Raiders Find Gault to Be Good Catch : Offense: Former Bear has outstanding game against his former teammates, who can’t keep up with him.

Wide receiver Willie Gault of the Raiders dropped what would have been a 60-yard touchdown pass on the first play of an exhibition game against the Chicago Bears six weeks ago at Soldier Field.

But Gault didn’t drop any passes Sunday when the Raiders beat the Bears, 24-10, at the Coliseum.

Gault, who had just five receptions for 105 yards in his first three games this season, nearly matched those number Sunday, catching four passes for 103 yards against the Bears.

“The opportunity was there for Gault and I thought he did an outstanding job,” Raider Coach Art Shell said. “Every week one of those receivers steps forward and does the job for us.”

Gault beat Chicago cornerback Lemuel Stinson on a 59-yard post pattern, which set up the Raiders’ first touchdown, Marcus Allen’s one-yard run. Gault also beat Stinson on a 27-yard reception on a look-in pattern that set up Jeff Jaeger’s 27-yard field goal.

Was it difficult for Stinson to cover Gault?

“It’s not tough at all,” Stinson said. “He just played well. I’m not scared of him. He’s not God. He played well and he caught two passes against me, but he’s not the Man upstairs.”

How did Gault beat Stinson on the 59-yard reception?

“He was running away from me,” Stinson said. “He wasn’t running up the field, he was running away from me. The only thing I’ve got to say is that he didn’t score.”

But Allen was able to score two plays later.

Traded to the Raiders by Chicago in 1988, Gault had his best game of the season against his old team. Did playing the Bears inspire him?

“These were my old buddies, but you’ve got to play the game on the field and not in the papers,” Gault said. “It didn’t feel any different to beat them. It was just the fourth game. It feels good to win because we’re 4-0 and it gives us a little more confidence because the Bears are a quality team.”

Did Gault have an advantage playing against the Bears because he played for them?

“It’s been three years,” Gault said. “I really don’t know what they’re doing there. I really didn’t know exactly what to expect.”

Hampered by injuries in 1988, his first season with the Raiders, Gault caught just 16 passes for 392 yards and two touchdowns, his least productive season in the NFL.

Although he averaged 24.6 yards per catch last season, best in Raider history, and had 28 receptions for 690 yards and four touchdowns, Gault was overshadowed by teammate Mervyn Fernandez, who caught 57 passes for 1,069 yards and nine touchdowns.

Fernandez had been the Raiders’ primary target again this season, catching seven passes for 130 yards and one touchdown in the first three games. It seemed as if Gault had been forgotten in the Raider passing scheme. Gault didn’t catch a pass in last week’s 20-3 victory over Pittsburgh.

But Gault stepped forward Sunday.

“I’m not a selfish player,” Gault said. “As long as we win the games it doesn’t matter who gets the passes or the accolades because I think there’s enough for everyone. It doesn’t matter to me if I never caught another pass. But if we win and I can do something to contribute, whether it’s clearing someone out or making a big block, then that’s fine.”

After playing conservatively in their first three games, with quarterback Jay Schroeder throwing just two touchdown passes, the Raiders opened up their offense against the Bears, with Gault running deep patterns.

“Willie played exceptional today,” Schroeder said. “Every time you play a team that you used to play with I think you’re excited about playing and Willie was ready.”

Gault praised Schroeder for throwing accurate passes.

“I’ve said all along that Jay’s been throwing the ball well,” Gault said. “He did a great job today.”

Did the Raiders plan to throw deep against the Bears, who had the NFC’s second best defense?

“We didn’t come in to the game thinking we could throw deep right away,” Schroeder said. “But the coaches upstairs saw that the safety (rookie Mark Carrier of USC) wasn’t getting back. He’s a young kid and he’ll learn a lesson. If you don’t back up right at the snap of the ball with Willie Gault he’s going to run by you and that’s what happened.”

The Raiders’ long strike passing game was particularly effective because the Bear defensive secondary overplays against the run.

“They had had a lot of success playing that kind of defense against Green Bay and Minnesota and I didn’t expect them to change their whole defense because we had a couple guys who could run,” Gault said. “You just can’t run the ball down the Bears’ throat all the time because they’re really strong up front.”

With Gault stretching the Bears’ defense, Fernandez ran short routes and caught three passes for 57 yards, including a diving 21-yard reception.

Gault, Fernandez and Tim Brown give the Raiders the depth at wide receiver necessary to play the deep passing game fancied by Raider owner Al Davis.

“With Willie, you’ve got to be aware of the deep pass because he’s going get deep on you no matter what and consequently it opens things up for Mervyn on the outside,” Brown said. “Everybody knows Willie’s going deep but no one can stop him.”

And the Bears couldn’t stop Gault either.