Great Googily Moogily - Updated

We interrupt this scintillating Raider Coach Watch to note that Herm Edwards has been fired by the Chefs. And who does the Professional Liar say is ready to replace him?

The beady-eyed devil himself, Mike Shanahan.

If it comes to pass, the hallowed "Raider Week" tradition in Kansas City is likely not to disappear. And perhaps my Bronco-loving in-laws will come to appreciate what a slimy dirtbag Shanahan really is.

Update: Interesting to see how much softer the tone has become at the ESPN.com link above during the afternoon. The original comment from Mort was that the Chiefs were "near" a deal to hire Shanahan, and it read like they were merely waiting for the ink to dry on the contract. Now it attributes the "near" comment to "one source," while Mort is reporting that the Chiefs are merely "targeting" Shanahan. In that very ESPN.com article it now states that Adam Schefter "is reporting that there is no chance he will be the next Chiefs coach." And he states that pretty clearly on his blog. The ESPN.com article goes on to cite a league source who says there is "no way" that the Chiefs could have been near a deal given their obligations under the Rooney Rule.

That's quite a change in tone. Perhaps the ESPN Ombudsman checked in on Mort's "privilege" policy.

Chucky, Macaca's Brother Fired in Tampa

Former Raiders Coach John Gruden, and former Raiders General Manager Bruce Allen have been sacked in Tampa, leading Jerry Mac to call Tom Cable "The Terminator" for his roll in Shanahan's and then Gruden's teams suckitude.

But why does the ESPN.com article have to link to this?

This Sets us Back

It seems like every few months someone allegedly a Raiders fan does something ignorant and newsworthy. First there was the kid who got eaten by a tiger last Christmas while wearing a Marcus Allen jersey . Then there was the homeless, junky San Francisco State student on the cover of SF Weekly with a Raiders sticker on his cell phone.

And now some guy robbed a bank in Walnut Creek wearing a Raiders hat. Now, it could be that the suspect is a genius, and the Raiders hat is only a disguise. According to the description, he was a short white guy, about 5'8" tall with blond hair and a goatee.

Has anyone see Shanahan since he was fired? With his buyout, I'm sure he could afford a blond wig. And what better way to make Al look bad?

Broncos to Shanahan: "You're Fired."

Ding Dong, the devil is dead.

So does this put another name into the Raider hat? I'll stop laughing just long enough to wonder whether this means Schottenheimer will come back to KC after all, just to keep the Raider hater quotient up in the AFC West.

It's about time with Shanahan, honestly. His non-Elway record is not good - one playoff win since Bucky retired. And Shanny just mentioned the other day that Slowik would be retained as defensive coordinator after a terrible defensive campaign. Guess not.

More firing news: Martz out.

Was Shanahan Right?

I have long maintained that Mike Shanahan, with his beady eyes and small mouth that rarely moves, is closely related to Satan. He is well known for having taken over a talent laden (LA) Raiders club from legendary coach Tom Flores in 1988 and running it into the ground while trying to change a "Just Win Baby" culture that gave players the benefit of every doubt and bred a locker room completely lacking in self discipline. The culture clash was summed up by Howie Long's complaint that Shanny did not allow players to sit on their helmets on the sideline. When combined with a mediocre record this gave Al plenty of cause with which to fire him.

On Wednesday, Mike Shanahan showed a previously undisplayed ability to speak the truth when he said of CLOAK man-crush Nnamdi Asomugha, "He is the most underrated football player, to me, that I have ever been around. For people not to talk about him as the top corner in the NFL...to me, is a crime."

Cynicism set temporarily aside, Shanahan's ability to tell the truth opens a large can of worms and reminds me of a comment that a despondent Unk made when I visited him in Kingsburg in October:

"Maybe Shanahan was right."

Originally dismissed as the bitter ramblings of my Raider mentor still waiting for this team to show him some signs of competitiveness, perhaps it deserves consideration today. If in the face of the current housing meltdown we can question the validity of claiming a fundamental right for every American to own a home, surely we can question the Raider approach to player discipline in year six of an arguably worse meltdown of Raider football.

Fittingly, as I sat down to write this entry, my lovely wife was reminiscing over one of her favorite teams of all time, the notoriously undisciplined 1990's Dallas Cowboys. As the NFL Network show told stories of Michael Irvin missing the team flight to away games, I wondered how they managed to become so successful. Three reasons immediately leapt to mind:

1. Talent (i.e., good personnel decisions)
2. On-field leadership
3. Coaching continuity

That we are only in year six rather than year twenty of a Raider meltdown is owed to a short, simultaneous visit by the above three points to Alameda in the late 1990's / early 2000's.

So was Shanahan right? I'm going to go out on a limb and say yes and no. Discipline certainly helps when every team is closely matched and looking for every edge to win each week. But discipline will never be a part of the Raider culture as long as Al Davis is alive. Therefore, we'll continue to pine for that uncommon combination of talent, on-field leadership, and coaching continuity that has eluded us these past six years. Two good offseason hires could go a long way towards making that a reality. (Read: Hope; also, Delusion).

As for this week's comments, do we believe that Shanny will avoid 21 tomorrow or do we worry that he's prepping to make a free agent run at Nnamdi? In a double entendre that only with him might I believe was intentional, Nnamdi said, "He’s lying. He’s coming for me."

Who the Fuck is Randy Hanson? Also, John's Picks.

Good job by Dan and Sllaacs keeping up the blog while I've been out of action. I think all of the stupidity of the last week made me sick.

Anyway, so just what the Raiders the morning of a game with a division rival: More controversy. Some guy named Randy Hanson was suspended by Lance after the Monday Night Debacle of September 8 after he was overheard saying, "It's a good thing that Shanahan didn't have our players, or else he would have beaten us 1,000-0."

So now he's the latest assistant coach to come out and call Lance a liar, and what with all the injuries, I'll be shocked if we keep the game within 30 points today. The only inflection we're likely to see or hear is in Al's voice when he speaks to the media this week, if he was telling Corkran the truth. on thisAt least that will be interesting. Chargers win, 42-10.

Jerry has more on this, saying that Kiffin's big mistake was in not talking to Al before trying to fire Rob, etc, which is the same shit Shanny did 20 years ago when he tried to purge his staff of Art Shell and Tom Walsh. We all know how that ended up.

Again, I'm not saying Kiffin is the 2nd coming of Bill Walsh. He's clearly not. He's also probably a hypocrite, as Peterson argues so persuasively. But anyone who thinks he's the only, or even the main problem, is in denial. Deep, crushing, unhealthy denial.

The 49ers are playing pretty good football. It could be a shoot out in the dome. I like the 9ers, actually, 31-28.

I like Tampa over the Packers, in a squeaker, 17-14. Maybe even OT. Raiders fans will watch, wistfully, remembering what it was like to have a well-coached football team.

Jets-Cardinals. Maybe there's something to this trade speculation of Jerry's. I would trade every receiver who is not a rookie, and next years (likely Top-5) for Anquan Boldin. Do it NBA-style, so the cap numbers match. But that's just me. I'm weird, I want JaMarcus to be successful.

Oh. Cardinals win after they return 3 Favre INTs for six. I'd a double-bagged.

That's Not Funny, Bill.

Just thinking out loud? Let's hope that's all it is, because this kind sick joke/speculation that Williamson came up with in between writing Denver Broncos press releases is exactly the kind of thing Al would do at this point.

I mean, Dan brought it up in comments, but I know he was joking.

AP: Kiffin Split Second Late on Shanahaning Bills.

They also refer to us as the "hard-luck and dysfunctional."

Anyway, is Kiffin gone or not?

I'll be watching NFL Network to see what Schefter hears.

Home Cookin' in Denver

Just when I had decided that I'm not mustering as much hate for Denver - despite last week's result - and that Philip Rivers is so unlikable that I am finally mustering some hate for San Diego, I find myself feeling sorry for our old pal Norv Turner based on a couple of homer calls in Denver that have Shanahan looking more like a rat than ever.

In the first quarter, Denver gets a fumble on a play that pretty clearly showed that Chambers was down. That set up the Broncos deep in San Diego territory for an early touchdown. Norv threw the challenge flag, of course, but after two minutes under the hood, Ed Hochuli returned to explain that the replay equipment was not working, so the play stands as called. Couldn't you call Dick Enberg, Ed?

That was a weird one, but the fourth quarter call was just a bad one. With goal to go from the 1 yard line and down by 7, Cutler dropped back and dropped the ball as he cocked his arm to throw. The ball flew backwards and hit the ground, prompting Hochuli to blow the whistle for an incompletion. So it was wrong on two counts, and upon review, Hochuli agreed that it was a fumble. Trouble is, he had blown his whistle, so Denver keeps the ball.

Of course the Broncos went on to score a TD two downs later and won the game on a "bold" (because it paid off) two-point conversion.

Shanahan!