and K-Mart are hosting two "Family Day" sessions today at their Alameda facility involving non-contact clinics for 900 youngsters ages 6-14 who pre-registered. After the clinics, the kids and their families will tour the facility.

It seems the Raiders have substantially more walking wounded than the team let on following last weekend's game.

Now listed as hurting are T Pat Harlow (back), WR James Jett (ankle), DE Lance Johnstone (ankle), SS James Trapp (ribs), CB's Albert Lewis (hamstring) and Terry McDaniel (knee), returner Desmond Howard (ankle), and FB's Derrick Fenner (groin) and Harvey Williams (ankle).

Given this, the bye week has come at a good time for the Raiders. They desperately want both starting corners, Lewis and McDaniel, healthy for the Denver game. Lewis, in particular, is one of the few defensive backs in football who's had success covering TE Shannon Sharpe.

After watching Denver dismantle the Patriots last Monday night, coach Joe Bugel called Denver "the best team in the NFL, without a doubt. They're playing at a very high level."

Pat Harlow's condition is also a major concern. His chronic back pain has returned, and his backup, Rick Cunningham, is strictly a journeyman. The Raiders may have to start holding Harlow out of some mid-week practices in order to maximize his effectiveness on Sundays.

"We're not putting pads on him, and it may be the rest of the season we have to monitor him real close," Bugel said. "He could probably practice but there is no need to."

"It's not all the hitting, it's just the getting down and getting back up (out of his stance). So he comes out for the walkthroughs and then goes inside and rehabilitates."

Bugel added, "(Center) Barret Robbins came up and said, 'I can play tackle, don't forget. So we gave him some repetitions there. He did play the position in college."

Each week one or two common themes dominate the local media coverage of the Raiders. Last week two papers anointed the offensive line as having arrived despite pre-season questions—whereupon the Raiders promptly surrendered six sacks to San Diego and failed to generate any rushing game.

This week the media's taking a hard look at Desmond Howard, whose return stats thus far this season are mediocre. He's not in the league's top 15 in either punt or kickoff returns.

"We're getting close to breaking (a return)," said Joe Bugel. "But close only counts in horseshoes."

"The cast has to understand their role and do a better job than they've been doing," Bugel said. "Right now, we're one block away. Every guy has to realize he has to hold his block."

Derrick Fenner's unhappy he's not touching the ball. Fenner argues—with considerable logic, in this observer's view—that opposing defenses can simply ignore the Raider fullback, knowing he won't get the ball.

"That's the unfortunate thing about my situation, that teams know I'm not contributing by handling the ball," Fenner said. "They don't have to worry about me. (San Diego) knew if they shut off the main valves, then the rest of the offense just leaks."

Bugel's response, however, was that if anyone carries the ball more, it will be Napoleon Kaufman, not Fenner.

"We don't have enough snaps to divide the ball for everyone," said Bugel. "For us to win, we need to give Napoleon a certain number of snaps each game. That fullback has a role in our offense. He's a blocker. We'd like to give it to him one or two times, but I'd like to give those to Napoleon, too."

Speaking of fullbacks, don't be surprised if rookie FB Chad Levitt is activated for the Denver game next weekend, perhaps at the expense of Jerone Davison. Raider coaches say Levitt had an outstanding practice week.

Rumors about the Raiders' interest in former Eagle DT Andy Harmon are best described as grasping at straws. Harmon, at one time a top pass rusher, has not recovered from a serious knee injury.

"His knee is not even close to 100 percent," said his agent, Jim Solano, this past week. "He had surgery last December, but it's still bothering him. It could be two to three weeks, eight weeks, we just don't know."

Senior assistant Bruce Allen had this mid-week comment on the Raiders' season thus far:

"It's a big hill for us to climb, no doubt. But the closeness of our games (three losses by a total of five points) would suggest we shouldn't junk the players we have."

"This is no excuse, but the newness of everybody—players and coaching staff—has taken us longer than expected to play 60 minutes of football."

"Now, do we have 22 All-Pros? No . . . but to say the season is over after just six games is ridiculous. If we had lost seven or eight, yes, we'd be heading in another direction. But it's early yet."

Thursday, October 9, 1997

In the wake of Sunday's thrashing by San Diego, some Raiders have been second-guessing the play calling of offensive coordinator Ray Perkins. The expressions of doubt have been polite and low-key, to be sure, but still there's a sense that the Oakland offense was too predictable.

The Raiders, unable to generate any running game early, went almost completely to the pass. They ran only 13 rushing plays the entire game, gaining a total of 11 yards on the ground.

"We never got into a rhythm where we just pounded on these guys," said RB Napoleon Kaufman this week. "It's taking two yards, it's taking one yard. You just keep pounding on that wall until it breaks."

"I was licking my chops, because I saw some light. I saw some great (openings)."

"Sometimes you've got to tuck your ears back and move that pile," Kaufman said. "You pound on 'em, you pound on 'em. You know, you don't chop down a tree with just one swing."

That's all well and good, but it's an open question whether the Raiders could have had more success had they stuck with the run longer. The absence of the power running game promised by coach Joe Bugel when he was hired has clearly hurt the Raiders this season. Kaufman gets most of his long gains with his phenomenal quickness and darting moves, not because he has gaping holes to run through. And backup tailback Joe Aska hasn't produced at all this year.

San Diego took account of the Raiders' inability to play ball control in its game plan.

"The coaches had a good game plan," said Charger tackle John Parrella. "Force them to do something they don't want to do—drive the ball. Take away the big play. We did it all but one time (referring to Kaufman's 70-yard reception on a screen pass)."

QB Jeff George had several criticisms, suggesting that the Raiders panicked.

"We were . . . expecting Timmy (Brown) to get open against three or four guys," George said. "You can't do that. You have to spread the field out, utilize our speed and we didn't do that. For what reason, I don't know, but it was a struggle all day for Timmy and the other guys to get open."

"It was one of those days where they knew what we were doing and if that's the case, we need to mix things up a little bit and look at the films. Maybe we have tendencies that defenses know when we're going to do something."

"We have to make them adjust to what we're doing instead of adjust to what they're doing. It took us out of our game to where we didn't accomplish anything."

"We might have panicked and gotten into a mode where we were predictable," he said. "Whenever we called a play, they were in the right defense."

"I really believe we have to get the ball to Napoleon 20 times minimum," he said. "We went for the jugular quick, because our quarterback likes to throw downfield. Should we have run the ball more? Yes."

Finally, FB Derrick Fenner got into the act, too. "I'm the type of guy that can help a ballclub win," he said. "I truly feel that. I'm a go-to guy." Fenner has carried only 5 times this season.

Asked if he thinks he'll get the ball more in the future, Fenner responded, "I don't think so, to be honest."

Sources: Pro Football Xchange, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Examiner, San Jose Mercury News, Sacramento Bee

Joe Bugel is less than ecstatic about the way Chester McGlockton's been playing so far this season. Bugel described the tackle's play as "OK, not great." McGlockton has 1½ sacks.

"I think Chester should be a dominant player," Bugel said. "We've got him in the alignment he likes to play, over the guard. He feels he's more effective over the guard than he is over the tackle."

Wednesday, October 8, 1997

Yesterday's NFL trading deadline passed without any bombshells. In particular, Chester McGlockton's still a Raider.

McGlockton's agent said Monday that he and the Raiders have suspended contract negotiations until the season's end. Asked whether he expects his client to be Raider next year, James Williams said, "There aren't going to be any more conversations until after the season. The ball is in the Raiders' court. If they give him the franchise tag, he can't go anywhere. It's up to them at this point."

"There's not a hell of a lot to talk about. It's a reactionary situation as opposed to proactive concerning what they're going to do. We'll just sit and wait and see what happens."

Coach Joe Bugel had this comment: "(Chet's) playing OK, like the team. But we need him to play great. Not to single out Chester, but we're not the type of team where one guy can carry the whole team. Chester should be a dominating player."

Bugel indicated he plans some changes in the defensive line, which surrendered 181 rushing yards to San Diego's Gary Brown.

Rookie Darrell Russell will get more playing time at end, probably at the expense of undersized DE Lance Johnstone, who may be relegated to the role of a situational pass rusher. Opposing teams regularly run at Johnstone, and he hasn't gotten a sack yet this year.

Three Raiders were injured in Sunday's game. Most seriously, T Pat Harlow hurt his back and didn't finish the game. He'll be held out of practice all this week.

WR James Jett sprained an ankle, and CB James Trapp re-aggravated his rib injury.

Only in Oakland: Rams coach Dick Vermeil says a female fan behind the bench bared her breasts at Sunday's game and taunted struggling QB Tony Banks, "Tony, can you hit these?"

Saturday, October 4, 1997

As expected, CB Albert Lewis is out for tomorrow's game with San Diego, coach Joe Bugel said yesterday.

Terry McDaniel will dress but won't start. The starters at the corners will be Perry Carter on the left and Lionel Washington on the right.

Getting a chance to get out of the doghouse will be Larry Brown, who's been inactive the last two games.

Joe Bugel is a man with an attitude so positive he could make Dracula sound like a model citizen. So you know that Brown has had an attitude problem when Bugel says of Brown, "He's excited he's going to be activated. He's got a better mental outlook now."

Also inactive, according to Bugel, will be CB Calvin Branch, FB Chad Levitt and T Scott Whittaker.

Wednesday, October 1, 1997

So why hasn't this observer gotten semi-hysterical over the Chester McGlockton trade rumors? Simple—I doubt it will come to pass.

McGlockton is going to demand a 300 to 400% raise at season's end, when he's finally played out the ill-advised deal his father negotiated for him. Would you want to be the GM who had to negotiate with him then?

The Raiders probably could have gotten quite a lot for McGlockton had they traded him during the off-season. That would have given another team plenty of time to try to begin negotiations early. But this late in the game, from a front office's point of view, Chester's nothing but a colossal headache. I think that makes his trade value substantially lower.

Oops, excuse me—the phone's ringing. That must be Al now, calling to ask my opinion . . .

On the serious front, the Raiders have re-signed versatile Aundray Bruce, the defensive jack-of-all-trades who was cut late in pre-season. He'll fill the roster spot vacated by Greg Townsend.

The Raiders are reported to be disappointed with the play of young DE Lance Johnstone. Nobody questions the kid's speed, but he has yet to get a sack despite playing (by his own estimate) 95% of the defensive downs in five games. Bruce, on the other hand, is a proven commodity as a pass rusher.

Expect another local TV blackout of this weekend's game. As of Tuesday afternoon, only 39,000 tickets had been sold.

The attendance for the Rams game was 42,506—the smallest crowd yet for a home game since the team returned to Oakland.