Raiders Owner Al Davis Skewers Former Coach Tom Cable at Press Conference; Watch Video

So yesterday I look up at our office TV and Al Davis is talking at the Raiders press conference, ostensibly called to introduce new head coach Hue Jackson.

A couple of hours later I glance that way again, and I think either I’m watching a re-broadcast or Davis has taken over the airwaves as part of an attempted coup (in which he suffered some sort of head cut) because lo and behold there he is still flapping his gums.

Tim Kawakami in the Mercury News puts it this way:

…As he proved again Tuesday in a remarkable two-hour filibuster, the Raiders are never more real or more exposed than when Davis is sitting on a stage, challenging the world and staring into the cameras…

Davis spent a half-hour of his disquisition skewering former head coach Tom Cable, whom he recently axed (and who was named an assistant coach for the Seahawks yesterday). As the Chronicle reports, Davis stated his reasons for the firing included assault allegations against Cable by defensive assistant Randy Hanson (charges never pressed by police), a lawsuit against Cable by Marie Lutz, an ex-girlfriend, and — the final straw — a statement by Lutz to ESPN that she had accompanied Cable on road trips, spending nights before games with him. From the Chronicle:

(Davis) said there is a team rule that forbids players from being with their wife the night before games. That rule apparently extends to head coaches and girlfriends.

“Tom was asked about it and refused to answer it,” Davis said. “He brought her on trips when the team’s playing on the road. He’s the head coach and this is the guy who’s talking about focus, ‘We’ve got a job to do, we’ve got a game to play,’ and he’s there flying in friends so they can be with him the night before the game.

“All of this stuff goes a long way against my wishes, against my way of living, against the Raider way, and I just wasn’t going to take it anymore.”

Except, Davis did – for almost seventh months. He wanted to see what came of the Hanson lawsuit – he has now gone to NFL arbitration. He wanted to see what came of the Lutz lawsuit – she settled with Cable out of court, Davis said.

Related:

• More press conference clips and commentary (CSN Bay Area)
• Ray Ratto: Davis turns Jackson hire into Cable-bashing (CSN Bay Area)
• Video: Sandy Cable and Marie Lutz say Cable hit them (ESPN)
• Former Oakland Raiders coach Tom Cable is named assistant head coach for Seattle Seahawks (Oakland Tribune)
• Chronicle Silver and Black live blog of press conference