Deconstructing a Tyrant

During the last couple days I’ve noticed that the Kiffin-Davis fiasco is more than just another Al Davis blunder, and another fired head coach. I can read and watch everything I can get my hands on about the history of the Oakland Raiders a hundred times, but I can’t paint the picture that a guy twice my age can. I’ve always had a feeling of betrayal when I’ve thought of my Raiders. Maybe it was the fact that my dad started filling me in with Oakland/Los Angeles Raider history since the day I was born (1982).

I was too young to understand why they moved to LA, but by the time I was in middle school the Raiders had returned, and because I wasn’t mature enough to understand all the betrayals that Davis had committed, I quickly took my mild status as a Raider fan, to an obsessed fanatic. As I’ve gotten older I’ve lost respect for my team as I gained more knowledge, but I never lost my love.

You see my dad would tell me these incredible stories about how the Raiders built the American Football League, pioneered the integration of black players, and won on an average, more games than any other team from the day the AFL and NFL merged (1970), to the year after Jon Gruden left for Tampa (2003). For 33 years no other franchise gave their fans more winning seasons or playoff runs. Its facts like these that have pushed me through the last 5 years, but it’s like a bad relationship; the good times can only overshadow the bad ones for so long. When I read an article like the Monte Poole piece I’m linking here, I start to wonder how it would feel if I had to let the Raiders go.

Monte Poole is a legend in the Bay Area, and greatly respected by sports writers from around the country. The big picture is hard to handle sometimes, but it’s something all Raider fans need to know, because we might be the only people who can save this franchise. I say that boldly, but if there is any hope, we need to work to remove Davis from his position. The NFL won’t let him stay in the position he’s in if we make our voices heard loud enough. His legacy is set, and no one can deny it, but this must be the final f***up of Davis’s career.

The events from the last few days have kept me from posting my evaluation of the Senior Bowl week and game, but I should have it up by tonight, along as there isn’t an update on the Raiders before I get home from work.