SAN DIEGO – Who knows who’ll be wearing the Silver and Black next season?
Age and the salary cap – football’s version of the real-life certainties of death and taxes – will surely take their hit on the 2003 Oakland Raiders. And with that cold reality looming over his team, Raiders coach Bill Callahan made it a point to enjoy every moment of the run that took his team all the way to last night’s Super Bowl.
“Those guys have worked so hard . . . a lot of toil and tears and hard work,” Callahan said before the game. “This group of players has been a special group because of their passion and because of their abilities on the field to produce. It’s been special in every respect.”
Every player and coach knows that any Super Bowl opportunity could be his last. And for an aging team like the Raiders, that means life in the penthouse could be a short-term lease.
“The climate that prevails in the National Football League, because of the cap, because of free agency, you have to continue to re-establish that goal year in and year out, so every year is a pivotal year,” Callahan said.
Injured defensive ends Regan Upshaw and Trace Armstrong might not return to Oakland next season, along with free agent defensive tackle Sam Adams. While Jerry Rice and Tim Brown, 40 and 37 years old respectively, are still among football’s most prolific receivers, Father Time can always catch up to them.
“The front office has a lot of tough decisions to make this off-season . . . a lot of the younger guys have the biggest cap figures,” said 37-year-old Rod Woodson, who wants to play football this fall, but isn’t sure it’ll be with the Raiders. “If they want me back, they want me back.
“I’m just going to go home and not leave the house for about two or three weeks. I’ll just stay in my pajamas,” Woodson added. “If I get a phone call [from the Raiders or any team], then I get a phone call. If I don’t, I’ve had a good life.”
The 16-year pro said he knows the hard facts of bottom-line football. And if Woodson played his last game in Silver and Black last night, he won’t be bitter. “I’ve had a good career,” Woodson said. “This is a fantasy life.”