Raiders sign Jeff Geroge

[Crossbones]

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -The Oakland Raiders signed Jeff George to a contract Monday, bringing back a player who hasn't thrown an NFL pass in five seasons.

George, the No. 1 overall pick by Indianapolis in 1990, joined the team in time for Monday's afternoon practice. He previously played for the Raiders in 1997-98, starting 23 games and throwing 33 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

It is not immediately clear what his role will be on the Raiders, who already have Aaron Brooks, Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo on the roster.

George played with the Colts from 1990-93. He was in Atlanta from 1994-96, then spent two seasons with Oakland and one with Minnesota before joining the Redskins in 2000, first as a backup. He was signed by Seattle as insurance midway through the 2002 season, but didn't play. Chicago signed him late in the 2004 season, but he never played for the Bears either.

George, known for his strong arm and clashes with coaches, has a 46-78 career record as a starter and has never lasted longer than four years with any one of them.

George hasn't played since 2001, when he was cut after two games with the Redskins. In his last two games with Washington, George had a quarterback rating of 34.6, completing 23 of 42 passes with three interceptions.

In his next-to-last game with Washington, he and coach Marty Schottenheimer had an animated sideline discussion after George committed four turnovers and was removed from the game.

George also had a sideline argument with coach June Jones when he was with the Atlanta Falcons in 1996, and the team suspended him and then cut him.

George played well his first season in Oakland, throwing for 3,917 yards and 29 touchdowns in 1997. He struggled with injuries the following season, starting only seven games, and was replaced the following season by Rich Gannon, who was a better fit in coach Jon Gruden's West Coast offense.

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It's also on our home page: http://www.raiders.com/newsroom/newsroomNewsDetail.jsp?id=27512

 

[Angry Pope]

Now trade Tui.

 

[Angry Pope]

Raiders sign George

August 28th, 2006
By Jerry McDonald

OAKLAND _ A few months ago, Raiders personnel executive Mike Lombardi confirmed Jeff George had called and asked for a tryout.

George got more than that Monday. He got a contract.

George, 38, was signed by the Raiders, a spokesman said. A nine-year veteran, George has not thrown a pass in an NFL regular-season game since 2001, when he played for the Washington Redskins.

For the past four seasons, George has spent parts of seasons with the Seattle Seahawks (2002-03) and Chicago Bears (2004-05). He never played in a game with either team, and in fact never suited up for the Bears.

An Oakland Raiders starter in 1997-98, George, completed 290 of 521 passes for 3,997 yards, 29 touchdowns and only nine interceptions.

The following season, George suffered a serious groin injury and was in and out of the lineup. At the behest of coach Jon Gruden, the Raiders opted to default on a bonus payment for George and instead signed free agent Rich Gannon.

A Raiders spokesman said George would be made available after practice.

Where George fits in _ or if he fits in _ is a mystery.

Backup quarterback Andrew Walter, who missed the Lions game with a sore shoulder, said during Monday’s open locker room the injury was not serious and he expected to play against Seattle.

 

[Angry Pope]

His arm still works

August 28th, 2006

OAKLAND _ There’s a larger bald patch than there was eight seasons ago, but the throwing arm of Jeff George looks pretty much the same.

During the half-hour portion of practice team policy allows for media purposes, George’s first pass was a 3-yard flip over the middle to tight end Derek Miller at 2:29 p.m.

He later hit Burl Toler on a slant and Jerry Porter on laser-guided strike in stride before a throw at the ankles of Johnnie Morant fell incomplete.

 

[Crossbones]

Either Tui is toast or Walter's injury is more than the Raiders have let on.

I'd say it's 50/50 right now.

 

[Angry Pope]

By George, Jeff is back

David White

The Raiders signed 38-year-old quarterback Jeff George on Monday morning, and the former Raiders quarterback (1997-98) was dressed and practicing with the team by afternoon.



Jeff George, back in the day.

George spent the parts of the past two seasons on the Chicago Bears roster, but has not played in an NFL game since 2001, when he played in two games for the Washington Redskins.

Talk about a curious move at a curious time.

The Raiders seem set at quarterback with Aaron Brooks, Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo.

They signed George one day before the roster must get cut to 75 players.

Walter has been sidelined one week with a "tired arm" but said he expects to play Thursday.

Speaking of former Raiders quarterbacks, Kerry Collins signed with the Tennessee Titans. You'll remember him as last year's starter who was cut loose so the Raiders could go after Aaron Brooks.

 

[Angry Pope]

Backup quarterback Andrew Walter, who missed the Lions game with a sore shoulder, said during Monday’s open locker room the injury was not serious and he expected to play against Seattle.

Walter appears to be fine though.

 

[Crossbones]

Walter appears to be fine though.

Guess that shoots down my theory.

Nice knowin' 'ya Marques.

 

[Angry Pope]

Guess that shoots down my theory.

Nice knowin' 'ya Marques.

What do you think we can get for him?

 

[Rupert]

Sounds like an hasta-la-vista for Tui. If there is true concern over Walter's arm, then someone else has to be the #2 in case Brooks goes down. If the club isn't confident in Tui, then they need a veteran backup. George fits the bill.

The other possible issue, is that they may have confidence in Tui as a QB, but that the offense would have to change. I think I remarked after one of the earlier games that he was effective, but the offense looked decidedly west coast instead of vertical stretch.

Whatever the issue, it's definitely a head scratcher.

 

[Angry Pope]

Tui is a heck of a nice guy but I have no confidence in him at all. For me, Jeff George as rusty as he is can do a better job than Tui at this point.

 

[Crossbones]

No idea what they could get for Tui. theere is speculation around that maybe Al has packaged Tui and Porter into some sort of deal.

Who knows.

The Dark Lord works in strange ways and usually comes out on top. This whole thing really doesn't bother me at all.

 

[Angry Pope]

Paging Vince Evans

The best thing about the Raiders' signing Jeff George on Monday? It was so patently unbelievable, it gave you carte blanche to mess with people's heads.

Raiders PR director Mike Taylor broke the news after the open locker room session at midday, gathering the present writers in a circle. The reaction: several seconds of dumbfounded silence. Then came the opportunity to inform each new person who walked in the door, eliciting the expected "yeah, right" responses.

I called one writer who wasn't in Alameda on Monday and told him, "The Raiders signed Jeff George. You'd better get something up on your web site."

This is standard operating procedure when anyone has the audacity to miss a day of work. People call the slacker and report trades that didn't really happen, or fictitious locker-room outbursts worthy of the HBO show "Playmakers." If you can introduce a mere hint of doubt, you win. My colleague soon called back and left a message: "Sure, Shecky Greene. I know the Raiders didn't sign George, because they already signed Rusty Hilger and Billy Joe Hobert."

It's no secret that Al Davis always loved George's arm. (A lot of football people did.) And he had one fabulous season here, putting up 3,917 yards and 29 touchdowns for a 4-12 team with an abysmal defense in 1997.

Still, the transaction was nothing short of bizarre. If the Raiders wanted George back, he was available in July- and May- and last November. Why now? The offense had just started to find its rhythm, and the team must cut 32 players from the roster by Saturday. Is Andrew Walter's shoulder condition more serious than the Raiders are letting on? Walter said he was fine Monday morning, and he threw that afternoon. Is Marques Tuiasosopo about to be traded? If so, it seems like the team would do that first, then announce George's arrival.

With any luck, some of the mystery will be peeled away from this situation over the next couple days. Or maybe it won't. These are the Raiders, after all, and they don't necessarily need an explanation for signing a 38-year-old quarterback with a career winning percentage of .371.

 

[Rupert]

Well, I'm really thinking WTF? If Kerry Collins can't run this offense, then neither can Jeff George. It's as simple as that.

It can be spun that we dumped Collins because of his contract, and George isn't earning nearly as much. The bottom line is they're both losers and always will be. Brooks has a winning record in his career.

I actually have about as much confidence in Tui as in George. Sure that article about George sounds nice, but was it a 7 on 7 drill? Then we're not talking about pressure, or sliding in the pocket, we're talking about looking for an open guy and hitting him. We ALL know George can do that. But we also know that George usually folds under pressure. He's worse than Peyton Manning in big games.

But then again, we don't really expect big games this season do we? This is supposed to be a rebuilding year isn't it? And if it isn't, it will be a competitive year because our defense keeps us in games. The problem is George is best when there's nothing on the line. Then again, Tui's best when the game's out of reach and a miracle comeback is practically impossible.

You know, there is another possibility: we just cut our #5 QB, we supposedly LOVE our #4, we're not going to play Brooks more than a series Thursday, and Walter might not be able to throw that much. Can we really go through the whole game with Tui at QB? Maybe it's not that bad an idea, but the real issue if we're hiding our #4 is we need another arm. We cut #5 either because he sucks, or we need him to clear waivers in case #4 doesn't. It could be really complex.

But it would be nice if we were packaging Tui and Porter for a couple of picks next year.

 

[Angry Pope]

Hello old friend: George back with Raiders


By Steve Corkran

August 28, 2006

Should be good this week. Practice today and everything should be good. The Raiders released six players on Monday, but it was the one they signed that garnered the most attention. Yes, quarterback Jeff George is back with the Raiders after spending the past seven seasons bouncing around the league.

George, 38, passed his physical Monday morning, signed a contract and participated in practice. Once again, he donned uniform No. 3 and looked much like the player who left here after the 1998 season.

He hasn't played an NFL regular-season game since he started two games for the Washington Redskins in 2001. He did not play in any games for the Seattle Seahawks in 2002-03 or the Chicago Bears in 2004-05.

Aaron Brooks is the projected starter for the Raiders this season. It remains unclear what George's role will be with the Raiders if he makes it past the second and final roster cutdown Sunday.

George was signed as an emergency measure in light of backup Andrew Walter experiencing soreness in his right (throwing) shoulder this past week, a person in the front office said.

Walter did not play in Oakland's exhibition game against the Detroit Lions on Friday night as a precautionary measure. An MRI revealed 'no structural damage,' according to coach Art Shell.

Walter on Monday said that his arm feels fine.

'I'm good,' Walter said before practice. 'Should be good this week. Practice today and everything should be good.'

George, 6-foot-4 and 214 pounds, started 23 games for the Raiders from 1997-98. During that time, he passed for 33 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He has started 124 games in a career that began with the Indianapolis Colts in 1990. He has 154 touchdowns and 113 interceptions overall.

The Raiders parted ways with George after the 1998 season and signed Rich Gannon as his replacement.

 

[Angry Pope]

Well, I'm really thinking WTF? If Kerry Collins can't run this offense, then neither can Jeff George. It's as simple as that.

It can be spun that we dumped Collins because of his contract, and George isn't earning nearly as much. The bottom line is they're both losers and always will be. Brooks has a winning record in his career.

I actually have about as much confidence in Tui as in George. Sure that article about George sounds nice, but was it a 7 on 7 drill? Then we're not talking about pressure, or sliding in the pocket, we're talking about looking for an open guy and hitting him. We ALL know George can do that. But we also know that George usually folds under pressure. He's worse than Peyton Manning in big games.

But then again, we don't really expect big games this season do we? This is supposed to be a rebuilding year isn't it? And if it isn't, it will be a competitive year because our defense keeps us in games. The problem is George is best when there's nothing on the line. Then again, Tui's best when the game's out of reach and a miracle comeback is practically impossible.

You know, there is another possibility: we just cut our #5 QB, we supposedly LOVE our #4, we're not going to play Brooks more than a series Thursday, and Walter might not be able to throw that much. Can we really go through the whole game with Tui at QB? Maybe it's not that bad an idea, but the real issue if we're hiding our #4 is we need another arm. We cut #5 either because he sucks, or we need him to clear waivers in case #4 doesn't. It could be really complex.

But it would be nice if we were packaging Tui and Porter for a couple of picks next year.

I am not a big Jeff George fan but he is better than Collins...significantly. We signed George now probably to give him the second half reps on Thursday and probably shelve Tui.

George would be our third string so we wouldn't be using him in the playoffs.

Tui has been with us long enough and I have seen enough of him to know that he won't be anything special. Maybe with a different offense but truthfully, he has had many different offenses while here with us.

Tui's passes flutter after a certain distance, he loves to ad lib and his passes are thrown in positions where he is likely to get our receivers injured.

By the way, the Eagles traded for Dante Stallworth so if we are trading Porter, the Eagles aren't of the race.

 

[Rupert]

I am not a big Jeff George fan but he is better than Collins...significantly. We signed George now probably to give him the second half reps on Thursday and probably shelve Tui.

George would be our third string so we wouldn't be using him in the playoffs.

Tui has been with us long enough and I have seen enough of him to know that he won't be anything special. Maybe with a different offense but truthfully, he has had many different offenses while here with us.

Tui's passes flutter after a certain distance, he loves to ad lib and his passes are thrown in positions where he is likely to get our receivers injured.

By the way, the Eagles traded for Dante Stallworth so if we are trading Porter, the Eagles aren't of the race.

The problem isn't George's physical skills. It's his brain. Now maybe it's because he's been on piss poor teams, but his record stinks too. I'm not going to search his stats, but I think his best season was with Minnesota. He played in 14 games (but Cunningham played in 7 so it wasn't him for all 14) and the team went 10-6. Other than that he's a loser. I always liked his arm. So what? It's attached to the rest of him.

Tui is the typical college QB. He makes most of his plays when he dials in. He needs lots of time in the game to get dialed in. I think he ad lib's when he doesn't get the "feel" of what's going on. And I agree it's a bad thing. His passes actually are pretty good when he's dialed in. But we go right back to the problem of getting him dialed in. But I think his college career also showed he's not clean out of the gate even when he's playing well. So....

Tui could get dialed in if someone was forced to give him the starters nod. His best shot was when Gannon went down, and he promptly got injured, losing his only legitimate shot. I think it's obvious he missed the only boat he's likely to get. With Walter here, Tui is expendable.

Tui also has Gannon's problem. If the passing lane isn't there, he has to move to get one, or do as Gannon also did and wait for the crossing RB to get in the lane you do have. Why was Gannon dialed in when Tui couldn't get there? Simple, Gannon had years of experience Tui didn't have, and I'd be willing to bet he's got a drive Tui just can't match. Again, this isn't in Tui's favor.

All that said about Tui, I still don't have more confidence in George than in Tui. If I had to go with one guy for 10 games in a throwaway season, I'd go with Tui over George. But if the season isn't a throwaway, George would be the better answer, especially with the offense we're running. The deep throws need accuracy, and it's better if they don't float. Tui's will float, no question. If he starts Gannon-izing the offense, he'll bring the DB's up and stifle the running game. If he could get dialed in (again that big issue) he'd be pretty good, and that would give us someone to keep around for a couple seasons. But that would require the throwaway season first, and I don't want to get there, we've done 3 straight!

 

[Angry Pope]

I agree that George is not the most cerebral of quarterbacks but I would still take him over Collins.

I think Gannon was excellent in the offense we had while he was here because he is a perfectionist and detail oriented. Tui is more of a gut feeling type of quarterback and I don't see the type of mindframe in Tui to get him close to Gannon.

Tui is short, like Gannon, but Gannon was smarter so he could make it work, in my opinion.

Tui gets dialed in when the adrenaline starts to flow...I prefer a more cerebral quarterback. The reason I like George is because of his arm and I think that is the type of backup we should have been looking for. Kent Smith, once on the 53 man roster in the future, provides that.

The last thing was that I don't see us Gannon-izing the offense. This is the offense Al wants and I would be shocked if we ever revert back to that.

 

[Angry Pope]

The George file

August 28th, 2006
By Jerry McDonald

Random observations as the Raiders once again defy convention, common sense, logic and any other quality you care to name by signing Jeff George to a contract:

— There is really only one way this has any effect on the 2006 Raiders _ if George gets into a game.

Odds of that happening? Less than 10 percent. Coach Art Shell said he was “intrigued'’ by George but also said, “we’re going to look at him and see how it goes.'’

– Let’s not fall over ourselves assuming the Raiders don’t like Aaron Brooks. Or that Andrew Walter’s shoulder is in need of reconstructive surgery. Or that Marques Tuiasosopo is headed somewhere by trade.

The bottom line is Al Davis has always liked Jeff George. Just like he always liked Shell. He gave Shell a second chance, now he’s giving one to George.

It’s only a problem if Davis extends his reach and demands that Shell actually play George in a regular-season game. And Shell obeys.

While it’s all in good fun to assume Davis will “dominate'’ everything that goes on between the lines, indications are so far that the 2006 Raiders have been a Shell operation when it comes to the on-field product.

In other words, there’s no guarantee George even makes the roster.

NFL players are not paid until the regular-season. Their salary is divded into 17 weeks of payments. If George got a bonus, odds are it was minimal. The Raiders will be out nothing if they cut him before Sept. 11.

— It probably helped George’s cause that Marty Schottenheimer, upon benching George while coach of the Redskins in 2001, said, “The bottom line is I don’t think the Washington Redskins could win with Jeff George as our quarterback.'’

If that’s what Schottenheimer thinks, it’s good enough of a reason for Davis to give George a shot.

— You want the definitive comment on what it’s like to be a coach with the Raiders? Check out what George to the media about his arrival.

“It was kind of funny. I walked in and the quarterbacks coach looked up and didn’t know who I was. He said, `Oh . . . when did we get you?'’

Defensive end Trace Armstrong said it was comical about how little information was dispensed to players and coaches. Jon Gruden once “cut'’ wide receiver/return specialist David Dunn only to come out to practice the next day and find out he’d been overruled.

Dunn then fumbled away a punt return which cost the Raiders a game against Arizona.

Look, Davis is the boss and can sign and cut whoever he wants. It’s just that communication is not one of his strengths. If you’re the coach of the Raiders, you deal with it.

The head coach has the authority to play who he wants _ but he needs to stomach to stand up to Davis and defend his decision.

– Of course George threw the ball well in practice. He’ll probably be able to throw strikes at age 55. It’s the skill that keeps bringing coaches back to him.

George might be the best practice quarterback of all time. As Jon Gruden said, “He can knock a bird out of at tree while looking the other way.'’

It’s just that once the real games begin, knocking birds out of trees gives way to that old winning and losing thing.

— As big as George’s numbers were in 1997, he was sacked a career-high 58 times _ and it was that stat which contributed to the Raiders having the worst time-of-possession figure in the NFL.

— Funny how George is known for his sideline blowup with June Jones which led to his exit from the Atlanta Falcons. As a Raider, George was so laid-back Gruden called him “The Iceman'’ and he did it with sarcasm.

— If George plays against Seattle Thursday, don’t discount the possibility of him doing well. He arrived late to camp in 1996 with the Falcons, took the field against the Raiders, and cut their vanilla defense to ribbons without much practice.

When the Raiders got back to Napa, defensive coordinator John Fox left the Marriott and never came back.

— When George was the starting quarterback for Minnesota in 1999, Randy Moss had 80 receptions for 1,413 yards and 11 touchdowns. Shell confirmed Moss was one of the Raiders who had lobbied for George.

Shell didn’t say who else, Lance Johnstone played with the Vikings while George was there. The only Raider on the roster who was with the team in 1997 was center Adam Treu.

 

[Angry Pope]

Raiders sign journeyman QB Jeff George

Updated 8/28/2006 9:08 PM ET

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Jeff George never doubted he had what it took to be an NFL quarterback, even when he was coaching the run-and-shoot offense last year for his son's fourth grade team.

The former No. 1 overall pick and strong-armed passer who bounced around the league for more than a decade is back after signing a contract with the Oakland Raiders on Monday, nearly five years after he last threw an NFL pass.

"I always thought I should've been out there — for whatever reason, I wasn't," George said. "I was out last year. It's tough watching TV and seeing the guys ... and you're not part of that. So I'm just very thankful this organization believed in me and allowed me another opportunity, because I don't know where I'd be without them."

George, the top pick by Indianapolis in 1990, previously played for Oakland in 1997-98, is mostly an insurance policy for the Raiders, who already have Aaron Brooks, Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo on the roster.

Brooks has played well the past two preseason games and will open the season as the starter, and Walter is viewed as Oakland's quarterback of the future.

Walter missed the last preseason game with a sore right shoulder, but practiced Monday and said he felt fine and should play this week. Shell said the main reason to sign George was to get him familiar with the system in case they needed him later this season.

"It's a precaution for us to bring a guy like that in because you can lose a quarterback," Shell said. "And then when you lose one you have to have somebody ready to go. Even if he doesn't stick with us, there'll be somebody out there that knows a little bit about our system."

George made a few throws in the portion of practice that was open to the media, including two sharp passes deep down the middle of the field.

"I've always been intrigued by the guy, to be honest with you," Shell said. "He still has that zip, he still has that quick release and was very impressive."

George, 38, played with the Colts from 1990-93. He was in Atlanta from 1994-96, then spent two seasons with Oakland and one with Minnesota before joining the Redskins in 2000. He was signed by Seattle as insurance midway through the 2002 season, but didn't play. Chicago signed him late in 2004, but he never played for the Bears either.

He has been throwing regularly with former high school and college teammates near his home in Indianapolis and doesn't feel it will take long to get back in a groove.

"I've always been able to throw the ball, I've been blessed to throw the ball. And I think I'll be able to do that till I'm 60," George said. "Football's football, plays are the same, terminology's a little bit different. But I felt good out there. I felt I really haven't missed a beat."

George, known for his rifle arm and clashes with coaches, has a 46-78 career record as a starter and has never lasted longer than four years with any team. He has thrown for 27,602 yards, with 154 touchdowns and 113 interceptions in his career.

George made it to the postseason twice, losing in the wild-card round with Atlanta in 1995 and taking Minnesota to the NFC championship game in 1999. He teamed with current Raiders receiver Randy Moss on the Vikings that season and Shell said Moss recommended the team bring in George.

George hasn't played since 2001, when he was cut by Washington after two games. In those games, George completed 23 of 42 passes with three interceptions as the Redskins were outscored 67-3.

In his next-to-last game with Washington, he and coach Marty Schottenheimer had an animated sideline discussion after George was removed following a four-turnover performance.

George also had a sideline argument with coach June Jones when he was with Atlanta in 1996, and the team suspended him, then cut him.

"I've said along the way that every situation I have been in has been tough," George said. "You can't be successful learning new offenses year in and year out. ... As a quarterback you just need that chemistry and be together for quite some time. I just haven't had that. For whatever reason, I have always been a quarterback of the teams that were in that transitional phase and rebuilding."

George played well his first season in Oakland, throwing for 3,917 yards and 29 touchdowns in 1997, but the Raiders only went 4-12 that season.

He struggled with a groin injury the following season and started only seven games. He was replaced the following season by Rich Gannon, who was a better fit in coach Jon Gruden's West Coast offense.