Shell lashes out

hawaiianboy

hawaiianboy

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Hey at least no one can ever accuse us of being boring...

Here's the article:

Shell lashes out at critic within organization, but won't name names

By JOSH DUBOW, AP Sports Writer
November 29, 2006

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -- The Oakland Raiders' soap opera season took another strange turn Wednesday when coach Art Shell accused a member of the organization of trying to undermine the coaching staff and rooting against the team.

Shell did not name the person, but said it was not a coach or a player. He said the person has been calling media members around the country and criticizing coaches.

"I'm a fighter," Shell said. "I sit back and I watch things happen and then it gets to the point where you cross the line. That line has been crossed and I won't sit back and allow it to happen anymore."

Shell's latest comments came in response to questions about his decision Tuesday to demote Tom Walsh from his role of offensive coordinator to tight ends coach and replace him with John Shoop.

"When you root against me, you're rooting against the Raiders," Shell said. "When you root against Tom Walsh, you're rooting against the Raiders. And for someone to do that is unconscionable. It's unconscionable. It's detestable and I think it's an outrage."

The drama is the latest for a lost season in which star receiver Randy Moss has gone on the radio nearly every week with criticisms of the team and receiver Jerry Porter was suspended for insubordination after clashing with the coaching staff.

"How can you accept a paycheck from somebody that's given you a job and given you an opportunity to try to excel in life, and then turn around and call your cronies around the league and it gets back to me and I'm tired of it," Shell said.

Shell said the "character assassination" began soon after he was hired in February to begin his second stint as Raiders coach. He said the attacks have also been directed at owner Al Davis.

The internal strife is reminiscent of Shell's first stint as Raiders coach, which ended after the 1994 season when he believed he was being undermined by one of his assistants, Mike White, who ended up replacing Shell.

Shell went on to work as an assistant coach in Kansas City and Atlanta and never saw those sorts of problems.

"It shouldn't be like that," Shell said. "Every organization should be here on the same page, from the bottom up, from the groundskeeper on up. Everybody should be on the same page, trying to do the right things, trying to help this organization win. I went to Kansas City, that's the way it was. It was like that. Every individual was on board. Atlanta, every individual was on board. And it should be like that here."

But it hasn't been ever since Porter made public his trade demands and criticisms of the coaching staff at the start of training camp. Porter was inactive the first four games of the season despite leading the team in receptions a year ago and then was suspended for two games for insubordination after getting kicked out of practice.

Some players publicly questioned Shell's handling of the Porter situation, especially since the offense was struggling without him.

Moss went on his radio show days before the season opener complaining that things are "fishy" around the Raiders. He's also suggested that he would be better off if the team traded him and blamed his many dropped passes on being unhappy with the situation.

Oakland (2-9) has scored a league-low 132 points this year and is assured of a fourth straight losing season for the first time in franchise history.

The Raiders were last in the league in passing offense and total offense, 21st in rushing offense, and have allowed a league-high 53 sacks.

Walsh had come under criticism because he had been out of the NFL since 1994 and spent the past seven years running a bed and breakfast and serving as mayor of Swan Valley, Idaho.

Shell said it was very difficult to demote his friend.

"You have to be patient," Shell said. "I'm a very patient man so I'll take my time always before I make a rash decision. I felt at this time the decision needed to be made. It was very hard, very hard for me to do because I have a lot of respect for Tom Walsh. Tom Walsh has taken a lot, a lot of abuse from a lot of people and that has disappointed me."


http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_y...DubYF?slug=ap-raiders-shell&prov=ap&type=lgns
 
Fuck that, you root for the raiders if you root against Walsh at this point. that rooting against the raiders talk only flew before we found out he was the worst thing to ever happen to the silver and black.
 
After reading it more closely, Tim Brown maybe?.... Nah, I'll stay with Mike Lombardi...
 
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Run Run indeed...

Profootballtalk has got it's hooks in as well:

IS THERE A TRAITOR IN THE RAIDERS?

Raiders coach Art Shell believes that his authority is being undermined by an unnamed member of the organization. Shell claims that said unnamed member of the organization has been calling members of the media and criticizing members of the coaching staff.

"I'm a fighter," Shell said. "I sit back and I watch things happen and then it gets to the point where you cross the line. That line has been crossed and I won't sit back and allow it to happen anymore.

"When you root against me, you're rooting against the Raiders," Shell said. "When you root against Tom Walsh, you're rooting against the Raiders. And for someone to do that is unconscionable. It's unconscionable. It's detestable and I think it's an outrage."

So who's the Benedict Arnold? We're trying to find out.

Stay tuned.
 
Something IS "fishy" in Raiderland.

Oh and the hits just keep coming. Back to the Future. I feel like it's 1994 all over again.

Tim Brown? Well he's not part of the organization so I don't think so. But how could that "someone" be part of the organization, have this tirade happen and that person not be called into the Dark Lord's dungeon and put on the rack for four straight days? I dunno...yeah fishy.

Art Shell is jumping at the sight of his own shadow these days. He's hearing footsteps. Stoop? Well Art felt threatened by him and so he didn't choose him as his OC initially. Now he has him anyway and he can't be feeling comfortable. But then nobody in Oakland should be feeling comfortable these days.

I rooting for Shoop to make something out of this collection of underachievers. I'm not expecting miracles though. As HBoy said, a five game audition of sorts with an eye on next season.
 
hawaiianboy said:
Hey at least no one can ever accuse us of being boring...

Here's the article:

Shell lashes out at critic within organization, but won't name names

By JOSH DUBOW, AP Sports Writer
November 29, 2006

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -- The Oakland Raiders' soap opera season took another strange turn Wednesday when coach Art Shell accused a member of the organization of trying to undermine the coaching staff and rooting against the team.

Shell did not name the person, but said it was not a coach or a player. He said the person has been calling media members around the country and criticizing coaches.

"I'm a fighter," Shell said. "I sit back and I watch things happen and then it gets to the point where you cross the line. That line has been crossed and I won't sit back and allow it to happen anymore."

Shell's latest comments came in response to questions about his decision Tuesday to demote Tom Walsh from his role of offensive coordinator to tight ends coach and replace him with John Shoop.

"When you root against me, you're rooting against the Raiders," Shell said. "When you root against Tom Walsh, you're rooting against the Raiders. And for someone to do that is unconscionable. It's unconscionable. It's detestable and I think it's an outrage."

The drama is the latest for a lost season in which star receiver Randy Moss has gone on the radio nearly every week with criticisms of the team and receiver Jerry Porter was suspended for insubordination after clashing with the coaching staff.

"How can you accept a paycheck from somebody that's given you a job and given you an opportunity to try to excel in life, and then turn around and call your cronies around the league and it gets back to me and I'm tired of it," Shell said.

Shell said the "character assassination" began soon after he was hired in February to begin his second stint as Raiders coach. He said the attacks have also been directed at owner Al Davis.

The internal strife is reminiscent of Shell's first stint as Raiders coach, which ended after the 1994 season when he believed he was being undermined by one of his assistants, Mike White, who ended up replacing Shell.

Shell went on to work as an assistant coach in Kansas City and Atlanta and never saw those sorts of problems.

"It shouldn't be like that," Shell said. "Every organization should be here on the same page, from the bottom up, from the groundskeeper on up. Everybody should be on the same page, trying to do the right things, trying to help this organization win. I went to Kansas City, that's the way it was. It was like that. Every individual was on board. Atlanta, every individual was on board. And it should be like that here."

But it hasn't been ever since Porter made public his trade demands and criticisms of the coaching staff at the start of training camp. Porter was inactive the first four games of the season despite leading the team in receptions a year ago and then was suspended for two games for insubordination after getting kicked out of practice.

Some players publicly questioned Shell's handling of the Porter situation, especially since the offense was struggling without him.

Moss went on his radio show days before the season opener complaining that things are "fishy" around the Raiders. He's also suggested that he would be better off if the team traded him and blamed his many dropped passes on being unhappy with the situation.

Oakland (2-9) has scored a league-low 132 points this year and is assured of a fourth straight losing season for the first time in franchise history.

The Raiders were last in the league in passing offense and total offense, 21st in rushing offense, and have allowed a league-high 53 sacks.

Walsh had come under criticism because he had been out of the NFL since 1994 and spent the past seven years running a bed and breakfast and serving as mayor of Swan Valley, Idaho.

Shell said it was very difficult to demote his friend.

"You have to be patient," Shell said. "I'm a very patient man so I'll take my time always before I make a rash decision. I felt at this time the decision needed to be made. It was very hard, very hard for me to do because I have a lot of respect for Tom Walsh. Tom Walsh has taken a lot, a lot of abuse from a lot of people and that has disappointed me."


http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_y...DubYF?slug=ap-raiders-shell&prov=ap&type=lgns
Click to expand...

wow - that's really fucking pathetic. What the fuck is wrong with Shell?!
 
These are the Days of Our Lives

From Jerry Mac's blog:





The weirdest place on earth

Posted by Jerry McDonald - NFL Writer on Wednesday at 8:15 pm

There’s an informer in the ranks.

That’s what Art Shell wanted to get off his chest Wednesday, the day after he reluctantly demoted his close friend Tom Walsh and made John Shoop his offensive coordinator.

With no prompting other than a question about the difficulty of making the change, Shell began a lengthy monologue in which he blamed a person in the Raiders organization for trashing his tenure as coach and Walsh’s work as offensive coordinator.

Shell defended Walsh as a man and as a coach before launching into his indictment of an insider he wouldn’t name.

He talked about “bleeding silver and black'’ and named others who feel the same way such as CEO Amy Trask, Mr. Raider, Jim Otto, and executive John Herrera.

Then he got to the point.

I’ll edit these quotes only a little because it’s pretty remarkable stuff:

“There has been an attack on my family. And when I say my family, I mean the Raider family. When the fox is in . . . your hen house, under the guise of football sources in the National Football League making statements and not being part of this thing, not just making statements about me but ownership, how can you accept a paycheck from somebody that’s given you a job and given you an opportunity to try and excel in life,'’ Shell said.

“Then (you) turn around and call your cronies around the league and it gets back to me and I’m tired of it. It’s coming back to my desk. I’m a fighter. I sit back and I watch things happen and then it gets to the point where you cross the line. That line has been crossed and I won’t sit back and allow it to happen any more. When you root against me, you’re rooting against the Raiders. When you root against Tom Walsh, you’re rooting against the Raiders. And for someone to do that is unconscionable. It’s detestable and I think it’s an outrage. But that’s what has happened since I’ve been here. Tom has taken a lot of the brunt of that.

“You know when you . . . leave fingerprints and the law finds your fingerprints, you can tell who they are? When you make statements with your voice and your words you can also tell who’s making those statements because you know the people. I wanted to say something because I’m a fighter and I refuse to allow anybody to try to take away from what I’m doing here.

“I’m trying to win football games for the Raiders and I expect everybody in this organization to be on teh same page with me. Right now, everybody is not.'’

Shell said he has not confronted the mystery snitch,but may in the future. When asked if he had spoken to Davis about it, Shell said, “I have talked to people, and I’m going to leave it right there. I just wanted to make that statement, I wanted to get that off my mind, because it’s been bothering me for awhile now, and I wanted to say something.'’

It was suggested to Shell it sounded a little bit like 1994, when he and Walsh were fired by Davis, and he said it did except the problem that year was on his coaching staff and “I don’t have that problem on my staff now.'’

That year, Mike White ended up with Shell’s job when the team returned to Oakland.

Then there was a line that will make Davis’ head explode.

“Every organization should be here on the same page, from the bottom up, from the groundskeeper up . . . I went to Kansas City, that’s the way it was. Every individual was on board. Atlanta, every individual was on board. And it should be like that here.'’

Ouch.

The Raiders need to be more like the Chiefs.

Let’s attempt to sort out the latest bit of dysfunction from Raider Central.

First, it’s pretty clear Shell thinks the informer is personnel executive Mike Lombardi. It was Lombardi who lobbied hard for Bobby Petrino as head coach. Davis thought enough of Petrino to offer him the job, Petrino turned it down.

When Shell was hired, Davis made it sound as if the whole Petrino offer was Lombardi’s doing _ as if anyone else but Davis would hire the coach of the Raiders.

Lombardi is rarely with the team anymore when the Raiders come off the field. Instead, it’s Sean Jones who has Shell’s ear. Lombardi is usually out taking a walk on the streets iin the area of the Raiders facility around practice time.

I was told in the offseason that it was Lombardi who brought in guard Tonio Fonoti to be signed, with Shell sending him away, flunking him on his physical because of excess weight.

Shell also said it wasn’t a former player who was doing the talking, so that leaves out Tim Brown, Rich Gannon and Lincoln Kennedy, all of whom have been critical of their former team in their new roles as media analysts.

It isn’t anyone on the P.R. staff. Mike Taylor would drink poison from a Mike Shanahan mug before he said anything negative about the Raiders.

Admittedly, you couldn’t convict Lombardi in a court of law with any of that evidence. If Shell believes it’s Lombardi, he should meet the issue head on and talk to him directly and with purpose.

The fact the Shell has to make his case the media at all underscores one of the fundamental flaws with the Raiders. The organization is in constant chaos because there is no clear chain of command after Davis in terms of football.

If Davis really wants Shell to be the man to return the Raiders to something respectable, he should give him the power to do it. Short of Amy Trask, he should be able to say the word and fire anyone he suspects of failing to get with the program or telling secrets to the media.

The Raiders aren’t run that way.

It’s great to be a player. Davis loves the players, pays them well, puts them on a pedestal. As for coaches, front office and support staff, Davis is capable of the act of kindness for someone truly in need. But as daily work environments go, it’s tough. You talk to some people who get out, find other jobs, and they act as if they escaped a mental hospital and joined the real world.

What a strange place.
 
Now I'm thinking Art is going be one and done. Seems like he's laying the foundation for a "I was sabotaged" defense.
 
Hhhmmm.....I'm begining to buy into some of the whispers that Al has "lost it" and is not running the team, at all.

Assuming that's the case, it looks like a classic example of a "power vacuum" in which different factions (Art, Lombardi, Trask & perhaps Sean Jones?) are vying for the leadership mantle.

Look for either Lombardi or Art to be gone next season. I'm guessing Lombardi personally. Art should get at least 1 more year IMO. Hopefully Shoop is decent as an OC, we dump Randy Moss and throw significant FA dollars at our O-line and this team could make a sizeable jump in the division - even with the 2-headed monster of Brooks/Walter. Seriously. Draft the best RB after acquireing at least 2 solid starters along the line and we could actually be competitive on offense.

Art's base philosophy is still correct IMO.
 
Anybody seen WillisDaRaider recently?

I don't know what advantage Shell is trying to get by coming out and saying this. If somebody has said something and it has got back to him then why doesn't he deal with it? I am therefore left thinking that it has to be somebody "higher up" so to speak. Will we ever find out?

At least being a Raider fan is never dull.
 
My take on this is Al made the decision to demote Walsh. And Lombardi nudged him into making this move. So now Art is upset with Lombardi. That Skipper and Gilligan thing he had going with Walsh is over. No doubt Lombardi probably felt we had to kill Walsh or we weren't ever getting off the island.
 
Banter said:
My take on this is Al made the decision to demote Walsh. And Lombardi nudged him into making this move. So now Art is upset with Lombardi. That Skipper and Gilligan thing he had going with Walsh is over. No doubt Lombardi probably felt we had to kill Walsh or we weren't ever getting off the island.
Click to expand...

Good take on this, but I don't think Lombardi fits the bill on this one.
My take is there is someone a little lower, I don't think that Art goes against someone as high on the ladder as a Lombardi or Trask. Not sure whom but someone either Art or someone else will be moving on after the season.....
 
Can someone buy Lombardi a beer for voicing the fans opinions?

Look man, I dig Art, ...HOF.. one of the great Raiders and all, but....

I dont know about you guys, I could'nt stomach another one of his post game interviews after week 3.

Art to me seems to be one of those guys that just lacks "people skills"

You know the kinda of guy.. he's talking you're listening and ya just feel so sorry for him ya wanna interupt him and say

"Ya know.. You put the Ho in Homo"
 
This concerns me in that if we thought we might have a problem attracting a good coach or some decent FA's, this makes it even harder.

Who wants to come coach a team or play for a team that has an internal power struggle going on?

Thanks Art for making us an even less desirable place than we were.

OY.

I am truly hoping Art is one and done. He has really made a mess of the Walsh thing and the player discipline thing.
 
Maybe Art is cleaning up this franchise. Maybe that is why we have sucked for the last four years, internal power struggling. Lets not forget he only coached us this year. I think he deserves at least one more year to prove himself. Without walsh of course.
 
The irony here is Shell is probably secretly rooting against Shoop. No doubt Lombardi has Shell lined up in his crosshairs and a successful Shoop gives him more bullets.
 
After Shell stuck with Walsh for so long, does anyone really need any more bullets?

Even if he had stuck with him, but made him adjust his playcalling, it would have been better than sitting back and vehemently defending Walsh all these weeks.

This is just pathetic though ... even if it is true, making it public is really pathetic and makes us even more of a joke around the league.
 
I want Lombardi to have a full clip in the showdown thats coming with Shell when the season is over. This is headed toward the Thunderdome...two men enter, one man leaves...
 
We're fucked!

RNorris said:
This concerns me in that if we thought we might have a problem attracting a good coach or some decent FA's, this makes it even harder.

Who wants to come coach a team or play for a team that has an internal power struggle going on?

Thanks Art for making us an even less desirable place than we were.

OY.

I am truly hoping Art is one and done. He has really made a mess of the Walsh thing and the player discipline thing.
Click to expand...
BINGO!!!!! The more I read about this hissy fit of Art Shell's the more it concerns me. Why air this dirty laundry to the press, the fans and potential draft picks and free agents? This is very troublesome. Nipsy said it well...Art has no people skills. A great HOF tackle is one thing. A leader of men is another. Art is proving to be petty and doesn't seem to know how to meet problems head on.

I don't know for a fact how many face to face meetings Art has had with malcontent Jerry Porter but to me that is the way to handle it. Have that man to man and put the guy back on the filed or cut him, trade him, deactivate him each game or suspend him for the rest of the season. Whatever. But don't continue this bullshit. As for Randy Moss, Art seems afraid of him. He runs his mouth weekly on his radio show and Art turns the other cheek, WTF? Now this childish outburst in the media.

HBoy told me the other day he heard (maybe from Willie I don't know) that Lombardi is history after this season. That Lombardi is sick of the BS and would be moving on. This now seems to confirm that (another Gold Star). As if this franchise isn't already in enough turmoil losing Lombardi, who seems to be the lone sane member of the front office, would be a big blow to the organization.

Dateline NFL Draft Headquarters

With the 2nd pick in the NFL Draft the Oakland Raiders pick Adrian Peterson, running back, Oklahoma.

With the 10th pick in the draft the Cleveland Browns have made a trade with the Oakland Raiders --- they send their 2o08 1st round pick plus Joe Smoe to the Oakland Raiders for Adrian Peterson. Note: Through Peterson's agent it was learned that Peterson has refused to play in Oakland thus necessitating the trade.

It's gonna happen fellas. Fuck.
 
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