Davis Seems to Enjoy Role of Court Jouster

Why aren’t NFL owners outraged?

Where is “Nightline”? Where are the tabloids? The talk-show hosts?

Why isn’t Congress investigating, the FBI probing?

At first glance, the charges certainly seem substantial enough to trigger the next great national scandal: NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, in cahoots with other league officials and several owners, looting the league’s coffers of nearly $100 million.

NFL President Neil Austrian resigning in shame.

Other owners covering up.

Pretty juicy stuff.

And where do these charges originate?

Oakland Raider owner Al Davis.

Oh.

Talk about defusing a bomb. The understandable reaction after Davis’ name comes up is to shrug off the whole thing.

Is this merely another diversionary volley fired off by Davis in his ongoing war with the NFL, a war dating back three decades, to the days when Davis was the commissioner of the American Football League?

He is battling the NFL on two legal fronts with cases in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties, while engaged in a third suit against the city of Oakland in Sacramento.

Davis claims the league damaged his deal to build a stadium in Los Angeles while also continuing to claim territorial rights to the Los Angeles area.

In the Santa Clara lawsuit, Davis says the charges against Tagliabue came out of discovery while his attorneys were working on another suit involving NFL trademarks.

If you’re still with us, you’re probably qualified to pass the bar.

A judge dismissed this latest Davis suit, the one on league corruption, ordering the Raiders to take their case to the league.

Davis charges that Tagliabue and Austrian set up an executive- compensation fund that now totals nearly $100 million to benefit themselves and about 60 other league officials.

Davis claimed the compensation fund should have been reviewed by all the owners. Instead, he said in court documents, it was approved by four hand-picked owners who were not aware of all the details.

“There was evidence of fraud and corruption in the highest office of the NFL,” Raider attorney Joseph Alioto said.

The Raiders presented a 60-page document with 325 footnotes to the league’s owners Wednesday to support their case.

The Raiders had hoped the league would appoint a three-member panel of owners to look into the allegations, but after listening to the charges, the owners voted, 28-0, not to undertake their own investigation, with the Raiders and Dallas Cowboy owner Jerry Jones abstaining. Seattle Seahawk officials had left before the vote was taken.

League sources maintain that this is another attempt by Davis to gain legal points in his continuing war against the NFL. Other sources say Austrian had already decided to retire long before these charges surfaced.

While Tagliabue had no comment on the vote, league spokesman Joe Browne told reporters, “Obviously, the clubs didn’t feel there was any credence to it.”

Owner Jim Irsay of the Indianapolis Colts went even further.

“We’re thankful to have Paul Tagliabue as our commissioner,” he said. “His integrity is as high as it gets. If I was incapacitated, I wouldn’t hesitate to make him a trustee for my children and my assets. The whole league feels that way.”

Not quite the whole league.

While not coming out and saying he believes the charges, Jones made it clear the whole issue of compensation for the league’s officials deserves scrutiny.

“This gives us a good focus and allows us to do some things to improve the NFL,” Jones said. “There’s no process that’s not flawed. . . . Most people are confident they are being informed, but this gives us a chance to make improvements.”

Davis vows to continue the fight in court.

“I’m not disappointed,” he said after the five-hour league meeting. “I knew this was futile to begin with.”

Said Raider executive Amy Trask, “The court required the Raiders to appear before the owners and present our evidence of corruption and self-dealing and that evidence was overwhelming. The meeting was precisely what we expected it to be, a whitewash.

“This organization and its owner took action that is in the best interests of the National Football League.”

It is certainly in the best interests of Davis in a battle he still envisions eventually taking him and his team back to Los Angeles, to play in a rebuilt Coliseum.

Of course if Davis’ goal were to remain in Los Angeles, he could have stayed here five years ago and eventually played in a new stadium at Hollywood Park.

But then he would have missed all these months in court. And what fun would that have been?