From Phil Barber:
Disagreement in Raiders' war room?
I haven't heard it from anyone who would be directly involved in the decision-making process, so I can't report it as fact. But there are whispers, both inside and outside the organization, that the Raiders' draft opinions have fissured into three pieces. Word is that the scouting department likes Calvin Johnson, coach Lane Kiffin and offensive coordinator Greg Knapp prefer Brady Quinn, and owner Al Davis wants JaMarcus Russell.
None of it is hard to believe. Johnson, the nearly perfect wide receiver from Georgia Tech, is on top of just about everybody's draft board. Scouts are evaluated by the production of the players they recommend, so why wouldn't the Raiders' scouting department advocate for Johnson? He is the safest pick in the draft.
Kiffin and Knapp, meanwhile, know their grace period in the wake of Art Shell's firing will be short-lived. No one expects the Raiders to win the AFC West in 2007. On the other hand, Davis will demand some level of progress, and Notre Dame's Quinn might be the pick most likely to bring it right away. This team has needed a quarterback since Rich Gannon suffered a career-ending vertebra fracture in the third game of the 2004 season. And Quinn's smarts, dedication and experience make him the most game-ready QB in this year's draft.
And then there is Davis, a man who annually falls in love with the fastest, the biggest or the strongest (but usually the fastest) athlete in the NFL draft. The owner is wowed by physical freaks, and LSU quarterback Russell is just that. He can supposedly throw a football 80 yards in the air, 40 yards while sitting on his backside (a handy trait if you watched the Raiders' offense a year ago). He seems tailor-made for Big Al's seal of approval.
So now comes the fun part. Unless the Raiders trade the first pick and find their options more limited, we will discover Saturday who makes the final call on the No. 1 pick.
Of course, the question is not, "Who has ultimate authority in Oakland's personnel matters?" That has been Davis since 1963, and will be until some major trauma takes him from the head office. The question is, "How much latitude will Davis give his coach, or his scouts?"
So far this year, we have witnessed a slight loosening of the reins. Kiffin was allowed to hire the men he wanted for his coaching staff. Stalwarts such as Fred Biletnikoff and Skip Peete are gone, while a cast of 20- and 30-somethings has flooded the staff.
The Raiders also hired Mark Jackson, a close confidante of Kiffin's, without even knowing what his job would be. They brought him in because Kiffin wanted him, then set about defining his role.
Those are strong votes of confidence, but none of them mean Davis is ready to hand the draft decision to his new coach. Nor does it mean he will defer to his personnel department - a depleted group, by the way, with Sean Jones out of the organization and Michael Lombardi stripped of many duties. But it makes me think it's at least possible Davis will bow to opinion.
Whether you think that's a good thing or a bad thing probably depends on how you feel about JaMarcus Russell, Calvin Johnson and Brady Quinn.
http://raiders.pressdemocrat.com/default.asp?item=577686
