Raiders Barely Able to Recover--Again : Until They Put Away Foes, They Can’t Put Away Doubt

Killer instinct continues to be the only thing lacking in the Raiders and could be the only thing keeping them from becoming a legitimately championship-capable team, as again was demonstrated during Sunday’s 27-20 success at the Coliseum against the always-say-die Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

More meanness went into a flurry of fistfights, in the black-and-silver’s apparent attempt to send the Bucs home black-and-blue, than went into the effort to bust open what should have been a Raider runaway. This was a game that mirrored the previous week’s experience with the Seattle Seahawks, when a contest that could have been resolved by halftime remained undecided until a crunch-time onside kick.

Art Shell, hospitalized with other ailments earlier in the season, is headed for an ulcer at this rate.

Middle linebacker Joe Kelly, having played one of his most impressive games despite succumbing temporarily to leg cramps, gave the Raider situation a good, clean hit afterward when he said: “I think everybody believes we do have a good team. What’s in the back of everybody’s mind is that we don’t know why we can’t go out there like we should and put Tampa Bay away.

“Good teams do that. Like San Francisco and Dallas. They put teams away so it won’t come down to the last onside kick. We have to learn how to put teams down and keep them down.”

On the whole, this was another positive experience for the Raiders, with the nimble Jeff Hostetler still knowing how to punch the football into the end zone when necessary, with Jeffs B and C, Jaeger and Gossett, kicking the team out of harm’s way when called upon and with defensive backs such as Lionel Washington making alert, touchdown-robbing plays, although Terry McDaniel could have really stolen the show had he squeezed more tightly an interception that he could have returned 90-plus yards untouched, unless tripped from the Tampa bench by Sam Wyche.

The Raiders did what they came to do. They kicked the Buccaneers in the seats of their pumpkin-colored pants.

Yet this was also another of those exasperating games reminiscent of the ones involving respectable opponents--Cleveland, Chicago and the New York Jets come to mind--when the Raiders seemed to have the situation well in hand, only to find themselves backpedaling by game’s end and sweating out every tick of the clock. All teams have such days, but it is a crying shame that the Raiders are still having them this late in the season, on their home field, against the inferior likes of Seattle and Tampa Bay.

“I wish we could say the game is over with seven minutes to go,” Hostetler said.

Not scheduled in the NFL’s proposed rule changes, unfortunately.

Still, with the playoffs not far away, at least the Raiders are losing leads rather than losing games.

Or, as strong safety Derrick Hoskins nicely put it, “Hey, we’ve got a head of steam going.”

Except for an obvious shortcoming in having no rushing strategy to shout about--poor Hostetler had to resort to hurling bombs on third-and-two--the Raiders definitely do have what it takes to make this a memorable season. They have skill and they have will. And, more importantly, no other outfit in their conference, not Houston, not Buffalo and not Kansas City, is in any way so invulnerable that the Raiders, with their vigorous passing attack and ornery defense, could not emerge as masters of the AFC universe.

They aren’t pinning opponents to the ground and keeping them there, though. A suspicion exists that Raider defenders grow tired from being unable to relax, due to the offense’s shortcoming in mounting prolonged, time-consuming drives. Well, maybe. Washington, Eddie Anderson, Howie Long, Greg Townsend, good as they are, none is younger than either 30 or springtime, so a blow after halftime would be a lot more welcome if it could last longer than three downs and a punt.

The concern, see, is not that the Raiders are almost losing --Tampa Bay would simply love to almost lose more of its games--but that if Rick Mirer and Craig Erickson can launch comebacks against them late in the game, what might Warren Moon, Jim Kelly, John Elway or Joe Montana do come the playoffs?

When the Raiders are fresh, they can be ferocious. In an opening-sequence possession, the Buccaneers took one step backward for every two forward and remained stonewalled deep in their own zone, unable to sidestep Kelly on play after play. Next time the ball changed hands, Long and Anthony Smith co-stuffed Erickson for a 12-yard loss, Harrison and Chester McGlockton road-blocked Reggie Cobb slightly beyond the line of scrimmage and then Townsend made a rhino’s charge at Erickson, relieving him of the ball near the Tampa goal. This was defense deluxe.

Strong as they were, though, they didn’t stay strong.

“I’m not sure if we lost some concentration near the end or what,” Kelly said.

“We didn’t play smart, I know that,” Anthony Smith said.

But at least they did play hard, and that always counts for something in this or any league, and they did win, which is enough to make any orange-pantsed person from Tampa turn green with envy.

It wasn’t easy.

But it could have been easier.