Angel
03-11-2006, 10:59 AM
Raiders insider: A kinder, gentler Al Davis
By Jim Jenkins -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 11, 2006
One of the most intriguing developments to come out of this week's NFL owners meeting near Dallas, where the owners approved a collective bargaining agreement extension, was the role Raiders owner Al Davis played in the process.
According to reports out of the meetings, the Raiders' owner was less of a maverick and more open, even to the point of shaking hands with league executives and making himself accessible to other owners and the media.
"I wanted it, and we had to have it," Davis told reporters at the meetings. "We do have the greatest game in the world, and we got what we wanted."
In Hawaii, where he was conducting a meeting, NFL Players Association executive director Gene Upshaw said he was pleased with the 30-2 vote by owners to go forward with an CBA extension. He also gave "additional thanks" to Davis for being the first to applaud the announcement and leadership of Commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
This wasn't the equivalent of a recluse going on "Dr. Phil," mind you, but the camaraderie was something of a revelation.
During interviews between sessions, Davis, 76, explained that it was important for him to be present, despite his physical limitations and his unpopular stance among owners, because vital financial decisions had to be made.
"The other owners don't particularly love me," Davis told reporters, "because I'm going to go my own way and do what I think is right. I've fought them. But I also love the league and what's best for football, for the players and the owners. This needed to get done."
From all indications, Davis helped get the CBA crisis on a path to labor peace. It was important to the league to avoid chaos with the players and certainly important to the Raiders. As one of the low-revenue teams, the Raiders will now get a bigger share of the proceeds from the high-end franchises under the new deal.
This is not to say Davis hasn't wielded his expertise before with peers.
Love him or loathe him, fellow owners, even league brass, have learned not to ignore Davis because of his deep background. He is, after all, the only owner in professional football who has been a coach, administrator and commissioner (of the old AFL before its merger with the NFL).
"I think that Al had a great impact on the meeting because he does have tremendous perspective, and when he comes in and says it's time to make the decision for the good of the game, it has a lot of impact, and he reinforced what I had said (during the meetings)," Tagliabue told the NFL Network.
According to reporters at the meetings, it was unusual to see owners interacting with Davis, even picking his brain. Davis usually is considered an outcast because of all of his legal disputes with league.
That Davis decided to be more engaging wasn't surprising.
Late last season, Upshaw, a Hall of Fame offensive lineman for the Raiders, said that whenever he talked with Davis, a prime topic was how critical revenue sharing was to the survival of small-market teams.
And so now the have-nots will get that influx of dough. For the Raiders, it comes during a critical phase in their return to Oakland.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14228979p-15052219c.html
Say it ain't so....they're gonna ruin that raider image!! :eek:
By Jim Jenkins -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Saturday, March 11, 2006
One of the most intriguing developments to come out of this week's NFL owners meeting near Dallas, where the owners approved a collective bargaining agreement extension, was the role Raiders owner Al Davis played in the process.
According to reports out of the meetings, the Raiders' owner was less of a maverick and more open, even to the point of shaking hands with league executives and making himself accessible to other owners and the media.
"I wanted it, and we had to have it," Davis told reporters at the meetings. "We do have the greatest game in the world, and we got what we wanted."
In Hawaii, where he was conducting a meeting, NFL Players Association executive director Gene Upshaw said he was pleased with the 30-2 vote by owners to go forward with an CBA extension. He also gave "additional thanks" to Davis for being the first to applaud the announcement and leadership of Commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
This wasn't the equivalent of a recluse going on "Dr. Phil," mind you, but the camaraderie was something of a revelation.
During interviews between sessions, Davis, 76, explained that it was important for him to be present, despite his physical limitations and his unpopular stance among owners, because vital financial decisions had to be made.
"The other owners don't particularly love me," Davis told reporters, "because I'm going to go my own way and do what I think is right. I've fought them. But I also love the league and what's best for football, for the players and the owners. This needed to get done."
From all indications, Davis helped get the CBA crisis on a path to labor peace. It was important to the league to avoid chaos with the players and certainly important to the Raiders. As one of the low-revenue teams, the Raiders will now get a bigger share of the proceeds from the high-end franchises under the new deal.
This is not to say Davis hasn't wielded his expertise before with peers.
Love him or loathe him, fellow owners, even league brass, have learned not to ignore Davis because of his deep background. He is, after all, the only owner in professional football who has been a coach, administrator and commissioner (of the old AFL before its merger with the NFL).
"I think that Al had a great impact on the meeting because he does have tremendous perspective, and when he comes in and says it's time to make the decision for the good of the game, it has a lot of impact, and he reinforced what I had said (during the meetings)," Tagliabue told the NFL Network.
According to reporters at the meetings, it was unusual to see owners interacting with Davis, even picking his brain. Davis usually is considered an outcast because of all of his legal disputes with league.
That Davis decided to be more engaging wasn't surprising.
Late last season, Upshaw, a Hall of Fame offensive lineman for the Raiders, said that whenever he talked with Davis, a prime topic was how critical revenue sharing was to the survival of small-market teams.
And so now the have-nots will get that influx of dough. For the Raiders, it comes during a critical phase in their return to Oakland.
http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/14228979p-15052219c.html
Say it ain't so....they're gonna ruin that raider image!! :eek: