OAKLAND — The house, the one allegedly belonging to the Raiders, began
to empty as if a fire were raging through the living room.
With 53 seconds left and the Raiders down by 13, those members of the
Raider Nation present Sunday at McAfee Coliseum felt defeat closing in
and wanted no part of it. So they packed up and headed for the exits.
By the thousands.
With 53 seconds left.
Not in the game but the third quarter.
''Yeah, we all saw that," sighed safety Jarrod Cooper. ''When you see
that, that your fans are basically leaving in the middle of the game, it
makes your frustration level go up times 10."
It was evidence that Oakland's fans, the team's greatest ancillary ally,
had given up. Surrendered. Quit in disgust.
This depressing display, playing out during a 20-0 loss to St. Louis,
testifies that the Raiders are in the midst of accomplishing a most
extraordinary feat.
That they are crushing the spirit, and the hope, of the Raider Nation.
The card-carrying membersof the Nation are loud and proud and fiercely
loyal, some blindly so. But most are not foolish. Their faith has been
tested this season and some of it was snapped beyond recognition as they
witnessed this latest embarrassing performance to a sub-ordinary opponent.
Bad enough that the official crowd of 50,164 varied wildly from the
30,000 or so that showed up. Worse yet when those who came in good
faith, believing this was a winnable game — their team was favored by 3,
for once — take flight with almost 16 minutes remaining. There was,
theoretically, plenty of time to score two touchdowns away.
With 58 seconds left in the third quarter, facing a fourth-and-5, the
Raiders gambled. And failed, with quarterback Aaron Brooks throwing
short of wide receiver Ronald Curry at the St. Louis 34. The Rams got
possession and the aisles became clogged.
Before the fourth quarter.
''They didn't want to see any more," linebacker Kirk Morrison
surmised."You can't blame one fan for anything," Cooper said. ''Our fans
are not at fault."
Their response is a backlash, really, a result of being subjected to
relentless failure. Each time you think the Raiders can't sink any
lower, they open another door to fall plummet to another level. They are
2-12, losers of seven in a row and making a determined bid to be the
worst team in the Al Davis history. Success is one loss away.
As it is, this Oakland squad is the most disappointing, ever. The
Raiders have become so staggeringly bad that some of the most loyal fans
in sports, anywhere, are becoming one with despondency. Or denial.
Already they have gone from aspirin, to beer, to Valium, to blank stares.
And, then, back to beer.
Now, though, some of them are just plain bailing out.
Morrison feels their pain. He grew up in Oakland, in a household
familiar with the ways of the Raiders. He attended Bishop O'Dowd High,
not three miles from the Coliseum. His mother works in city government.
Both parents root passionately for their son and the team.
For all the good it has done. Even as Morrison's career shows an upward
trajectory, the team is 6-24 in the 20 months since he was drafted.
"It's tough on all of us —players, coaches and fans," Morrison said.
"(Fans) see we're not playing the way we should, the way we know we can
play.
"So I understand. I mean, I wouldn't spend my hard-earned money to watch
us play the way we've been playing."
Which on this day meant two fumbles and three interceptions. Brooks
threw two and was replaced by Andrew Walter, who, after being greeted
with a smattering of cheers, was intercepted on his fourth pass.
Then there was the latest odd call against the Raiders. Tight end
Courtney Anderson was flagged for taunting, because he spiked the ball
in the direction of an opponent. The call may be debatable, but the net
result is that the Raiders drew a taunting penalty while being shut out.
Through all of this, the Raider Nation is trying to stand strong. After
beginning the season with five consecutive sellouts, the Raiders, as
they have unraveled, have become harder to watch and a tougher sell.
When the Raiders took the field for their last possession Sunday, with
2:42 left, there were more seagulls circling than fans observing.
Oakland's final home game, Saturday against Kansas City, has not sold
out and traffic is light at the ticket office. The best that can be said
is no one is sprinting for the exit. Not yet.
