Already, NFL rumor leader is Oakland

It's five days and counting until the first Sunday of the 2007 regular season, and the Raiders are right where they should be -- at the top of the sports scandal sheets and rumor reports.

After chopping its active roster to 53 players Saturday, the team quickly found itself at the center of some disturbing discussion. First came a report on the popular NFL rumor/journalism site profootballtalk.com that said Lane Kiffin was "livid" at some of the roster moves supposedly made directly by owner Al Davis.

According to the site: "Though we don't know of any specific moves about which Kiffin is particularly upset, we're told that the bulk of the moves is evidence that owner Al Davis still has a significant amount of influence over the football operation."

About the same time, the Internet began buzzing with another embarrassing story concerning the Silver & Black. Here's a version from the sports survey/information site mvn.com: "Radio 680am just reported that (linebacker) Quentin Moses was let go in error. Apparently Don Johnson, an assistant coach on the defensive line had submitted a prioritized list of players he wanted to keep. Moses was inadvertently left off the list. He then sent a separate email to a guy named Jeff Birren who works in administration. Birren thought Moses was to be added to the release list, so he added the name and faxed it in to league offices in New York. The error was not discovered until after the move was official."

Wow. Damning stuff. Taken together, the stories would seem to indicate that (1) Davis still calls every shot in Oakland, right down to the blend of coffee, and (2) the Raiders are a bumbling operation that will be hard-pressed to improve to 3-13 this year.

I can't say for sure where the truth lies. Nothing I heard from Alameda in the last two days tipped me off to either mini-scandal.

The profootballtalk story minimizes Kiffin's input in roster decisions, and maximizes Davis'. But look at the cuts. Alvis Whitted and Carlos Francis, a pair of fleet wide receivers who define the Al Davis speed fetish, both were lopped. Other players like Johnnie Morant, James Adkisson and Chad Slaughter had managed to stick around through several administrations, but were shown the door this time. None of that has the aroma of a rookie coach who is being pushed into decisions by an overbearing owner.

And as for the Moses issue, it's true that his release was a bizarre and surprising event. But for one thing, Jeff Birren -- "who works in administration," as the report said -- is in fact the Raiders' chief legal counsel and no newcomer to his position. And more important, it strikes me as curious that Kiffin and his inner circle, which includes director of football development Mark Jackson, would leave such a vital task to others without having final approval before the cut sheet was sent on to the league office.

Whom do

they know?

If people were surprised to find Moses among the final cuts, they may have been equally shocked to find the names Chris Johnson and Duane Starks missing from the list.

Johnson really stood out in training camp, using his speed and ball skills to break up a lot of passes. When the exhibition games started, though, he may have been the worst Raider on the field. Asked about Johnson's poor performance at Seattle in the final tune-up, Kiffin insisted a player shouldn't be judged on one game. But Johnson got drubbed in three games; in the other, against the Rams, he made mistakes all over the field but made up for them with two big plays. He should thank Isaiah Ekejiuba's injured heel for his roster spot, because you can bet it has a lot to do with special-teams play.

Starks, meanwhile, made a couple nice plays against the Seahawks, including a leaping interception. He just doesn't seem very durable, or imposing, or young at this point.

Sigh of relief

One player who should be breathing easier right now is halfback Justin Fargas. Based on last year's production, Fargas should have been a shoo-in. He led the Raiders with 659 rushing yards and ran hard whenever he got the chance.

Based upon this year's opportunities, the would-be rapper who bills himself as Young Hugg seemed to be on thin ice. He usually had to wait for practice repetitions behind LaMont Jordan and Dominic Rhodes, and took a backseat to Adimchinobe Echemandu in the exhibition games.

Kiffin cut former USC players Darnell Bing and Will Buchanon before the first exhibition game, and had ridden Mike Williams mercilessly. It's almost as if he was extra hard on Trojans. Fargas survived, though, and should get some playing time during Rhodes' suspension. And when Rhodes returns? Then Hugg's breathing might grow a bit labored again.

You can reach Staff Writer Phil Barber at 526-8672 or phil. barber@pressdemocrat.com.