Silver and Black Report

Aaron Brooks, QB

After the Oakland Raiders parted ways with Kerry Collins, they signed Brooks to a 2-year deal worth $8 million. “Aaron gives us great depth at the quarterback position and provides us with a veteran presence,” then Raiders head coach Art Shell stated. Brooks was the starter at the beginning of the 2006 campaign, as his only competition was Marques Tuiasosopo and Andrew Walter. Brooks was sacked seven times in the opener against San Diego and battered week-two versus Baltimore, fumbling two snaps from center before straining his pectoral muscle. Eventually he started eight games for the Raiders, losing all of them and was cut after his lone season in Silver & Black, as the team wanted to avoid a $5 million roster bonus he was due the next off-season.

Verdict: Brooks was a stopgap quarterback during an agonizing season for the Raiders. His final stats: a 57.3 completion percentage, eight interceptions and three touchdown passes while being sacked 26 times in eight games.

Eric Turner, S

Prior to the 1997 season, the Raiders were on a shopping spree, and one of their prized signings was the Pro Bowl safety. Turner was reeled in with a 4-year $6 million deal. ”We’re delighted that we can add another impact player to the organization,” said Joe Bugel. He played 32-contest with the Silver & Black before dying of intestinal cancer at age 31. “I realize people are concerned, but I have chosen to keep this issue within my family,” Turner said in a statement prior to his death.

Verdict: The former 2^nd overall pick of the 1991 draft arrived in Oakland after being selected to two Pro Bowls. Turner has always been remembered fondly by teammates and the organization on and off the field.

Andre Rison, WR

A week after being released by the Kansas City Chiefs in August of 2000, Oakland picked up the 33-year old target with a one-year contract worth $450,000 and a $100,000 signing bonus. “The day I was released I already knew where I was going,” Rison commented when he landed with the Chiefs rival. The mercurial wide receiver played 16-games, compiling 41-receptions for 606-yards and 6 touchdowns. The prior season, he tallied career lows in catches and yards with no scores. Rison had 3 receptions for 44-yards in the playoffs, but had a score nullified due to pass interference flag with 4-minutes remaining in the AFC Championship game loss to the Ravens.

Verdict: Rison added attitude to the offense and solid production at wide-receiver behind Tim Brown as the Raiders marched to a 12-4 finish in the regular season in Jon Gruden’s third season.

LaMont Jordan, RB

After the 2004 season, Oakland looked to boost their putrid ground game with the signing of LaMont Jordan. After the former NewYork Jet landed in the Bay Area with a five-year, $27.5 million contract, he stated, “I’ve played out here in Oakland a couple of times and it’s actually my favorite stadium to play in, so I’m really looking forward to getting this ball rolling and hopefully being a big piece to us accomplishing our goals.” Jordan led all NFL rushers with 70 catches his first season and tallied 1,588 total yards from scrimmage and 11 scores. But it went down hill from there, as he tore his MCL in November of 2006 and missed the remainder of the season. After starting the 2007 campaign with 350-yards rushing and two touchdowns in the team’s first three-games, he sustained a back injury in Miami.

Verdict: Jordan was phased out due to his ineffective running and Justin Fargas’ emergence in his last months in Oakland. He never lived up to his contract or the expectations he had to become a productive rusher in the NFL. “After three games [in 2007], LaMont Jordan led the NFL in rushing,” teammate Warren Sapp said. “But…he was out of shape and couldn’t keep it going.”

Stay tuned for upcoming installments, looking back at the Raiders history during the free-agency period. Part-six is coming soon…

Archived Game Coverage: Rod Woodson was a solid veteran addition for the Silver & Black

Rich Gannon, QB

At 33, Oakland tabbed the former Kansas City passer to lead Jon Gruden’s offense. That signing in February of 1999 changed the fortunes of the Silver & Black. Gannon once said, “When I came to Oakland in 1999, I didn’t sign up to be the team jerk but I was taken aback by the things I was seeing. Guys being late to meetings, guys missing practices. Sometimes, something had to be said.” He said them and backed it up with Pro Bowl years, playoff appearances and ultimately, winning the league’s MVP award in 2002 as he led the Raiders to Super Bowl XXXVII.

Verdict: One of the best signings in Raiders history.

Larry Brown, CB

In February of 1996, Oakland raided the world champion Dallas Cowboys. They signed cornerback Larry Brown to a five-year $12.5 million deal that included $3.5 million signing bonus. He played in 12 games in two seasons for the Raiders, parlaying his MVP winning performance in Super Bowl XXX to the then lucrative deal. Within days of signing Brown, Oakland snatched up defensive tackle Russell Maryland, inking him to a six-year $19 million deal. Leigh Steinberg, Maryland’s agent at the time stated, “This is another case of the salary cap breaking up a marriage.”

Verdict: Brown was a complete disaster in Oakland and while Maryland had his moments, neither influenced the team enough to make them into winners.

Rod Woodson, S

In his first year with the Raiders, the Hall of Fame bound safety led the NFL in interceptions (8) at 37-years old. Woodson added stability, veteran leadership and solid playmaking ability to a secondary that featured Tory James, Charles Woodson, Derrick Gibson and Anthony Dorsett. An underrated play during the 2002 campaign was his 98-yard interception return for a score. A loss in Denver would have had them at 4-5, instead, they romped in that game led by that momentum-changing play and won six of the next seven games.

Verdict: Although it was a brief stint in Silver & Black, Woodson gave them a presence at safety that was much needed. He was a key addition to that Super Bowl run.

Warren Sapp, DT

After spurning the Cincinnati Bengals, Oakland reached out to the boisterous veteran and signed him to a seven year $36.6 million deal. In his 4 campaigns in Silver & Black, Sapp tallied 19.5 sacks. His first year was a disappointment, as Oakland moved him around from tackle to end throughout the season. A shoulder injury sidelined him for six games in 2005, but in 2006, the former Buccaneer had 10-sacks. A more svelte Sapp ended his career after the 2007 season with a simple message on his web site stating, “I’m done!”

Verdict: Yes Sapp was a loud mouth, never was the dominant force he was in Tampa Bay nor was he as influential as he was earlier in his career. But he had his moments and added some life at times to teams that were just abysmal and otherwise boring to watch.

During the off-season, SBReport.net will continue to look back at signings that work and that failed for the Oakland Raiders. Stay tuned for the second installment very soon…

Archive: Warren Sapp chasing down New England Patriots QB Tom Brady

The NFL Network has pulled former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Oakland Raiders defensive lineman Warren Sapp from their Super Bowl XLIV coverage because he is being questioned by Miami authorities regarding a domestic violence case according to a NFL source.

Sapp, 37, was reportedly seen by detectives and questioned on Saturday afternoon, and news circulated late Saturday about his arrest.

Per reports, the former sack-master was charged with one count of misdemeanor domestic battery and is expected to appear before a Miami-Dade County judge Sunday, Miami Beach police spokesman Juan Sanchez said.

In recent weeks, Sapp has ripped Raiders head coach Tom Cable.

“For me to say something about the man right now, would be a little, you know, disingenuous,” Sapp told the Dan Patrick show.

“Tom Cable don’t even know that the defensive lineman knows his protection when he goes into a ballgame,” Sapp said. “I was standing in front of the man, he tells me to rush his offensive line. I said, ‘Okay, what set are you coming out in?’ He looks at me and says, ‘What? No, I just want you to rush.’”

He continued: “I said, ‘Let me understand this. You’re gonna break the huddle, you come out into a formation. It’ll be two receivers, three receivers, whatever you want to do. But there’s some way you have to protect. And I would know that, 90% of the time. He looked at me like I was speaking Chinese.”

Sapp piled on by saying, “He’s not qualified to be an offensive line coach in my book.

“Because he doesn’t know I know which way his center’s going 90% of the time. He blew my mind with that one. I said, ‘Son, you think I got all these sacks ’cause I’m guessing which way the center’s going?’”

In a statement released on Saturday, “We have been made aware of the arrest of Warren Sapp by the Miami Beach Police Department,” a NFL network statement said. “In light of these circumstances, Warren Sapp will not appear on NFL Network while we review the matter.”

Phil Barber posted a blog on the Press Democrat web site regarding his conversation with former Oakland Raiders tackle Lincoln Kennedy.

Kennedy, who played 11-seasons in the league, gave some insight on the current losing drought the Raiders are in and the arrival of Warren Sapp to the team in 2004. The three-time Pro Bowler said Sapp’s presence and boisterous nature hurt the team more than helped it during a vulnerable period for the organization.

“And here’s the reason,” Kennedy stated. “Every interview I heard Warren do, he never accepted the silver and black like other castaway veterans. He always played that Buccaneer card. And I was pissed off at that as a veteran player. If they wanted you, they would have kept your ass, you know what I’m saying? If someone else gave you another chance to finish your career strong, accept that.

“He immediate became a figurehead on the team, an icon. And all I ever heard him talk about was his days at Tampa. Go back in the archives and look at any other player who had an impact on the Raiders, and you don’t hear that, especially among the castaways.”

Kennedy also talked about moving away from the game and the direction Oakland took along the trenches after his retirement.

“I remember the year I retired, I told the Raiders I couldn’t do it anymore,” Kennedy comented. “I sat across the table from Mr. Davis and said, ‘Look, you got a player named Langston Walker. He’s making seven figures. I couldn’t say, ‘Let him play my spot, I’ll sit back and watch.’ The competitor in me wouldn’t allow that. But if you want to draft for the future, you need to know where to go. That’s why I told him as early as I could, because there was also this young lineman out of Iowa named Robert Gallery. We were trying to leave the team in good shape.

“What we found out later, those players weren’t capable of stepping in. They didn’t have the talent or whatever to pick up where we left off.”

Barber will have more about the Raiders in an article on Sunday and their streak of ineptitude since 2003.

Shane Lechler and Richard Seymour were the only current members of the Oakland Raiders to be named on the National Football League’s All-Decade team.

The full squad was announced tonight prior to the Pro-Bowl in Miami and it also included former Raiders Randy Moss, Warren Sapp and Charles Woodson.

Lorenzo Neal who was with the team during the summer and waived prior to the season also made the squad.

Lechler is a five-time Pro Bowl selection, five-time first-team All-Pro and a two time second team All-Pro.

In his 10-season with the Raiders, the former 5^th round pick has averaged 47.3 yards per punt and a 38.6 net average.

Moss spent the 2005 and 2006 seasons in the Bay Area.

Randy Moss in Silver & Black during the 2005 season

He compiled 102 receptions for 1,558 yards and 11 touchdowns after being acquired for Napoleon Harris, a 1^st round selection and a late round pick.

After Oakland traded him to New England, Moss found his stride again after a dominant start to his career in Minnesota and tallied 23 touchdown grabs, setting the league single season record.

Woodson was Oakland’s 4^th overall selection in the 1998 draft. The six-time Pro Bowl selection was the AP NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year with the Silver & Black.

He donned the Raider colors from 1998-to-2005.

This past season, he was voted the AP NFL defensive Player of the Year.

Woodson has 45 career interceptions.

Warren Sapp made a stop in Oakland during his illustrious career

Sapp spent 4-years with the Raiders. The boisterous defensive tackle tallied 19.5 sacks while in Oakland.

Seymour just finished his first season with the Raiders after being acquired in a trade with the New England Patriots.

NOTES

• Seymour is a three-time Super Bowl Champion with the Patriots (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX). He has been selected to five Pro Bowls and is a three-time first team All-Pro.
• Sapp is a four time first team All-Pro and a Super Bowl Champion with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (XXXVII). He was also selected to the NFL’s 1990s All-Decade Team. The former first rounder out of the University of Miami won the 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. He ended with 96.5 career sacks.
• Moss was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the year (1998), has been a seven time Pro Bowl selection and was the Pro Bowl MVP in 2000.

Retired Oakland Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp

By Victor Cotto, S&B Report Staff Columnist

Warren Sapp’s retirement will impact the Oakland Raiders more off the field than on the field in 2008.

With a bunch of young up and comers on the defense, Rob Ryan will have to search for a fiery and vocal leader that can spice up practices, provide a contagious enthusiasm on the sideline that can help motivate on game day or shelter some of the younger players from the media with their animated banter after games as Sapp did during his tenure.

Read more…