Raiders : This Team Should Be Training at the Olympic

“Knuckle Sandwich on Raider Menu” read a Page 1 headline in Wednesday’s Ventura County Star, a reference to the previous day’s exchange of views over lunch by two Raider front office officials.

And on the jump page: “Pride, Poise and Pugilism. . . . “

But the day after promotion director Mike Ornstein had punched senior administrator John Herrera, things were back to normal. Cornerback James Davis and fullback Steve Strachan scuffled during the morning practice and were barely noticed. On the field, brother fights brother daily.

Some combatants even insist on rematches. Bill Lewis, the No. 7 draft choice, fought Brian O’Neill, a free-agent nose tackle from New Hampshire, the other day, not for the first time.

“It’s got to be a lot,” O’Neill said of the number of their bouts. “It’s got to be over five.”

Are they on speaking terms off the field?

“Oh yeah,” O’Neill said. “He’s my roommate.”

Lewis also had a fight and finger-pointing exchange with Mitch Willis, and a free-swinging battle with rookie defensive end Mike Wise.

That one was broken up by Marcus Allen, the franchise himself, who literally dived into the midst of it. His teammates imitated the dive, incredulously. If Coach Tom Flores had seen 1,759 yards of rushing and 555 more of receiving endanger himself to separate two rookies, his season would have passed before his eyes.

Flores, however, was tiptoeing in from the other side, also trying to break up the fight.

“I didn’t want to get hit,” Flores said later. “I’d have been coming out of there faster than I went in.”

Lewis said: “That was just an argument with Mike Wise. Right after the practice, it’s over and done with. He’s trying to do what he has to do, and I’m trying to do what I have to do. Sometimes there’s conflict.”

Veterans are something else, since they are infinitely cagier. Matt Millen, for instance, introduced himself during one practice by grabbing Lewis by the shoulder pads and head-butting him.

“Just for the heck of it, I think,” Lewis said, laughing. “Maybe it was his way of initiating me.

“He’s a load, I’ll tell you that. But he’s a good guy. He’s one of the character people on this team, him, Dave Dalby. On days when you’re down, guys like that really help.

“You don’t see too many veterans fighting. Usually, it’s the young guys. When you’re a veteran, you’re more settled. You know what you’re doing technique-wise. You’re not struggling as much.”

More to the point, the veterans are not in as much danger of being cut.

Lewis’ odds, however, are improving. An All-Big Eight center at Nebraska, he was generally rated the nation’s second-best prospect at that position before the draft, although it was also called a bad year for centers. He wasn’t talked up a lot after the mini-camps but has made a move here.

Lewis is challenging Dalby for the backup center position while being groomed at the same time as the next Steve Sylvester, a reserve who can play all the line positions. The Raiders like Lewis’ bulk--he’s 6 feet 6 inches and 275 pounds--which comes in handy against the new Michael Carter-sized nose tackles. They also like that he played guard and tackle at Nebraska.

Does it hurt that he is combative?

In this organization?

Are you kidding?

Jim Plunkett, readying for his start Saturday against the Dallas Cowboys, is still working exclusively with the second unit, one more suggestion that the quarterback competition has ended before he fires his first shot in an exhibition.

Marc Wilson is the listed and presumed set-to-open No. 1. Plunkett is No. 2, Rusty Hilger No. 3.

Can Plunkett accept it?

“I have no choice,” he said. “You’ve got to accept what they say. I’m just an employee.

“That hurts a little bit. The policy has always been you don’t lose a job because of injury. I feel a little bad they changed it.”

Does he think the Raiders had their mind made up?

“Could be. You’ll have to ask them. I just take them at their word.”

And how would it go, running a unit he hadn’t been working with?

“I don’t know until I step on the field Saturday with them.”

Does that seem odd?

“It’s odd to me.”

Raider Notes The decision by NFL owners to hold the rosters to 45 almost certainly dooms Napoleon McCallum to inactive status, at least in football. McCallum was hoping to be available one day a week, and Tom Flores said he was considering keeping him as a punt returner, but only if the roster was expanded to 49. . . . And Flores, whose official stance is that the quarterback competition is still open: “You’d like to have an idea who it’d be by the last exhibition game, at least. As I’ve said, Marc (Wilson) has an edge. I don’t want to make it a day-to-day thing. You guys (the media) do, but I don’t. I don’t want to make it a week-to-week thing. You don’t establish continuity that way. We have to build with what we have.”