My team, my family

I woke up last Thursday morning extremely early. I couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t because
I had class. I was up early because I was excited. I thought my Oakland Raiders could establish a two game winning streak, especially against the inconsistent
Dallas Cowboys. Instead,
I watched the Raiders get crushed. They lost 24-7 and the Cowboys managed to pile up the most total yards this season in a game against my lowly but beloved Raiders.
How did I become a Raider fan? No, my father isn’t Al Davis. My father grew up playing cornerback as a kid and became infatuated with the Raiders bump and run defense when he started watching football
back in the day. I grew up hearing stories about Jim Plunkett
and Fred Biletnikoff and the team of misfits that managed to muster up championships.
My father took me to sports memorabilia shows where I met Oakland Raider legend Lester Hayes. The first football jersey I bought when I was a wee lad was a starter kid’s medium Napoleon Kauffman silver and black Raiders jersey. Given I was nine, I felt like the man. Naturally, my father had purchased
it for me. And there you have it, I was born into Raider nation.
The next decade of my life saw the Raiders recycle quarterbacks
from Jeff Hostetler to Jeff George. However, when Rich Gannon arrived in Oakland, I knew we had a special player. Too bad the Raiders faced the architect that put together their AFC West championship team in Jon Gruden and the Tampa Bucs during the 2003 Super Bowl. That sucked.
After this loss, the Raiders went downhill. I put up with Kerry Collins, Aaron Brooks and 34 other quarterbacks not worth mentioning before I thought the franchise was saved by the beast of a quarterback
named JaMarcus Russell. Too bad he has turned out to look like a hungover Daunte Culpepper.
Why have I disclosed my Raider genealogy with you? It’s because I love the Raiders and always will. Raiders are like my family. I spent Thanksgiving
with them, they make me feel horrible, they stress me out, they make me cry, they make me smile, they make me cry and smile and then cry again all within a 10 second span but hey, they are my team.
Just like a mentally unstable
family member, I do agree they need counseling… or a new owner. But the fact is that the Raiders have been a part of my life since I can remember. You don’t turn your back on the black sheep of the family, even if they never cover the spread. Just win baby.