Brown admits to being a 'jerk'

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Nov 17, 2003 | by Bill Soliday, STAFF WRITER

OAKLAND -- Tim Brown says he knows there is a God.

"And he doesn't like ugly," Brown said.

The Raiders wide receiver wasn't talking about the ugliness of his dropped touchdown pass in the end zone late in Oakland's 28-18 win over the Minnesota Vikings.

He was talking about how he deserved that drop.

"I was being a real jerk on the sidelines with the coaches ... very un-Tim Brown-like," Brown said. "I was doing it in the name of the team, but at the same time there were some things I said that I shouldn't have said. Sometimes you have a funny way of being brought back down to earth.

"I had to pay for it in front of 65,000 folks (with the dropped pass)."

Brown said his sideline diatribe was partially about protecting Tyrone Wheatley after Justin Fargas left the game with a knee injury. The other part was more personal.

"Then there was a situation when they started bringing J.P. (Jerry Porter) in for me when they were going to throw the ball," Brown said. "There were just some things that got under my skin a little bit, and I said a couple of things I definitely shouldn't have said."

The dropped pass, Brown said, occurred when his feet got tangled, and he didn't get turned in time to see the ball coming.

"Before I knew it, it was right up there on me," Brown said. "I told J.P. if there was an exit door over there, all I needed was somebody to say 'Tim, come this way' and I would have been out the back door, that's for sure."

Raiders quarterback Rick Mirer was quick to forgive Brown.

"He catches all of those," he said. "Everybody has their moment where they don't. But we can overcome some of that stuff. It didn't bother me. You have to move on. He made an unbelievable catch for me last week on the sidelines. He's made a lot of those catches, and I expect he'll make it next time. I just hope the ball is there the next time."

COOPER'S BIG DAY: Defensive tackle Chris Cooper, his mood dampened somewhat by reports of a failed steroid test, had the most productive game of his Raiders career.

Cooper had the first sack of his career against Daunte Culpepper, recovered a fumble, forced a fumble and had five tackles.

Oakland's three sacks -- linebacker Napoleon Harris and defensive end Akbar Gbaja-Biamila had the others -- were a season high for one of the NFL's poorest pass-rushing teams.

"I made some big plays but there were some others I needed to make," Cooper said. "Our defensive backs did a good job, and Culpepper likes to hold on to the ball. That gave us time to get there."

POWERBALL: With a third-string quarterback and faced with poor run defenses each of the past two weeks, the Raiders have done an about face in terms of run-pass ratio.

In the first eight games, the Raiders ran 125 times and passed 286 -- passing 69 percent of the time. In the last two games, Oakland has 95 runs and 38 passes -- running 71.4 percent of the time.

Fullback Chris Hetherington, who assumed the blocking back position vacated by the departed Jon Ritchie, is enjoying the change in identity.

"The line is licking their chops, Wheatley and Zack (Crockett) have hammered it in there, and I'm sure our defense enjoys staying off the field," Hetherington said. "The crowd gets into the smash- mouth football. It's fun to be a part of."

Hetherington, of course, didn't carry the ball -- Raiders fullbacks carry the ball with the frequency of a solar eclipse -- but he did catch his first pass, a difficult 17-yard downfield grab from Mirer.

"I've had a few plays called, but they've all been covered," Hetherington said.

BIEKERT'S TAKE: Linebacker Greg Biekert recognized the uniforms but not the team.

The Raiders looked nothing like the Raiders he played for until being waived when the club decided to make Harris the starting middle linebacker before last season's first game.

"They're a very beat-up team," Biekert said. "You look at how many guys aren't out there on both sides of the ball. They just keep plugging away. If they continue to go out there and play hard they're going to put themselves in situations to win games, and they've played a lot of close games."

MOSS MISSING: Although the Vikings talked circles around the subject, it it was evident wide receiver Randy Moss simply wasn't getting open.

According to offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, Culpepper probably should have tried to force one or two his way anyway.

"They had Charles Woodson shadowing him and Rod Woodon giving him help, but sometimes you've just got to go with the size advantage and throw it up there high," Linehan said.

EXTRA POINTS: Buchanon's interception return for a touchdown was the third of his 16-game career. He is only two behind the all-time franchise leader Terry McDaniel. ... RB Charlie Garner (tailbone) was inactive for the first time after playing in 41 consecutive games for the Raiders. He hadn't missed a game because of injury since 1998, when he played with the Philadelphia Eagles. ... TE O.J. Santiago had his first receptions as a Raider, catching two passes for a team- high 53 yards. His 36-yard reception from Mirer was the longest Oakland completion of the game. ... TE Doug Jolley, who has spent much of the season being abused on short routes, caught a flat pass and turned up field for a 25-yard gain, his longest of the season. ... WR Jerry Rice didn't catch his first pass until the fourth quarter. His 20-yard grab gave him a reception in 267 consecutive games. Rice's daughter, Jaqui, was part of the quartet Affinity that sang the national anthem. Rice was on the sideline early watching. The Raiders typically don't come out of the tunnel until after the anthem.