Oakland Raiders: When Do the Colors Fade?

After the most recent news out of Oakland was regarding the attempt to ban Rich Gannon from his duties with CBS, it opened up some questions in my mind.

When does a player, to the fans, stop being a Raider?

I'm not talking about the obvious ones. Randy Moss came in, opened the drawers, made a mess, and then pouted until the team shipped him and his ego out.

Some players, such as Jerry Porter and Ronald Curry, both at one time were useful weapons for a roster looking for more stability. Both are now gone and at last check, out of the NFL.

But how about further back?

Ken Stabler, arguably one of our best QBs to take the snap was shipped to Houston. Dave Casper departed for several seasons before returning. Even Jack Tatum went on to Houston, for a final year.

But you don't see Stabler, Casper, or Tatum being spoken ill of by the faithful within the Raider Nation.

Some, such as Warren Sapp seem to have been programmed to trash Oakland whenever needed, while some want to keep dropping two cents where needed.

Reading about Gannon's breakdown of JaMarcus Russell was enlightening and interesting. He would make a good coach, if a team needed one. Same goes for Rod Woodson, who just with his actions, could influence younger players to perform better.

Granted, this is a different era of football. Maybe it is due to their actions, such as Jim Otto's devotion to the team that keeps those players in our memories.

And maybe it's why more than a few people wanted to shower the field with Moss jerseys, when he played against us last year.

What does the Nation think of Gannon's reception?