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6/10/2006
There is a chance the Oakland Raiders may be joining the AFC West party when it comes to utilizing the tight end as a receiver.
In a division where the Kansas City Chiefs have Tony Gonzalez, the San Diego Chargers Antonio Gates and the Denver Broncos a committee of successful pass catchers, the Raiders since returning to Oakland have resisted making the tight end a featured part of their offense.
Starting tight end Courtney Anderson had 24 receptions for 303 yards last season, the lowest total for Oakland's top receiving tight end in 16 years.
The Raiders haven't had a tight end catch 40 or more passes since Rickey Dudley had his best year in 1997 with 48 receptions for 787 yards and seven touchdowns.
And while Dudley's frequent drops and lack of fire made him an underachiever in the eyes of Raiders fans, the fact is he caught 29 touchdown passes from 1996 through 2000 — a figure surpassed only by wide receiver Tim Brown during that span.
In the five years since Dudley left as a free agent, Raiders tight ends have found the end zone 16 times.
Enter Tom Walsh, the surprising choice of coach Art Shell as offensive coordinator who worked on the Raiders staff from 1982-94.
In his first five years with the Raiders, the leading receiver was tight end Todd Christensen, including a 95-catch, 1,153-yard season in 1986. He was on the offensive staff the last time a tight end led the Raiders in receiving, when converted running back Ethan Horton had 53 catches for 650 yards in 1991.
At the only public viewing of the Raiders during the mandatory, post-draft minicamp, tight ends were noticeably more involved in full team drills.
"This offense seems more tight-end friendly to me," said James Adkisson, a converted receiver who enjoyed a solid mini-camp. "The tight end gets to read a lot of things. If you're doing the right thing, you should come open. Seven times out of 10 you should be open if you're making the right read."
Anderson, a seventh-round draft pick out of San Jose State in 2004, ran off a pair of second-round draft picks in Doug Jolley (2002) and Teyo Johnson (2003). At 6-feet-7, 270 pounds, he has the size to be a blocker and the hands and athleticism to be a solid receiver, although consistency has been an issue.
He is joined on the roster by Randal Williams, a converted wide receiver who is a core special teams player, six-year veteran Marcellus Rivers and O.J. Santiago, a seven-year veteran who was out of football the last two years.
Adkisson, approached last year by owner Al Davis about switching from wideout to tight end, may have been the most intriguing prospect at the first camp.
"He has some talent," Shell said. "He has the ability to catch the ball and we all know he can run."
NOTES, QUOTES
—Kirk Morrison, who led all NFL rookies in tackles last season as a starting linebacker, had no problem with the Raiders taking a linebacker Thomas Howard in the second round of the 2006 draft.
Morrison, while at San Diego State, liked what he saw of Howard at Texas-El Paso.
"I told Thomas I had a chance to play against him two years ago and that my lasting impression of him was a guy who ran to the football," Morrison said. "He was all over the field as a sophomore. I said this kid is going to be good. I just kind of watched him grow. I'm pretty excited to have him here."
—After opening their mandatory minicamp to the press, allowing reporters to watch practice as well as conduct locker room interviews, the Raiders reverted to their secretive form and closed shop for a voluntary minicamp.
The Raiders did not disclose who attended and did not. Shell and his players were unavailable for comment.
—Coach Art Shell is hoping the Raiders will break their three-year run of leading the NFL in penalties. Oakland was whistled 147 times in 2005, and 134 times in 2004 and 2003 — all league highs.
The last time the Raiders didn't lead the league was 2002, when they were third with 129 penalties. Shell sounds as if he will tolerate a few late hits but will try to limit pre-snap violations.
"The penalties are a no-no," Shell said. "You're going to have some aggressive penalties. Those things are part of the game. But it's the mental penalties that bother me. You can't have any offsides or false starts. Those things will kill you. You can't do it."
Shell speaks from experience. When the Raiders set a franchise record with 156 penalties — the second highest total in NFL history — it happened in 1994. With Shell as head coach.
—Wide receiver Randy Moss, in Florida for teammate Zack Crockett's annual football camp at Ely High School, told the Miami Herald he is still on good terms with quarterback Daunte Culpepper and wishes him well with the Dolphins.
"We're still cool," Moss said. "We talk every now and then, but he has his career to get back a hold of, and I have mine to get a hold of, also. We're not moving in different directions, but our profession is moving us in different directions."
—Recent official salary cap figures showed the Raiders with a little over $1.8 million in space, meaning they'll need to do some bookkeeping before bringing aboard their draft class.
Only Tennessee and Atlanta had less room, and that was before the Titans traded quarterback Steve McNair.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "It's the direction in which you lead, and if you're leading in the right direction, people will follow. The coaching staff should speak in one language, and when you do that, it's a lot easier to get the message." — Raiders defensive tackle Warren Sapp on his impressions of the Art Shell regime.