The Early Birds Will Get Raiders

The Raiders play Saturday morning.

Repeat, Saturday morning.

Not Sunday, although pro football usually is played on Sunday.

Not Saturday afternoon or Saturday night, although pro football starting times usually include the letters p.m.

Saturday morning. Eleven-thirty Kansas City time. Nine-thirty Pacific time. Seven-thirty Hawaii time.

If you oversleep, you might miss the end of the Raider season.

If you’re in Japan, I think the game is Friday.

I don’t know if jet lag ever decided an NFL playoff game, but if the Raiders play like they are half asleep, they probably are.

Frankly, I’m a little worried about this 9:30 starting time. Todd Marinovich is usually just coming home about this hour.

Now we know one more reason why it was so unfortunate that the Raiders’ lost last week’s game to the Kansas City Chiefs, which was played (now here’s a quaint idea) on a Sunday afternoon.

The Raiders have enough problems without having to ask their hotel operator for a wake-up call 2 1/2 hours before Saturday’s game, which translates to 7 o’clock California time.

Among the many things Art Shell has to worry about:

--Who’s the quarterback, Marinovich or Jay Schroeder?

Shell sealed off practice this week from the media, so nobody would know. Art is smart, but he made a mistake here. What he should have done (the Raiders being just diabolical enough to do it) was open practice to reporters for an hour or so, let the wrong quarterback work with the first-team offense, then hold an hour of private practice with the real starting quarterback running the team.

I have heard it argued that Schroeder should be the quarterback because a starter shouldn’t lose his job because of an injury.

I disagree.

A great starter shouldn’t lose his job because of an injury. A so-so starter should have to consult the depth chart week by week.

--Will Howie Long and Bob Golic be recovered enough from injuries to play?

These are big, strapping boys, these two. But in last week’s game, the two of them didn’t have one sound body between them. Long did the best he could. Golic’s leg was as purple as a stripe on a Laker’s pants. He tried, too. And he says you’ll have to drag him away to keep him out of Saturday’s game. Attaboy, Bob.

All I can think of is that Winter Olympics figure skater from 1988 who trained for years, then skipped the final night because she had the flu.

Show her, Bob.

Something has to give, because Kansas City’s runners went through the middle of the Raider line as if they were on motorcycles. No wonder Greg Townsend got himself kicked out of the game. Had he stayed out there any longer, there would have been an imprint of him in the dirt.

--Whatever happened to Willie Gault?

Tim Brown has re-emerged as the splendid receiver he was, is and always will be. Ethan Horton has blossomed into an all-pro tight end, who drops quite a few clutch passes but caught a whole bunch of them last Sunday.

But where’s Willie?

Paging Mr. Gault, Mr. Willie Gault. White courtesy telephone.

Last time I checked, Gault was catching something like 1 1/2 passes per game. Maybe fewer. (And believe me, that half-pass is the tough one to catch.)

Used to be, Schroeder drew a line in the dirt with a stick or his finger and said: “Willie, I’ll heave it, you run under it.”

But the Raider deep threat is disappearing. Maybe Gault’s legs are shot from trying to make the Winter Olympics pushing that bobsled.

The Raiders do have several things going their way.

Ronnie Lott is playing like Ronnie Lott.

Elvis Patterson is playing special teams as though he personally bet somebody he could make a tackle every time he appears on the field.

Scott Davis is a terribly underrated pass rusher who also has been the terror of kickers around the league, sticking up that big paw of his.

Steve Wisniewski is back and the offensive line sure can use him.

Nolan Harrison has been a nice discovery, a little reckless but more than a little tough.

And the Jeffs, Jaeger and Gossett, give the Raiders a kicking game that favorably compares to the days of Ray Guy and George Blanda, we kid you not.

So, they definitely have a chance.

I know the Raiders generally prefer Monday nights to Saturday mornings. But I’ll take them anyway, 24-21, game-winning pass to Willie Gault. From whom, I have no idea.