By JOE SANTORO
The (Reno, Nev.) Gazette-Journal

SAN DIEGO - Tim Brown has to chuckle when he hears people talk about the Oakland Raiders mystique. "We have a bunch of old married guys," the Raiders wide receiver smiled. "You don't have to hide the women and children when the Raiders come to town anymore."

Yeah, well, you used to.

"We had guys who lived on the edge," said former Raiders defensive back George Atkinson (1968-77), who now hosts Raider television and radio shows. "And we had guys who lived over the edge."

The names and characters are legendary. John "The Tooz" Matuszak. "Big" Ben Davidson. Ted "The Stork" Hendricks. Ken "Snake" Stabler. Jack Tatum. Lyle Alzado. They were as famous for what they did off the field as for what they did on it.

These men built the mystique though back in the day it really wasn't a mystique. It was reality. Go into any bar in the East bay that existed before the Raiders left northern California in 1982 and you'll hear the stories. Heck, you might still see some old Raiders.

"Oh, man, I've heard some stories about those guys," smiled Raider offensive lineman Lincoln Kennedy. "Somebody told me that Ken Stabler used to drink martinis right after practice in the training room. Those guys were something."

"The guys I played with couldn't exist in today's NFL," Atkinson said. "There are too many rules now."

That's the theory at least. The other theory is that today's NFL players drive BMWs, wear thousand dollar suits, play video games and check their stock portfolios every day. They don't have time to be thugs and party animals.

Or do they?

"I'm not going to say we're totally different from the old Raiders," running back Charlie Garner said. "We like to go out and do our things and have fun. Our guys do let their hair down. But times have changed."

But the mystique hasn't. The Raiders, in fact, love the mystique. It's their edge. If it works, why destroy it? Just feed it, baby.

Wide receiver Jerry Rice was asked this week about the difference between a Raider and a Buccaneer.

"Why are you asking me that?" Rice laughed.

He knew why. And he played along. Questions of that sort, after all, only add to the mystique.

"The Raiders are just nasty, man," Rice said. "Silver and black. It fits."

You won't ever see the Raiders change their team colors to orange or teal or that pretty Charger powder blue. You can't have a mystique if you look like a fruit you squeeze into your glass every morning.

"Everybody loves the silver and black," Raiders defensive end Regan Upshaw said. "They love that toughness and the mystique it represents. On Sunday, everyone gets to act it out, whether you're a fan or a player."

Maybe it is just an act. Maybe it is all just window dressing to sell hats and sweatshirts. The stores around the Bay area that sell Raider gear, after all, are called "Raider Image."

The mystique doesn't really exist among the players anymore. Raider players aren't any different from, say, Seahawks players. Maybe they never were. The Raiders got all the publicity in the 1970s and 1980s because they were winning Super Bowls. All NFL players have a wild side to them, it comes with being rich, young and, well, rich and young.

Raider fans, though, are a different story. They are not all young. They are not all rich. And very few of them have actually won a Super Bowl.

"The Raiders' Silver and Black is more than a uniform," Raider offensive tackle Barry Sims said. "It's a way of life."

Bucs head coach John Gruden is well aware of the mystique. He helped grow the monster the past four years with his Chuckie doll looks and intensity on the sidelines. He's not telling his Bucs this week not to worry about the mystique, that it's just a media creation.

"I will never downplay the mystique of that team," Gruden said, obviously not wanting to poke a Grizzly bear with a stick. "We are trying to become a global franchise ourselves."

Everybody wants a mystique. Sorry, the Raiders own all the rights.

"Back in the day those old Raiders would knock people out," Brown said.

"That's the mystique stuff. We haven't always had a lot of mystique in the years I've been here. I'll admit that. Hopefully, maybe people will start talking about all the mystique stuff a little more."

More? Impossible.

Long live the mystique.

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