OAKLAND, Calif. -- The evolution of the Raiders-Chiefs series simply doesn't add up. It doesn't make any sense.
|  | | Rich Gannon, right, tied his career high with four touchdown passes against Kansas City. |
The Chiefs, which became a perennial playoff contender on Marty Schottenheimer's "Marty Ball" running offense, have gone exclusively to the air. Meanwhile, Raiders coach Jon Gruden muttered sacrilege statements following his 49-31 blasting of the Chiefs on Sunday at Networks Associates Coliseum. It was downright un-Raider-like.
He wants his team to throw out their longtime crutch of living in the past. To hell with the "Commitment to Excellence." Gruden wants his players committed to each other.
"There's nothing worse than talking about yesterday's heroes forever," Gruden said. "That's just an analogy. We are about talking about this team."
Face it, the Raiders' recent past sucks. They haven't had a winning season since 1994. They haven't made the playoffs since 1993. Everywhere Gruden looks he sees these "Team of the Decades" logos, but his point is it's been more than a decade since the Raiders have been a great team.
"Somebody asked what the Super Bowl means to me," Raiders linebacker Greg Biekert said. "My response is nothing. I've never been to a Super Bowl as a player or a spectator. We've been 8-2 before and not made the playoffs. Eight wins means nothing to us. If we don't do anything beyond this, we are going to be sitting home in January."
This Raiders team won't sit idle come playoff time. Gruden has established a completely un-Raider-like aura about this team. Vertical Stretch. Forget about it. Watching Rich Gannon play Elvis Grbac on Sunday was like watching Mario Mendoza battle Mark McGwire in Home Run Derby. Put your money on the bunter and take the over.
Chiefs coach Gunther Cunningham threw away caution. He set a franchise record in only running the ball nine times. Grbac completed 39 of 53 passes for 504 yards, but the Chiefs could get no closer than 11 points.
"They know that they couldn't run the ball," Raiders cornerback Charles Woodson said. "They have big backs, but they aren't shifty backs."
The Raiders let them choke on their passing strategy. The Chiefs passed 10 consecutive times to start the game and didn't execute a running play until the second quarter. Grbac started the game with three passes and a punt. That followed with a drive killed by Woodson's interception.
Gruden mixed Tyrone Wheatley runs with Gannon's short passes and opened a 14-0 lead that the Chiefs couldn't overcome. Grbac's best couldn't come close to Gannon at whatever you want to call what he does.
As this season progresses, Gannon is an MVP candidate with a most unorthodox approach. He throws passes like a dart thrower. Roughly a dozen times, he stepped up in the pocket, avoided a defensive linemen and flicked the football like a dart that sails maybe 10 yards.
"I have a dartboard, but I don't play a whole lot," Gannon said. "It's just a matter of feeling where the pressure is."
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There have been recent years where this team got off to quick starts and not been able to sustain it at the finish line. ” |
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— Jon Gruden, Raiders head coach |
Perhaps the best perspective comes from Rison, who caught two touchdown passes from Gannon in the first half. He played for both teams and was amazed at watching the Chiefs look like a combination of the Rams and the Run-and-Shoot.
"Man, they never threw that much when I was back there," Rison said. "Hmmm. I'd rather have Rich Gannon throwing those little passes."
Gannon doesn't have a cannon of an arm, but his offense is loaded with weapons that augment his skills. It allows him to use his trickery. For example, four times he called a reverse in which Tim Brown runs toward him. Three times, Gannon handed off to Wheatley for total gains of 30 yards. Another time, Brown rushed for seven yards.
Blitz Gannon and he'll scramble a couple of steps and pitch a short dart to Wheatley, tight end
Rickey Dudley, fullback Jon Ritchie or any Raiders jersey within his vision.
"What I love about him is just how fast he gets the ball off," tailback Napoleon Kaufman said. "He improvises and makes plays on his own."
It almost became silly watching Gannon do an elongated pump fake -- in which he takes the ball in a circle motion to freeze a defender -- and then pitch the ball sidearm to the other side of the field.
Gannon is on such a roll that even bad plays turn out good. In the second quarter, he shot a dart in and out of the hands of Dudley, who tapped it to the back of the end zone to Rison.
Gannon later found Dudley open in the back of the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown that was technically illegal. Dudley appeared to have only one foot in bounds and used the other to step behind the end line.
Remember this isn't the old Raiders. These guys now get the calls or non-calls. They are 8-1.
"There have been recent years where this team got off to quick starts and not been able to sustain it at the finish line," Gruden said.
Now they play through adversity. Kicker Sebastian Janikowski was unable to play because of a celluitis problem in his left foot that required antibacterial medications. No problem. Punter Shane Lechler made seven extra points and did an adequate job with the kickoffs.
To help Lechler, the Raiders' offense had so many long drives that he only had to punt the ball three times. Wheatley and Ritchie gutted out bad leg injuries to lead a running attack that gained 231 yards.
The Raiders attack in waves and with variety. The Chiefs were a one-trick pony. They lived by the pass. They died by the pass. They made three turnovers and couldn't get back in the game.
"We felt like we could throw the ball on them," Cunningham said. "That was obvious. But we are going to have to get more balanced."
Balance is what the Raiders have. They are balanced emotionally. They are balanced strategically. There is a commitment there that isn't the same as the Raiders teams who bragged of their past and turned into spectators in January.
John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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VIDEO
  Jon Gruden praises his QB Rich Gannon. wav: 122 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Gunther Cunningham says the Chiefs will correct their mistakes and move on. wav: 135 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Tyrone Wheatley says the Raiders wanted to prove that they are a good team. wav: 130 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Andre Rison is happy with Rich Gannon. wav: 74 kRealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 |
