Al davis oakland raiders’s coach week game

Jason Taylor won’t be Dancing with the Stars or sacking for the
Redskins this week. The Pro Bowl defensive end is out after having
emergency…

WASHINGTON — Jason Taylor won’t be Dancing with the Stars or
sacking for the Redskins this week.

The Pro Bowl defensive end is out after having emergency surgery
Monday to drain a pocket of blood from his left calf, leaving
Washington to shuffle its defensive line for Sunday’s game against the
unbeaten Dallas Cowboys.

Taylor, who was inadvertently kicked in Washington’s 24-17 victory
over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday, underwent a 20-minute procedure
at a Northern Virginia hospital, coach Jim Zorn said, and was released
in the afternoon.

“They went in and cut open that portion where the blood was pooling
and released that pressure. As soon as it released, the muscle went
back down to normal,” Zorn said. “They closed it back up, and he’s
going to be fine. Our problem is he’s going to be out for this Dallas
game, for sure. I can’t tell you beyond that.”

Taylor, who deflected three of quarterback Kurt Warner’s passes at the
line of scrimmage against Arizona, had his calf wrapped and played the
rest of the game after being kicked. “Later on that night it started
getting more sore,” Zorn said. “He started feeling a little bit [of
numbness] in his ankle.”

Special-teams standout Khary Campbell sat out the 29-24 victory over
the New Orleans Saints in Week 2 after he had blood drained from his
thigh with a needle. Taylor’s recovery could take more than a week
because “they had to open it up” with surgery, Zorn said.

Oakland Raiders coach Lane Kiffin went over the injury report and his
team’s 24-23 loss to Buffalo before the questions predictably turned
to his shaky job status amid more reports his firing as coach was
imminent.

“This seems to be a common question here every day,” Kiffin said
Monday. “I’m going to kind of put it this way: Until I am told by Al
Davis that I’m not the head coach here anymore, we’re going to keep
plugging away the same way we have been.”

Kiffin, who said he has not talked to Davis since before the team’s
season-opening game Sept. 8, is maintaining some gallows humor.

“How about when you go for a jog yesterday and you feel like it’s
paparazzi because the TV cameras are following you and they’re asking
you if you’re still the coach of the Raiders,” Kiffin said. “I felt
like Brad Pitt.”

New England suffered its worst home loss in 10 years Sunday —
38-13 to the winless Miami Dolphins — but Patriots cornerback
Ellis Hobbs was amazed to hear the home fans booing as the teams left
the field for halftime.

“It amazes me how people react,” Hobbs said. “You would think that
this organization hasn’t won as much as they have and been successful
in the years that they have, and it’s a testament to how spoiled they
are where expectations are that high that we’re not allowed a bad
game.”

Detroit Lions vice chairman Bill Ford — son of owner William
Clay Ford — essentially said he’d fire team president Matt
Millen if it was his call.

“I think the fans deserve better,” Bill Ford said Monday, “and if it
were in my authority, which it’s not, I’d make some significant
changes.”

Asked by a reporter if he believed Millen should leave the team, Ford
said, “Yes, I do.”

Not that it’s a novel idea. The Lions are 0-3 and have the NFL’s worst
record (31-84) since Millen took over in 2001.

• Green Bay Packers CB Al Harris underwent additional medical
tests Monday amid a report he might have ruptured his spleen in
Sunday’s loss to Dallas. The National Football Post, a Web site that
lists Harris’ agent as a contributor, reported that the injury could
end Harris’ season but that Harris was seeking a second opinion.

• New Orleans TE Jeremy Shockey is expected to be out 3 to 6
weeks because of a sports hernia. Shockey is scheduled to have surgery
this week.

• Cleveland Browns coach Romeo Crennel said backup QB Brady
Quinn will get increased first-team reps this week and, if necessary,
could replace struggling quarterback Derek Anderson on Sunday.

• Buffalo starting FB Darian Barnes will have tests on his
injured right foot, leaving his status uncertain. Bills coach Dick
Jauron didn’t discuss the nature of the injury.

• Pomona (Calif.) Superior Court officials say former NFL kicker
Tony Zendejas has pleaded not guilty to charges that he drugged a
woman at his Southern California sports bar and raped her.

Upshaw nfl upshaw’s in al davis oakland raiders

Click photo to enlarge
The Raiders and the rest of the NFL will honor the life and the legacy
of Gene Upshaw during ceremonies this week.

ROCK of tranquility surrounded by a sea of insanity. And he was there,
always there, to containing the insanity, galvanizing it, directing it
into constructive energy.

So it’s appropriate that two weeks after Gene Upshaw’s death, the NFL
will open its season tonight with his widow and their sons at center
stage, performing coin-flip before kickoff. Images of Upshaw will play
on video screens, and his initials will be on the field as the New
York Giants play host to Washington.

The same will occur in San Francisco on Sunday and Oakland on Monday,
as well as the other 13 games this weekend.

Understand, I didn’t always agree with Upshaw’s direction as executive
director of the NFL Players Association — especially as it
relates to the treatment of the ancient warriors. It seems an
injustice that the NFL, which requires more personal risk and
sacrifice than any other major team sport, has a benefits and
retirement package inferior to those of major league baseball and the
NBA.

Given the league’s popularity, the money it mints through tickets and
TV contracts, as well as the role of pre-1980s players in cultivating
the product, it’s a shame the league has so many retirees whose needs
go unmet.

said, Upshaw’s overall impact, as a Raider limping off the field after
games and as a member of the NFL fraternity, facing off with owners in
a boardroom, is without debate.

Upshaw was the most influential Raider ever to suit up. Jim Otto was
the original Oakland Raider, the heart of the offense for 15 years, at
Al Davis’ side for 34 more. John Madden crafted winning and
personality like no other Raiders coach. Tom Flores went from
quarterback to head coach, where he won two Super Bowls. The list of
distinguished Raiders runs dozens deep.

But only Upshaw, drafted on the first round in 1967 from tiny Texas
A&I (now Texas A&M-Kingsville), played in three Super Bowls, in three
different decades. If Shell was Oakland’s quiet conscience during the
glory years, Upshaw was its chief analyst and unifying force. Amid a
colorful band of talented misfits and unfits, he was the respected
leader. He talked a lot, nearly always as the voice of reason.

Those Raiders were richly talented because Davis and personnel ace Ron
Wolf found useful veterans and gifted youngsters in places others
dared to go. Small colleges. Predominantly black colleges. Track
teams. It worked for the better part of 20 years, into the mid-1980s.
There is a reason Upshaw has started more postseason games (24) than
any Raider. Ever.

Yet it was Upshaw’s seamless transition from impact player to impact
executive that illustrated the depth of what he had to offer.

His post-career ambitions were evident during his playing days. He
invested in real estate. He and his brother, Marvin, owned a
nightspot, Uppy’s, on Jack London Square. These days, they call it
diversifying. Gene also immersed himself into the business end of the
NFL, becoming a member of the bargaining committee for the NFLPA while
still in uniform.

That never changed, because Upshaw’s greatest professional legacy is
the bounty available to today’s NFL players. It was to come with time,
yes, but Upshaw managed to navigate through negotiations and walk away
respected, if not beloved.

He knew it was a tough job. He didn’t care to be loved by anyone
outside his family.

Retired football players leave this planet just about every week.
Their former teams often acknowledge the loss with a moment of
silence. Upshaw gets more than that.

Because he was a star who stayed involved and helped with growth.
Because his death came so suddenly and hit so hard and leaves such a
vacuum.

NFL uniforms this season will adorn a patch with the initials “GU.” If
a player wants to kiss it, I’ll understand.

Raiders coach kiffin in al davis oakland raiders

Raiders Coach Lane Kiffin talks to assistants in the booth during
their 24-23, last-second loss to the Bills at Buffalo on Sunday.

Raiders Coach Lane Kiffin talks to assistants in the booth during
their 24-23, last-second loss to the Bills at Buffalo on Sunday.

Oakland’s young coach is still reporting to work, but he and owner Al
Davis haven’t been speaking, and his firing appears inevitable.

Lane Kiffin might be standing on the plank, but the Oakland Raiders
have yet to ask him to walk it.That’s what the young coach said
Monday, at least, when asked about reports by Fox-

Sports.com and ESPN that he had already been informed by the Raiders
that he will be fired as coach.”I have not been told by Al Davis that
I’m not the head coach, so until he tells me directly we’re going to
keep plugging away,” Kiffin said at his regular news conference.
“There’s so many conversations that go on around here. . . . If we
believe everything that was said around here, we’d be in a lot of
trouble as a team.”The Raiders are coming off a 24-23 defeat at
Buffalo, where they nearly pulled off an upset before their defense
imploded down the stretch. The Bills scored 17 points in the final
eight minutes of the game to overcome 16-7 and 23-14 deficits.

Stay up to the minute about L.A.’s home teams and Olympians. We’ve
already done the search for you.

Britney Spears– pop princess or pop pariah — has listed her Beverly
Hills Post Office home for $7.9 million.

Kiffin run mcfadden in al davis just win baby

(09-03) 17:50 PDT — Raiders coach Lane Kiffin is done serving vanilla
ice cream in a playbook cone. You know how it tasted last year. Run
the ball between the tackles. Stick to safe passes with low-yield
results. Hold back the tight ends and running backs for pass
protection.

All this made for upright quarterbacks, fewer sacks and improved
turnover ratios, all in the face of limited personnel and talent on
offense. Still, safe and sure did nothing to prevent six losses by a
touchdown or less in Kiffin’s 4-12 NFL debut.

Those simpleton days are drawing to a close, Kiffin can sense. He has
the freakish quarterback with a dynamic throwing arm. His name is
JaMarcus Russell. He has a phenomenal running back with score-changing
speed. His name is Darren McFadden.

At last, Kiffin has some of the star attractions needed to call the
sort of exotic plays he utilized at USC, where he parlayed “Get the
ball to Reggie” into an NFL head coaching job at the baby-face age of
31.

Now is the time for Kiffin to work his X-and-O wonders. With Al Davis
impatient as ever to win, Kiffin’s second season on the job is
depending on how this offense performs.

“When you get exciting additions to your personnel, who can do special
things, it makes it that much more exciting to game plan,” Kiffin
said. “Because they do have the ability to make big-time plays. Those
types of guys don’t come around often, so it’s very exciting.”

Russell is a beast of a 23-year-old quarterback. At 6-foot-6, 269
pounds, he has the strength to blow off blitzing cornerbacks with a
dismissive shrug. He has the smooth footwork to throw on the run and
the pocket presence to stand defiantly in the face of pressure, and
with this offensive line, there is almost always pressure.

When he throws the ball, duck. The ball whistles out of his right
hand, soaring 45 yards downfield for go routes or zipping 6 yards to
the sideline on short outs. He has the touch to throw swing passes to
running backs without dislocating their fingers.

“Everybody knows he has a strong arm,” wide receiver Javon Walker
said. “His physical size makes him that much better than a lot of
quarterbacks in the league.”

Kiffin knows how to work with star quarterbacks. He was the passing-
game coordinator at USC, where Matt Leinart and Carson Palmer became
megastars. He knows the offense rises or freefalls on the back of its
quarterback.

That doesn’t mean Kiffin will ask Russell to set the NFL passing
record. That wouldn’t be fair. What Kiffin does expect his second-year
quarterback to do is come through when asked, even if that’s just 15
times in some games.

“This team is going to ride on JaMarcus,” Kiffin said. “There’s going
to be a lot of games where he’s going to have to make plays on
critical third downs with two-minute drives. That’s how quarterbacks
get their name in this league.

McFadden proved at the NFL combine he could run like lightning, maybe
faster. He showed in the exhibition season he can be a physical runner
inside the box who breaks tackles. That gives him the potential to
reintroduce the 50-yard touchdown to the Raiders’ offense.

Just wait until Kiffin turns McFadden loose. Effective Monday night,
all the world will see what McFadden will do when asked to turn a
counter run around the corner, or line up in the slot, or take a snap
at quarterback.

Kiffin said he “anticipates” the offense being more explosive with
McFadden being the two-punch behind starter Justin Fargas. Others
aren’t so reserved in their gushing.

“You give Darren a crack, he can take it the house,” fullback Justin
Griffith said. “We all know JaMarcus brings the big arm. I’m telling
you, we have a chance to be one of the best offenses that’s playing
football right now.”

That’s what the Raiders need to escape the land of 4-12. And, that’s
what Kiffin needs to get another year with the Raiders, if it’s
another year he wants.

“I don’t care if we win 2-0, we need to win games,” Kiffin said. “I’m
going to do the best thing to win them, regardless of how boring that
may be at times.”

Protect the QB:They went from 72 sacks allowed to 41 in a single year,
but they must do better. Bootlegs, play-action and quick-timing routes
help, but tackles Cornell Green and Kwame Harris must hold the edges
so longer routes can develop.

Run, Raiders, run:Justin Fargas brings 1,000-yard toughness. Darren
McFadden adds a home-run swing. The one-two punch will control the
clock and keep JaMarcus Russell from having to play Superman.

Fill the gap:The run defense struggles to stay in the right gap and
make solid tackles when presented the chance. That must change because
teams will forever run against them in the interest of game
management.

Miller time:Tight end Zach Miller is the most reliable friend Russell
could ask for. His hands are sure, his speed beats linebackers, his
blocking saves. When third down calls, Miller is there.

Sticky fingers:Johnnie Lee Higgins is spectacular one return,
disastrous the next. This team isn’t good enough to give away balls on
special teams. Hold onto the thing before McFadden is forced to risk
injury back there.

Not many homes in Northern California have basements that area under
the main floor, below ground level, that builders leave…

In a Union City factory that twists out 150,000 pounds of Red Vines
licorice a day, plant manager John Nelson is betting that…

Al davis raiders’s florio kiffin thinks

TUESDAY’S SHOW: SI Writer Tom Verducci … CNBC Sports-Business
analyst Darren Rovell …NFL Network analyst Adam Schefter … Cowboys
TE Jason Witten … Titans QB Chris Simms.

Profootballtalk.com’s Mike Florio has the latest on Raiders coach Lane
Kiffin. Florio thinks Davis won’t fire Kiffin until the Raiders lose.
There are also reports that Kiffin could land at Syracuse if Orange
head coach Greg Robinson gets fired. But Florio says Al Davis is a big
Syracuse alum and donor, so maybe that won’t work out for Kiffin.

Florio had some interesting comments on the Vikings QB situation as
well. He said Tarvaris Jackson was more of a pocket quarterback last
year and had some success. The Vikes keep rolling him out this year
and it’s not working.

Florio said that the Vikes could have had quarterback Sage Rosenfels
in the offseason, but didn’t want to give up a second-round pick.
Looks like a mistake now.

Florio also said the Bears’ offseason didn’t appear to work out well.
They didn’t get a QB and made some other iffy moves. But hey, they’re
1-1 and could have easily been 2-0.

Florio thinks that the officials blew the DeSean Jackson call in the
Eagles-Cowboys game — it should have been Dallas’ ball. According to
Florio, that blown call was worse than Ed Hochuli’s in the Chargers-
Broncos game.

Also, Florio thinks Matt Cassel has a better future thanMatt Leinart.
No question. What do you guys think?

Kiffin things raiders in al davis raiders

Lane Kiffin went through his usual routine Monday, watching game film,
meeting with the media and doing all the other tasks as Raiders
coach.How much longer he will have those responsibilities is
uncertain.The Raiders did little to dampen talk that Kiffin’s job is
in jeopardy. Reports surfaced over the weekend that owner wants to
fire Kiffin for a string of critical comments Davis views as
insubordination. “There are certain things I can control, there’s
certain things I can’t,” Kiffin said. “This happens to be the next
one. He has a decision to make. It does me no good to worry about it
right now.”

•The Seahawks put receiver Logan Payne (knee) on injured reserve
and said Seneca Wallace (calf) is out a month. … Browns defensive
end was arrested on DUI and speeding charges in suburban Atlanta.

Sunday ford raiders in al davis raiders

House rejects bailout: What should you do now? House rejects bailout:
What should you do now? Vet and wild celebration And I am telling you:
Hudson CD misses mark New medical column prescribes wellness

Lane Kiffin was back at work as the Oakland Raiders’ coach Monday
despite more reports that his firing is imminent.

Speaking at his weekly news conference, Kiffin said he will assume he
is still the coach until owner Al Davis tells him otherwise. Kiffin
said he hadn’t spoken with Davis since before the Raiders’ season
opener Sept. 8 against the Denver Broncos.

”I have not had a conversation with him about it, nor has he gotten
in touch with me,” said Kiffin, who is 5-14 as the Raiders’ coach.
”I can’t worry about what other people say. If we believed everything
people said around here, we would be in a lot of trouble.”

Reports of Kiffin’s firing first surfaced on the eve of the second
game of the season against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Raiders won
that game to give him a temporary reprieve, but the reports picked up
steam again shortly after the team squandered a late nine-point lead
in a loss Sunday to the Buffalo Bills.

REDSKINS LOSE TAYLOR: A kick in the calf turned into a significant
medical issue for Washington Redskins defensive end Jason Taylor, who
underwent a 20-minute emergency procedure and will miss the game
Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

”He’s going to be fine,” coach Jim Zorn said. ”Our problem is that
he’s going to be out for this Dallas game, for sure. I can’t tell you
beyond that.”

Taylor, whose streak of consecutive games played will end at 133, was
kicked in his left leg in the second quarter Sunday against the
Arizona Cardinals. He finished the game and had three tipped passes,
but the leg became painful overnight, and he lost feeling in his ankle
as blood began to pool. He checked into a hospital early Monday.

”They went in and cut open that portion where the blood was pooling
to release that pressure,” Zorn said.

ON THIN ICE? A day after the Detroit Lions fell to 0-3 with a loss to
the San Francisco 49ers, vice chairman Bill Ford essentially said he
would fire team president Matt Millen if he had the authority.

”I think the fans deserve better, and if it were in my authority,
which it’s not, I’d make some significant changes,” Ford said.

Ford, the executive chairman of the Ford Motor Co., is the son of
William Clay Ford, who has owned the Lions since 1964.

In rare interviews, the elder Ford has stood by his decision to hire
Millen in 2001 and to stick with him since. The Lions are an NFL-worst
31-84 since Millen took over the team.

INJURY REPORT: Green Bay Packers cornerback Al Harris was undergoing
tests amid a report he might have ruptured his spleen Sunday against
the Cowboys.

• • Carolina Panthers linebacker Dan Connor will miss the
rest of the season with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left
knee suffered Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.

• • New Orleans Saints tight end Jeremy Shockey will miss
three to six weeks with a sports hernia. Team spokesman Greg Bensel
confirmed Shockey will have surgery this week.

• • The Bills said fullback Darian Barnes will have tests on
his right foot, which he injured Sunday against the Raiders. His
status is uncertain.

BRADY TIME? Cleveland Browns coach Romeo Crennel said no decision has
been made about whether struggling quarterback Derek Anderson will
start Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals or whether he will be
replaced by former Notre Dame star Brady Quinn.

Anderson was 14-for-37 for 125 yards, threw three interceptions and
was sacked five times in a loss Sunday to the Baltimore Ravens that
dropped the Browns to 0-3.

”We’ll definitely try to get [Quinn] ready to go, and we’ll see how
it progresses from there,” Crennel said.

Al davis raiders’s true davis true)”>

‘, CENTERMOUSE, true, OFFSETX, 0, OFFSETY, 30, FADEIN, 500, FADEOUT,
1000, SHADOW, true, STICKY, true, CLOSEBTN, true, CLICKCLOSE, true)”>
‘, CENTERMOUSE, true, OFFSETX, 0, OFFSETY, 30, FADEIN, 500, FADEOUT,
1000, SHADOW, true, STICKY, true, CLOSEBTN, true, CLICKCLOSE, true)”>
‘, CENTERMOUSE, true, OFFSETX, 0, OFFSETY, 30, FADEIN, 500, FADEOUT,
1000, SHADOW, true, STICKY, true, CLOSEBTN, true, CLICKCLOSE, true)”>

Give the Detroit Lions and St. Louis Rams credit for recognizing their
mistakes. It’s hard to give Al Davis credit for much in Oakland.

The Lions finally pulled the plug last week on Matt Millen’s
disastrous seven-plus-year reign of error as general manager (a 31-84
record). On Monday, the Rams fired coach Scott Linehan after a
dreadful 0-4 start that saw morale plummet and opponents amass a
147-43 scoring edge.

And yesterday, Davis dropped the axe on Raiders coach Lane Kiffin
after an awkward month of innuendo and replaced him on an interim
basis with Tom Cable.

All three scenarios were toxic, and making changes at or near the top
may be the first of many steps required to change the culture of
losing in all three cities.

According to ESPN.com research, the firings of Linehan and Kiffin mark
the 59th and 60th in-season coaching change since the 1970 NFL-AFL
merger. Replacement coaches have a combined 120-263-1 record (a .314
winning percentage). Of the 27 coaches who took over with at least
half a season remaining, only five led their teams to winning records.

To be fair, few of those men inherited good situations. Unlike in
baseball, basketball or hockey, football teams (pro or college) rarely
make in-season management changes. Coaches spend their entire off-
seasons implementing or honing offensive or defensive schemes, and
even during bye weeks, it’s hard to change course.

Most changes come when things clearly get out of hand–and nowhere is
that more true than in Oakland.

The Raiders job may be the least desirable in pro sports because of
Davis’ meddling. Oakland has lost at least 11 games for five straight
seasons, tying Tampa Bay’s NFL record for futility. A once-proud
franchise whose motto was “Commitment to Excellence” has become a
laughingstock, and it may not get better until Davis is committed–to
a retirement home.

Don’t expect Bill Cowher or anyone with a shred of independence to
apply for the job in the offseason.

– Privacy Policy – Send email to Support Staff – Send email to the
News Team To contact all other newspaper departments, please or call
540-374-5000. To contact the Free Lance–Star please use the
following numbers: Main Switchboard:540-374-5000, Advertising:
540-374-5460, Classifieds: 540-374-5001, Subscriber Services:
540-374-5002, Toll-free:800-877-0500

Al davis raiders’s raiders team kiffin

Click photo to enlarge
Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell throws a touchdown pass
to Raiders tight end Zach Miller in the second quarter to increase the
Raiders lead to 11-0 over the San Diego Chargers on Sunday, September
28, 2008, at the Oakland-Alameda Coliseum in Oakland, Calif. (Eddie
Ledesma/Contra Costa Times)

OAKLAND _ Another come-from-ahead stake through the heart, another
chance for Raiders coach Lane Kiffin to open up a vein and tell
everyone how proud he is of the team, which could cease to be his
whenever Al Davis decides it’s time close the deal.
At this point, it’s hard to tell which man is having more trouble with
the endgame. Kiffin’s team can’t do it in the fourth quarter. Davis
can’t reach a decision on Kiffin.

A 28-18 loss to the San Diego Chargers Sunday at the Coliseum was
similar to a 24-23 loss to the Buffalo Bills the previous week in that
the Raiders had a two-score lead in the fourth quarter and couldn’t
hold it.

Ever-positive linebacker Kirk Morrison didn’t mean it the way it came
out, but he explained things
Game 4: Raiders vs. Chargers

perfectly when he said, “Playing against us in the past, I think a
lot of times they would just steal one at the end of the game. We
stayed true to what we’ve been doing this year.”

And the year before that, and the year before that, and the year
before that. . . .

Make all this out to be the fault of the media if you wish, but the
Kiffin-Davis machine is being fed primarily by Kiffin and Davis.

Kiffin answered questions at the podium for 15 minutes following the
game, then in the locker room, actually looked at the group of
reporters and asked, “You got enough?,” and then started in all over
again, covering the same tortured territory.

different than what I’ve been doing, keeping this team together the
best I can, keep the staff together, figure out a way to win these
games in the fourth quarter . . . until I’m told something different
by Al, we’re going to keep trying to fined a way to win.”

Davis keeps the story alive by failing to give Kiffin the same sort of
backing he gave Rob Ryan back in February, when reports of the
defensive coordinator’s imminent demise were met with a statement
charging the press with being irresponsible.

It was overbearing and a little disingenuous because it turned out
Ryan indeed offered to resign, but at least it provided direction and
finality.

Meanwhile, the Raiders seem be playing better but their record stays
the same. They believe they’re good enough to be 3-1, but the
standings say 1-3 and the last five and a quarter years make it
difficult to see anything other than a sixth straight season of losses
in double figures.

Strong safety Gibril Wilson, who forced a LaDainian Tomlinson fumble
in the end zone which Philip Rivers jumped on for a safety, flashes
back a year to a Super Bowl championship with the New York Giants and
sees the possibility of change.

“You know what? We’ve got to learn how to finish,” Wilson said.
“That’s the most important thing with this team. We do great for
three quarters and find a way not to win.”

That’s what the Raiders are up against. They’re trying to change a
conditioned response built through week after week of walking into the
locker room feeling the same as the week before.

Players who are team leaders, entrusted with passing on what they know
for future success, have little to draw on in terms of experience.

Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha is as professional as you’ll find in the
business, and Kiffin identified Justin Fargas as a team leader.

When Asomugha and Fargas want to bring together the young players and
regale them with nostalgic yarns of the good old days, they harken
back to the 2003 and 2004 seasons, when the Raiders opened the season
2-1.

Guard Robert Gallery and center Jake Grove, who arrived fresh-faced
and ready to join up with a team one year removed from an AFC
championship, are 16-52. Same with defensive tackle Tommy Kelly.

Morrison and Stanford Routt, who arrived in 2005, are 11-41. Safety
Michael Huff and linebacker Thomas Howard, defensive starters since
the day they were drafted in 2005, are 6-27.

When the Raiders lost to the Bills last week, Huff related the thing
he was most depressed about was failing to get to 2-1, a record that
would have been a letdown in college at Texas but would be a reason
for elation in Oakland.

Gallery insists things are different this year. Even after being
outscored 25-3 in the fourth quarter a week after blowing a 23-14
lead, Gallery insists he doesn’t believe defeat is inevitable.

“There have been years I’ve been here that may have happened, but I
don’t feel that way with this team and this staff,” Gallery said. “I
think guys are in it and we’ve got to work through it. We’ll be a good
team when we can win these games.”

The bar is set so low there is actually a Web site dedicated to saving
a coach who has won 25 percent of his games, which may be a first in
the history of professional or college sports.

It’s doubtful Davis reads keepkiffin.com, and only he knows if and
when he will close the deal.

Whether he says Kiffin goes or says Kiffin stays, it would be nice
after the past two weeks to see a member of the Raiders with the
ability to finish.

The al davis picture kiffin season davis

Take this offseason for example. The defensive coordinator was fired
until the owner said he wasn’t. The head coach wanted to be fired and
the owner wanted him to resign, so Lane Kiffin ended up back for a
second season. Former players criticized the franchise as soon as they
landed with other teams. And the $55 million wide receiver got beat up
and robbed in Las Vegas, then wanted to retire in training camp before
being talked out of it by the owner.

This type of dizzying string of events has become so familiar around
owner Al Davis’ once-proud franchise that players have learned to tune
it all out.

“I tried to stay off the Internet and just in my experience here, with
all the things that have gone on, I really don’t listen to the talk or
what people expect or anything like that,” said running back Justin
Fargas, entering his sixth year in Oakland. “I just try to concentrate
on what I can do to improve as a player. That’s not going to change,
this is my approach.”

That approach might not be easy this season as the feud between Kiffin
and Davis that became public in January has simmered all offseason and
into training camp.

It began almost as soon as last season ended, with reports that
defensive coordinator Rob Ryan had been fired over a philosophical
difference with Kiffin. That was followed by a statement from the team
that Ryan in fact would be staying, as Davis made it clear that he did
not want to let his defensive coordinator go.

A few weeks later, came the reports that Kiffin asked to be fired if
he couldn’t pick his coaching staff and Davis responded by sending his
coach a letter of resignation to sign.

The game of chicken ended with both sides blinking and Kiffin coming
back for a second season despite a strained relationship with his
owner.

“We have a working relationship, and I think we have the same goal,
and that’s to get this team to win,” Kiffin said.

Raiders coach Lane Kiffin, left, is back for a second season despite a
strained relationship with owner Al Davis.

But if the team’s poor record the past five seasons and the comments
from former Raiders this offseason are any indication, nothing is
working in Oakland.

Warren Sapp told the St. Petersburg Times his time with the Raiders
was as “dark as a black hole.” Chris Carr said it was difficult to win
in Oakland because there was “so much other stuff going on there.”
Stuart Schweigert talked about “a thousand-pound bear” being lifted
off him when he was released by the team, and Jerry Porter said being
a Raider had become a “burden.”

“What they’re discussing, I can’t change, so that subject is what it
is,” Kiffin said. “I control what I can control and get us as good as
we can get with what I can control. I don’t have control of that.”

That’s been Kiffin’s mantra all summer as he has questioned the team’s
personnel decisions, which have always been under Davis’ purview.

Kiffin has been especially critical of receiver Javon Walker, calling
him out of shape during offseason workouts and singling him out for
much of camp. The $55 million contract given to Walker this offseason
was part of a big spending spree by Davis as he hopes to win his first
Super Bowl in a quarter century.

But Walker’s tenure has been marred by the robbery in Las Vegas in
June and then his desire to retire early in training camp. Davis
talked him out of it, but Kiffin has remained critical of his
receiver’s performance.

Davis has not spoken to reporters this summer, leaving Kiffin as the
public voice of the franchise. But it’s clear Kiffin has been trying
to distance himself from some of the moves the team made. It remains
to be seen if all this talk will cost Kiffin his job before the season
even ends.

Davis has only fired a coach during the season once before, getting
rid of Mike Shanahan in 1989, four games into his second season. With
a bye after Week 4 this season, Kiffin could be in danger of following
Shanahan if Oakland doesn’t get off to a quick start.

“When you take this job you realize who the owner is and you realize
most guys don’t last really long so that is what it is,” Kiffin said.
“If you sit there and worry about that and you think about that you’re
not doing the best that you can for your team.”

Coaching longevity has been rare around the Raiders. Since the team
returned from Los Angeles in 1995, Jon Gruden is the only coach to
last more than two seasons.

Joe Bugel and Art Shell each were fired after only one season, while
Mike White, Bill Callahan and Norv Turner each got two years on the
job.

That revolving door has helped keep the Raiders in a downward spiral
since they lost the Super Bowl to Gruden and Tampa Bay 48-21 in
January 2003.

Oakland has a 19-61 record since that game, the fewest wins in the NFL
in that span. It’s even a worse record than the first five seasons of
any of the past four expansion teams, which is remarkable considering
the slide started with a Super Bowl roster.

It took until midway through Davis’ 17th season with the Raiders for
the team to lose as many games as it has lost in the past five.

There was Callahan calling his players “the dumbest team in America”
in 2003, linebacker Bill Romanowski smashing teammate Marcus Williams’
face with a punch in practice earlier that season, Randy Moss quitting
on his team during his two-year stint in Oakland, and Shell benching
and then suspending Porter for insubordination.

“A lot of my friends and family are Oakland fans, so I don’t want to
have to listen to the negative talk,” said safety Gibril Wilson, who
left the Super Bowl champion Giants to sign with Oakland in the
offseason. “It’s just very important to just get back to winning, to
get back to the Oakland mystique, the silver and black. … That’s
what we need to get back to.”