If you watched the draft for nothing else, it was to remind you that all was right with the world, that black was still black and white still white, that 1 still equalled one, and that Al Davis would still make you spit up your beer on draft day with his number one draft pick. (And generate a chorus of boos from the audience--not that boos mean anything in particular from a Jets fan-heavy crowd.)
The reliable comedy unfortunately comes at the expense of one Darrius Heyward-Bey, who in addition to sounding like a British nobleman also happend to have run a very fast 40 at the combine. Proving that Daniel Snyder isn't the only NFL owner who likes to lunge after shiny things and candy, Al Davs--um, pardon me--
the Raiders organization then decided to take Heyward-Bey despite his iffy hands and lack of dominance at the college level.
Tom Cable, Davis' personal signal-caller (what most would call a coach)
has no problem with this, of course.
"The thing that worked out for us is, we were all on the same page, we were going to make sure we filled needs for our football team," Cable said. "And regardless of what anyone says, it's OK. I don't know who you're watching, but the guys were good, (from) the feedback I got."
After he said this, Cable nodded and walked in a jittery, almost puppet-like manner off-stage. The Raiders then followed up the risky pick of Heyward-Bey with a slightly less gamble-ish pick of Michael Mitchell, an Ohio State safety, another receiver in Louis Murphy of Florida, and a particularly athletic cab driver named Frank from Oakland that Al Davis "just saw something in." The other owners in the league applauded all of the moves, as it gives many of them one easy win on their schedule and the added benefits of a good healthy belly laugh on an otherwise stressful day.
This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.
Comments
Would it have killed ESPN or NFLN to put a camera in the Oakland Raiders “War Room” so we could have seen Al disecting 40 times and writing snarky letters to the press explaining the Raider way and how everyone is out to get him?
by ChiAdam on Apr 27, 2009 10:48 AM EDT reply actions
As long as he is in his cab, the hack is faster than Devin Hester.
by Raisin' up off the cot on Apr 27, 2009 5:05 PM EDT reply actions
Let people talk their crap!! What we could have done or what everyone else though we should have picked is in the past now. Its time to go forward and get the RAIDERS back to the top. I think DHB will do great if he works hard to get better, and for craptree, he seemed to cocky and sounded to much like TO. lets see how good he does with a team that wants to run the ball because they have no QBs to throw him the ball. RAIDER NATION BABY!!!!!!
by Kurt Cockrell on Apr 27, 2009 10:25 PM EDT reply actions
Yes, Al Davis and the Raiders are a joke.
Speaking of which, who’s the scribe who wrote this bit? The "less gamble-ish" pick of the Ohio State safety?
Never mind the sheer poetry; come back when you know something about football and try again.
Better yet, don’t.
by Drafty on Apr 27, 2009 10:41 PM EDT reply actions
come on drafty u don’t get the reference? He was talking about how Mitchell (hey I am a buckeye fan and I forgot who he was) is less like former OSU buckeye and dophin wide out Gamble (also picked way too high). I kind of liked it
by wmyers6 on Apr 28, 2009 3:29 PM EDT reply actions
Any pharmaceutical company can use the Raiders fans to test drugs for depression, anxiety and pain as long as they have Al Davis as their owner.
by atila on Apr 29, 2009 10:46 AM EDT reply actions
People like you Spencer need to wait first before giving opinions and find out if these guys are not good players. There are plenty of Raiders bashers on the media, by you being another doesn’t mean you will keep your job at Sporting News. Al Davis and the Raiders believe in a certain way to play football, and he was coaching football before you were born. Maybe if the coaching can do their jobs then there will be a lot of surprised media next football season. There is nothing wrong with adding team speed, because at the end thats the deciding factor in close games.
by xavioly on May 6, 2009 11:30 PM EDT reply actions
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