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The Man Behind the Mask: Oakland Raiders’ Al DAVIS: Thoughts from a Reader’s Side

By Rob Calonge | July 2nd, 2008

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We have a feeling that Coach would vote for Al if he was running

We have a first time contributer to the Thoughts from a Reader’s Side here on Thoughts from the Dark Side at TFDSsports.com. Coach explains why Al Davis should be revered in this day and age rather than reviled. He gives a good examination of Al Davis’ past and why he still plays a role in American society today as well as blazing the trail for the future of the NFL.

The Man Behind the Mask: Al Davis

By Coach

Special to Thoughts from the Dark Side

Albert Einstein once said, “A fellow who does things that count, doesn’t usually stop to count them.” These wise words epitomize the maverick of the National Football League, Mr. Al Davis.

While many of the honorable deeds of this often misunderstood man go unnoticed, one thing is clear. The NFL would cease to exist without his influence and leadership. In a generation where loyalty has been forgotten, one man stands alone, holding the torch.

Many young players are reaping the benefits of a sport which has reached a pinnacle and now must return full circle. Fans across the nation can no doubt see the changes that have occurred in the NFL, yet most rarely stop to take a closer look behind the decisions that have affected the sport we have all come to love.

Recently many have wondered what would prompt Mr. Davis to offer such a lucrative contract to talented WR Javon Walker. Why would he do this? Let’s examine this situation closely. While many owners in football only see the negative aspects when making decisions, Mr. Davis sees the glass half full, and is often willing to forgo the obvious writing on the wall, and attempt to see the unseen. Javon Walker has had a traumatic last couple years it would seem.

While Al Davis is running an organization, he understands that his business is only as good as those who help to make it work. Therefore, helping those whom he would need support from is a must. What better opportunity than this could have come along? In a business void of personal attention to feelings, Mr. Davis, a man accused of having none, shows the most concern. We will have to see if this gamble, one of many, will produce the desired results. Regardless of whether or not Javon Walker wins a Super Bowl with Oakland, you can bet that he appreciates the honor that has been placed in his hands and the opportunity that has been placed on the table. Mr. Davis can know he made a moral decision, which may happen to also help his football team.

The honor system in this country is dying. While the country heads into a desperate state of mind, the Oakland Raider organization sits proudly with a strong foundation built with the knowledge of great leadership and acts of loyal kindness.

Currently in the NFL, coaches are just as likely to backstab one another concerning themselves with their own careers, and lose the leadership needed to exhibit the kind of character needed to lead men into battle. Why should players listen to men who are out for their own gain? The players are not naive. They are people who understand motives.

Oakland Raider Tom Flores was the first coach to win a Super Bowl with a Wild Card Team. Can we start to understand the kind of drive and commitment to excellence that has to be attained to achieve this result for the first time in history? This man, who should be in the Hall of Fame, won a Super Bowl as a player, an assistant coach, and a Head Coach. The only other man to accomplish this feat was Mike Ditka. Where are men of this type of quality and character in today’s world?

Mr. Al Davis is the man behind the mask. He is the guy who gave Coach Bill Walsh his start and was by his side during the coach’s last moments. While the minions of uneducated individuals with nothing better to do with their time attempt to steal this mans place in history, they fail to recognize the truth. The truth being that this man stands alone in his protection of the sport he loves. Football is life, and life is football.

It is already beginning to happen. Mr. Davis has already won. The fruits of his labor are long overdue. The time is now. The sport of football has begun to realize that what the Oakland Raiders stand for is what the USA stands for. If the NFL is the vehicle that must be used to teach the people of this great nation about team and sacrifice, which team is the model? Who created the model? What are the characteristics of this man?

The old story says it’s a turtle race. While many fads run in and out of football, the one aspect that will return is toughness. This Al Davis characteristic has been forgotten. It has allowed players such as Terrell Owens and Chad Johnson to run their mouths without the threat of punishment. Just let a couple of Defensive Lineman or Linebackers shut these guys up for you refs. Turn a blind eye and preserve the sport we all have grown to love. There was a time the unspoken rules were enforced without question, and the game was better for it. During these periods, the Oakland Raiders lead the charge, and will rise once again.

On our 4th of July, the country and its fearless leader, Al Davis, will share a birthday. Remember what the Raider Nation stands for and be part of the solution, not part of the problem!

Coach is a regular reader and a first time contributer to TFDS.

If you would like to contribute a future article please send it as a plain text attachment to mvnraider at yahoo.com, along with a brief bio if its your first time posting. MSWord documents add a bunch of code I have to delete if its sent in a .doc format, so please use .txt. Thank you for reading and contributing.

More voices from the readers here at TFDS

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008 at 11:23 pm and is filed under Patriotic Holiday, 2008, TFDS Contributors, Raiders News, Raider News, Al Davis, Raiders History, Raider Nation, Coach, Readers Thoughts from the Dark Side, Oakland Raiders Analysis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

15 Responses to “The Man Behind the Mask: Oakland Raiders’ Al DAVIS: Thoughts from a Reader’s Side”

Patrick Patterson says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 1:29 am

Love him or hate him, there is no in between. Al is a lightning rod either way, and a living icon of the NFL. It will be a very sad day for football when he leaves this world.
Junior says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 6:39 am

There is no doubt that Al Davis has made great contributions to the NFL. He has built this great organization to what it is today and should be respected for that. But…

Paying large sums of money to players because he can see the good in them or they are down on their luck (how I interpret your take on Javon Walker) does not win football games. I seriously doubt that is what Al was thinking when paying Javon Walker. He saw a person that could help him win.

Isn’t that what it’s all about? Isn’t that how success is measured? Let’s just all hope Al’s decisions equal wins. Thankfully, that is what Al is about, a desire to win a championship, not help a guy down on his luck.

Here’s to a successful season, GO RAIDERS!!
Rob Calonge says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 8:58 am

Good article Coach!

I agree with Patrick, Love ‘em or hate ‘em, it’s hard to argue with his contributions to the game and society.
OregonRaider says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 9:17 am

Al Davis does take chances. He is a gambler and you have to bet big to win big. The question is does he win more than he loses and I would say he does.

Thanks for mentioning about Tom Flores. I didn’t know he won a superbowl as a player. Even if it was as a back up, still an awesome achievement. Now if he wouldn’t have coached the Seachickens he would have a better record as a coach and maybe an easier time getting into the HOF.
Mike49er says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 11:08 am

Quote: “Albert Einstein once said, “A fellow who does things that count, doesn’t usually stop to count them.”

Forrest Gump: “Stupid is as stupid does.”

I am SO tempted here….but I’m going to refrain.

Consider it a 4th of July freeby.

To the Stooges: “Don’t stand over the fireworks as you light them.”

See??? I care.
azraider37 says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 11:48 am

“…..you can bet that he(Javon Walker) appreciates the honor that has been placed in his hands….”

Really? He has a funny way of showing it. I hope he gets it together. If anything he has proven that he has taken his opprotunity for granted.
LDizzle says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 2:46 pm

This article lost me about 5 times. The title suggests this article will be (yawn) just another carbon copy of the “Al Davis is historically underrated” argument.

Then some more recent stuff about Javon Walker (which may not be the best example to use with recent events although the point is made).

Then this gem:

“the Oakland Raider organization sits proudly with a strong foundation built with the knowledge of great leadership”

Really? Great leadership? From whom? AD has proven of late that he needs to lead a little less and the coaches have not been given the opportunity to be leaders. Oh wait you said “the knowledge of great leadership” so it is built by knowing that there was great leadership at one time? My head hurts from this nonsense.

Then you get into talking about Tom Flores which is a completely different subject altogether.

Then another gem:

“It is already beginning to happen. Mr. Davis has already won. The fruits of his labor are long overdue”
So which is it? A) Has it begun, B) has he won or C)is it long overdue? I would answer B. And if you meant something else then you should have been more specific.

And then more:

“The sport of football has begun to realize that what the Oakland Raiders stand for is what the USA stands for”

First of all that doesn’t even make sense. How does a sport come to realize anything? Perhaps the people who play or run the League but the sport itself is coming to a realization? Is that like a robot becoming self aware? And assuming you meant the human beings that embody the league in which professional football is played, the answer would be: NO they haven’t realized anything of the sort. And if they had then you wouldn’t have a subject to write about.

Unfortunately it seems Al Davis will not be honored for his accomplishments until long after he has passed on. For now he hangs around tainting the legacy he worked so passionately to build.

Just so you know I hate pointing that out but as a Raider fan I am all too aware of that fact.

Happy Birthday Al
Jon Y says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 3:10 pm

LDizzle, you hit the nail right on the head. I’m a Chiefs’ fan, but as I’ve mentioned several times, Lane Kiffin was moving this team in a great direction last year and I’m still shocked that Davis took the keys away from him right away.

I think the Raiders will do great if Kiffin can ever run the team the way he wants to do it. It’s all in the way you spin a story. Davis is one of the foundations of the league and it’s hard to imagine the NFL without him, but being generous to people in the past is a far cry from choosing an at-risk receiver and then finding that the receiver fell back into trouble. Otherwise, we should be praising Bengals’ owner Mike Brown for finding the goodness in his heart to continually give bad receivers second chances.

Much as I hate the Raiders, Davis has made an enormous impact on the game. But let’s be honest here–the game has passed him by.
autumn_wind says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 4:38 pm

Great post Rob,enjoyed every word of it.The raider nation has struggled of late, and we as the nation have been the butt end of every NFL joke. I will tell you this NFL, it will be AL and the nation that gets the last laugh, just wait and see, keep bashing Al while you have the chance because your time is running out. I said the same thing to a bronco fan is morning, getting his last licks in before opening night, when the raiders annihilate the broncos, he knows it and i know it, thats why he is doing it. Raiders 27 Denver 9
Rob Calonge says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 4:46 pm

autumn_wind - Thanks, but the credit goes to coach for this one. For me it was a copy and paste job

If you are all around a PC tomorrow check back for our stories remembering Al Davis, our founding fathers, and of course Independence Day.

We aren’t taking the day off.
KoolKell says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 5:46 pm

19-61 over the last five years, 5 coaches since 2002. No. He’s 80 yrs Old and past it, period. How can your head personnel guy, GM, wheelchair bound, possibly be fit to evaluate talent first hand? He can’t, he drafts, signs, hype and 40yard dash times.
KoolKell says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 5:51 pm

The Raiders have an overall losing record since the advent of free agency in 1989. I love Al, been a fan since 1964, but all good things come to a end.
KoolKell says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 5:54 pm

The Raiders have an overall losing record since 1989, the advent of the free agency era.

I love Al, but it’s time to move on.
Patrick Patterson says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 9:18 pm

Wow a Chief fan agreeing with Dizzle.
RaiderJ says:

July 3rd, 2008 at 9:27 pm

Amen brother! Long live the king. Happy 4th Mr. Davis.