Brooks Elusiveness...

[Angry Pope]

Brooks giving defenses a good run
The Raiders quarterback is drawing raves for his elusiveness

By Steve Corkran

Raiders coach Art Shell found many plays to his liking upon reviewing videotape of his team's 23-7 exhibition victory over the 49ers on Sunday night. However, one play no doubt stood out.

It was a broken play, one that looked as if it would end Oakland's first offensive possession, the kind of play that victimized Kerry Collins so often the past two seasons.

Quarterback Aaron Brooks got pressured by the 49ers defense, emerged from a gaggle of bodies, looked around and saw nothing in front of him. Nothing, as in no defenders.

Presto. A third-and-nine situation became a Raiders first down at the 49ers 38-yard line in the time it took Brooks to scamper 25 yards.

Shell and the Raiders are counting upon such plays from Brooks this season, the kind that set him apart from Collins, his predecessor as the Raiders starting quarterback.

"It's a big plus," Shell said after the game. "Michael Vick does that all the time."

No one is confusing Brooks for Vick in these parts. But, hey, he isn't Collins, either, when it comes to turning a seemingly negative play into a positive one. That is part of what interested the Raiders when they parted ways with Collins and signed Brooks in March.

"We know he has that ability," Shell said, "and that's a great (asset) for this football team. ... It makes the defensive linemen just a little bit more wary of him."

To that, Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp says, amen. He spent three seasons chasing after Vick when Sapp's Tampa Bay Buccaneers played the Atlanta Falcons twice a year.

"It's always tough whenever a quarterback has the ability to hurt you with his feet," Sapp said. "No one's like Michael Vick, but Aaron's fast enough to where you'd better not let him break containment."

At first, Brooks' primary goal was eluding a sack and finding an open receiver. Seeing nothing but green grass in front of him made that an afterthought.

"It's never part of the plan," Brooks said. "It's just one of the abilities that I was blessed with. Doing that was able to take a lot of pressure off the offensive line. It can help us in a lot of ways."

Brooks' mobility, decisiveness and speed enabled him to turn a drive that looked as if it were going to end with a sack and punt into a first down that facilitated a touchdown-scoring possession.

That, running back LaMont Jordan said, is something that made Brooks' signing with the Raiders such an attractive one.

"When we signed him, I told people that's what he brings to the team," Jordan said. "When teams blitz, if they leave a lane, he's going to take off. That's what we expect of him."

Notes: Starting strong safety Michael Huff was "a little sore" Monday, Shell said, one day after he sustained a sprained left ankle in the second quarter against the 49ers. He is "doubtful" for Friday night's game against the Detroit Lions, Shell said. Veteran Derrick Gibson replaced Huff against the 49ers and is expected to start against the Lions. Shell said he hopes Huff will be ready for Oakland's exhibition finale against the Seattle Seahawks on Aug. 31 but added: "We want to be careful with that." ... The Raiders resume training camp in Napa today and conclude the Napa portion of their preseason work there Wednesday. It's then off to their regular-season training facility in Alameda, where they will practice through the end of the season.

 

[Angry Pope]

GARY PETERSON

Brooks offers promising look

OAKLAND - Raiders fans got their first in-the-flesh peek at new starting quarterback Aaron Brooks on Sunday night. Allow us to articulate the unspoken question that is dancing in their heads this morning:

Who's going to present this guy when he gets inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame?

Sure, you could try to explain to these nice people the relative nature of the NFL's exhibition season, and the fleeting buzz that will be realized from Sunday's 23-7 victory over the agreeable San Francisco 49ers. On some level they know.

But they also know this was the most lively, dynamic game they've seen a quarterback play here since Oct. 24, 2004. If they're really good, they'll remember who that quarterback was.

Do you? Here are some hints. The Raiders blew a lead and lost a game to the New Orleans Saints that day. Kerry Collins, making just his second start in place of the injured Rich Gannon, got booed by the home folks for the first time that day.

Poor Collins was a victim of circumstance. He couldn't compare to Gannon, an MVP and fan favorite. Nor could he compare to the quarterback who was making magic for the other team.

Fellow named Aaron Brooks.

If you could have articulated the boos that afternoon into sentiments fit for print in a family newspaper, you would have come up with something like this: Why can't our guy be like their guy?

Now he is.

In fact, there was a lot for the ticket-buyers to like about Sunday night. The Oakland defense intercepted two of Alex Smith's passes in the first half; one went to first-round draft choice Michael Huff. Running back LaMont Jordan rushed for 46 yards. Sebastian Janikowski's perfect summer continued as he converted his seventh consecutive field goal attempt.

Backup quarterback Andrew Walter looked good, too, completing 8 of 10 passes in leading the Raiders to a touchdown and a field goal on his two drives. But as you look toward the regular season, you figure it'd take an odd bounce of the ball to change the quarterback hierarchy we saw Sunday: Brooks, followed by Walter, followed by Marques Tuiasosopo.

Thus, Brooks' performance invites the greatest scrutiny. In addition to completing 10 of 17 passes for 125 yards, Brooks ran four times for 31 yards. In short, he was as good as the Raiders hoped he'd be when they signed him as a free agent in March.

"He made some nice throws," Raiders coach Art Shell said. "He missed one big one early on to (Alvis) Whitted. I thought he was OK. He did all right."

Brooks was good, but not perfect. As Shell noted, he overthrew an open Whitted down the field on a third-and-nine play. His pass for Randy Moss at the goal line on the Raiders' first drive went into (and through) the hands of 49ers safety Mike Adams.

There was a botched handoff with LaMont Jordan that resulted in a fumble (Brooks recovered). He threw for a touchdown, but had another pass ricochet off the hands of Randal Williams in the end zone -- it was intercepted by Tony Parrish.

But the good far overshadowed the bad. When Brooks left the game at halftime, the Raiders had 10 points, 201 yards total offense and were eight seconds shy of 18 minutes of possession time. Big things if you're a fan getting your first eyeful of the new toy. Not so big if you do this kind of thing for a living.

If you think Shell's appraisal was understated, you should have heard Brooks critiquing himself.

"We're just concerned about our production," Brooks said. "We just want to get better. I felt we got better tonight. I don't think it's necessary to make a big thing about a preseason game."

Well, yes and no. It is important for everyone -- fans, coaches and teammates -- to see the boost Brooks could give the Raiders. It breeds confidence and optimism. He revealed more Sunday than he had in the team's first two games.

"We got off to a little bit of a slow start as far as the first two games," he said. "It's a process."

Consistency, Collins' big bugaboo, will be the key to the process. Because the scouting reports on Collins and Brooks are not as dissimilar as you might imagine, especially if you had been in the stands that day back in 2004. Both are capable of doing great things. But both have had trouble staying good enough for long enough.

Don't try telling that to Raiders fans this morning. It's as if their prayers for a guy like Brooks were answered, if 22 months after the fact.

A short wait, now that it's over. Or if you're from Detroit, where they've been praying for a guy like the other guy since Eisenhower was president.

 

[Angry Pope]

Raiders' offense on a roll

Bruce Adams

Tuesday, August 22, 2006


Quarterback Aaron Brooks had his best game of the preseason, leading the Raiders' starting offense to a 10-0 halftime lead in Sunday's win over the 49ers, and backup Andrew Walter turned in a pretty nifty performance himself.

Walter finished the game with eight completions in 10 attempts for 99 yards, leading two second-half scoring drives that put away the Raiders' 23-7 victory.

Brooks appeared to secure his grip on the role as No. 1 quarterback in what is becoming a two-man show.

All in all, it was an impressive showing on both sides of the ball, but a particular step forward for an offense that has had its share of misfires.

"Winning is a part of what we do ... it creates good habits," coach Art Shell said. "Even though we won three games ... there are a lot of mistakes we have to take care of."

On Sunday, Walter finished with the better quarterback rating, 107.9 compared with Brooks' 76.8 -- a rating brought down by one end-zone interception in Brooks' 10-for-17, 125-yard performance.

"Andrew performed well," Shell said Monday. "He came in and had good presence in the pocket, command in the huddle, threw the ball with touch and threw the ball with accuracy."

His longest throw was a 35-yard strike to John Madsen, keying the drive that set up a 23-yard field goal by David Kimball.

In the first drive of the second half, Walter was 4-for-5 as he brought the second team downfield to set up a 3-yard touchdown run by Justin Fargas.

The improvement on offense was seen all the way down the depth chart with the second- and third-string players holding their own.

Shell acknowledged that the performances in Sunday night's game could force some difficult decisions when it comes time to begin trimming the roster to get to the 53-man regular-season limit.

"It makes it tough, makes for tough decisions," he said. "Those are the kinds of decisions you don't mind having."

Preseason evaluations also can become difficult with injuries.

Shell, for example, was asked about rookie linebacker Timi Wusu, who was impressive in the early going. He missed the last game with a groin injury.

"The evaluation process started during the offseason," Shell said, noting exhibition games were only one factor in assessing a player's worth. "It's an accumulation of a lot of days of working out on the field."

Huff out: Strong safety Michael Huff, the team's No. 1 draft pick this year who turned his left ankle on the infield dirt in Sunday night's game, probably will miss Friday night's exhibition against the Lions at the Coliseum.

Shell and Huff both said after the game that the injury wasn't serious.

On Monday, Shell said further tests had made Huff "doubtful" for the next game, although he said he expected Huff to most certainly be ready for the opening of the regular season.

"We are going to be careful with that," Shell said.

Huff had an interception, which he returned for 44 yards, against the 49ers.

Penalty progress: For the first time in the preseason, the offensive line was not called for any false-start penalties.

"That's always a big plus," Shell said. "We talked about it all last week. ... The aggressive stuff you can live with ... but anything like pre-snap penalties -- false starts, jumping offside -- that's unacceptable."

 

[Angry Pope]

Brooks looking like he's ready

By RON AGOSTINI

OAKLAND — Aaron Brooks clenched his fist as he trotted slowly toward the Oakland Raiders' bench. When he got there, he was greeted like a long-lost friend.
If the pats on his helmet and slaps on his back could be put into words, they would have read, "Welcome, glad you made it."

Brooks, the designated quarterback for the Raiders' 2006 season, had just thrown an 8-yard touchdown pass to Doug Gabriel. He guided the Raiders to a 75-yard 10-play drive to open the game, and he looked like the guy the Raiders thought they had signed — efficient, mobile and confident — an 180-degree flip from his abysmal showing the first two preseason games.

Small wonder the collective exhale from both the Raiders' bench and their fans was almost audible. Sunday night's 23-7 Raider win over the San Francisco 49ers was the Black Hole's first up-and-close and personal look at their new field leader. First impressions matter, right?

The consensus: Finally, a spasm of hope for Brooks.

"It's unnecessary to make a big deal about a preseason game. As I've said before, It's a process," Brooks said afterward. "There is no need to get too high or too low."

Brooks' reaction was predictable for a seven-year veteran who's been bloodied by more important fights. That said, he also knows he occupies higher ground on Mt. Davis than where he stood before the kickoff.

Attach whatever amount of importance you wish to a glorified scrimmage in August, but there was no disguising the Raider Nation's growing angst about Brooks. His performance the first two games wasn't just rusty or sloppy. It was a hide-your-eyes mess — two completions in nine attempts for 28 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Proving once again it's never too early to panic, NFL pundits had launched a little ship of doubt about Brooks: The Raiders blundered by signing a quarterback who was benched by the New Orleans Saints. The Raiders should have kept Kerry Collins. The Raiders have turned to a quarterback who's too old (30) to improve.

Never mind that the talking heads failed to recognize a significant truth: Collins, after two forgettable seasons, had worn out his welcome here. Worse, he had tossed his welcome mat into the bay. The Raider diehards would have burned his No. 5 jersey before they allowed him back onto the field. His days as a Raider were done.

Still, the feeling in Raider Land was that Brooks had to lighten the mood and relax the stress level spiking around him. The time was now for him to strike his first blow as a Raider.

Flashback to the game's first series and a third-and-nine. Brooks, seemingly destined to be sacked, stepped clear of the pressure and turned trouble into a 38-yard gain with his feet. This was the Brooks the Raiders desired. He was the anti-Collins, an escape artist who could flip-flop a bad play into a good one. It was not unlike another ad-lib master — Rich Gannon.

The play signaled a comfort zone for Brooks, because he performed with efficiency the rest of the first half. He threw with better accuracy — 10 for 17 for 125 yards — and repeatedly escaped the 49er pass rush. His only mistake, a tipped-ball interception in the end zone, shouldn't have counted. On the play before, a well-thrown touchdown pass to Courtney Anderson was erased by a shaky interference call.

"He (Brooks) did some good things. He made some nice throws. He missed the big throw out there to (Alvis) Whitted (barely overthrown) earlier in the game but I thought he was OK. He did all right," head coach Art Shell reviewed. "All our quarterbacks did OK for what we asked them to do."

What Shell didn't admit was the almost desperate need for Brooks to earn his salary. He has started 82 games in the NFL, 80 more than fellow QBs Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo combined. The Raiders like Walter — he engineered his own TD drive against the 49er reserves during the second half — but not enough to toss a second-year quarterback into the starting lineup so soon.

No, this is Brooks' season. The Raiders enjoy rehabbing forgotten quarterbacks like Gannon or Jim Plunkett, and Brooks is their latest project. Can they outflank the NFL again?

"I've been pretty comfortable all along," Brooks insisted. "We just got a lot better tonight. Staying out there for a whole half helped all of us."

Regardless, one word best described the vibe around Brooks.

Relief.

 

[Angry Pope]

Brooks looking like he's ready

By RON AGOSTINI

OAKLAND — Aaron Brooks clenched his fist as he trotted slowly toward the Oakland Raiders' bench. When he got there, he was greeted like a long-lost friend.
If the pats on his helmet and slaps on his back could be put into words, they would have read, "Welcome, glad you made it."

Brooks, the designated quarterback for the Raiders' 2006 season, had just thrown an 8-yard touchdown pass to Doug Gabriel. He guided the Raiders to a 75-yard 10-play drive to open the game, and he looked like the guy the Raiders thought they had signed — efficient, mobile and confident — an 180-degree flip from his abysmal showing the first two preseason games.

Small wonder the collective exhale from both the Raiders' bench and their fans was almost audible. Sunday night's 23-7 Raider win over the San Francisco 49ers was the Black Hole's first up-and-close and personal look at their new field leader. First impressions matter, right?

The consensus: Finally, a spasm of hope for Brooks.

"It's unnecessary to make a big deal about a preseason game. As I've said before, It's a process," Brooks said afterward. "There is no need to get too high or too low."

Brooks' reaction was predictable for a seven-year veteran who's been bloodied by more important fights. That said, he also knows he occupies higher ground on Mt. Davis than where he stood before the kickoff.

Attach whatever amount of importance you wish to a glorified scrimmage in August, but there was no disguising the Raider Nation's growing angst about Brooks. His performance the first two games wasn't just rusty or sloppy. It was a hide-your-eyes mess — two completions in nine attempts for 28 yards with one touchdown and one interception.

Proving once again it's never too early to panic, NFL pundits had launched a little ship of doubt about Brooks: The Raiders blundered by signing a quarterback who was benched by the New Orleans Saints. The Raiders should have kept Kerry Collins. The Raiders have turned to a quarterback who's too old (30) to improve.

Never mind that the talking heads failed to recognize a significant truth: Collins, after two forgettable seasons, had worn out his welcome here. Worse, he had tossed his welcome mat into the bay. The Raider diehards would have burned his No. 5 jersey before they allowed him back onto the field. His days as a Raider were done.

Still, the feeling in Raider Land was that Brooks had to lighten the mood and relax the stress level spiking around him. The time was now for him to strike his first blow as a Raider.

Flashback to the game's first series and a third-and-nine. Brooks, seemingly destined to be sacked, stepped clear of the pressure and turned trouble into a 38-yard gain with his feet. This was the Brooks the Raiders desired. He was the anti-Collins, an escape artist who could flip-flop a bad play into a good one. It was not unlike another ad-lib master — Rich Gannon.

The play signaled a comfort zone for Brooks, because he performed with efficiency the rest of the first half. He threw with better accuracy — 10 for 17 for 125 yards — and repeatedly escaped the 49er pass rush. His only mistake, a tipped-ball interception in the end zone, shouldn't have counted. On the play before, a well-thrown touchdown pass to Courtney Anderson was erased by a shaky interference call.

"He (Brooks) did some good things. He made some nice throws. He missed the big throw out there to (Alvis) Whitted (barely overthrown) earlier in the game but I thought he was OK. He did all right," head coach Art Shell reviewed. "All our quarterbacks did OK for what we asked them to do."

What Shell didn't admit was the almost desperate need for Brooks to earn his salary. He has started 82 games in the NFL, 80 more than fellow QBs Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo combined. The Raiders like Walter — he engineered his own TD drive against the 49er reserves during the second half — but not enough to toss a second-year quarterback into the starting lineup so soon.

No, this is Brooks' season. The Raiders enjoy rehabbing forgotten quarterbacks like Gannon or Jim Plunkett, and Brooks is their latest project. Can they outflank the NFL again?

"I've been pretty comfortable all along," Brooks insisted. "We just got a lot better tonight. Staying out there for a whole half helped all of us."

Regardless, one word best described the vibe around Brooks.

Relief.

 

[Angry Pope]

Moss had nice words to say about Walter. He said that he loves his arm and accuracy especially when you are a receiver that is use to going long. He also mentioned that Walter knows the playbook.

We are running the same plays with Brooks as we are with Walter so there is no dumbing things down. Should Brooks get injured, Walter will be up to speed.

Walsh has been good about including checkdowns. On almost every play, either the full back or halfback make their way to the open field or in position for a swing pass.

 

[Angry Pope]

A painful practice

It was great to see Ronald Curry working at practice Tuesday, but several other Raiders wound up sore.

Wide receiver Alvis Whitted was the first to go. He strained his groin and left the field, though he said afterward it was no big deal. Then defensive tackle Michael Quarshie, the Footballin' Finn, had someone fall on the back of his legs. Quarshie hurt his left knee and followed Whitted to the locker room. Finally, we noticed that backup quarterback Andrew Walter was not participating in scrimmages.

Walter had thrown to receivers on the far practice field. But when it came time for live action, Art Shell shut him down. After practice, Shell said Walter's arm was "a little tired." He wouldn't speculate on whether the QB would be ready for Friday's game against Detroit.

"If Rod (Martin, the trainer) comes to me and says, 'Coach, it's iffy, because the arm is really tired,' then we'll shut it down. But if he says 'Oh, he's good to go,' then we'll go. And of course I'll talk to the kid, too. And I've told him before, and I told all the guys, 'Be honest with me. Don't tell me you feel good if you're really not sure. Because we got time to get this thing right.'"

The Raiders do have 19 days to get ready for the regular-season opener against the Chargers. But they have to be a little concerned with Walter's condition. This is, after all, the same shoulder that Walter severely separated in the final regular-season game of his senior season at Arizona. He has thrown 29 passes during the preseason - most among the Raiders QBs, but not enough to expect the shoulder to get "tired."

I didn't talk to Walter about it. I waited about 45 minutes for him to emerge from the locker room Tuesday, but finally left to write about Curry.

Strong safety Michael Huff (ankle) and left guard Barry Sims (elbow) remain sidelined with injuries.

 

[Angry Pope]

QB Brooks brings running game to Oakland

Updated 8/25/2006 2:58 AM ET
By Jorge L. Ortiz

NAPA, Calif. — For a quarterback who had passed for an average of 225 yards a game in his career, Aaron Brooks wasn't accomplishing much with his arm early in his Oakland Raiders tenure.
His 2-for-9 passing for 28 yards in the first two exhibitions wasn't even effective by the standards of a fourth-string quarterback, let alone a player signed as a free agent to a two-year, $8 million contract in the offseason.

So when the first drive of the Raiders' third preseason game appeared to stall Sunday, Brooks took matters into his own hands — with his feet.

He scrambled for 25 yards on third down, the key play in a 75-yard march that concluded with his 8-yard touchdown pass to Doug Gabriel in the Raiders' 23-7 victory against the San Francisco 49ers.

Brooks' scamper sent a clear message to Raiders fans: There's a new quarterback in town, and he's not merely a gunslinger.

"It's just one of my abilities," says Brooks, who rushed for 1,410 yards and a 4.1 average in six seasons with the New Orleans Saints.

"I'm fortunate enough to do it, so I do it in a time of need. Sometimes during the course of a game, a quarterback needs to make a play, not just with his arms but with his feet."

That's a new dimension for the Raiders, who had stationary Kerry Collins under center the last two years. The team's 45 sacks allowed tied for the seventh most in the NFL in 2005.

Says offensive lineman Robert Gallery, who is moving from right to left tackle this season, "We still have to block and do the things we do, but it's nice to have a guy who, when things break down and guys can't get open, he can make plays with his feet."

With coach Art Shell back after an 11-year hiatus, the Raiders are committed to re-establishing the running game. That doesn't necessarily mean integrating Brooks as a regular part of the ground attack, but Shell says he's comfortable giving Brooks some leeway because he trusts him to be judicious and safe in his forays out of the pocket.

"It's an added plus if you do have it," Shell says of a quarterback's quick feet. "The mobility of the quarterback doesn't have to mean he has to run. His movement in the pocket and his sense of awareness of what's going on around him, that's important, too. That's just as important as a guy who can take off and run."

Adjusting to his new surroundings and Shell's system after years of being a fixture in New Orleans has presented a challenge for Brooks, which helps explain his early struggles before going 10-for-17 for 125 yards with a touchdown and an interception against the 49ers.

Some Raiders fans, knowing Brooks was coming off a down season in which he was benched for the final three games, called for Shell to turn to second-year man Andrew Walter. Shell has refused to name a permanent starter but has kept Brooks practicing with the first unit.

Brooks professed not to be concerned by the early criticism. He also downplays the apparent lack of chemistry so far with star wide receiver Randy Moss, who sulked after catching only one pass for 16 yards in the 16-13 win against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings, on Aug. 14.

Shell wants the tight ends to become a bigger part of the offense, as illustrated by their 10 catches for 158 yards against San Francisco. Brooks often talks about spreading the wealth among his pass-catchers. That would seem to run counter to the so-called Randy ratio, the philosophy put forth by the Minnesota coaching staff that Moss needs to have a certain number of passes thrown his way to keep him happy and engaged.

Brooks says his main focus is helping the Raiders, who went 4-12 last season, become a winning club.

"I have to throw the ball to the right places at the right time," Brooks says. "I can't be concerned about the Randy ratio. I think Randy realizes his touches are going to come. It's not about satisfying egos. It's about the team concept

 

[Angry Pope]

Raiders QB interested in team productivity

By Jim Trotter

August 27, 2006

Raiders fans couldn't have been happier Friday night when Aaron Brooks completed three passes to wideout Randy Moss for 102 yards and two touchdowns in a win over visiting Detroit.

To that point, the players had combined for only two completions for 30 yards through three exhibition games. Worse, they seemed to be reading from different playbooks, with Brooks throwing one way and Moss going the other.

The hope from Raider Nation is that Friday's performance was a sign of things to come, but the reality is that the Brooks-Moss situation deserves monitoring.
Brooks, who signed in the offseason after six seasons with the Saints, made it clear early in the week that he isn't interested in the Randy Ratio, the formula that refers to the number of touches Moss needs each weekend for the team to be successful and for Moss to be happy.

Brooks said he's going to follow his progressions and throw the ball to the open receivers. If that happens to be Moss, great. If not, so be it.

“I'm not concerned about that,” Brooks said of feeding Moss. “I have to do my job, and I have to throw the ball in the right places at the right time. I can't be concerned about the Randy Ratio. I think Randy understands that. I think Randy realizes that his touches are going to come.

“It's not about satisfying what people want to see. It's not about satisfying egos. It's about team concept and being productive as a unit and really just trying to get victories. It's not about satisfying personal needs.”

Brooks said Moss has been supportive and patient thus far, but preseason optimism can turn to regular-season pessimism quicker than a streaking Moss when a team struggles. And the Raiders figure to struggle at times – regardless of their 4-0 preseason mark – because of questions on the offensive line and inexperience on defense.

Another reason the situation bears watching is that Moss hasn't looked like his dominant self since sustaining multiple injuries last year against San Diego, the exception being Friday night. Privately, some scouts and league observers have questioned whether Moss has lost a step, claiming that he just doesn't look the same.

A coach with intimate knowledge of the situation threw water on the talk, although he did say it takes Moss longer to reach top speed. If true, that would require Oakland's linemen to hold their blocks a little bit longer for Brooks to have enough time to look downfield.

Moss has never been a precise route-runner, nor has he been a great effort guy if the play is not designed for him. And if the Raiders can't protect Brooks long enough for him to seek out Moss in the vertical game, well, Moss could become an afterthought in the offense, as ludicrous as it sounds.

 

[Angry Pope]

Brooks tries to put Katrina, New Orleans behind him

Aug. 28, 2006

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -While much of the country is remembering the horrors of Hurricane Katrina, Oakland Raiders quarterback Aaron Brooks is trying to forget everything that happened in his last season with the New Orleans Saints - both on and off the field

"I'm trying to cleanse myself from New Orleans so I don't even try to go back and talk about it," Brooks said Monday, the day before the one-year anniversary of Katrina hitting Louisiana. "I don't even try to remember that year. It's in the past, it's over and it's done with. I only have a house to sell so I'm moving forward. I try not to think about any of that stuff."

Eighty percent of the city was swamped when the levees broke after Katrina blew ashore on Aug. 29, 2005. Virtually all 465,000 residents of the city and roughly 1 million more in surrounding areas were forced to flee; much of the housing was heavily damaged or destroyed; and the death toll in Louisiana was close to 1,600.

Brooks said even all the coverage from newspapers and television stations doing retrospectives and stories on the rebuilding effort along the Gulf Coast hasn't led him to think about what he and his teammates went through at this time last season.

"No because I'm not from New Orleans," he said. "New Orleans was my place of residency for six years during the season, but I only worked there. I'm not a New Orleans native, I'm from Virginia. So I just worked there. It was a job and I have a new job. And I'm very excited about being here and I look forward to doing some wonderful things here. ... I don't even try to go back. I don't even talk about it."

Brooks was in the Bay Area with the Saints when Katrina hit. The team had fled New Orleans early to come to California and practice before an exhibition game against the Raiders. When the Saints left Oakland, they went to San Antonio, where they practiced for the rest of the season while playing their home games at three different sites.

Brooks struggled during the difficult time with the Saints, completing 56 percent of his passes and throwing 17 interceptions and only 13 touchdowns in 13 games before being benched for the final three weeks of the season.

Brooks, who played well his first five seasons with the Saints, had a sour ending in New Orleans after questioning whether the organization was headed in the right direction. He signed on with the Raiders in March to replace Kerry Collins.

Brooks struggled early in preseason, completing only one pass in each of the first two games. But the offense has been much sharper against San Francisco and Detroit. Brooks was 19-for-32 for 312 yards, three touchdowns and one interception those two games and appears ready for the season.

Brooks even hooked up with Randy Moss for two touchdowns.

"It was just a matter of two guys being on the same page," Brooks said. "We've been getting better in terms of our connections throughout camp and it showed in the game. More importantly the line did an outstanding job to give me the time to get the ball downfield to Randy, which is really the key."

 

[Angry Pope]

Long Connections Quell Moss-Brooks Rift

Posted Aug 31, 2006

Rumor had it there were chemistry issues between former Vikings receiver Randy Moss and his new quarterback in Oakland, Aaron Brooks, but it’s amazing what a few long completions and two touchdowns will do to cure what ails Moss.

Oakland Raiders quarterback Aaron Brooks and wide receiver Randy Moss put talk of any chemistry issues to rest in a little over 16 minutes of football against the Detroit Lions last week.

Brooks led Moss perfectly with a 63-yard touchdown strike over Fernando Bryant, and later hit him again with a 25-yard laser in between three Detroit defenders.

Combined with a 14-yard hookup on a third-and-7 play preceding the second touchdown, Moss caught three passes for 102 yards and for the first time looked like the receiver who was averaging more than 24 yards per catch last season until struck down by groin, pelvis and rib injuries.

The timing couldn’t have been better since speculation had been growing that Brooks and Moss weren’t on the same page. Moss had just two receptions for 30 yards in two previous preseason games and has had a relatively quiet training camp when contrasted with the miracle-per-day quota he operated on in 2005.

“It was nice to finally hook up for six,” Brooks said. “He ran a hell of a route. The safety bit on the crossing route, Randy did his job diving into the end zone. It was a great effort on his part.”

Moss, a couple of locker stalls away, declined comment.

Coach Art Shell brushed aside all questions of a Brooks-Moss crisis going into the game, and issued a gentle “I told you so” after the 21-3 win.

“As I said before, Randy will get his shots, get his opportunities,” Shell said. “Tonight those opportunities were there. When there was single coverage, Randy got open.”

And even when there wasn’t.

On the 25-yard score, Brooks threaded a pass between three Lions defenders, with Moss doing a nice job in front of the goal post making the catch and getting both feet down.

Last season, one of the criticisms of Kerry Collins was he too often immediately looked the other way when Moss was guarded by more than one defender instead of allowing him the chance to make the play anyway.

“The thing is the defenders had their backs to me,” Brooks said. “I was able to get the ball in faster than they were able to turn around.”

Brooks said Moss had never really been lost, but that he has been concentrating his efforts on getting everyone involved. Seven other receivers aside from Moss caught passes from Brooks against Detroit.

“We all know he’s the man, but the offense is not centered on Randy,” Brooks said. “We all know what Randy’s capable of. We’ve all seen what Randy has done on Monday nights.”

Monday night is when the Raiders happen to open the regular season — at home on Sept. 11 against the San Diego Chargers.

“I would like nothing more than to see this kind of performance on Monday night against San Diego,” Brooks said.

With two solid games under his belt, the memories of Brooks’ poor performances against Philadelphia and Minnesota have receded into the background.

“He’s becoming more and more comfortable,” Shell said. “He’s clearing old systems out of his head and putting in a new system.”

 

[Angry Pope]

Everything's fresh for Brooks
New Raiders quarterback eager to help team get old swagger back

By Bill Soliday

ALAMEDA — Aaron Brooks seems to be smiling more these days — as if he knows something. Perhaps something about retribution.
The Oakland Raiders quarterback is not about to give away state secrets, even on the cusp of a game that has rebirth written all over it.

"Obviously, I can't give the game plan away," he said when asked if the Raiders had a few as yet unseen plays awaiting the San Diego Chargers on Monday.

But this born-again thing in a new city with a new team and a clean slate is something he has a hard time denying. His reaction is to redirect the question.

"As a team it can be the beginning of a new birth," Brooks said, making a neat deflection of the question. "The whole thing of a winning tradition around here, that's the feeling I'm getting from my teammates. Everybody wants to win ... wants to get back on top and experience what it is to be a Raider.

"That is what is important to mefrom Sports 1


and to us ... to get that feeling. Because I want to experience that to the fullest, not just say 'I was here.'"

He — or rather he and his fellow Raiders — couldn't ask for a better platform upon which to launch this luxury liner that takes off from the same slip that saw the Raiders limp home last January paddling a dinghy.

Monday night. National audience. AFC West rival. Sold out stadium in front of Raider Nation. A normal person might go into a swoon. But Brooks, who has been typecast as a cool cat, fully admits excitement is beginning to surface.

"I think the key for me is not to get too emotional, play within my zone like I have been and just go out and play football," he said. "I kind of got the feeling of how it's going to be (at the Coliseum) against Detroit when we were playing pretty well out there.

"I look forward to it being very electrified — a big main event, a stadium sellout. It's all going to be there, and it's just for us. It's set up for us to go out there and perform and make the fans happy."

The Raiders acknowledged the sellout Wednesday, their 30th in 89 home games dating back to their return in 1995. Brooks is counting on energy to take his new team to greater heights. First, though, he wants to make sure he isn't too hyped to be effective.

"Every now and then there's butterflies," he said. "But you take that first snap and get rolling a little bit and then it's on."

Brooks said that after signing with Oakland in March, he has come to view the Raiders as "his team."

"As a starting quarterback you've got to feel that way," he said. "But at the
same time, it's our team."

The two touchdown passes Brooks threw to Randy Moss in the first half of the Detroit game encouraged the former New Orleans Saint. But the test, he said, would be different against the Chargers.

"We know it's going to be a lot harder," Brooks said. "It is going to be a test for us offensively to see how we handle adversity. This team has been through a lot over the years, and I don't know how well they handled adversity. It'll be a true test to see how well we do when we're not doing so well."

Brooks left New Orleans in a surge of criticism that trailed him all the way to Oakland. Brooks says he will enter the game with a mad streak going, however he's struggling to make it a limited one.

"I'm always going to play with a chip on my shoulder," he said. "That's me. But I'm not playing this game (against) the

Aaron Brooks looks down field for a pass against Detroit. (Michael Lucia/staff)

people who have doubted me for years. I've grown out of all that. I've learned it doesn't help me.

"I correct people, and all of a sudden they're coming back, and they've got some more fuel to throw to the fire. So I'm not trying to get into proving points to people or trying to have a confrontation about it through the media.

"This team doesn't need it either. New place, new start, new foundation, new beginning. I don't want to do anything to bring all that craziness here. That was back then."

And now is near.

EXTRA POINTS: Coach Art Shell made a surprise announcement Wednesday — he said his starting WR opposite Randy Moss would be Alvis Whitted. It will be his eighth start in five years in Oakland. ... The Raiders re-signed CB Duane Starks after releasing S Hiram Eugene. Starks never left the area after being released Saturday, and Shell said it had been the plan to re-sign him all along. ... C Jake Grove practiced Wednesday but still has not been given the go-ahead to start Monday. ... The Raiders listed Grove (shoulder) and TE John Madsen (ankle) as doubtful for the game. Listed as questionable was DE Lance Johnstone (shin). Probables included Whitted (groin) and TE James Adkisson (knee). ... The team signed former Cal RB Adimchinobi Echemandu to the practice squad.

 

[Angry Pope]

"New beginning" for Brooks



Posted Sep 7, 2006

Aaron Brooks is either cool under pressure or aloof and disinterested.

He is strong-armed and mobile or error-prone and susceptible to sacks.
He is "Kerry Collins with legs" or just the man to lead the Oakland Raiders out of a 13-35 wilderness and back into relevance in the AFC West.

The truth is, the Raiders have no idea what they have at this point and won't until the season starts playing itself out Monday night against the San Diego Chargers.

The Raiders raised more than a few eyebrows with their decision to make Brooks their quarterback. Fair or not, he earned the reputation as a quarterback that will make the killer mistake instead of as a man who compiled a pretty respectable 43-43 overall record through the 2004 season with one of the NFL's worst franchises.

The Raiders, in the off-season, parted ways with Kerry Collins after what amounted to a charade in terms of renegotiating a contract. Collins -- perhaps unfairly considering his 20-12 touchdown-to-interception ratio -- was targeted as the reason the Raiders were 4-12, along with coach Norv Turner.

Both the quarterback and coach had to go to appease a dwindling ticket base. Coach Art Shell's return has been met with mostly approval from Raider Nation. Brooks has been mostly a wait-and-see proposition.

The Raiders' stayed on the sidelines when it came to available quarterbacks such as Drew Brees, Daunte Culpepper and Steve McNair.

There is a faction of the fan base that is convinced second-year quarterback Andrew Walter is the answer.

Instead, the Raiders pounced on Brooks when the Saints cut him loose. The Walter camp has been quieted somewhat by their man's shaky play plus a troublesome throwing shoulder.

Brooks said he has grown out of attempting to argue with the critics regarding his stay in New Orleans or his potential in Oakland.

"I correct people and all of a sudden they're coming back and they've got some more fuel to throw on the fire," Brooks said. "So I'm not going to get into proving points to people or having confrontations through the media. I don't need that in my life right now. This team doesn't need it either. New place, new start, new foundation, new beginning. Everything is great for me. I don't want to do anything to bring all that craziness here."

In the pre-season, Brooks recovered from a terrible start in his first two games to look extremely sharp in the next two. He made a brief, ineffective appearance in the Oakland's 30-7 loss to close out the pre-season against Seattle.

Under new offensive coordinator Tom Walsh, the Raiders have gone back to a power-running, vertical-passing system similar to the one they ran during Shell's last tenure in Oakland from 1989-94.

It puts pressure on the quarterback to hold the ball for longer periods of time than normal and stress on the offensive line to keep defenders away. If the Raiders, 32nd and 29th the last two seasons in rushing, continue on that road, it will be a long year for whoever quarterbacks the Raiders.

Shell promises the Raiders will run effectively. Which means Brooks must be the man to keep wide receiver Randy Moss happy. Whispers of a chemistry problem between the two were temporarily quieted when they connected for touchdown passes of 67 and 25 yards in a 21-3 win over the Detroit Lions.

On the first play, Moss blew past single coverage and was in the clear. On the second, Brooks threaded the ball between three defenders who had their backs turned.

While Brooks has said all the right things regarding Moss and his ability, he refuses to get into discussions about force-feeding the ball to the Raiders top talent.

"I'm not concerned about that," Brooks said. "I have to do my job, and I have to throw the ball in the right places at the right times. I can't be concerned about the Randy Ratio. I think Randy understands that. I think Randy understands that his touches are going to come. It's not about satisfying what people want to see. It's not about satisfying egos. It's about team concept and being productive as a unit and really just trying to get victories."