Let's Take A Break From Serious News With Al Davis
Remember your crazy old uncle that you only have to see on holidays a couple times a year. You know, the one who can't remember your name and who thinks the government puts secret drugs in the water supply. Well just imagine if that crazy old uncle owned a football team and insisted on running that team the same way he had 30 years ago. Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Al Davis.
The sports world yesterday was shocked (okay, just kidding) with the news that Davis had fired Raiders coach Lane Kiffin. What made the story all the more juicy were Davis's public claims Kiffin had disgraced the organization. Davis's letter to Kiffin was the icing on the cake, a sure sign that the man in silver and black is more than just a little bit nuts.
Dear Lane:
Over the past months, you have made a number of public statements that were highly critical of, and designed to embarrass and discredit, this organization, its players and its coaches. I left you alone during training camp in hopes that you would cease your immature and destructive campaign.
However, you continue to make public statements that are critical of the organization, its players as whole as well as individual players. Such statements constitute conduct detrimental to the Raiders and I will no longer stand silently by while you continue to hurt this organization.
Further, your contract is quite clear that you work "subject to the direction and supervision of the General Partner" and that the General Partner has "the exclusive right to do all things, which in its sole discretion are necessary to maintain and improve the Club, the football organization and their activities."
I realized when I hired you that you were young and inexperienced and that there would be a learning process for you. Your mistakes on player personnel and coaches were overlooked based on our patience with you. But I never dreamt that you would be untruthful in statements to the press as well as on so many other issues. Your actions are those of a coach looking to makes (sic) excuses for not winning, rather than a coach focused on winning.
For example, with the exception of Gibril Wilson, you were involved in recruiting all free agents and determining salaries for them and you were explicit about your desire to sign Javon Walker and DeAngelo Hall amongst others. All were a must to sign in your eyes, Hall, in particular, because he played for Greg Knapp in Atlanta and Knapp gave him high grades. Do not run from that now.
I do realize that you did not want us to draft JaMarcus Russell. He is a great player. Get over it and coach this team on the field, that is what you were hired to do. We can win with this team!
In regards to your recent fabrications about the defense, during the final cuts you made every cut on offense and every cut on defense except for (Fred) Wakefield on defense and (Seth) Wand on offense. Furthermore, during the game Monday night (defensive coordinator) Rob (Ryan) played your Cover-2 defense and we got killed on an approximately 50-yard touchdown pass and an approximately 70-yard gain that led to a field goal.
You meet every week with the defensive coaches to go over both the past game and to get a general feel for what will happen during the week in practice. You have the ability and authority to provide your input during those meetings and the preparation of the game plan. I do not have weekly meetings with Rob -- you do.
During the week no one has ever told you what to do on either offense or defense. In addition, no one has ever told you during a game what to do on either offense or defense and you call every play on offense. During a game if you want to blitz more, all you have to do is let Rob know what blitz you want and he will do it.
Although you continue to use the media to express your dissatisfaction with others, no one has publicly pointed out to you that in four preseason games and one regular-season game played this year, your offense has scored one first-half touchdown. That put tremendous pressure on the defense.
I know that you wanted to bring your father in to run the defense and that Monte told me that he wanted to come here even though he as (sic) under contract to Tampa. However I did not want to tamper with another team. In any event that was over seven months ago. Do not now also run from the defense and your responsibilities.
This letter constitutes notice that if you further violate any term of your contract, in any manner whatsoever, you will be terminated for cause. I trust that this will not occur.
A.D. Football, Inc.
I think the letter speaks for itself, but my favorite part is the rambling nature of the letter and the "we can win with this team" randomly placed at the end of a paragraph discussing JaMarcus Russell.
But as if the insanity of Kiffin's firing wasn't enough, Davis has continued to spout off, claiming Bill Belichick and the Patriots tampered with Randy Moss, prior to having traded for him last April.
Davis said other teams didn't want Moss before the Patriots obtained him.
"You know how many teams turned him down?" Davis said. "That guy in Green Bay thought he couldn't run any more. Even Denver, where they'll take anybody, turned him down."
He did not identify the person in Green Bay.
Davis said former Raiders senior personnel executive Michael Lombardi, who was fired 10 days after the Moss trade, spoke to Belichick about Moss.
"What's his name knew he could run, he's a friend of Belichick's. Mike Lombardi," Davis said Tuesday. "Mike sold what's his name, Belichick, on the idea that he could run. They tampered with him. I remember [Patriots owner] Bob Kraft saying that he had to look him in the eye and all that. They went down and worked him out, he could run. He's their team, of course, with the quarterback."
So Davis fires Kiffin for "making excuses," but proceeds to do exactly that when it comes to Randy Moss. I have no idea what we're supposed to believe here, unless we're supposed to believe that Mike Lombardi, his own player personnel man at the time, Bill Belichick, and Randy Moss, conspired to trick Davis into letting Moss get away for a 4th round draft pick. Perhaps we should all take a minute to thank God that we're not Raiders fans.
The sports world yesterday was shocked (okay, just kidding) with the news that Davis had fired Raiders coach Lane Kiffin. What made the story all the more juicy were Davis's public claims Kiffin had disgraced the organization. Davis's letter to Kiffin was the icing on the cake, a sure sign that the man in silver and black is more than just a little bit nuts.
Dear Lane:
Over the past months, you have made a number of public statements that were highly critical of, and designed to embarrass and discredit, this organization, its players and its coaches. I left you alone during training camp in hopes that you would cease your immature and destructive campaign.
However, you continue to make public statements that are critical of the organization, its players as whole as well as individual players. Such statements constitute conduct detrimental to the Raiders and I will no longer stand silently by while you continue to hurt this organization.
Further, your contract is quite clear that you work "subject to the direction and supervision of the General Partner" and that the General Partner has "the exclusive right to do all things, which in its sole discretion are necessary to maintain and improve the Club, the football organization and their activities."
I realized when I hired you that you were young and inexperienced and that there would be a learning process for you. Your mistakes on player personnel and coaches were overlooked based on our patience with you. But I never dreamt that you would be untruthful in statements to the press as well as on so many other issues. Your actions are those of a coach looking to makes (sic) excuses for not winning, rather than a coach focused on winning.
For example, with the exception of Gibril Wilson, you were involved in recruiting all free agents and determining salaries for them and you were explicit about your desire to sign Javon Walker and DeAngelo Hall amongst others. All were a must to sign in your eyes, Hall, in particular, because he played for Greg Knapp in Atlanta and Knapp gave him high grades. Do not run from that now.
I do realize that you did not want us to draft JaMarcus Russell. He is a great player. Get over it and coach this team on the field, that is what you were hired to do. We can win with this team!
In regards to your recent fabrications about the defense, during the final cuts you made every cut on offense and every cut on defense except for (Fred) Wakefield on defense and (Seth) Wand on offense. Furthermore, during the game Monday night (defensive coordinator) Rob (Ryan) played your Cover-2 defense and we got killed on an approximately 50-yard touchdown pass and an approximately 70-yard gain that led to a field goal.
You meet every week with the defensive coaches to go over both the past game and to get a general feel for what will happen during the week in practice. You have the ability and authority to provide your input during those meetings and the preparation of the game plan. I do not have weekly meetings with Rob -- you do.
During the week no one has ever told you what to do on either offense or defense. In addition, no one has ever told you during a game what to do on either offense or defense and you call every play on offense. During a game if you want to blitz more, all you have to do is let Rob know what blitz you want and he will do it.
Although you continue to use the media to express your dissatisfaction with others, no one has publicly pointed out to you that in four preseason games and one regular-season game played this year, your offense has scored one first-half touchdown. That put tremendous pressure on the defense.
I know that you wanted to bring your father in to run the defense and that Monte told me that he wanted to come here even though he as (sic) under contract to Tampa. However I did not want to tamper with another team. In any event that was over seven months ago. Do not now also run from the defense and your responsibilities.
This letter constitutes notice that if you further violate any term of your contract, in any manner whatsoever, you will be terminated for cause. I trust that this will not occur.
A.D. Football, Inc.
I think the letter speaks for itself, but my favorite part is the rambling nature of the letter and the "we can win with this team" randomly placed at the end of a paragraph discussing JaMarcus Russell.
But as if the insanity of Kiffin's firing wasn't enough, Davis has continued to spout off, claiming Bill Belichick and the Patriots tampered with Randy Moss, prior to having traded for him last April.
Davis said other teams didn't want Moss before the Patriots obtained him.
"You know how many teams turned him down?" Davis said. "That guy in Green Bay thought he couldn't run any more. Even Denver, where they'll take anybody, turned him down."
He did not identify the person in Green Bay.
Davis said former Raiders senior personnel executive Michael Lombardi, who was fired 10 days after the Moss trade, spoke to Belichick about Moss.
"What's his name knew he could run, he's a friend of Belichick's. Mike Lombardi," Davis said Tuesday. "Mike sold what's his name, Belichick, on the idea that he could run. They tampered with him. I remember [Patriots owner] Bob Kraft saying that he had to look him in the eye and all that. They went down and worked him out, he could run. He's their team, of course, with the quarterback."
So Davis fires Kiffin for "making excuses," but proceeds to do exactly that when it comes to Randy Moss. I have no idea what we're supposed to believe here, unless we're supposed to believe that Mike Lombardi, his own player personnel man at the time, Bill Belichick, and Randy Moss, conspired to trick Davis into letting Moss get away for a 4th round draft pick. Perhaps we should all take a minute to thank God that we're not Raiders fans.
posted by lonely libertarian at 11:20 AM
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