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Once Feared And Hated, Davis Now Only Ridiculed

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By IRA KAUFMAN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 28, 2008

TAMPA - He was so proud to be a Raider back in the spring of 2002.

Former University of Miami standout cornerback Phillip Buchanon couldn't wait to wear the silver and black after being selected by Oakland with the 17th overall pick.

The Raiders made it all the way to the Super Bowl that season, and we all know how that adventure turned out.

Little did anyone in Raider Nation know the team would lose 63 of its next 83 games heading into today's matchup against San Diego.

The last time an NFL franchise was so crushed by one setback, it took the Chiefs 15 years to get over that 1971 Christmas Day double-OT playoff loss to Miami that still stands as the longest game in league annals.

"I knew about the tradition, I knew all about the whole Raiders mystique," said Buchanon, who escaped Oakland after three seasons when he was traded to the Texans. "Right now, it's kind of crazy with some of the stuff going on out there."

Owner Al Davis, who happens to be on the short list of the most influential individuals in NFL history, is ruling over a barren empire.

The pride and the poise are long gone. The commitment to excellence is history.

What's left is the most dysfunctional franchise in the league. Yes, that counts the Lions, the Chiefs and the Rams.

Davis used to be feared. Davis used to be envied. Davis used to be hated.

Now, he's pitied.

Instead of focusing on winning, Davis appears obsessed with making Lane Kiffin's life miserable. The son of Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin is taking the high road while the Raiders attempt to undermine him in a clumsy attempt to make him resign.

"Al was a sharp guy when I got to Oakland and he taught me a lot about football," Buchanon said. "He was definitely sharp, but for the last six years it's just been a big black hole. Things haven't been the same there since that Super Bowl."

The organization's prolonged disdain for the local media erupted last week in a nasty exchange between a San Jose columnist and a Raiders administrator that quickly became a must-see clip on YouTube.

Remember that scene at the end of "The Godfather: Part II" when Michael Corleone sits all alone, contemplating how it all unraveled?

All Davis is missing is the wooden chair.

From 1969-87, the Raiders won three Super Bowls and were coached by either John Madden or Tom Flores. In the two decades that ensued, nine coaches were hired and the Raiders posted only seven winning seasons.

Once the architect of a dynamic franchise, Davis is now responsible for Oakland's shocking decline.

Like Kiffin, he won't quit. Unlike Kiffin, he should.

The man who loved to tweak former commissioner Pete Rozelle is now Roger Goodell's problem. The man who gathered energy from being reviled is now ridiculed.

Poet Gertrude Stein, asked about her California birthplace, once quipped about Oakland: "There's no there, there."

She could have been talking about the modern-day Raiders.

Just cringe, baby.

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