Took a few days off in lieu of any real hard news, but that ends Tuesday when the Raiders have granted the media access the the final 25 minutes of a voluntary minicamp practice and the chance to seek interviews on the field after it is over.
Then its time to begin gearing up for the draft, something Ive tried to avoid until April hits double figures.
Historically, the Raiders have been the leagues most closed-off team with regard to the media. Theyre not the only ones, of course, but in the past theyve been in a category of one with regard to off-season access.
From the time Art Shell was hired last season, no one talked to him until he met with writers at the annual coaches breakfast at the NFL owners meeting. Then he went underground until after Oakland made Michael Huff the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft.
Minicamps and the offseason workout program were pretty much a well-kept secret.
Frankly, with the exception of Jon Gruden, it wasnt much better in previous regimes.
Gruden figured there wasnt much a bunch of dumb writers could possibly figure out that could truly hurt him _ hes right, of course _ and that the whole mystery/secrecy thing was more than a little overdone.
Kiffin may be of the same mind. He earned compliments nationally at the coaches breakfast in Arizona, and then just two days later at an off-season workout session stood and fielded questions again from the locals.
Four players were made available, all chosen by the team. It was filtered access, but it was better than nothing.
Hes scheduled to be available again Tuesday after reporters have a chance to talk to players _ this time without filters. The word is anyone can be approached, and while some may say get away from me, thats OK. All you can ask for in this business is a chance to ask a question.
This is groundbreaking stuff.
I joked with Raiders executive John Herrera that all this access was going to ruin their reputation, and it drew a hearty laugh instead of a paranoid chip on the shoulder.
Its always amused me that when I take an occasional swipe at the Raiders for their media access, so many e-mailers and comments on this blog back up the team as if its a good thing.
Its not.
There is no one more starved for information and coverage than a Raiders fan. Lord knows Id rather be reporting and formulating opinions on things that were said by team members than formulating opinions based on prior knowledge and educated guesses.
If the early days of the Kiffin regime are any indication, it will be better for reporters, and by extension, the fans.
News and notes:
NFL Network is reporting Tory James could be in the mix to return to Oakland, but labeled New England, New Orleans and Green Bay more likely destinations.
James isnt going to start for the Raiders, not with Nnamdi Asomugha and Fabian Washington around. His signing would represent a vote of no-confidence in Stanford Routt, a second-round pick in 2005.
The Josh McCown rumors continue to swirl, and, as stated before, they make sense. Its getting toward the end of the game of quarterback musical chairs, with David Carr signing with Carolina and Joey Harrington agreeing to terms with Atlanta.
McCown had an 11-11 record as a starter in Arizona, and .500 with the Cardinals is not bad. In his last two starts he completed 58 of 80 passes for 591 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions in a 27-21 win over Philadelphia and a 17-13 loss to Indianapolis.
Hes in the last year of his contract and eager to put some starts on his resume _ perfect for a transitional quarterback should Oakland take JaMarcus Russell.
Youll hear lots of talk in the coming weeks when character issues come up about a particular player about how the Raiders (snicker, snicker) MUST be interested.
Of course, they havent drafted anyone who was a social rotten apple for some time now. But what fun is it to bring that up when you can have a laugh at the expense of the so-called Interesting quote from USC wide receiver Steve Smith in a CBS Sportsline.com story about the Trojans offense, which was co-coordinated by Kiffin. Smith ran a faster-than-expected 4.44 time in the 40-yard dash and said, I guess people didnt see it because we didnt run a lot of go-routes at USC. And when we did have a lot explosive plays, a lot of balls were underthrown. Thats the only thing I can think of why people didnt think I was that fast.
The Kiffin-Steve Sarkisian offense (by way of Norm Chow) made excellent use of ball-possession passing and did plenty of damage after the catch. They worked seams for big yardage more than they heaved it down the sideline.
The Denver Post reports guard Cooper Carlisle, an eight-year veteran who started all 32 gamesin the past two seasons for Denver, may visit Oakland. Carlisle is 6-foot-6 and weighs 295 pounds _ the only guard on the Oakland roster, according to the clubs Web site, under 300 pounds.
That roster, by the way, lists Paul McQuistan as a tackle. McQuistan was a left tackle at college who started at right guard for the first two games and ended the season as the starting left guard.
The only guards listed on the roster are Brad Badger, Corey Hulsey and Kevin Boothe. Hulsey, an unrestricted free agent, was in uniform at the teams off-season workout session which was open to the media but has not been listed as signed.

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