He was razor sharp, no question. Took steady aim, planted his feet, hit every target.
Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon was more than hot Wednesday. Better than blistering. He was scalding. Scolding hot.
Especially when a TV reporter awkwardly referred to suggestions that Gannon's starting job might be in jeopardy.
``You think that's the answer?'' Gannon said acidly. ``What do you want me to do? You want me to sit here and answer questions about the quarterback situation?''
Then, in a moment that caused those of us standing around Gannon to feel like we'd run a zig-route when he wanted us to zag, the TV guy tried to calm him by saying that yes, Rich, it's too early to talk about changing quarterbacks.
``You think it's early?'' said Gannon, raging like King Lear across the Stratford-upon-Avon stage. ``What, wait another week?''
Well, no, Cranky Pants. Didn't mean it that way.
``Let's not talk about it, then,'' Gannon said. ``That's how I feel about it.''
I hope offensive coordinator Marc Trestman answers Gannon's gibes better than the TV guy did. Judging by Monday night's prime-time rampage, I doubt it.
Once again, you realized why Gannon is the most valuable but least-loved player on the team. He has never wanted to win a popularity contest; he wants to win football games, and huggy-chummy won't ever be his style.
• Get the answers you're looking for
Mercury News columnist Tim Kawakami responds to reader questions.
Shortly before his interview session, Gannon made this mirthless barb to someone who wrote that it might be time for backup Marques Tuiasosopo to get a few snaps: ``Where's the crack pipe you've been smoking?''
Can't we all get along? Well, no, not when the Raiders are 1-2 and stinking up the joint.
So eventually, it became clear. Either Gannon is losing it, or he's doing this for a hard-edged reason: He wants any teammate daydreaming about life without him to read these comments and realize he isn't going anywhere. If they think it was tough playing with him during the good times, just make a few more blunders and see what it's like.
Maybe you want Tuiasosopo, he's saying to his teammates. Fine, but I'm going to chew on your rear end until my last breath. And you're going to need me because you can't do it yourselves.
Gannon's the guy Jon Gruden deputized to help clean the decks and, it's becoming more clear, the guy who feels that he has to amp up discipline under Bill Callahan (Yo, Sebastian Janikowski).
A year and a half after Gruden's departure, the Raiders are reverting to the mistake machine Gruden inherited. Penalties are killing them. The offense, so powerful last season, has ground to a halt.
If things aren't turned around immediately, Gannon and the other super-senior stars will be looking at the end of the line.
``There's a lot of people that are uptight, obviously,'' Gannon said. ``Especially reporters and some players. A lot of stuff going on around here. . . .
``But let's keep our poise and find a way to get it done.''
Gannon's numbers are bland so far, best illustrated by a quarterback rating (76.5) that is more than 20 points lower than in 2002 and presently trails such luminaries as Jeff Blake, Jay Fiedler and Vinny Testaverde.
But Gannon, upon whom so much of this pass-crazy offense is focused, won't admit how wobbly his legs and passes have looked.
``I have no problem with my play. I really don't. And you can print that,'' Gannon said. ``I have no problem with the way I've performed the first three games. None whatsoever.
``If you want to make that an issue, you want to make that a story, go right ahead. . . . I know the facts.''
Facts? Maybe Gannon, at 37, suddenly got old in the middle of Tampa Bay's Super Bowl shellacking, but probably not.
``No, no,'' Callahan said earlier this week when asked if there was a chance he would use Tuiasosopo. ``He's still our guy and we're sticking with him through thick and thin.''
Maybe Gannon has slipped a little, but he remains a quality quarterback. Maybe he needs more help this season, and suddenly his teammates are playing worse, which makes him look much worse.
Maybe if the Raiders could run the ball just a bit -- Welcome back, Barret Robbins! -- and if they were less likely to jump offside, Gannon wouldn't be shouldering all of the burden.
``When you're struggling and when you're the man making all the cash, you're going to get talked about and things are going to happen,'' receiver Tim Brown said.
``But Rich Gannon is not our problem right now. It's the whole offense that's a problem.''
And maybe the drill sergeant knows exactly how far his troops are from success, and maybe the public barking has only just begun.
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/6856859.htm
Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon was more than hot Wednesday. Better than blistering. He was scalding. Scolding hot.
Especially when a TV reporter awkwardly referred to suggestions that Gannon's starting job might be in jeopardy.
``You think that's the answer?'' Gannon said acidly. ``What do you want me to do? You want me to sit here and answer questions about the quarterback situation?''
Then, in a moment that caused those of us standing around Gannon to feel like we'd run a zig-route when he wanted us to zag, the TV guy tried to calm him by saying that yes, Rich, it's too early to talk about changing quarterbacks.
``You think it's early?'' said Gannon, raging like King Lear across the Stratford-upon-Avon stage. ``What, wait another week?''
Well, no, Cranky Pants. Didn't mean it that way.
``Let's not talk about it, then,'' Gannon said. ``That's how I feel about it.''
I hope offensive coordinator Marc Trestman answers Gannon's gibes better than the TV guy did. Judging by Monday night's prime-time rampage, I doubt it.
Once again, you realized why Gannon is the most valuable but least-loved player on the team. He has never wanted to win a popularity contest; he wants to win football games, and huggy-chummy won't ever be his style.
• Get the answers you're looking for
Mercury News columnist Tim Kawakami responds to reader questions.
Shortly before his interview session, Gannon made this mirthless barb to someone who wrote that it might be time for backup Marques Tuiasosopo to get a few snaps: ``Where's the crack pipe you've been smoking?''
Can't we all get along? Well, no, not when the Raiders are 1-2 and stinking up the joint.
So eventually, it became clear. Either Gannon is losing it, or he's doing this for a hard-edged reason: He wants any teammate daydreaming about life without him to read these comments and realize he isn't going anywhere. If they think it was tough playing with him during the good times, just make a few more blunders and see what it's like.
Maybe you want Tuiasosopo, he's saying to his teammates. Fine, but I'm going to chew on your rear end until my last breath. And you're going to need me because you can't do it yourselves.
Gannon's the guy Jon Gruden deputized to help clean the decks and, it's becoming more clear, the guy who feels that he has to amp up discipline under Bill Callahan (Yo, Sebastian Janikowski).
A year and a half after Gruden's departure, the Raiders are reverting to the mistake machine Gruden inherited. Penalties are killing them. The offense, so powerful last season, has ground to a halt.
If things aren't turned around immediately, Gannon and the other super-senior stars will be looking at the end of the line.
``There's a lot of people that are uptight, obviously,'' Gannon said. ``Especially reporters and some players. A lot of stuff going on around here. . . .
``But let's keep our poise and find a way to get it done.''
Gannon's numbers are bland so far, best illustrated by a quarterback rating (76.5) that is more than 20 points lower than in 2002 and presently trails such luminaries as Jeff Blake, Jay Fiedler and Vinny Testaverde.
But Gannon, upon whom so much of this pass-crazy offense is focused, won't admit how wobbly his legs and passes have looked.
``I have no problem with my play. I really don't. And you can print that,'' Gannon said. ``I have no problem with the way I've performed the first three games. None whatsoever.
``If you want to make that an issue, you want to make that a story, go right ahead. . . . I know the facts.''
Facts? Maybe Gannon, at 37, suddenly got old in the middle of Tampa Bay's Super Bowl shellacking, but probably not.
``No, no,'' Callahan said earlier this week when asked if there was a chance he would use Tuiasosopo. ``He's still our guy and we're sticking with him through thick and thin.''
Maybe Gannon has slipped a little, but he remains a quality quarterback. Maybe he needs more help this season, and suddenly his teammates are playing worse, which makes him look much worse.
Maybe if the Raiders could run the ball just a bit -- Welcome back, Barret Robbins! -- and if they were less likely to jump offside, Gannon wouldn't be shouldering all of the burden.
``When you're struggling and when you're the man making all the cash, you're going to get talked about and things are going to happen,'' receiver Tim Brown said.
``But Rich Gannon is not our problem right now. It's the whole offense that's a problem.''
And maybe the drill sergeant knows exactly how far his troops are from success, and maybe the public barking has only just begun.
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/sports/6856859.htm
