PRO FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : RAIDERS : McCallum Was Almost Forgotten

Napoleon McCallum didn’t expect to be carrying as often as he did Sunday.

He wasn’t alone. His coach didn’t expect it, either.

“It just kind of happened,” Art Shell said of McCallum’s performance Sunday against the Bears in Chicago. “I did go into the game knowing I was going to use him (inside the opposing 20-yard line) and in short-yardage situations.

“But he was going so well, finding the cracks in there, that we kind of stuck with him.”

McCallum rushed for 50 yards in nine carries, averaging 5.6 yards. He also scored the Raiders’ only touchdown in a 16-14 victory, going over from a yard out.

“He did a pretty good job running the football,” Shell said. “You tend to forget the guy was a pretty good runner when we first got him here. When we were looking for running backs, people who could make a contribution, we just kept overlooking him.”

McCallum rushed for 1,237 yards as a senior at Navy, averaging 120.6 yards, seventh-best in the nation.

But he had only 41 carries for the Raiders in 1990 and 1991. His only duty since has been on special teams.

Will McCallum continue to be utilized as a running back?

“We are going to use people who can make plays,” Shell said. “If he’s capable of making plays, he’ll see more playing time.”

*

As of 1 p.m. Tuesday, the Raiders were 1,000 tickets short of a sellout for Sunday’s game at the Coliseum against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Capacity under the new seating configuration is 67,800. The Raiders must reach that figure by 1 p.m. Thursday to lift the local television blackout.

The Raiders last sold out a home game last season, when they drew 92,488 for a game against the Dallas Cowboys. The last time the Raiders sold out in time to lift the blackout, meaning 72 hours in advance, was for a game against the San Francisco 49ers on Sept. 29, 1991.