Recently brought to my attention, an article buried deep in the archives of Sports Illustrated proves what many Raider fans have known for some time and others are finally beginning to realize; Davis has had the Raiders franchise on a path to self-destruction for years. The article written in 1996 by Michael Silver, points out Davis' propensity to meddle in daily operations, game planning and even calling of plays during games. Reading an article written 13 years ago more often than not will tell a story of adversity that has since been overcome even if additional issues have taken the place of those that were resolved. With the Raiders history seems to be repeating itself all these years later. The article speaks to Davis undermining coaches, calling in plays form the luxury box and running an organization based on fear, yet no system of accountability, all themes that are currently associated with the Raiders in the 21st century.

Another similar theme are the quotes coming from former players and employees of Al Davis. Remarks from the likes of Tim Brown and Warren Sapp are reminiscent of those from the 1996 article. "The word is spreading about the Raiders and Al Davis," says Seattle Seahawks fullback Steve Smith, a Raider from 1987 to '93. "The way they collapsed last year was typical. The Raiders have had more talent than any other team the last 10 years. They should have won at least three Super Bowls during that time, but they didn't because Al screwed everything up." Not unlike today the focus of these disparaging comments is Al Davis himself, and one might ask: why not, as he is and has been the lone authoritative figure in Oakland for years. "There's so much confusion there, it's unbelievable," says Greg Skrepenak, a Raiders tackle for the last three of their 13 years in Los Angeles and last season when the team returned to its old base, in Oakland. Skrepenak signed with the Carolina Panthers as a free agent in February. "The problems were selfishness and a lack of cohesiveness. You had guys walking out of meetings, coming in late or not showing up at all. There were guys talking back to coaches and coaches yelling at each other. You're never really sure where the decisions are coming from, and it seems like everything's a big secret. Ultimately the decisions fall on Al Davis." Much like the quarterback of a team must take the blame with the recognition, Al Davis takes the brunt of the criticism when things do not go well for the Raiders, but there always seems to be someone low enough on the totem pole to take the blame and the fall for failures on the field.

Several years and several coaches later Davis is still up to his old tricks, choosing those with specific abilities instead of complete football players, playing personnel based on draft pick and contractual status rather than ability, forcing offensive and defensive schemes on his coaches and coordinators and trying his best to keep anything that happens in the front offices in Alemeda a big secret. Says (Marcus) Allen, who signed with the Kansas City Chiefs as a free agent in 1993, "I always felt we had the best personnel in football, but the best personnel wasn't always on the field. We had to win a certain way or no way. Sometimes we sacrificed winning for a philosophy—or one man's philosophy." A common theme around Raiders HQ is the will to win, and how much Davis is committed to adding to the shelf that holds the team's super bowl trophies, but at what cost? Does he simply want to see the team succeed, or must it be done his way? It seems as though, as long as Davis remains atop the mountain that is the Raiders franchise, history will continue to repeat itself, year after year.

A recent article on nfl.fanhouse.com brings to light the similarities between Al Davis and his New York baseball counterpart, George Steinbrenner. Both men born on the 4th of July have taken a similar path to success with their franchises, and have also met a fate of failure for an extended period of time. During the 1980's the Yankees failed to secure a World Series title for the first decade in their illustrious history since winning their first title in 1923. Al Davis is in the midst of a similar slide, in which his "Team of the Decades" has posted their worst six-year stretch in franchise history, and has set a league mark for worst record over a one-hundred game span (25-75).

The light at the end of the tunnel may be within reach, yet for a proud self-made man like Davis it may be farther than he is willing to stretch. With the Yankees raising their 27th World Series trophy, Al Davis simply must consider the path that an also aging Steinbrenner took to get his team back to glory.

Both owners are infamous for their stranglehold on the teams' daily operations, berating the head coaches and managers and dictating game plans, but it was a different philosophy that returned the Yankees to the top. Steinbrenner relinquished his power, turning the team and the general managing partner title over to his son Hal almost one year ago. Could a similar move by Davis bring his beloved Raiders team from the depths of the cellar back to the Super Bowl podium? The team's most recent success came with a general manager in place in Bruce Allen who facilitated relations between Davis and his uncharacteristically strong-headed coach Jon Gruden. If Davis were to step back and place his son Mark in a position of power, a new general manager could be put in place with a first task of attracting one of the big name candidates that are rumored to be re-entering the league in 2010. With Al Davis in power it seems that none of these candidates would be willing to take the job, but with a new regime in place, perhaps the wealth of talent in Oakland would be too much to pass up.

With the Raiders' latest press release, there has been much speculation about the job security of Tom Cable, but it seems his position with the team will stay intact, for now. Wednesday the head coach spoke to the media about a meeting with Al Davis following the allegations of physical abuse of his former wives. The subject matter was held in confidence, but he did divulge that the conversation did not include any assurances that he would continue to work with the team for the remainder of the season. "Yes," Cable said when asked if he expected to remain the head coach in the midst of his second round of assault allegations in three months.

Only time will tell if the latest Raiders leader will hold on to his position, but with the bye week passing the likelihood of an in-season firing is on the decline. Still ongoing are the investigations of the Oakland Raiders as well as the NFL league offices into the violent behavior and how it affects the face of the team and its league.

As reported by the Santa Ana Examiner.com, a new site has emerged that is sending a clear cut message to Al Davis: the Raider Nation is fed up. On this site you can sign a petition to send one or more of four messages to Al Davis about his involvement with the organization:

• We kindly ask Mr. Allen Davis to remove himself as general manager of the Oakland Raiders.
• We ask for a general manager to be hired with experience and success in the NFL.
• We ask for a new, Super Bowl Caliber Head Coach/Director of Football Operations to be hired replacing Tom Cable. Suggestions include Bill Cowher and Jon Gruden; or any other coach with similar credentials.
• We ask the Owner and new regime to give the new Coach substantial power in hiring Assistants, installing football philosophies and most roster decisions.