There’s No Guesswork as Raiders Win : Pro football: Allen sheds his uncertain status to play a new position on a new play that results in go-ahead touchdown, 17-13. Howie Long hurt, could be out 5 to 6 weeks.

They don’t tell Marcus Allen anything. Like if he’s starting or not or, as in Sunday’s case, what position he’s playing. Or that in a pinch they might need him to play tight end and make the block to win a game in a place where the Raiders have won once in eight years.

The Raiders like to keep Allen guessing. Things like, will he be a Raider next week? Or, let’s play him on scout team and see if that messes him up.

Allen received 10 stitches over his right eye in last week’s opener. He probably wishes they had sewn his mouth shut, too, so he wouldn’t have to try to answer questions he can’t answer.

In the meantime, Allen attacks football with his unusual blend of grace and fury. Against the Seattle Seahawks, he even attacked it from tight end, throwing the lead block on Greg Bell’s one-yard scoring run with 1:26 left to give the Raiders a 17-13 victory before 61,889 at the Kingdome.

It was only the second road victory in the last 10 tries for the Raiders, 2-0. What’s more, the Raider offense, held without a touchdown for six quarters in 1990, scored twice in the fourth quarter to rally the Raiders from deficits.

Quarterback Jay Schroeder and receiver Mervyn Fernandez did most of dirty work, aligning their team on the Seahawk one-yard line only minutes after Seattle had gone ahead by 13-10 with 6:07 left.

The Raiders called for their three tight-end set, but the team’s starter, Mike Dyal, injured earlier in the quarter, couldn’t answer. Tight ends coach Terry Robiskie ordered Allen into the game along with Bell and fullback Steve Smith.

No one had seen such an alignment.

“We made it up on the sideline,” Bell said. “It was spur of the moment.”

Allen lined up to the left just behind tight end Ethan Horton. Bell took the ball and charged into the middle and noticed that Allen had blocked the defenders inside.

“Marcus threw a great block,” Bell said. “He pinched immediately and the defenders went down.”

Bell cut outside and scored easily.

Afterward, Allen downplayed his role, as if he could have done it in his sleep.

“Hey, guys,” he said. “I’ve been playing football for a long time.”

But not much lately, though.

Allen said he was never told he was starting Sunday’s game. He made the assumption based on practice.

“They just told me to go with the first unit,” he said. “I guess that means you’re starting.”

Allen played a key role, but not the only one. Schroeder, under fire almost since becoming a Raider, was poised under pressure against Seattle. He completed 10 of 17 passes for 236 yards and was not intercepted. Two of his passes were dropped. Fernandez was even better, making all four of his catches and 93 yards count. He scored the Raiders’ first touchdown on a 12-yard reception and set up the game-winner with a leaping 24-yard grab to give the Raiders first-and-goal at the Seattle three.

The Raiders survived the noisy Seahawk crowd, a failed attempt on fourth-and-goal to end the first half and a Seattle offense that dominated the clock with short passes and drives that, at various times, consumed 10:59, 6:18, 9:02 and 8:10. The Seahawks took the Raider defense on endless journeys across long stretches of field, but rarely reached the end or the end zone.

Let’s just say a few Raider tongues were hanging.

“Had it been a 114 degrees like last week, we wouldn’t have survived,” nose tackle Bob Golic said. “We much preferred the temperature-controlled situation.”

The only Raider that didn’t walk off the field was defensive end Howie Long, who fractured the middle toe on his right foot in the third quarter. Team doctor Robert Rosenfeld estimated Long would miss five to six weeks.

A failed fourth-down attempt at the end of the half could have come back to haunt them in defeat.

Coach Art Shell said he never doubted his decision to send Allen over the top instead of taking a chip-shot field goal that would have given the Raiders a 6-3 halftime lead.

“I’ll never second-guess myself,” Shell said. “I’d do it again.”

Allen thought he scored on the play, although an instant replay review proved otherwise. There were more controversial decisions to come.

First, the Seahawks would take their opening possession of the third quarter and drive 88 yards in 13 plays, scoring on a two-yard run by fullback John L. Williams to take a 10-3 lead.

The Raiders answered quickly. On third and seven from their own 23, Schroeder lofted a deep pass for Fernandez down the right sideline. Fernandez made a beautiful over the shoulder catch, but appeared to have gotten only one foot in bounds at the Seattle 32.

The crowd awaited a replay, but it never came. Schroeder approached the ball and play was halted temporarily because a player had kicked it.

In a pool report, replay official Bob Beeks said that he was trying to buzz the field to stop play.

“I could not get contact,” Beeks said.

When the ball was kicked, referee Jerry Markbreit assumed play was stopped for a replay review. When he never received the buzz, play resumed.

So did the Seahawks lose because of a bad buzzer?

“He was out of bounds,” Seattle Coach Chuck Knox said. “It should not have been a catch, and that’s what he (Markbreit) told me.”

Not long after the non-reversal, Schroeder tied the game at 10-10 on a beautiful 12-yard scoring pass to Fernandez, who had beaten cornerback Dwayne Harper to the right corner of the end zone with 14:17 remaining.

The Seahawks charged right back, but failed three times inside the Raiders’ five, having to settle for Norm Johnson’s 20-yard field goal to take the lead back at 13-10 with 6:07 left.

But Ron Brown returned the ensuing kickoff 34 yards to the 35, and the Raiders still had 5:57 with which to work. The drive featured a big third-down play, Schroeder passing 22 yards to Wille Gault. Schroeder added a 16-yard pass to Tim Brown, Bell ran eight yards up the middle and soon the Raiders had a first down at the Seattle 27.

On first down, Schroeder hit Fernandez for 24 yards to the three.

Two plays later, Allen blocked and Bell was in, and Schroeder was smiling, knowing the game was his to win all along.

“We were going to win the football game,” Schroeder said, describing the feeling in the huddle before the final drive. “Nobody had their head down. Nobody was thinking about it. We just had to make plays. We had some setbacks in the drive, but everyone was picking everyone else up. No big deal. First and 15? No big deal, let’s get a play.”

Raider Notes

Quarterback Steve Beuerlein and safety Vann McElroy were not activated for Sunday’s game, both having received roster exemptions after signing contracts only recently. Beuerlein’s two-game exemption has expired, though, and the team must make a decision on him this week, leading to one television network report Sunday that suggested the Raiders would try to trade Beuerlein as early as today. Beuerlein was unavailable for comment. . . . Seattle quarterback Dave Krieg completed his first 14 passes and finished 19 for 24 for 225 yards with one interception. . . . Greg Bell led the Raiders with 40 yards rushing in 10 carries. Marcus Allen carried 10 times for 35 yards.