Angry Pope
All Raider
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2006
- Messages
- 8,458
- Reaction score
- 546
It would be nice to have some of these types of personalities on our beloved team now. The ones we have now are more the misdemeanor type...
WR: Fred Biletnikoff.
1st round draft pick in 1965.
Freddie actually thought he'd be cut - he was insecure. He was easily the slowest player on the team but had more moves than Fred Astaire which is why he's in the Hall of Fame. Biletnikoff also used gobs of stickum on his hands, arms, and uniform - the better to catch passes. Off the field he was plain wacky. He smoked two packs per day (so much for healthy athletes) and got so nervous before games that he routinely threw up. His interviews were so profane that radio and TV reporters couldn't air them. He also thought nothing of clashing with Al Davis. If Davis offered advice, Freddie responded "shut the bleep up you bleeping Jew bleeper!"
TE: Dave Casper.
2nd round pick in 1974.
Casper was nicknamed "Ghost" because he was so pale (and not because of the friendly ghost). He was best known for off-the-wall statements and defying authority (although on the Raiders, nobody noticed). For example, Casper once told Ken Stabler that if everyone moved out of the way, he could take out the nose tackle. Now, it's common for the TE to block a DT. He also asked Stabler to pretend to kneel at the end of the half and throw him a TD. Stabler declined, knowing the opposing team would kill him for doing that. After he left the Raiders for Houston, Casper's defiance of authority surfaced. He showed what he though of head coach Ed Biles by bringing a pillow to team meetings and snoozing. When Biles fined him for taking off his helmet at practice, Casper wore his helmet to meals and ate through the face bars.
OT: Bob Brown.
Despite All-Pro play, Bob Brown wore out his welcome in Philadelphia by arguing with coaches and in Los Angeles in a contract dispute. In LA, Brown found a unique way to discourage teammate Deacon Jones from headslapping him in practice. He replaced the short screw that held helmet padding in place with a long sharp screw. When Jones headslapped him, he impaled his own hand. That might be a death sentence for some, but Brown weighed 295 without an ounce of fat and his motto was "I don't fear nobody". He was always lifting weights and had forearms the size of some people's thighs. He even took a dumbbell to meals and liften while he ate. In Brown's first Raider training camp practice, he lined up against the goal post and slammed it. The goal post toppled over. Later in camp, gunfire broke out at night. Biletnikoff told others that Brown, a gun enthusiast, was testing his ordnance by firing out the windows. Nobody told him it was a bad idea. On the field, Brown defied the stereotype of the passive OT. His favorite move was punching his opponent in the solar plexis. John Madden said one opponent puked on the field after one of those punches. Brown also didn't like the fact that the Raiders always ran left behind Shell and Upshaw. So, once in the huddle, he demanded "could you run a few bleeping plays to my side?" loud enough for the defense to hear. Then Brown blasted his opponent five yards off the line.
G: George Buehler.
At 6'2" and 270 lb of solid muscle, Buehler was easily the strongest Raider of his time. However, Buehler wasn't mean. Actually, he was so nice that if he stepped on an opponent's foot, he'd say he was sorry. According to John Madden, Buehler got depressed every year because he wasn't a doctor like his father, uncle, and brother. His therapy was building remote-controlled toys. One year, he brought a remote-controlled plane to camp. But when he buzzed Dave Casper, Casper heaved a handfull of rocks at the plane which crashed into a hundred pieces. The next year, he brought a remote-controlled tank to retrieve his mail and told Casper not to touch it or he'd rip Dave's face off. The tank worked but teammates commandeered it for jokes. They attached strings of firecrackers to the tank and sneak it behind teammates and coaches.
C: Jim Otto.
Jim Otto was about the only talent the Raiders had in 1960. He
was an overlooked free agent. Otto was so tough that he once played on a
broken ankle. That made him one of Al Davis' favorites. Opponents
underestimated him at their peril. In 1968, then rookie MLB and future
All-Pro Bill Bergey made a great play at the sidelines right in front of
John Madden who implored Otto to block better. Bergey responded "Otto can't
block me, Coach! He's too old and slow. I'm too fast for him." A few plays
later, Otto launched himself at Bergey and hit him helmet to helmet. Bergey
got a concussion, played the rest of the game in a fog, and suffered from
nausea afterward.
cont'd...
WR: Fred Biletnikoff.
1st round draft pick in 1965.
Freddie actually thought he'd be cut - he was insecure. He was easily the slowest player on the team but had more moves than Fred Astaire which is why he's in the Hall of Fame. Biletnikoff also used gobs of stickum on his hands, arms, and uniform - the better to catch passes. Off the field he was plain wacky. He smoked two packs per day (so much for healthy athletes) and got so nervous before games that he routinely threw up. His interviews were so profane that radio and TV reporters couldn't air them. He also thought nothing of clashing with Al Davis. If Davis offered advice, Freddie responded "shut the bleep up you bleeping Jew bleeper!"
TE: Dave Casper.
2nd round pick in 1974.
Casper was nicknamed "Ghost" because he was so pale (and not because of the friendly ghost). He was best known for off-the-wall statements and defying authority (although on the Raiders, nobody noticed). For example, Casper once told Ken Stabler that if everyone moved out of the way, he could take out the nose tackle. Now, it's common for the TE to block a DT. He also asked Stabler to pretend to kneel at the end of the half and throw him a TD. Stabler declined, knowing the opposing team would kill him for doing that. After he left the Raiders for Houston, Casper's defiance of authority surfaced. He showed what he though of head coach Ed Biles by bringing a pillow to team meetings and snoozing. When Biles fined him for taking off his helmet at practice, Casper wore his helmet to meals and ate through the face bars.
OT: Bob Brown.
Despite All-Pro play, Bob Brown wore out his welcome in Philadelphia by arguing with coaches and in Los Angeles in a contract dispute. In LA, Brown found a unique way to discourage teammate Deacon Jones from headslapping him in practice. He replaced the short screw that held helmet padding in place with a long sharp screw. When Jones headslapped him, he impaled his own hand. That might be a death sentence for some, but Brown weighed 295 without an ounce of fat and his motto was "I don't fear nobody". He was always lifting weights and had forearms the size of some people's thighs. He even took a dumbbell to meals and liften while he ate. In Brown's first Raider training camp practice, he lined up against the goal post and slammed it. The goal post toppled over. Later in camp, gunfire broke out at night. Biletnikoff told others that Brown, a gun enthusiast, was testing his ordnance by firing out the windows. Nobody told him it was a bad idea. On the field, Brown defied the stereotype of the passive OT. His favorite move was punching his opponent in the solar plexis. John Madden said one opponent puked on the field after one of those punches. Brown also didn't like the fact that the Raiders always ran left behind Shell and Upshaw. So, once in the huddle, he demanded "could you run a few bleeping plays to my side?" loud enough for the defense to hear. Then Brown blasted his opponent five yards off the line.
G: George Buehler.
At 6'2" and 270 lb of solid muscle, Buehler was easily the strongest Raider of his time. However, Buehler wasn't mean. Actually, he was so nice that if he stepped on an opponent's foot, he'd say he was sorry. According to John Madden, Buehler got depressed every year because he wasn't a doctor like his father, uncle, and brother. His therapy was building remote-controlled toys. One year, he brought a remote-controlled plane to camp. But when he buzzed Dave Casper, Casper heaved a handfull of rocks at the plane which crashed into a hundred pieces. The next year, he brought a remote-controlled tank to retrieve his mail and told Casper not to touch it or he'd rip Dave's face off. The tank worked but teammates commandeered it for jokes. They attached strings of firecrackers to the tank and sneak it behind teammates and coaches.
C: Jim Otto.
Jim Otto was about the only talent the Raiders had in 1960. He
was an overlooked free agent. Otto was so tough that he once played on a
broken ankle. That made him one of Al Davis' favorites. Opponents
underestimated him at their peril. In 1968, then rookie MLB and future
All-Pro Bill Bergey made a great play at the sidelines right in front of
John Madden who implored Otto to block better. Bergey responded "Otto can't
block me, Coach! He's too old and slow. I'm too fast for him." A few plays
later, Otto launched himself at Bergey and hit him helmet to helmet. Bergey
got a concussion, played the rest of the game in a fog, and suffered from
nausea afterward.
cont'd...