The Raider Way

OAKLAND -- Everything seems to be breaking the right way for the Oakland Raiders lately.

Consider this: In the second quarter of Sunday’s victory over Denver -- a 28-16 stomping that assured Oakland of its third consecutive AFC West title -- Raider quarterback Rich Gannon dropped back at the Bronco eight-yard line, saw that receiver Jerry Rice was tied up with a defender, then tried to throw the ball away to avoid a sack. He tossed it toward the back corner of the end zone, out of everyone’s reach.

Everyone’s reach, that is, but Charlie Garner’s. The Raider running back didn’t hear Gannon changing the play at the line of scrimmage, ran the incorrect pass route, and, to the quiet delight of his quarterback, wound up making a beautiful catch for a touchdown.

“To be honest with you, I was not trying to throw the ball to Charlie,” Gannon said. “I mean, how could I anticipate Charlie running the wrong route?”

Wrong pattern. Wrong receiver. Right result.

Is it any wonder Deion Sanders wants to hop aboard this train?

Whether that all-pro cornerback can or will come out of retirement to bolster the Raider secondary was up for debate Sunday -- he sparked the talk by announcing on CBS that he and the Raiders have had discussions about him coming out of retirement -- but this much we know:

* The Raiders (10-5) clinched the division title with a victory, combined with San Diego’s loss at Kansas City. Not since the 1979-81 Chargers has an AFC West team won three division titles in a row.

* The Raiders can assure themselves of home-field advantage throughout the playoffs by beating the Chiefs in Oakland on Saturday.

If their offense goes silent -- as it did in the third quarter against Denver -- the Raiders can rely on their defense to pick up the slack.

Ask Denver quarterback Brian Griese about that defense. He was clobbered in the second quarter by former teammate Bill Romanowski and left the game for good because of a re-injured left knee. Ask his replacement, Steve Beuerlein, who was sacked on his first two plays of relief. Ask receiver Ed McCaffrey, who leaped for a high pass over the middle -- the type of toss John Elway used to call a “hospital ball” -- and took a helmet to the ribs that kept him on the ground for two minutes. Or ask tight end Shannon Sharpe, who was crunched repeatedly but still finished with a team-high seven receptions for 84 yards.

“I heard that Shannon Sharpe had my picture in his locker all week,” Romanowski said. “I wonder if it’s going to stay in there.”

No doubt Romanowski’s image is burned into the brains of the Broncos, as is the sight of safety Rod Woodson wrapping his hands around yet another Griese pass. Woodson, who returned an interception 98 yards in a victory at Denver last month, had one of Oakland’s two first-quarter picks in the rematch.

By the end of the first quarter, Griese had three completions and two interceptions. In 1 1/2 quarters of work, the quarterback with a $12.6-million signing bonus had a 14.7 passer rating. Asked about Griese’s performance, Coach Mike Shanahan said: “I’ll have to look at the film.”

That’s a disaster flick for the Broncos (8-7), and it stars some Raider matinee idols such as cornerback Charles Woodson, who logged eight plays despite a broken bone in his right leg; linebacker Travian Smith, who incorporated a break-dance spin into his sack dance; and Gannon, who had a modest passing day (201 yards) but ran three yards for a touchdown in the first quarter that will live forever on his highlight reel.

On that run, he dropped back to the 10, scanned the horizon for an open receiver, then zig-zagged up the middle, juking ultra-quick linebacker Ian Gold before diving into the end zone.

“My legs felt really good today,” Gannon said.

Tim Brown, meanwhile, was using his hands to do more than catch passes. He was high-fiving teammates until he came across Rice, owner of three Super Bowl rings.

“I just sort of patted him on the back,” Brown said. “I said, ‘I know you’ve got bigger and better plans. But let us guys who don’t do this often enjoy this moment.’ The guys like Jerry just shrug it off and go on about their business.”

No need to get overly excited. The Raiders were far from perfect. They built a 21-0 lead, but stalled on offense for the better part of the second half. Denver trimmed the lead to 21-10 early in the third quarter, then 21-16 three seconds into the fourth.

The Raiders forced Denver to punt on its next possession, though, and responded with a 57-yard touchdown drive composed of six consecutive runs. Imagine that, a team that throws 64% of the time and began this game with the fourth fewest number of runs in the league, getting the job done on the ground.

“I didn’t think I’d see that this year,” Brown said. “Just goes to show you we have the capability to do a lot of different things.”

Even, in the case of Garner, when they’re not supposed to.

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Playoff Picture

*--* A glance at the postseason as the season goes into its final week: AFC Clinched O a k l a n d a n d T e n n e s s e e In Control P i t t s b u r g h , M i a m i a n d I n d i a n a p o l i s Need Help C l e v e l a n d , N . Y . J e t s , D e n v e r , S a n D i e g o , N e w E n g l a n d , K a n s a s C i t y a n d B a l t i m o r e NFC Clinched P h i l a d e l p h i a , G r e e n B a y , T a m p a B a y a n d S a n F r a n c i s c o In Control A t l a n t a a n d N . Y . G i a n t s Need Help N e w O r l e a n s

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Good First Impression

Denver Bronco running back Clinton Portis scored his 15th touchdown (13 rushing, two receiving) on Sunday against Oakland. A look at the NFL’s top rookie touchdown scorers:

*--* Player TDs Season Gale Sayers, Chicago Bears 22 1965 Eric Dickerson, Los Angeles Rams 20 1983 Edgerrin James, Indianapolis Colts 17 1999 Randy Moss, Minnesota Vikings 17 1998 Fred Taylor, Jacksonville Jaguars 17 1998 Billy Sims, Detroit Lions 16 1980 Clinton Portis, Denver Broncos 15 2002 Mike Anderson, Denver Broncos 15 2000 Ickey Woods, Cincinnati Bengals 15 1988 Curtis Martin, New England Patriots 15 1995 Cookie Gilchrist, Buffalo Bills 15 1962

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