The Krunch Report- Jim's take on today's Raiders :: Raiders History

My article that have appeared on Raiderfans.com.

Once again Oakland Tribune writer Jerry McDonald has written another great article on former Raiders’ receiver Art Powell. Powell was a master pass catcher. I am truly envious of anyone who may have saw him play up close and personal. If I could, I would travel back in time to the thirteenth week of the 1964 season, where Powell caught a touchdown pass to beat the eventual American Football League champion Buffalo Bills in the final seconds. More than that, I would liked to have been amongst the fans who rushed the field to carry Oakland’s #84 off on their shoulders, but of course, I cannot.

Unlike most ball players, Powell’s legacy off the field is far more important than the one he left on the field. There’s something that happened in my life years ago that I’m still rather embarrassed by. When I was writing my book, I came across an article on an NAACP picket that Raiders players had to cross in order to win their first regular season game at Houston’s Jeppeson Stadium.

And in doing so, I had a dilemma. The idea I had in writing the book was to concentrate on football and what those men in Black, White and Gold and ultimately Silver and Black uniforms accomplished on the field. So I sat back and with my original ideas in mind I began to toss reasons back and forth as to whether or not to even mention this. I figured that,

#1 I was born in 1971, I’m white and the only South I new anything about was Southern Alameda County. So I didn’t want to make some grand social statement on a subject I literally knew nothing about.

#2 there was no segregation in Oakland and I wanted to concentrate on what people in Oakland thought and experienced at the time.

#3 and finally, times they were a changing, meaning this whole ugly chapter in our history would be over soon.

I know I’m forgetting something, I know that once upon I time, that I had four good reasons. But lets cut the bull here. I could have had a million good reasons, but I was still wrong. What I didn’t know at the time, was that one of those players (defensive back Eddie Macon) who crossed that picket line was the first African-American football player to suit up for the Chicago Bears. When Macon was drafted by George Halas in the second round of the 1952 college draft, Halas told him “I want you to be my Jackie Robinson.”

Like Jackie Robinson, Macon endured a great deal. Another thing they had in common, they weren’t able to lash back to that prejudice they faced. The Detroit Lions were particularly nasty back then. Aside from taunting him with racial epithets, they attempted to injure him by twisting his leg under a pile. After two seasons with the Bears, Macon bolted for Canada, where he played in the CFL. He would never play in the NFL again and wouldn’t play in the states until he was signed by the Raiders in 1960, where he lead the team in their inaugural season with nine interceptions.

When the Oakland team returned to Houston the next year. The black players were asked to sit out in protest. Macon had retired, but a young man named George Fleming, a second-round pick from Washington, who three weeks later would set an Oakland Raiders record with a 54-yard field goal against the Denver Broncos at the Raiders (then) home field, Candlestick Park. While his record would stand until 2003 when Sebastian Janikowski broke his mark with a 55-yard blast against the Lions in Detroit, Fleming’s legacy is also greater off the field than it was on. As a state senator from Washington State, he is largely responsible for the creation of the Martin Luther King holiday.

What brought me around though was the protest of the six black players the Raiders held against the segregated seating policy at Ladd Stadium in Mobile Alabama. When I was a teenager, my father and I had this argument over the film, “To Kill A Mockingbird.” According to the old man, the whole movie was about the trial and injustice bestowed on a black defendant that was obviously innocent. I on the other hand, felt the movie was about a young girls’ perception of what went on. I’ll maintain my position in regards to the movie, but when I learned about how people were treated it was an eye opener for me, much the same way it was for Scout Finch.

I had heard of segregation, slavery, Jim Crow and Rosa Parks. I even studied it in school. But nothing hit home with me like it did when I learned of the “quiet integration” that was to take place at Ladd Stadium. Integrated seating was to be allowed as a condition of the American Football League allowing an exhibition between the Raiders and newly renamed New York Jets. Management at Ladd Stadium’s idea of compliance for this event, was to allow people of color to move out of the end zone sections to corner end zone sections. What’s worse, is the three vertical rows of seats that were not sold to further alienate blacks from the rest of the spectators on hand. Also, while they may have been given “the right” to purchase food, beer and soda pop, they had no legal right to use the bathroom. Those caught using the bathroom were subject to ejection and arrest.

As always, I won’t mince words. When I learned of this, I felt like I had been hit in the face with a 2X4. I remembered how upset my father had been, especially since he spent his childhood bouncing between Texas and Oklahoma where segregation was practiced and my own foolish decision of approximately a year earlier. Eight years before I was born and four before my parents had even met six Raiders Clem Daniels, Gene White, Proverb Jacobs, Bo Roberson, Art Powell and Fred “The Hammer” Williamson taught me a very important lesson. One I’ve continued to learn from. After all, as Art Shell has shown us over the last season, those who don’t understand history are doomed to repeat it.

"If we don't learn how not to beat ourselves, we won't win again, and we won't win for a long time, we've got to be the dumbest team in America in terms of playing the game. I'm highly critical because of the way we give games away -- we give 'em away! Period. It's embarrassing, and I represent that. And I apologize for that.
"If that's the best we can do, it's a sad product." –Bill Callahan

Coach Callahan was vilified for that statement, and I may end up being vilified for what I’m about to say and I don’t care. Bill Callahan was right. He was right when he said it and since the organization has gone 12-40 since he blew his stack after that woeful 22-8 loss at home to Denver in 2003.

Today, “Raiders Football” is much harder to watch, or for that matter stomach. It should be hard to find positives in a 2-14 season. Yet in Oakland, it’s not. Yes, we have the best punter in the league in Shane Lechler. The fearless kamikaze punt returner wearing #23 consistently gives his offense optimum field position. And finally in 2006, he was given a compliment in helping the offense in earning what was probably, on average, the best field position of any team in the league overall as Chris Carr and his defensive cohorts were ranked first against the pass in 2006 and as a whole were ranked third in total defense. This in a division that features the league’s two best tight end’s in Antonio Gates and Tony Gonzales and the leagues top gaining running backs LaDainian Tomlinson and Larry Johnson who ran for a combined 3,604 yards and tallied 50 touchdowns between them!

So what gives?

Many believe to dissect the Raiders troubles we need to look at the top, and we all know who that is. There has been a great deal of speculation in regards to Al Davis’ health and rumors of a reported sale in the event of his passing. I’m no doctor, and even if I was I wouldn’t be able to diagnose whatever may be ailing Mr. Davis through the T.V. screen. However I do know this. Right now, at this moment, there is someone down the hall from me that is dying. There is no known cure for what he has. Out of respect I will not divulge his malady, however this must be said. He looks better than Al Davis. And this time next year, I expect him to be gone.

But these issues confronting the Raiders organization are much deeper, and far more long running, than my fears concerning the health of Al Davis or the man himself. You’d be hard pressed to find someone with a better grasp or a deeper respect for what Davis has done for the sport, and by extension for our country, than me. Al Davis was the right visionary at the right time and his impact on the game will remain forever. But at home, things have fallen apart. His once dominant Raiders have been called a laughing stock recently, yet I find this situation as laughable as a bad joke that I’ve already heard 10 times.

Like the aforementioned joke, the outcome of the Raiders games this year were a foregone conclusion. I had seen it before and nothing changed. The defense would play superior football and Lechler and Janikowski were stellar. Yet when the offense trotted out on the field, the Raiders were as effective as fighting a fire with gasoline. The blame can and should be applied everywhere. Art Shell, while giving us at least half a team (which was more than we got from the Norv Turner Error) made a MAJOR mistake in bringing in Tom Walsh. His game plans were horrid, and could be overmatched by most competent high school coaches. Three times in 2006, the Raiders failed to score. And eight times last season the offense failed to reach the end zone!

The game plan was horrible, the results were pitiful, but the execution was worse. The blocking that wasn’t, the pass catching that dropped off. And the star players performing as if they didn’t care. In fact, the only good thing that can be said of the Raiders offense in 2006 was that Justin Fargas has emerged as an exciting back up to a feature back which shouldn’t be Lamont Jordan anymore. We all know of Porter’s attitude problems and Moss’ inability to catch a beautifully thrown ball that hits him in the hands. Yet Jordan showed us his lack of interest by swatting a pass from Andrew Walter down and not reacting when the 49ers ran it in for a touchdown. That to me says he doesn’t care. Sure he’ll give the proper lip service in the media and maybe in the locker room to his teammates and his new coach when they find someone. But there’s an old saying that I agree with “action speaks louder than words.” And we know his action, or inaction and it lead to a really embarrassing loss to a team that, on paper, shouldn’t be on the field with us.

Herein lies the real problem; the Raiders are a great team on paper. On the field, they’re a disaster, professional football’s version of the hurricane Katrina aftermath. The last time the Raiders had a good, long term draft was in 1988 when Tim Brown was taken #6, Terry McDaniel was chosen #9 and Dokie Williams was dealt to the 49ers for the #25 pick which was used on Scott Davis. In the eighteen drafts to follow, the most successful first-round pick was a perpetually controversial one, Sebastian Janikowski who has become the Raiders all-time leading scorer over his inconsistent seven-year career. Which begs the question, who’s evaluating the prospective talent for out beloved Silver and Black?

Randy Moss is an outstanding example of this. He comes to Oakland with a troublemaker tag and he excuses his ineffective play by claiming he would do better if he were happy? Yet when he was brought in, the Raider claimed that they had done their homework on Moss and he was a good teammate. What homework was this? Well it was asking the people in Minnesota who had grown tired of his act. Which brings up another question, has anyone in the Raiders organization ever bought a used car? You know, where the previous owner didn’t disclose all the details so they could get the most for it or merely wanted to get rid of it? Since I don’t know exactly what person or department is responsible for bringing in the new talent I cannot point the finger of blame in any one direction for certain. But I can say this. In 2006 no one of any real merit was brought in to improve an offensive team that had gone 4-12 the year before. Yes I spoke up for Aaron Brooks, saying he was the best we could get at the moment and I think he was, as there was no way San Diego would chance dealing Drew Brees to a division rival and Daunte Culpepper, well he does need Randy Moss as his season in Miami proves. But he was injured and playing behind our offensive line, he would have been hurt much worse!

There was a lot of false hope for our offensive line in 2006, but the fact of the matter is nothing was done to improve it other than bringing in two hall of fame offensive linemen to school them. When John Madden was inducted into the hall of fame in August, he spoke of the nine hall of fame players he coached and their abilities being responsible for his success. But other than Moss, who may be able to resurrect his career with a new attitude, there are no potential hall of famer’s on the Oakland Raiders offensive unit. In the entertainment field, where I earn my living, the soundmen have a saying “you can’t polish a turd.” It’s not a very nice saying but it’s unfortunately true. Unless there are quality players brought in to fortify the offensive line the Raiders will do the inconceivable, they will worsen.

Andrew Walter is a good prospect, however he’s not proven and there are a couple of good quarterbacks that may be taken with that first overall pick. And I don’t think I’ll object to it. Brooks is winless as a Raider and to me signifies that he should suffer the same fate as his coach. So why not show Brooks the door and let a draft pick fight it out with Walter to be our starter in 2007?

Also, Aside from our disgruntled receiving duo, we have zero depth at receiver. I know people love Doug Gabriel because he caught a few long passes against rookies in some pre season games a couple of years ago. But he was traded to a playoff team before the season started, was cut and found his way back to Oakland. Thankfully, Ronald Curry was able to stay healthy for a full season. It was his first full season since being drafted in 2002. And let us not forget to address the tight end position. Courtney Anderson couldn’t make 30 teams in the National Football League and Randall Williams fumbling twice on consecutive plays would have cost him his job with most squads.

Now is the time to right this sunken ship. The defense is excellent and the talent is under contract and should improve after a solid year together. All they have to do is stay healthy. Had the offense been able to do anything in 2006, no one would be talking about the Bears or Ravens units. In fact, they may have drawn comparison’s to the ‘85 Bears or the 2000 Ravens defense’s. Our kicking tandem is one of the game’s best. All we need to do now construct an offensive unit that can keep them off the field as much as possible.

When I wrote my last column I felt that there were some winnable games on the Raiders horizon…

I still feel justified in saying as much. The Chargers are tough defensively, so are the Ravens. Not to mention much improved with the addition of Steve McNair from Tennessee calling signals. However the Browns and 49ers are still horrid. And even worse, the Oakland Raiders actually managed to lead at halftime during those games before their second half implosions.

There's an old saying, "There are lies, damn lies and statistics."

While being outscored 83-28 in the second half this season is a clear indication that a team isn't playing for a full 60 minutes, it doesn't tell the story of the 2006 Oakland Raiders one bit.

I'm proud of our defense. They are the sole reason we've won two games this season and sit at 2-6 at the midway point, on pace for another 4-12 disaster. Their play against Arizona and Pittsburgh was outstanding and the reason the Raiders have won these games.

But like the title of this article says the Oakland Raiders offense is their worst ever. That's right, in 47 years of history the offense we've been forced to stomach in the Raider Nation in 2006 is the worst Raiders offense ever. Even back in 1962 when we lost our first 13 games, more times than not our offense could keep us in a game. In week 13 against the Oilers, Clem Daniels tore off 187 rushing yards.

But that was a different time. Back then, no one in Oakland was either willing to spend the money necessary to bring in top quality football players or didn't have the skills to recruit them. Today, there's an even playing field. No one team is allowed to spend more than the other and players are only drafted by one team. So it's on the teams to go out, find and develop the best available talent and…oh yeah maybe win a football game now and then.

But from what I've seen tonight and through out this season from the Raiders they'll be lucky to achieve that 4-12 mark their on pace for. Sorry guys, I won't B.S. you here. If you're kind enough to read my columns either semi regularly when I write them or stumbled across this by accident I think I owe you the truth.

And the truth is this. The Oakland Raiders are as bad as they are, quite simply, because the players do not execute on the offensive side of the ball, period!

I know many were skeptical about Art Shell being rehired as head coach. Tom Walsh's appointment to the offensive coordinator position sparked the imagination of virtually no one. The whole Mayor/Bed and Breakfast thing isn't what I would look for on a resume` if I were a football administrator looking to hire an offensive coordinator. But lets face facts, while his offenses may be archaic, it is the least of the problems facing the Raiders at this point.

First the offensive line can't seem to block anybody. Some call it sieve like. Yet, if I were to write a book on the Raiders front line I would borrow from Charles Dickens and name it "A Tale of Five Turnstiles." Because that's exactly what we have out there five turnstiles! All the opposing defenses have to do and are doing with alarming proficiency is punch their ticket and hit the ball carrier! Be it quarterback Andrew Walter or running back's Lamont Jordan or Justin Fargas.

Jordan's mental goof against San Francisco cost us what should have been at least our second win of the season. But as we know it was another symptom from which their seems to be no cure. Fargas, like Walter seems to have an ability to make something from nothing. I'm not one of those guys who think that Walter is a bust, as a matter of fact I'll go on record right now and say that the coaches made a mistake by starting Aaron Brooks over Walter at the beginning of the season. So this valued commodity shared by Walter and Fargas in my mind has earned them both the right to start for the Oakland Raiders not only this coming Sunday against the Broncos but every Sunday from here on out.

Walter's numbers are atrocious. He's taken more sacks than anybody this season and is taking one hell of a beating. But the struggles of the offensive line are in no way his fault. Nor is it his fault that a great deal of his incompletions find their way to the turf after a quick journey through his receivers hands.

The only way he could deliver these passes any better is if he were to drop back, find an open receiver and then (and keep in mind that Andrew Walter is not a great scrambling quarterback) run over to said open receiver and hand him the ball!

Yes he's young and yes he has and will continue to make mistakes, but they have got to get him some help and in the past off-season, the Raiders organization went out and got him virtually nothing to help short-term. And maybe not long-term either! The defense is much improved and I'm certain that the absence of Mr. Woodson is a contributing factor. He's injured now in Green Bay and kids they have out there now are eager and making plays, something we hadn't seen from Chuck in Oakland for quite some time. And Kerry Collins went to the Titans after McNair left and displayed his worthlessness in a helmet with a flaming thumbtack on it.

Until the Raiders go out and get players who can contribute immediately of offense, especially on the line, either through the draft, free agency or via trade in the off-season which will come again for the Raiders as soon as it will for anybody in the National Football League, we can expect more of what we saw tonight and this season where our anemic and sputtering offense has managed to score a touchdown in just three of its eight games thus far.

No matter who calls the plays from the booth.

As the Oakland Raiders prepare to enter training camp for the 2006 season, there's been something on my mind for awhile. It's probably been on yours as well and I can absolutly guarantee you it's been on the minds of our friedns at 1220 Harbor Bay Parkway in Alameda.

For to long, the Oakland Raiders organization has brought in the best available players both through the draft and free agency and have come up empty. Player after player have come and gone, many of them claiming to have realized adream by signing that dotted line and becoming Oakland Raiders. Yet none of them have brought home that coveted Lombardi Trophy that many Raiders fans think they deserve.
I want to take you back to the 1976 season, opening week to be precise. Our beloved Raiders were at home in The Coliseum facing the twi time defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers. The same Steelers team that had dashed Oakland's hopes of a title run in consecutive years en route to their own championship glory. This opening week victory speaks as much to the Raiders character in 1976 as the 32-14 mauling of the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl XI, the 24-7 whitewashing of the hated Steelers in the conference championship game and the hard fought 24-21 victory over New England at The Coliseum to avenge the lone blemish on Oakland's 13-1 regular season record combined.

Whilr it's important to note that the Raiders were trailing 28-14 with 5:35 remaining in the contest and were afflicted with injuries that would have crippled any other squad. But a courageous Oakland team battled back first with a 10-yard Ken Stabler to Dave Casper score to cut the deficit in half. After Forcing a punt which was blocked by special teams captain Warren Bankson on the four and recovered by linebacker Charlie Phillips on the enemy 28-yard line. A rifle shot from Ken Stabler to Cliff Branch on the Steelers 12 and after cutting across the field, the vetran speedster from Colorado was brough down on the two-yard line. A Stabler bootleg tied the contest with 59 seconds to go.

Many people would think that with these heroics that the Raiders would be content to bury Pittsburgh and force an overtime period. Anyone with that mentality would not call themselves Oakland Raiders. Instead, linebacker Willie Hall a numer two overall selection of the New Orleans Saints in 1971 intercepted a Terry Bradshaw pass on the Steelers 11. Rookie place kicker Fred Steinfort was sent on and with a 21-yard kick sent the Super Bowl champions home a 31-28 loser.

I've talked a lot about the Pride & Poise heroics of the teams past. And the whirlwind comeback the Oakland Raiders exhibited that day against the Steelers on 1976's opening week definatly deserves to be remembered as one of the single greatest moments in Raiders history. But to me the moment that not only defines that game but the 1976 season (with a more than honorable mention to the 35-20beat down administered to the Cincinnati Bengals when the media suggested the Raiders throw thegame to ease their path through the playoffs) was when little George Atkinson came up behind an unsuspecting Lynn Swann and knocked the republican candidate for the governorship of Pennslyvania unconcious with a forearm shiver to the head!

Was it a dirty play?

You bet.

Did it deserve a 15-yard personal foul penalty?

Absolutley!

Now I can't recall if Atkinson was suspended or was fined by the league for this act of neccessary roughness or not. But make no mistake, this was neccessary! Call it whatever you want. . This act had Pittsburgh coach Chuck Noll accusing the Raiders of "brutality in the league" and to Atkinson himself of "being a part of a criminal element." Aside from the defamation of charater suit filed by Atkinson against Noll where Raiders players took the witness stand to testify that they were in fact "to rough for the Steelers" which is beyond comical when you think about it. The Raiders of 1976 sent a message with that one blow to the head. And the message was clear, get out of our way or be knocked out of it, our time is now.

The Raider rolled to a 13-1 record that year and Chuch Noll, aguably the greatest head coach in NFL history and his hall of fame reciever Lynn Swann will forever be regarded as crybabies in Oakland after their post game snivelry that rivaled Nancy Kerrigan post assualt.

I am encouraged with the skelatal reports coming out of the Raiders mini camps this year. Stuart Schweigart's claim that he can count the mental errors he and his defensive cohorts have commited on one hand is a great start and the shuffling of the offensive line that has seen Robert Gallery moved from right to left tackle, Barry Sims moving to guard, rookie mauler Paul McQuistan (who has recieved more off-season press coverage than Gene Upshaw did as a rookie in 1967) and Langston Walker moving back to right tackle, the position he played in college and was drafted for in the second round in the 2002 draft inspires confidence. Duane Starks and Tyrone Poole's acquisition along with the selection of Michael Huff with the #7 pick may finally remedy the ailing secondary which has been afflicted with bust after bust and an entire draft focusing on what the Raiders need for what they want to accomplish and the ouster of Kerry Collins are the beginning of what should be a resurgance for the Oakland football franchise.

By the Raiders standards, this has been a quiet off-season. While marquee names can help nay roster, the time is now for the players we already have to go out and make a statement on the field. Like Clint Eastwood said in The Outlaw Josey Wales, "it's time to get plum mad dog mean." Does this mean that someone should should choose the path George Atkinson took? Not Neccesarily. However I cannot remember the last time I saw a defensive back jump a route to make an interception. Maybe it was Rod Woodson in Denver in 2002 jumping in front of a Brian Griese pass and returning it 98 yards for a touchdown, ending a four-game losing slide and propelling the Raiders into the Playoffs and the Super Bowl. The result of their current passiveness however was a league record low of just five interceptions in 2005. And other than Derrick Burgess dropping enemy quarterbacks a record 16 times last season, opposing teams have had no reason to fear us. After going 13-35 over the last three seasons amd winning just one divisional game over the last two years when Ronald Curry made a miraculous one-handed catch with a pass Kerry Colling intended for the seventh row. The time is now for these new Raiders to send their message.

"Get out of our way, we've got nothing left to lose."

The (former) Saints Advocate

The inactivity from the Raiders this off-season has had me wondering, what, if anything, are our friends doing at 1220 Harbor Bay Parkway in Alameda? The answer until yesterday seemed, at least outwardly, was very little.

Sure they’ve brought in Tyrone Poole whose statistical production is comparable to Charles Woodson’s, yet his pro career began three years before Chuck’s so the actual help he will give the Oakland football franchise may aspire to be minimal. And there are the reports (and I say reports because the Raiders have made no announcement of this) of signing Henri Crockett, Zach’s brother and a linebacker we desperately need. Yet we needed him three years ago! However Crockett’s skills have diminished after an eight-year, no pro bowl career. Let us not forget the look-see the Raiders gave to Toniu Fonoti. An unrestricted free agent guard whose weight balloons up to 400lbs. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who signed Fonoti after the Raiders declined to offer him a contract are his third team since coming out of Nebraska in the second round of the 2002 draft. Heading to his third NFL team in his fifth year for such a highly touted prospect, is a clear indication that this kid is an NFL bust. And with his weight shooting towards a quarter ton, I have one suggestion for our old friend Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay, for the love of god, keep your hands and feet away from his mouth! I would really hate for my next column to be about ground Chucky!

Unless there is a Jim Plunkett leap to prominence, Aaron Brooks is undoubtedly a transitional quarterback. His two year deal, reported to be worth $8 million with incentives is, financially speaking, what Rich Gannon got to come aboard from Kansas City in 1999. Back then I wasn’t sold on Gannon, as he had been unable to unseat anybody anywhere. The one thing that encouraged me was that he was a seven-figure savings over Jeff George. The saving over what Kerry Collins will be again seven figures, however it will be seven figures seven fold when you consider the $2.6million roster bonus he won’t be getting. This will allow us to free some precious funds under the cap and enable us to go after some top quality players, most notably Vince Young from the national champion Texas Longhorns. And top 10 picks, especially quarterbacks, don’t come cheap anymore and they haven’t in my lifetime (I’ll be 35 on August 26th and I expect cards containing $5 bills from all of you).

The signing of Brooks announces our intentions of selecting Young with the #7 pick. I think very highly of him after taking a national championship from a USC squad that was supposed to be invincible (no pun intended). And Brooks to me is the perfect candidate to groom him. Sure there were a couple of marquee quarterbacks to move this off-season. There’s Daunte Culpepper going to Miami for a second round pick. While I know many residents of the Raider Nation had visions of Culpepper connecting with Randy Moss for spectacular touchdowns the way they did in Minnesota, I think there’s something we need to consider. Daunte Culpepper’s knee is badly damaged and from the last report I’ve heard is that he will be lost for the first month of the 2006 season. After that there’s no guarantee that he will be able to scramble effectively again. We just endured 21 losses in 28 starts with a statue under center. Is this the kind of quarterback the Raiders want to market to an angry fan base now that they have to sell their own tickets for the first time in a decade? I can hear the commercial jingle now, it’s to the tune of here comes Santa Claus.

Here comes Daunte
Here comes Daunte
Right down Coliseum Way

He’ll gimp out on the field
And a football he’ll wield
Hopefully our receivers’ way!

Yep, sounds like a tough sell to me.

I’ve always though well of Culpepper. I’ve defended him for his alleged involvement in that whole boat thing because I realize one thing, he’s a football player not an alter boy. As far as I’m concerned these players can do whatever they want in their off time as long as it doesn’t hurt anybody. But the cold facts here is we have no idea of whether He’ll ever be able to perform effectively with his bum wheel, same for Drew Brees. This is a quarterback I prayed to get a hold of when San Diego gave up on him and drafted Eli Manning and traded him to New York for Philip Rivers. Yet now he’s recovering from a torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. Ok, not that it matters because Brees is a Saint now but I’ve got the ad for selling him to the Raider Nation. It starts with Al Davis in an old NFL Films interview, saying “I want the ability to strike from anywhere on the field.” Somehow were going to have to dub him in saying “by handing off” and then Linda Ronstadt sings

He can’t throw
He can’t throw
He can’t throw
Baby he can’t throw!

I don’t think that would inspire the Raiders fan base enough either. Even though the Oakland Raiders have actually shown at least me anyways that they have heard of customer service (thanks Mark, or was it Mike? Anyways, YOU ROCK!) and have lowered the prices on many tickets to make it more affordable to Oakland’s blue collar fan base.

Now I know the advances in sports medicine have been tremendous over the past several years and player are recovering quicker and playing longer. But this is no guarantee that they will be fully recovered and since football is a violent sport they potentially could be re-injured. Despite his disastrous 3-10 outing in 2005, let us remember that Brooks started 13 road games as Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans and made the Super Dome unsuitable to play in. And with the possible exception of Redskins quarterback Patrick Ramsey who was traded to the Jets a couple of weeks ago, Brooks seems to be our safest and best choice at this time to guide our offense with the wounds that Culpepper and Brees are currently rehabilitating and mentor a highly talented rookie quarterback that should help to bring the legacy of football domination to Oakland.

Krunch is also known as Jim McCullough who is preparing to release his first book Pride & Poise: The Oakland Raiders of the American Football League soon.

While it smells of desperation, there may be a bit of genius behind the re-hiring of coach Art Shell. For too long many of today's Raiders have spoken about "getting back to the mystique." However for those of us who are either old or educated enough to understand that intangible, we shudder to think that today's brood has even the slightest concept of what they are speaking.

Since your visiting a site such as this, I've got you pegged as being one of two types of person. Either you grew up with the teams of the Raiders three Super Bowl glory days or you've been brought up to speed in regards to the tradition of domination the Oakland Raiders once inflicted upon the helpless victims who comprised the rest of the National Football League.

Art Shell, since his assumption of the starting left tackle role in the Raiders starting line up, did nothing but dominate. He earned All-Pro status eight times by destroying whoever had the misfortune of lining up against him. Jim Marshall, Minnesota's Hall of Fame defensive end was held without a tackle in Super Bowl XI. And the blocks he threw at his opposition were usually of the pancake variety that made people wonder if he had broken his opponents backs!

At age 59, Shell has returned to coach the Raiders a second time. And through everything he's done for the Silver and Black, He's never been needed more than now. After netting just 13 wins over the past three seasons, the Raiders are in shambles. Both the offensive and defensive lines are consistently dominated by their opposition, the outside line-backing posts are being manned by underachieving defensive ends and the quarterback makes me long for Jay Schroeder.

The song has remained the same since Shell's first tenure on the Raiders sidelines. The best available free agents are brought in year after year as will some exciting new rookies in April's draft. Yet since his going 56-41 in his first nearly six full seasons patrolling the Raiders sidelines, Oakland's Silver and Black club has had five head coaches, posted three winning seasons and only one, Jon Gruden, has had a winning record.

This I promise you, is about to change. I'll make no guarantees of a Super Bowl in the foreseeable future. Nor will I make a promise of a winning campaign in 2006. My vow to you is that soon you will see an authentic Oakland Raiders team and for many of you this will be a first. I'm not ashamed to admit that this has brought tears of joy to my eyes. I'm as happy now as Jim Otto, Wayne Hawkins and Tom Flores were when they finally beat the San Diego Chargers for the first time after failing 10 consecutive times going back to their first pre-season.

I really believe this is something truly special. Raider fans, especially the new ones have been beaten nearly to death with stories of the Heidi Game, the Sea of Hands and the Holy Roller. And an old timer like me who can't get enough of these old re-runs has grown weary of buying into a tradition year after year with my ticket and merchandise monies that doesn't seem to be either acknowledged or understood by those who are supposed to carry it on.

As those of you who know me have probably seen me in full Krunch gear at a Vella's Locker Room store when there is an autograph signing. If you don't attend perhaps you've seen me in their commercial. My experiences there have allowed me a particular insight. During a conversation one sunny Saturday afternoon with linebacker Grant Irons, who was there signing autographs with his father, Raider legend Gerald Irons, I asked him if he knew what it really meant to be a Raider. He, very politely might I add, looked at me like I was some kind of A-hole from outer space.

I would explain to him that the Raiders teams his dad played for never had an ounce of quit in them combined. They never let up, ever! How else can one explain those great finishes in the aforementioned games? Who in their right minds would have thought of rolling the football forward on the final play to win a game? Who else could go into Miami and dominate a team on Monday Night Football that hadn't lost at home in 31 consecutive games? A Raider can and may soon again.

If you don't think that tough, old time Raider football can win in today's NFL, you need to look no further than the world champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Here's a club that just overcame three road playoff games (the exact number that the Raiders have won in 46 years of history) as the lowest seed in the American Conference and silenced the nearly unbeatable Indianapolis Colts, the Denver Broncos and the Cincinnati Bengals who were expected to smash their tormentors in front of the world on wildcard weekend.

So let us not assume for a single moment that this going around smacking the other guy in the mouth thing is overrated. The Pittsburgh Steelers just won a world championship for the first time in 26 years by abusing whoever stood in their way. While in Oakland the pieces are not quite in place as they are in Pittsburgh, there is no reason to assume the Raiders couldn't win with this same brand of nastiness currently on display in the Steel City both now and in the long run.

It is after all the Raider way. Pittsburgh has merely proven that despite all the progress and evolution that the game may go through, it's still football. As Art Shell has pointed out that the players don't change. They are still required to block and tackle. And if they take the fight to their opponents consistently as the Raiders moniker suggests. They will be back on top again, to stay, by the same vicious tenacity that put them there in the first place.

For the first time in a long time I can say the greatness of the Raiders is in their future and no one is more excited about that than me. Welcome home coach Shell.

I've got to tell you, the uncertainty is killing me. I've been a Raiders fan for better than thirty years and at no time has the search for a new coach (which Al Davis is becoming rather adept at) weighed so heavily on me.

Since Al Davis came to town from San Diego in January 1963, there has almost always been an able assistant to take the wheel of the Raiders ship and direct it to the pinnacle of the American and National Football League's. Now in early February 2006, the team appears as rudderless as they were when Norv Turner appeared lost on their sidelines running his vanilla offense.

John Rauch, a former All-American quarterback at Georgia was the creator of Army's lonesome end system and with the right component under center (quarterback Daryle Lamonica) the offense accelerated averaging 33.4 points per game in 1967 and 32.3 in 1968.

After a bout with ego got the better of Rauch, Davis was very laissez-faire in his search for a new coach, even missing out on the viable opportunity to snatch Chuck Noll off the Baltimore Colts staff. Davis and Noll coached together in the Chargers organization under Sid Gillman. But Davis didn't break a sweat. Instead he appointed his linebackers coach who closely matched Rauch's .760 winning percentage with a record of 103 wins, 32 losses and 7 ties. During John Madden's decade long tenure, the Raiders conquered seven division championships, emerged in as many conference championship games and won Super Bowl XI convincingly 32-14 over the Minnesota Vikings. This astounding prosperity took a heavy toll on Madden. He retired from coaching after the 1978 season because the stress of the game gave Madden (according to his doctors) the body of a 70-year old.

Enter Tom Flores. The original Raiders quarterback had been quietly been tutoring the Raiders receivers, including Hall of Fame pass catchers Fred Biletnikoff and Dave Casper. His calm demeanor stood in sharp contrast to Maddens, but after nine seasons the game had worn on Flores as well.

Davis, or so he thought, had run out of able assistants. Breaking with his custom of appointing from within, Davis went out and plucked 35-year old Mike Shanahan from the Denver Broncos staff. Shanahan was destined to become a great head coach in the National Football League, but his ascension was premature. His record posted a paltry eight wins and twelve losses and after his twentieth game he was discharged after a player revolt.

Then, a Raider came.

Art Shell, recently inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton Ohio accepted Shanahan's role and instantly returned the Raiders mystique. The pride in the organization and the poise to remain focused on the tasks at hand no matter what time remained or the scoreboard read again became the mantra of the Raiders. With their Pride & Poise they became contenders once more.

It's been insinuated in recent years that Al Davis has lost his skill. That certain intangible that enabled him to make bold moves and take chances on castoff players and earn unparalleled success. If he has lost it, it began to slip away from him in 1994 when he fired Art Shell. Following Shell was Mike White, an offensive innovator and Shell assistant who inherited a team that couldn't run without quarterback Jeff Hostetler. When Hostetler went down in 1995's eleventh game, the Raiders lost their last six and finished 8-8. Even with his quarterback healthy and productive, White was handicapped by a killer instinct that couldn't intimidate a girl-scout troop. His successor Joe Bugel was even worse. Mercifully, Bugel was sacked after a 4-12 season. In his defense he probably would have done a lot better had he had a quarterback, that say, wasn't Jeff George.

The $5 million annual salary Jeff George was paid to quarterback could have been spent elsewhere upgrading their entire roster. A point rookie head coach Jon Gruden spotlighted in 1998 after George tore his groin muscle against the Arizona Cardinals and the Raiders were forced to utilize Don Hollas who had been out of football for two years. The Raiders got off to a 7-3 start but injuries slowed the club who would stumble across the finish line with an 8-8 record. George boasted on the radio that season that he wouldn't return to quarterback the Raiders in 1998 even though his rehabilitation was going well. George showed well in relief of third string passer Wade Wilson against Kansas City, but by the time 1999 rolled around George found himself a Minnesota Viking when the Raiders dropped him in favor of Rich Gannon.

Together Gannon and the Raiders flew high. Following an 8-8 encore in 1999, the Raiders attained their first division championship in a decade, posting a 12-4 record while sidelining enemy quarterbacks at a terrifying rate. Gruden, agreed to a three-year contract with a club option for two more. Instead of compensating the man who had reversed the fortunes of their franchise and captured the imaginations of their fan base, when the initial three years expired, the Raiders retained Gruden on the cheap. By the end of his fourth season in Oakland, Gruden was personally silent. His agent Bob Lamonte on the other hand, had plenty to say. Claiming his client wanted out of Oakland, Lamonte and Gruden forced a trade to Tampa while Grudens Raiders, the first to clinch a division title in 2001 lost four of their last five games, forcing the Raiders into a home wildcard game before being sent onto the road, where the Raiders have succeeded just three times in their post-season history.

Outside of the $8 million they received as compensation for Gruden, the Raiders have received little benefit from the four high round draft picks obtained to complete the swap. After a promising start, Philip Buchanan played as if he were filming Jackass The Movie. Langston Walker, slow to develop into the top flight offensive lineman the Raiders desperately need, has exhibited some worth blocking field goal attempts as the 360lbs carried on his 68 frame seems to have its own gravitational pull. Tyler Brayton is being tragically misused while Sam Williams, a talented third round pick that came from a deal involving Tampas second round choice in 2003 cant seem to stay healthy for more than a few minutes.

Though Al Davis has been accused of meddling with his coaches, impairing their ability to run the team. Over the years none have come forward with any one specific thing that he does to hinder them. And only Jim Otto has shed any light on this, describing Davis as an enthusiastic owner who happens to know more than a bit about the game. Any plays that Davis wants called usually are before word can be sent to an assistant and more times than not, they work.

There are two contenders who have interviewed in Oakland who are yet to find other employment. James Lofton a Hall of Fame receiver who was reported to be coming to Oakland in 1981 in exchange for Dan Pastorini, before actually joining the Raiders in Los Angeles in 1987. The other is Raiders current quarterbacks coach Jeff Shoop, who in 2001 aided a Chicago Bears team to a 13-3 record while their offense ranked eleventh in the league. However no one in the Raiders organization will either verify or deny the meeting transpired. Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, who will not comment on a possible move into the Oakland position has expressed flattery that his name is included in the short list of prospective candidates. Gil Haskell, Whisenhunt's opposite in Seattle, has expressed an interest in becoming the head-man in Oakland and has helped develop Shaun Alexander into a MVP and Matt Hasselbeck into a top flight NFL quarterback. Though the team reportedly has made no contact with him at the present time and each of the latter two will be unavailable until after the Super Bowl is decided Sunday night.

Whoever accepts the assignment of mentoring the Oakland Raiders for 2006 and perhaps beyond, will have the shortest off-season as they start to gauge their new talent and scout the best rough diamonds emerging from the college ranks. Not to mention installing the new systems which they will certainly bring with them and unquestionably, capturing the hearts and minds of the Raider Nation, a fan base that is growing tired of an unwatchable product that has no valid reason for being as bad as it's been.

Since collapsing 48-21 in Super Bowl XXXVII, the biggest game in the past 22 seasons for Oakland's Silver and Black football franchise, the Raiders have posted just 13 wins compared to 35 losses.

To rebound and attempt to sit atop the football world, the Raiders have worked their modus operandi into overdrive by bringing in free agents such as Lamont Jordan and Derrick Burgess, deemed to be the best available in their key positions and receiver Randy Moss, historically one of the most gifted in his role, the Raiders failures are inexcusable

The memories of Daryle Lamonica throwing deep to Hall of Fame flanker Fred Biletnikoff and split end Warren Wells are everlasting in Oakland. This tradition of aerial mastery was continued by Kenny “The Snake” Stabler, with his passes being fielded by Biletnikoff, Hall of Fame tight end Dave Casper and the speedster Cliff Branch. Yet hopes of an old time Raider revival were rested on the missile arm of Kerry Collins, with targets such as Moss, Jerry Porter and Doug Gabriel to procure his throws. Collins, with the physical attributes expressly desired by Raiders owner Al Davis, is just 7-22 in just less than two full seasons as Oakland's starting quarterback, often missing open receivers badly, serving opposing defenses well in killing Oakland's offensive game plan. After 11 seasons in the NFL, he's managed just three winning seasons. The last of which came in 2002 when he lead the New York Giants to a 10-6 record.

While Collins has been consistently bad in Oakland, he's not to rebuke completely for their troubles. The Raiders offensive line is offensive. While Robert Gallery is expected be the second coming of Hall of Fame tackle Art Shell and Jake Grove, while not indestructible, has the same mean spirited on field persistence that made Jim Otto a hall of famer. While Lamont Jordan managed 1,025 yards on the ground this season in 14 contests, the depth at the guard position seems anorexic and the left tackle position is an area of concern; As established starter Barry Sims has been regularly beaten over the last 3 ½ seasons on the outside by any defensive end who possesses the slightest amount of speed, sending him barreling uncontested toward Collins, whose immobility would suggest that he, post football, would relish a successful career as a cigar store Indian.

Derrick Burgess’ team record 16 sacks were just one shy of the 17 the Raiders defensive unit posted in 2004. Still the Oakland defense under the recently retained defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is in shambles. Three defensive ends, Tyler Brayton, Grant Irons and DeLawrence Grant are being deployed at linebacker and none are excelling at the position. Brayton should be returned too defensive end opposite Burgess. There these two could wreak havoc, potentially instilling the terror in opposing passers not inflicted by a Raiders team since the days of Howie Long and Greg Townsend. Irons possesses good speed and could be a decent back up behind Brayton and Burgess, while Grant has exhibited tackling skills that at times, aspire to be poor. Grant once whipped (then) Jets receiver Santana Moss up field in instead of putting him on the ground when the receiver was unquestionably in his control. Moss recorded a touchdown on the play, thanks to the assistance from Grant and the rest of the Raiders defenders who had yielded; Reasonably assuming Moss would go down in Grant's grasp.

The spirited Danny Clark spearheads the Oakland line backing corps. While Clark brings some much needed intensity and passion to the position, he couldn’t make half of the squads in the National Football League and the other “linebackers” are Clark’s back up Tim Johnson, an outstanding special teams performer and rookie Kirk Morrison, a San Diego State prospect who could blossom into an All-Pro.

Franchise cornerback Charles Woodson, who went down in week six with a broken fibula that eventually landed him on injured reserve, collected $600,000 a game in 2005 with the $10.5 million deal he was presented as the Raiders franchise player. In his absence some young defensive backs got some valuable playing time, as rookies Fabian Washington and Stanford Routt were called in to bear the load in Woodson's absence. Yet Woodson himself hasn't hauled it much himself since his rookie season, as he's pulled in just 17 interceptions in an eight-year career (11 in the past seven). One would be hard pressed to believe he's worth the $10.5 million he made in 2005 or the $12.6 million he's due in 2006 if the Raiders slap the franchise tag on him for the third consecutive year.

Woodson is a prime example of the of the Raiders current ineptitude. Stating on their website in March “The actions of agent Carl Poston and Charles Woodson tell us that they must have reached a long term deal with a team and we expect a trade very soon.” In truth, Woodson accepted a king’s ransom to play in Oakland in 2005. This declaration of expectation however, was an affirmation that the Oakland Raiders did not know what's going on with their football team, signaling that 2005 would be worse than 2004.

After the January 2 dismissal of Norv Turner, who managed to win just 9 of the 32 games he coached over the past two seasons, Raider boss Al Davis has interviewed Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Al Saunders, whose prior head coaching experience came in San Diego midway through the 1986 campaign when Don Coryell was released after a 1-7 start. He’s since accepted an offensive coordinator position with the Washington Redskins for more money than he could have hoped to make as the Raiders headman. Mike Martz, who led the St. Louis Rams to the Super Bowl following the 2001 season interviewed this past week. Martz drew criticism in St. Louis for taking chances, a badly needed element in Oakland. However he missed most of the last season with a bacterial infection near his heart. This medical condition caused Al Davis to claim initially that Martz wouldn’t be a candidate for the Raiders vacancy and would be a major concern should he become the Oakland Raiders fifteenth head coach.

The Raiders have recycled coaches twice in their history and the freshly fired Turner was the most successful. Other speculative rehashes include former New York Giants head coach Jim Fassel who posted a record of 57-53-1. His 2000 team made an appearance in Super Bowl XXXV with Kerry Collins under center. Davis is said to be entertaining the thought of recalling Art Shell, the coach he sacked following a 9-7 season in 1994 after the coach had fallen out of favor with quarterback Jeff Hostetler. Shell's record as a head coach is a stellar 54-38. He was named NFL Coach of the Year in 1990.

Promoting assistants to the helm of the Raiders pirate ship has proven to be the most successful route in finding a head coach. John Madden, a former offensive lineman was quietly mentoring the Raiders linebackers who during his term became the most fearsome in professional football before his ascension to the head coaching position. Madden, in 10 seasons, won a world championship and posted the best winning percentage among coaches with 100 victories. He remains the quickest to achieve that mark. His successor Tom Flores, the Raiders former quarterback and receiver’s coach brought home two more championships in his nine years as the Raiders head man. Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Jon Gruden was 39-25 in four seasons and won a duo of division championships before being traded for a quartet of high round draft picks and $8 million, before destroying his former squad in the Super Bowl following the 2002 campaign.

However this is not a foolproof formula for the Raiders. Joe Bugel's only year as the Raiders coach was a catastrophe with the strong-armed yet detached Jeff George calling signals. Bill Callahan had an outstanding first season leading Oakland to an appearance in the aforementioned Super Bowl, yet he was discharged after matching Bugel's 4-12 failure the following season when no less than 11 of his players found their way onto the injured reserve list, including MVP quarterback Rich Gannon and standby passer Marques Tuiasosopo in successive weeks.

The snails pace the Al Davis is conducting his current coaching search has cost his squad another potential candidate in Buccaneers defensive line coach Rod Marinelli who has been named head coach of the Detroit Lions since his day in Oakland. Chargers receivers coach and Hall of Fame receiver James Lofton, who admitted that the low point of his playing career was his time as a Los Angeles Raider has also been in town for an interview.

Former Colorado coach Gary Barnett is rumored to be a candidate. As was Fresno State head coach Pat Hill who in nine seasons with the Bulldogs, is 72-42 while leading them to seven consecutive bowl game appearances. Hill has decided to stay put as has Louisville coach Rick Patrino. You can bet we won’t see a replacement named until after the Super Bowl when the Raiders are expected to interview Steelers offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt. However the Super Bowl is February 5, making Whisenhunt’s potential interview later in the year than John Madden’s February 1, 1969 hiring as Al Davis waited two weeks to name his new coach as he handled the college draft himself after the departure of coach John Rauch.

Regardless which direction the Raiders go in installing a new coaching staff, these new men will be charged with cleaning up a catastrophe area which has only gotten worse over the past three years. Combine that with the AFC West being as tough as ever with the Broncos posting a 13-3 record this season and the Chiefs and Chargers fielding solid teams with winning records. Whoever becomes the fifteenth man to be designated head football coach of the Oakland Raiders, he will have a tough road to travel, one that's treacherous and now more than ever, uphill.