Deadspin: Al Davis

The Raiders Have Fired Hue Jackson

Dom Cosentino — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:48:01 EST

Per Adam Schefter, they're letting Jackson go after one season in which they went 8-8. Al Davis might be gone, but the stability with which he ran the franchise in his later years lives on. [via] More »

A Provocation: My Al Davis Story

Mark Weinstein — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:20:05 EDT

The following is republished with permission from the author's blog, Bluenatic.com. More »

Terrelle Pryor: "I Should Be On The Field Helping" Ohio State

Sports Radio Interviews — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:25:00 EDT

Every morning, the fine folks at Sports Radio Interviews sift through the a.m. drive-time chatter to bring you the best interviews with coaches, players, and personalities across the sports landscape. Today: Regrets, Pryor's had a few. More »

Mike Shanahan Once Ordered Elvis Grbac To Drill Al Davis In The Head With A Pass

Jack Dickey — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 17:00:40 EDT

Al Davis had plenty of respect within the NFL power structure, as we learned this weekend. Those of us who knew him only as a craggy-faced Jamarcus-loving iconoclast now know of him as something better than that, a powerfully transformative figure. But he still had enemies. Among them: onetime Raiders head coach—now Redskins head coach—Mike Shanahan. More »

The Most Influential Sports Uniform Ever

Tom Scocca — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 16:02:13 EDT

We're doing a season-long NFL roundtable with our friends at Slate. Check back here each week as a rotating cast of football watchers discusses the weekend's key plays, coaching decisions, and traumatic brain injuries. More »

Al Davis, All-Time Great Asshole

Jeremy Stahl — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 10:52:22 EDT

S̶t̶e̶v̶e̶ ̶J̶o̶b̶s̶ Al Davis Is Dead (UPDATE)

A.J. Daulerio — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 21:30:00 EDT

~~Steve Jobs~~ Al Davis is dead. The ~~Apple chairman and former CEO who made personal computers, smartphones, tablets, and digital animation mass market products~~ NFL owner who built the Oakland Raiders and became an NFL icon, passed away today. We're going to miss him. Deeply, and personally. More »

The Raiders Have Posted A Video Tribute To Al Davis On The Team's Website

Brian Hickey — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 15:25:00 EDT

Here's the link to it. More »

Stories That Don't Suck: Hunter Thompson On Al Davis

Brian Hickey — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 12:45:00 EDT

Hunter S. Thompson's "Fear And Loathing At The Super Bowl" essay ran in the Feb. 15, 1973 edition of Rolling Stone magazine. In it, Thompson chronicles a pair of encounters with the general manager and "de facto owner" of the Raiders. More »

Al Davis Is Dead (Updated With Links, Video, Goodell Statement)

Brian Hickey — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 10:28:00 EDT

According to the Raiders website, longtime owner Al Davis died this morning and "the Raider family will issue a statement later today." More »

Welcome Back, JaMarcus: Russell Will Return To LSU In The Fall To Take Some Classes

Jack Dickey — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 13:25:00 EDT

Welcome Back, JaMarcus: Russell Will Return To LSU In The Fall To Take Some Classes" alt="Click here to read Welcome Back, JaMarcus: Russell Will Return To LSU In The Fall To Take Some Classes" src="http://cache.deadspin.com/assets/images/11/2011/08/small_explore_deadspin_videos_1042.jpg"/>

LSU Sports Information Director Michael Bonnette tweeted yesterday that former Oakland Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell would be returning to Baton Rouge to take classes in the fall. In his honor, we've cut you the opening credits of Welcome Back, JaMarcus. More »

Stories That Don't Suck: SportsFeat's Guide To Schmuck Owners

Max Linsky | SportsFeat — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 15:20:14 EDT

Every Friday, SportsFeat picks a few great weekend reads for Deadspin. In honor of Frank McCourt, the lockouts, and James Dolan's never-ending flirtation with Isiah Thomas, here are five of the best stories ever written about terrible owners. More »

We Regret Not Covering The Thong-Wearing, Feces-Spreading Meth Addict Raiders Fan Sooner

A.J. Daulerio — Tue, 26 Apr 2011 17:15:00 EDT

We regret the oversight if only because the unnamed author or editor of this story clearly spent so much time debating the sentence construction about 42-year-old Shawn Batie's meth arrest in a Lodi, Calif. cemetery that he or she should be commended for their detailed craftsmanship: More »

News Reports That Subtly Point Out That Al Davis Is Not In Fact "Doing Fine": A Gallery

Emma Carmichael — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 11:35:00 EDT

There were unsubstantiated reports this week that Raiders owner Al Davis was in declining health and had been in the hospital. The Raiders denied this. More »

Last Night's Winner: Al Davis, For Still Being Alive

Barry Petchesky — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 11:15:00 EST

Al Davis is 81, at least in human years. That he's walking and talking and introducing Hue Jackson as head coach is remarkable. Still, you'll thank me for not going with the hi-res versions of these photos. More »

Your NFL Late Games Open Thread

Brian Hickey — Sun, 28 Nov 2010 16:00:00 EST

There's been a lot of Mike Vick talk this week. Probably because he's the most interesting non-concussion NFL story. Living 10 miles from where he works creates an inherent bias, though. So, is Vick's "comeback" the top storyline? More »

Al Davis's Love Of McDonald's Kept Sean Payton From Coaching The Raiders

Barry Petchesky — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 16:50:00 EDT

"You like cheeseburgers?" Davis asked Payton, when courting him for the Raiders job. One Big Mac and some KFC coleslaw later, Payton turned the gig down, and coached the Saints to a title. Somewhere, Davis wonders where it all went wrong. [Via] More »

Jason Campbell Traded to the Raiders, LenDale White and Leon Washington Go to the Seahawks

Gourmet Spud — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 15:20:37 EDT

Said Campbell to ESPN: "I talked to [Al] Davis, and he... wants me to help their team to a new level." Presumably Davis meant the 9th level, so he can take over for Lucifer in a frozen lake of ice. More »

Could There Be a Problem With the Oakland Raiders?

Pareene — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:25:31 EDT

Weird! Journeyman quarterback Jeff Garcia—usually so reticent to speak his mind—is criticizing his former team, the Raiders of Oakland, California! More »

Tim Brown Would Like To Clarify That Whole 'Al Davis Hates Blacks From Notre Dame' Thing

Tommy Craggs — Thu, 14 May 2009 15:20:00 EDT

By now, you've probably heard what Tim Brown told WCNN radio in Atlanta, which was basically that Al Davis finds black athletes from Notre Dame to be a tad, oh what's the word, uppity. More »

OK, Just How Did Michael Crabtree Slip To No. 10 In The Draft?

Rick Chandler — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:15:58 EDT

As if from a Dickens novel, the 49ers found Michael Crabtree in a basket on their porch on Saturday with a note pinned to his blanket: One receiver, courtesy of Mr. Al Davis, Esq. More »

Michael Silver To Josh McDaniels: “You Haven’t Done Dick”

Drew Magary — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 12:15:14 EDT

For this week's Deadcast, we brought on Michael Silver from Yahoo Sports (who sounds remarkably like Leonardo from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) to talk about the Jay Cutler situation. And retractable third arms. More »

The Lane Kiffin Era Continues Its Inexorable Slide Into Craziness

Tommy Craggs — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 15:34:31 EDT

At last spring football has arrived in fair Knoxville, which surely means that rookie coach Lane Kiffin can leave all those little distractions behind and get down to some straight-up coachin', right? Right? More »

The Cable Guy Finally Shows Up

Rick Chandler — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 11:45:44 EST

Sources have told the San Francisco Chronicle and NFL Network that the Raiders have settled on Tom Cable as head coach. Press conference possibly today. [San Francisco Chronicle] More »

Know Your New Tennessee Football Coaches

Rick Chandler — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 12:30:39 EST

Lane Kiffin moves all of his crap into the head football coach's office at Tennessee today, only the third time someone has done that in the past 31 years. Phil Fulmer said goodbye on Saturday and Kiffin will be announced as his successor today, most likely what he's had in mind since the last Sunday in Sept., when he called for that 76-yard field goal against the Chargers. Attempt comically doomed field goal; get self fired by elderly, cantankerous owner; field college coaching offers; profit. One thing he probably didn't think through, however: More »

Who Can Reassemble The Smoldering Rubble That Is The Oakland Raiders?

Rick Chandler — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 16:30:09 EST

As bad as things are going for the San Francisco 49ers this season, they aren't even close to being the most dysfunctional football team in the Bay Area. Just how bad are things in Raiderland, on a scale of 1 to Armageddon? Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha (pictured) and safety Gibril Wilson are now talking mutiny, and they never say anything. More »

Al Davis To Be Wheeled Into Court Yet Again

Rick Chandler — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 13:00:58 EDT

And so it begins ... Lane Kiffin vs. Al Davis in court, as you always knew it would end up. Bright and early this morning, Kiffin filed a grievance with the league alleging that the Raiders owe him the $2.6 million balance on his contract after he was fired in Sept., to which I respond, what took you so long? This one's going to be fun, because Davis lives for such legal drama, and Kiffin seems to have a good case. At any rate, the Raiders team itself surely won't be distracted by any of this! More »

Warren Sapp Weighs In On Al Davis

Rick Chandler — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:30:58 EDT

Warren Sapp isn't quite the Charles Barkley of NFL broadcasting, but he may get there yet, as long as the Al Davis stories hold out. Sapp, a regular on Showtime's Inside the NFL, played for the Raiders for four seasons, and with his insights on Davis and the way things were run, he can finally put his big yap to good use. Sapp said that Lane Kiffin — whom Davis fired last week — was never given a chance to turn the team around. And that's because Davis is out of touch. More »

Al Davis Releases The Hounds

Rick Chandler — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 10:00:55 EDT

As the dust settles from Tuesday's Oakland Raiders press conference, shellshocked witnesses are only now coming to grips with what occurred. I wasn't there, but I listened on the radio, and came away with this impression: Al Davis needs to be tranquilized and relocated further back into the woods. Whenever he emerges into civilization — which is rare these days — only heartache and chaos can result; on Tuesday the target was Lane Kiffin, but next time it could be you or me. Several amusing accounts have emerged this morning, one of the best being from Ann Killion of the San Jose Mercury:

And, right there on stage, Davis disclosed his own dark, vindictive soul. He revealed himself as an owner willing to torpedo his team's season to build a case against Lane Kiffin so he wouldn't have to pay Kiffin. Davis' news conferences are always high drama, but what happened Tuesday at the Raiders facility was off the charts. It was Theater of the Absurd, in two acts, with - I'm not kidding - a 10-minute intermission.

They introduced interim coach Tom Cable following that intermission, and nobody cared. The thing was all about Al and his public dismembering of Kiffin, whom Davis accused of wanton buffoonery, to say the least of it. Kiffin was also, according to Davis, a "liar," and a "disgrace," and might very well be responsible for the nation's financial crisis. It was all of course a bald-face opening gambit in Davis' strategy to establish cause, therefore freeing himself of having to pay the coach the remainder of his contract. To Davis, such machinations are more important than football, or life, itself. But knowing the reason doesn't make it any more palatable. After seeing Davis' performance, Kiffin's attorney advised his client to keep mum, which he is doing, except for an interview with ESPN's Trey Wingo. "I just had a real sick feeling watching that," Kiffin said. "I was kind of embarrassed for (Davis) to be honest with you." Having followed the Raiders and been a fan for most of my life, I have to say that I can relate. Davis' performance was character assasination of the lowest form, unworthy of even the vilest comic book villain. When Davis produced a three-page letter that he had written to Kiffin earlier in the season outlining the coach's faults, and placed the document on an overhead projector, I actually cringed. What next; seizing a female reporter and tying her to the railroad tracks? Other accounts can be found here, and here. And if you'd like to journey into the Heart of Darkness yourself, here's the video: Part 1 here and part 2 here. The sad part is, all of this is bound to be repeated sometime in the near future, either with Cable or some other unfortunate soul. And the pattern will be repeated until Davis ultimately steps down, or is dispatched with a stake through the heart. Until then, enjoy the show, I guess. Raiders' Ugly Way Put On Display For All To See [San Jose Mercury] Al Davis Airs Out The Raiders Dirty Laundry [Bronco Talk] Letter From Davis To Kiffin [Inside The Oakland Raiders] More »

Al Davis Wants To Get A Few Things Off His Chest

A.J. Daulerio — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 18:00:13 EDT

Wow. For those who just witnessed Al Davis' bizarre press conference accusing former head coach Lane Kiffin of "lying" and "propaganda" among other things, I can't tell if I have more respect for Al Davis or am just dumbfounded by the brazenness of it all. Davis has revealed a letter (which he's put on overhead projector for the press corps) that he wrote to Kiffin prior to the Kansas City game outlining the former coach's faults and his bumbling personnel moves. He essentially calls Kiffin a baby for blaming the team's losing record on ownership and for throwing defensive coordinator Rob Ryan under the bus. He also keeps railing about "Mortensen" for breaking the story and accuses Kiffin of leaking the letter to the ESPN reporter because "that's the way he wanted to handle it." (Great question to the local reporters assembled: "Why didn't any of you guys have it?") Part of this a tactical move to publicly demonstrate some "cause" for Kiffin's firing that will allow Davis to get out of paying the rest of the contract, but a lot of it just feels like Davis showing off his scary old Nosferatu side to entertain the assembled reporters. Davis has also accused Kiffin of not wanting quarterback Jamarcus Russell and pouting after he lobbied to push Ryan out to make room for his father, Monte Kiffin. But Davis is insistent that "he wanted to make this work" although it's pretty obvious that he wasn't going to take anymore of this snot-nosed little brat's whining to make it happen. The leading candidate for the job according to multiple outlets is offensive line coach Tom Cable. Davis has yet to make that announcement, but that might not come until the end of this press conference which, at the rate he's rambling, might not end until Friday. And, honestly, after seeing this press conference, I couldn't think of a worse scenario for Cable to enter. UPDATE: Cable's got it. "Interim head coach." Good luck with that. ***** Tonight: You'll have Deadspin contributor Dashiell Bennett live-blogging the Death Battle For The Central between the Sox/ Minnesota Twins right above here so go there and YELL about all the drama of game 163. Tomorrow: I'll be cutting at out early to stand in Ashburn Alley at the Phillies game so you have to look forward to half-drunk bitching/rejoicing at some point when I get back. Thank you for your continued support of Deadspin and all that stuff. Go to PFT to get the Florio rundown of this whole affair. More »

Lane Kiffin Approaching Final Hours Of Employment Under Snarling Corpse

A.J. Daulerio — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:45:58 EDT

After week-long speculation about the fate of the Oakland Raiders beleaguered head coach Lane Kiffin, it appears scary-old-tree-looking owner Al Davis has informed young Kiffin via his silver and black henchmen that he's about to (officially) get canned. Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reported last night that team sources have confirmed Kiffin's imminent departure today and Chris Mortensen piggy-backed off of that tip to get his own anonymous confirmation. More »

Al Davis Finds Your Lack Of Faith Disturbing

Rick Chandler — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:00:23 EDT

This man does not want your pity. Yes, the Oakland Raiders are 0-1, having created such a large vortex of suck on Sunday night against the visiting Broncos that pedestrians, buses, small businesses and I'm pretty sure my cat were inhaled into the blackness, never to be seen again. So bad was the thrashing that MIT temporarily suspended the laws of mathematics to eliminate Oakland from playoff contention after one week. But Al Davis remains defiant, continuing to openly decry, in order: the NFL, lawn trespassers, children, pets, the City of Los Angeles, the City of Oakland, continence, Mike Shanahan, songbirds, nature, sunlight, the running game, short passes, Lane Kiffin, puppies, and most significantly, reality. More »

Javon Walker Talked Out of Retiring By Al Davis

Clay Travis — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:00:45 EDT

Because, honestly, who among us hasn't been overwhelmed by the powers of persuasion of Al Davis? Not that Raiders fans were that optimistic about this season to begin with, but the receiver you just signed to a six year $55 million dollar deal wanting to quit doesn't instill a lot of pre-season confidence. More »

You don't decide when it's time to retire;...

Marcel Mutoni — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 13:30:00 EDT

You don't decide when it's time to retire; Al Davis does: "Oakland Raiders receiver Javon Walker reportedly told the team he wanted to retire and offered to return his $11 million signing bonus before being talked out of it by owner Al Davis." [AP] More »

Don't get up, Dennis. Da Raiders are denying...

skeets — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 14:30:38 EST

Don't get up, Dennis. Da Raiders are denying ESPN's report that Al Davis asked coach Lane Kiffin to resign. [The Sporting News] More »

Al Davis Is Not At All Insane

rickchand — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 13:05:41 EST

We thought you should know that Al Davis stated recently that he will not retire until the Oakland Raiders win two more Super Bowls. We're not saying that it may take a few years, but we did immediately think of this photo. "Al, if you want a two tight end set, beep twice. For a running play, beep once." More »

And Watch ... As You All Turn To Stone

Leitch — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 11:00:13 EST

Yes, yes, Lane Kiffin is the youngest coach in football (and somehow looks even younger in this photo), but in case you were wondering who's still, and always, in charge in Oakland ... why, it's the gnarled ogre that is Al Davis. Tell 'em Large Marge sent ya! More »

Meet Your New Oakland Raiders Head Coach

rickchand — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 14:45:30 EST

The San Diego Union Tribune reports that NFL Hall of Fame receiver James Lofton is in the final stages of negotiations to become the Raiders next head coach, which would complete another shameless raid of the San Diego area by the Bay Area (Jim Harbaugh left the University of San Diego to take the Stanford job recently). We don't know a lot about Lofton's coaching abilities other than he has been the receivers coach for the Chargers since 2002, and that he was thought of highly enough to be a finalist for the head coaching openings at Stanford (finishing second to Harbaugh) and with the Buffalo Bills (last year). More »

Art Shell Would Like To Know How Much Toner You Think He Should Order

rickchand — Fri, 05 Jan 2007 12:15:48 EST

Oh boy, another position for Pete Carroll to consider. Not that there's anything funny about a guy losing his job, but what amused us about the sacking of Art Shell on Thursday was that Al Davis is going to make him stick around and do office work during the final year of his contract next season, when Shell is due to earn $2 million. More »