September 30th, 2006 08:15pm
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The Raiders-Browns game will be televised tomorrow, and I
still don’t know if that’s good news or bad. These two teams have combined to ignite
two of the worst stink bombs of the last three years.
First came a game at Cleveland
in October of 2003. The Raiders were defending AFC champions but sinking fast,
and this may have been the low point of the season. They quickly went out to a
7-0 lead, but would …
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September 29th, 2006 01:00pm
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It is one of the many reliable old propaganda pieces in this team’s portfolio, along with “The Autumn Wind Is a Raider” and phrases such as “Commitment to Excellence” and “Just Win, Baby”: The Raiders are the winningest team – if you can excuse the made-up sports term – in the NFL.
Al Davis used to call his squad the winningest team in professional sports. But the lean years since the …
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September 28th, 2006 02:00pm
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IT’S SOLD OUT! No, really. Despite the prospect of an 0-2 team hosting an 0-3 team, the Raiders have sold out their game against the Browns this Sunday. It will be televised locally on CBS. Apparently, the Raiders weren’t blowing smoke about improved ticket operations since they took over the duty from the Oakland Football Marketing Association this year.
Last year’s game against the Browns – a similarly lackluster affair – …
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September 27th, 2006 06:03pm
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You think reporters work themselves into a lather over
gossip and hearsay? You should see NFL players in action.
Wednesday, it seemed the only thing anyone in the Raiders
locker room wanted to talk about was Terrell Owens and his latest episode in Dallas, which may have
been a suicide attempt, or an unfortunate combination of medication and
supplements, or a brilliant P.R. ploy by the league’s most attention-hungry
player.
“Ain’t you guys covering the T.O. thing?” …
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September 27th, 2006 05:42pm
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Remember this quote?
“You can’t have enough good running backs. Justin was told when I first got here that he’ll have a chance to share the load. He’s got to show me that he can do it, that he can carry the load, and pass protect and do all those things. And he’s been doing very well in the offseason with the OTAs and the mini-camps. I expect him to do …
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September 21st, 2006 03:02pm
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Before Wednesday, the last time I had spoken to Nnamdi Asomugha was Sept. 11, in the locker room after the Raiders’ dismal loss to San Diego. I approached Asomugha at his locker that evening, but he shook his head and said, “Not tonight.”
I figured he was simply depressed about the 27-0 defeat, but it turned out he had another reason – he had sprained his left foot, an injury serious …
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September 20th, 2006 03:15pm
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The sportswriter’s game-day experience is admittedly
pampered. We don’t always see what the real fans are dealing with as they enter
the stadium. So I’m not exactly sure what happened at McAfee Coliseum on Sept.
11, but I know it must have been ugly.
It was bad enough that the Oakland Coliseum Joint Venture -
a private company contracted to operate the stadium on game day – fired the
subcontractor that was handling the parking, Classic …
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September 20th, 2006 02:24pm
by admin
The prognosis for Robert Gallery’s recovery from a calf
injury was two to four weeks, and the big left tackle is doing everything he
can to make sure his return falls closer to the “two” than the “four.”
Tuesday, he surprised coach Art Shell by asking to take part
in individual drills at practice. Trainer Rod Martin gave Gallery the go-ahead,
so he suited up and pushed some pads around.
“Obviously, I’ve got a lot of …
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September 18th, 2006 07:58pm
by admin
OK, can we panic now?
The Raiders haven’t been close to competent on offense in
two games this season. And now comes the news – you’ve probably heard already -
that quarterback Aaron Brooks is out two to four weeks with a strained pectoral
muscle, and left guard Barry Sims has a “hip situation” that was worrisome
enough to justify an MRI exam.
I know, I know. One possible reaction is “What does it
matter when things …
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September 18th, 2006 06:10pm
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So
who was responsible for all those grounded snaps against the Ravens? Was it the
center, Jake Grove, or the quarterbacks, Aaron Brooks and Andrew Walter?
Coach
Art Shell broke it down Monday, and there was blame enough for everybody.
“First
one, just talking to both of them on the sideline, the center and quarterback,
Jake, when he’s making calls at the line of scrimmage, he’s moving around,
squatting and pointing out people,” Shell said. “On the first …
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Phil Barber covers the Raiders for The Press Democrat, uncovering news and features despite the team’s best efforts to keep everything a secret. He’ll keep our online audience up-to-date and informed with his blog “Instant Raiders.”
