– Cable again stressed “full responsibility” for the fake field goal attempt which resulted in a 67-yard touchdown for the Chiefs’ Maurice Leggett, but didn’t second-guess himself.

“I don’t regret it. I don’t think you can,” Cable said. “Otherwise I don’t think you make it in the first place. So there’s no sense in doing that.”

– The Raiders coach faced the music with no sense of emotion either way, undertanding he was in the line of fire because the play didn’t work.

“It worked every time (in practice), and that’s the shame of it all,” Cable said. “But it’s like I mentioned a few weeks ago, if you take a chance like that and it works, everybody thinks you’re a genius. When it doesn’t everyone wants to chew on your butt.

“So chew.”

At the risk of biting off more than I can chew, you can’t compare the Janikowski fake to the one in which Jon Alston raced 22 yards as an upback against the Jets.

For one thing, Alston is a former high school running back, is extremely athletic and fast enough to have run down Reggie Bush while a linebacker/safety at Stanford. Janikowski is, well, Janikowski.

Another thing _ the Jets were better or equal to the Raiders, while the Chiefs most definitely were not. When the fake didn’t work against Kansas City, it provided life to the Chiefs.

– If the Janikowski fake worked every time the Raiders tried it during practice over the past two years, that doesn’t say much for whoever was playing the right edge during practice.

“Aw, man, Seabass got me again! C’mon coach, you’re killin’ us with that play!

– I realize I’m not looking at the play with a trained eye, but has anyone seen a replay that suggested that if Janikowski had caught the ball, he would have successfully run a good 17 yards (seven yards behind the line of scrimmage plust the 10 for the first down)?

Although he didn’t break out an overhead projector for purposes of demonstration, Cable apparently has.

When asked if Janikowski could have made the first down if the ball was handled cleanly, Cable said, “Yeah, because of the guy’s (Leggett’s) width, and that’s what we were counting on.”

– The recovery of veteran players such as Gerard Warren, Cornell Green and John Wade will be watched closely in practice as the Raiders must bounce back to play Thursday night in San Diego. Guard Cooper Carlisle, who left the game briefly with an ankle sprain, returned to finish the game and is expected to face the Chargers.

Players were not at the facility Monday, and will have a full day of practice Tuesday _ their usual day off. They have shorter practice Wednesday before departing for San Diego.

– Darren McFadden’s one-touch second half had a mostly to do with the Raiders inability to get off the field on defense, Cable said.

The Raiders had the ball for only 8:50 of the second half, with the Chiefs controlling it for 21:10.

“We really didn’t have the football in the second half,” Cable said. “Some of that was due to that, on the one-play, turnover series, we didn’t get any kind of rhythm in that second half where we could continue to do some of those things.”

It also could have played a hand in a young quarterback who was fell off badly in the second half in terms of accuracy. Russell was 3 of 13 for 29 yards.

“I think certainly when you’re young like that, you want the ball,” Cable said. “You want the ball. But for us, it’s when we get it, we have to do the right things with it, take care of it, move the ball, score points. So can that happen? Sure, it probably could. But you’d like to believe whenever we get it, we’ve got to take it and do the right thing.”

– The lost fumble by Justin Fargas was his first in 288 carries, dating back to last season’s game against the Chicago Bears at the Coliseum. Cable said there was no need to mention anything about the turnover to Fargas, who realized he was carrying the ball with his inside arm. (Fargas has fumbled but not lost possession).

“He carries the weight of this team on his shoulders,” Cable said. “He’s one of your bricks in your foundation. He’s the kind of guy that doesn’t say much, goes to work every day. He feels as bad as anybody today, so it’s not necessary.”

– The time of possesion issue hurt the offense in the second half, but Cable had no real quibble with the Raiders played defensively. Rob Ryan’s defense set up the only touchdown and gave up only 13 points.

“You always have to think about points allowed,” Cable said. “That’s what it is defensively. That’s how you evaluate your defense. They did a nice job that way. Obviously, you like to see them get out of a couple of those drives a little bit in terms of time of possession. But when you hold a team to that few of points, you have given your team a chance to win. That’s what you ask of them.”

– Cable on Lane Kiffin’s hiring at Tennessee: “He can move forward now. That’s what he should do and move to the next step in his career.”

– Cable said he talked to Al Davis, but didn’t reveal the substance of the conversation.

“We talked this morning. Like all of us he’s disappointed,” Cable said.“One thing he and I share is a tremendous passion for winning. Losing is about the worst thing in our lives. That’s what it
is.”

– Without anything in the standings to denote that the Raiders are officially out of the picture in terms of the playoffs, Cable is keeping that possibility open.

“We’re really not out of it. You keep having something to play for,” Cable said. “Everyone has had their issues. All four teams have had their issues in different ways, some it injuries, some of it just poor play. So we’re kind of all in this thing together and it’s just really whoever will sort it out best at the end.”

If that sounds possible, belly up to the Kool-aid bar and order a double.

After a brief intro from A.D. Mike Hamilton, Kiffin thanked mentors such as Jim Sweeney, Pat Hill, Jeff Tedford, Tom Coughlin, Dom Capers and Pete Carroll.

“I’d especially like to thank Al Davis, for giving me an opportunity to become a head coach,” Kiffin said. “It was very special time and a real unique opportunity he provided for me.”

Later, when recounting how his various experiences had helped prepare him for the job at Tennessee, Kiffin touched on his time within the walls of 1200 Harbor Bay Parkway.

“To go be a head coach in the NFL, and deal with the personalities in the NFL, the players, and to deal with a completely dysfunctional franchise when you get there,” Kiffin said before being interrupted by laughter. “That wasn’t a joke. That’s something that was real valuable. You can’t go to school and learn crisis management like you learn there.”

More laughter followed as Kiffin said to the reporter, “You set me up for that one, didn’t you?”

Later, Kiffin was asked about how the Oakland experience made him a better coach.

“It was a great experience, as far as, being able to go through all the daily interactions that you have in the NFL, and what happens in that building,” Kiffin said. “To be able to deal with that, in that environment, it makes everything else you do from that point easy, in my opinion.

“I’m very glad I did it. I never regret for one day taking that job. Was it fun every day? No, it wasn’t. But what it did was allow me to sit up here today and be in a better position to get this thing done right when I’m here.”

In contrast to the deer-in-the-headlights Kiffin that sat next to Davis at the podium the day he was hired, Kiffin comfortably worked the room with enthusiasm and some humor, promsing to embrace the Tennessee traditions including “the Vol Walk, running through the `T.’ Singing Rocky Top all night long after we beat Florida next year. It’s going to be a blast, so get ready.”

He then attributed the Florida prediction to Hamilton.

“That line was Mike’s idea, by the way. All right, Urban?”

As he did in Oakland, Kiffin stressed competition.

“I don’t care how many stars you had in recruiting,” Kiffin said. “I don’t care how many yards you had. I don’t care how many tackles you had. I don’t even care if you’re on scholarship. We’re going to come in, we’re going to compete a competitive program where it’s done on the practice field and theyr’e going to earn their starting spots.”

Kiffin declined to discuss appointments to his staff, including several reports that his father, Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, could join him.

It’s concievable Kiffin could reach out to some of the current Oakland staff. Only James Lofton, who wasn’t a Kiffin hire, remains under contract for next season.

Talk at the NFL scouting combine in February was that Jim Mora, who will take over for Mike Holgmren in Seattle, wanted to bring aboard Greg Knapp, Tom Cable and Tom Rathman.

Quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo was a Kiffin hire, as was special teams coach Brian Schneider.

More to come later after Cable holds his weekly press conference at 2 p.m. . . .

– Tom Cable correctly noted last week that a win over Denver was significant only if followed by a win over Kansas City.

With that in mind, the Denver win is reduced to a mirage, with many of the Raiders season-long problems returning with a vengeance as Oakland fell to 3-9.

The Chiefs, 2-11, have won three times in their last 22 games and two of them have been in Oakland.

Never understimate Cable’s ability to remain positive.

“I think we’re moving in the right direction,” Cable said. “And obviously, as I told ‘em after the game, no one gives you anything in this league. I don’t care who you’re playing, you have to go out and win games and take the game from your opponent. We had many chances today.”

– The Raiders only touchdown came on a 1-yard drive, with Chris Johnson intercepting a Tyler Thigpen pass and racing 44 yards to the 1-yard line. Justin Fargas leaped into the end zone for his first touchdown since last Dec. 16 and first in 159 rushes.

– After converting seven consecutive third down opportunities at the end of the Denver game (not counting a kneel-down), the Raiders reverted to form with 3-for-13 against Kansas City.

– The Raiders are now 1-for-70 scoring touchdowns on first-half possessions, marching to the Chiefs 7 the first time they had the ball and settling for a 25-yard Sebastian Janikowski field goal. They haven’t had an opening-drive touchdown in 52 games.

The Raiders got 20 yards on a hook-and-lateral play from JaMarcus Russell to Ronald Curry to Darren McFadden, a nice bit of trickery in that it put the ball in the hands of their most explosive player.

Later, the Raiders tried some more trickery and opted to put the ball in the hands of Janikowski, their least explosive player.

Cable took responsibility for the play, but defended it in theory, stressing the need to be creative.

If getting the ball to Janikowski on the outside is creative, the Raiders may be better off leaning toward Woody Hayes.

Read why it was such a bad idea in my exclusive on-line column.

– Russell was abysmal in the second half, completing 3 of 13 passes for 29 yards. He finished 10 of 28 for 132 yards. After two consecutive games with good accuracy against Miami and Denver (25-for-33), Russell was so scatter-armed tight end Tony Gonzalez took aside Raiders tight end Zach Miller afterward.

“He’s like, `Damn, your quarterback’s got to stop hanging you out to dry. You need to let him know,’ ” Miller said.

Russell said he struggled with his footwork, and at one point slipped as he attempted to pass.

– Russell did rush for 37 yards on two carries, one time lowering his shoulder and flattening Bernard Pollard.

“It seemed like he’d seen a ghost,” Russell said.“He’d never seen a guy as big as me coming toward him.”

– The Raiders again got the ball to one wide receiver. And this time, there was the single throw to Curry, which he lateraled to McFadden. If you’re scoring in your fantasy league, that’s one catch for zero yards for Curry, no catch but 16 yards for McFadden.

– McFadden had just 13 yards on seven rushes, but 50 yards on three receptions and drew a 22-yard pass interference penalty on Pollard. McFadden reached behind him to catch a Russell bullet on one slant pass.

Considering the production they’re getting at wideout, they might consider splitting him out more often and getting Michael Bush in the game once in awhile.

– Late in the game, with the Raiders playing catch up, Fargas remained in the game. If Bush is a good enough blocker to be a fullback, and as Cable says, “stone” pass rushers, there is no reason he shouldn’t be in the game unless he’s being punished for his reluctance to play fullback.

Bush is a much better receiver than Fargas, and the Raiders were in a throwing mode. McFadden, the Raiders most dangerous threat, touched the ball one time in the second half. He carried one time for zero yards.

– Even Nnamdi Asomugha couldn’t help the Raiders do much with the Chiefs’ Gonzalez, who has done more damage against the Raiders than any other team in his career.

Gonzalez had eight catches for 110 yards _ giving him 40 receptions in his last five games. He walled off defenders like a basketball player screening for a rebound. He made easy catches and tough catches.

“Man, he’s a big body,” Asomugha said. “It’s a tough cover regardless who’s going to be on him. Then, you see the stats at the end of the game: eight catches. It didn’t matter what we did. If we could have doubled him a little more, that would have helped, but then we still have to stop the run. He’s a tough cover.”

– Considering the Chiefs got a gift touchdown on Maurice Leggett’s 67-yard run with Oakland’s gift fake field goal attempt, Oakland’s defense probably deserved better. The Raiders gave up just one touchdown and two field goals.

But the Raiders were victimized by Gonzalez and Thigpen, who had 48 yards rushing on 11 carries with a long of 25 yards.

A 16-play, 91-yard drive that encompassed 9:24 off the clock in third and early-fourth quarters put Kansas City up 17-10.

Oakland could have gotten off the field if Gibril Wilson had held on to an interception that went directly into his hands, then bounced harmlessly to the turf.

“That dropped interception by me, they ended up getting seven points out of that,” Wilson said. “It kept us on the field. It could have been a tie game with us going the other way.”

– Fargas rushed for 82 yards on 18 carries but lost a fumble on a 7-yard gain the first play after the Chiefs had gone up 17-10. Kansas City converted the turnover into three more points and a 20-10 lead.

“I was carrying it on my inside hand and someone hit me and it came out,” Fargas said. “It’s terrible. As a running back, it’s the last thing you want to do. I don’t care if you don’t have any yards. As long as I don’t turn the ball over I’m all right. I wasn’t happy to let one go. But it’s part of the game and you’ve go tot be able to try and fight and come back.”

– Right guard Cooper Carlisle was the only player to leave the game with injury, and he returned a short time later.

I think we’re moving in the right direction. And obviously, as I told ‘em after the game, no one gives you anything in this league. I don’t care who you’re playing, you have to go out and win games and take the game from your opponent.

KC–Larry Johnson 2-yard run (Connor Barth kicks PAT), 13:43

KC–Connor Barth 27-yard field goal, 8:54

Oak–Sebastian Janikowski 51-yard field goal, 2:55

Notes:

– Tyler Thigpen hit Dwayne Bowe with 13-yard dagger and a first down, with Oakland calling its third time out in succession with 2:31 to play.

The Chiefs, taking over at their own 20, gained 3 yards on a run by Thigpen and 5 yards on a carry by Larry Johnson, with the Raiders calling time out at 2:48 and 2:43.

Johnson later carried 15 yards to the Oakland 46, with the Chiefs assistants requesting the “victory” formation, meaning all Thigpen has to do is kneel on the ball until the clock runs out.

– Janikowski’s 51-yard field goal came after an unimpressive drive which saw the Raiders drive 46 yards in 11 plays, with Russell misfiring on some open passes but getting one first down on a scramble and another on a pass to Zach Miller.

The Raiders have all three of their time outs with 2:55 left to play, meaning they can keep deep if they wish and count on stopping the Chiefs offense.

– After a dropped pass by Miller, Russell ran 21 yards on fourth-and-10 to keep the Raiders alive. Russell nearly had a pass intercepted by Derrick Johnson, with Gunther Cunningham nearly having a stroke in the coaches booth next to the press box.

– A pair of misfires by Russell to open receivers Ashley Lelie and Ronald Curry, leading to a three-and-out, led to a smattering of boos with 8:00 remaining as the Raiders punted the ball trailing by 10 points.

Boos also followed a 2-yard loss by Fargas on first-and-10.

Although officially a sellout, the unofficial crowd count numbered considerably less, and the Coliseum was growing more empty as fans began heading for the exits.

–Fargas began to lose possesion on a carry when with Rocky Boiman getting a hand on the ball, with Bernard Pollard knocking it loose, and the Chiefs recovering at the Oakland 38-yard line just one play into Oakland’s possession following the Chiefs score.

A 26-yard by Thigpen got the Chiefs close, with Kansas City ruining its chances for a touchdown with help from a delay-of-game penalty on third-and-5 from the 6.

Barth came in to kick a field goal when Thigpen’s short pass to Brad Cottam came up short.

– The Chiefs finished off a 16-play, 91-yard drive that ate up 9:24 of the clock when Johnson scored from the 2 with 13:43 remaining.

Thigpen rushed for 8 yards on second-and-12 from the 19, then ran 9 more yards on a quarterback draw to the 2 before Johnson went in for the score.

Oak–Justin Fargas 1-yard run (Sebastian Janikowski kicks PAT), 11:13

Notes:

– The Chiefs killed off muchof the third quarter by driving from their own 9 to the Chiefs 19-yard line as the quarter expired.

Kansas City is facing a second-and-12 after Larry Johnson was dropped for a 2-yard loss.

Tony Gonzalez, the one player the Raiders don’t have an answer for, has three catches for 51 yarfds on the drive, a 23-yard catch against Nnamdi Asomugha to start things off and two third-down conversions, a 16-yard catch on third-and-10 and a 12-yarder on third-and-9.

– Chris Johnson stole a first-and-10 pass from Thigpen intended for Dwayne Bowe and raced 44 yards to the 1-yard line, setting up a dive for a touchdown by Fargas on the next play.

It was Fargas’ first touchdown of the season and first since Dec. 16 last season against Indianapolis, a span of 159 carries.

KC–Maurice Leggett 66-yard fumble return (Connor Barth kicks PAT), 11:57

Notes:

– Darren McFadden grabbed his own fumble at the 14-yard-line to avert a pre-halftime disaster with 18 seconds remaning.

Oakland’s last possession of the half was doomed from the start when Kwame Harris was called for holding on the first snap, forcing the Raiders back to the 10.

– The Chiefs were forced to punt the ball back to the Raiders with 1:17 left in the half when an officials review negated a 1-yard first-down run by Tyler Thigpen, bringing up fourth-and-1 from their own 38. Dustin Coluqitt punted the ball into the end zone, with the Raiders getting the ball their own 20 with 49 seconds left in the half.

– Following a Chiefs drive in which they got one first down on a Tyler Thigpen 11-yard pass to Tony Gonzalez (against tight coverage by Nnamdi Asomugha), the Raiders obliged with a three-and-out and a Shane Lechler punt which had the Chiefs at their own 28.

Kansas City was offsides, with the Raiders accepting the penalty and punting from the 38 to try and pin the Chiefs a little deeper in their own territory. Lechler responded with one of his weaker punts, a 33-yarder that enabled Kanssa City to open a yard farther out at the 29.

– Russell overthrew a diving Ronald Curry in the end zone on fourth-and-2 from the 21-yard line as the Raiders came up empty with 5:05 left in the half.

It was the 68th first-half possession this season, during which time the Raiders have one touchdown in Week 4 against San Diego. They’ve now blown six potential points on field goals on the fake earlier in the quarter plus the fourth-down gamble.

Included in Oakland’s drive was a 20-yard Russell to McFadden slant pass and a 16-yard bootleg by Russell in which he lowered his shoulder and dropped Bernard Pollard.

– Having dazzled with a hook-and-lateral play on their first possession, the Raiders fizzled with an ill-advised fake field goal attempt that ended up a 67-yard touchdown return by Leggett.

Lining up for a 43-yard field goal attempt, it appeared holder Shane Lechler was supposed to pitch to a lumbering Sebastian Janikowski, running to his left, on fourth-and-10. Not only would Janikowski have been stuffed, but Lechler missed the pitch, with Leggett coming in to scoop up the gift and run for the touchdown.

To repeat _ fourth-and-10. Janikowski. Running the ball.

Really.

No shot from the owner’s box, but rest assured there was smoke coming form the ears of Al Davis.

Oak–Sebastian Janikowski 25-yard field goal, 7:52

KC–Connor Barth 38-yard field goal, 1:07

Notes:

– The Raiders faced a third-and-8 from their own 29 as the first quarter ended after consecutive 1-yard gains from Darren McFadden (out of the Wildcat formation) and Justin Fargas.

– Terdell Sands dumped Larry Johnson for a 3-yard loss to help take the team out of a drive in which the Chiefs drove 55 yards to the Oakland 20 before Barth converted a 38-yard field goal to tie the score.

A 15-yard pass from Tyler Thigpen to Dwayne Bowe (who stepped out of a tackle attempt by Kirk Morrison) got the Chiefs to the 23. From there, Sands dumped Johnson, the Chiefs were called for delay of game, and Thigpen hit Tony Gonzalez for 11 yards to the 20 on third-and-18.

– The Raiders drove from their own 13 to the Chiefs 7 and had a second-and-3 but ended up settling for Janikowski’s chip-shot field goal, which went through despite being partially blocked by Ron Edwards.

Big plays in the drive included a 22-yard pass interference penalty on Bernard Pollard against McFadden, a beautifully thrown 28-yard pass from JaMarcus Russell to Miller and a 16-yard gain on a hook-and-lateral play, with Ronald Curry flipping to McFadden for a gain to the 14.

Johnnie Lee Higgins ran seven yards on a reverse to the 7, then the Raiders sputtered. McFadden was stoped for no gain, and Russell threw incomplete to Miller in the end zone.

The Raiders have one offensive touchdown in 66 first-half posessions.

– The Chiefs recorded a pair of first downs on their opening possesion on passes of 16 and 10 yards from Thigpen to Gonzalez, but stalled at the Oakland 46.

The Raiders got off the field when Asomugha broke up a second-and-10 pass intended for Gonzalez _ his first play in primary coverage for the tight end _ and Stanford Routt tackled Will Franklin after a 4-yard goal on third-and-10.

The remainder of the Raiders inactives are CB Michael Waddell, CB Darrick Brown, G Dylan Gandy, T James Marten and DE Greyson Gunheim. Marques Tuiasosopo is the third quarterback.

John Wade makes his third consecutive start at center for Grove, with Jon Alston starting at strong side linebacker for the second straight game. Ronald Curry will start at flanker for Chaz Schilens, who is active but as an ankle injury and Achilles’ tendonitis.

The Chiefs are without CB Patrick Surtain, CB Ricardo Colclough, TE Michael Merritt, LB Pat Thomas, LB Donnie Edwards, T Andrew Carnahan, G Adrian Jones and WR Jeff Webb.

Replacing Thomas, the starting middle linebacker, is Rocky Boiman. Demorrio Williams starts at outside linebacker in place of Edwards.

We’ll assume it’s just a short diversion from the nuts and bolts preparation for Sunday’s game at the Coliseum.

Because other than Thomas Howard, whose father played for the Chiefs, and perhaps Kirk Morrison, who grew up in Oakland, the opponent means little. Kansas City is simply a team the Raiders have beaten once, giving them a prime opportunity to put together a two-game winning streak and a series sweep.

Donovan NcNabb knew more about the NFL overtime process three weeks ago than Oakland players know about Raiders vs. Chiefs.

Cable, who grew up a Raiders fan in Washington state, is promoting a history while at the same time being a little light on details.

`These two teams would battle in the AFC. That’s how it was and whoever’s going to win it would probably have a chance to go to the championship game,” Cable said. “To me I remember those games and that’s a big deal.”

My first Raiders-Chiefs memory was in 1970, when Ben Davidson speared Len Dawson with eight seconds to play and Kansas City in the process of putting away a 17-14 home win. Otis Taylor retaliated against Davidson, a brawl ensued, and the offsetting penalties erased a Chiefs first down.

(How about that? Chiefs fans blaming the referees for costing them the game?)

Oakland got the ball back one last time and George Blanda kicked a 48-yard field goal to tie the game, with Kansas City putting 6-foot-10 tight end Morris Stroud in front of the goal post. Blanda’s kick narrowly made it through.

Or how about 1969, when Raiders quarterback Daryle Lamonica injured his throwing hand on the helmet of Chiefs defensive end Aaron Brown, and Kansas City beat the Raiders 17-7 in the final AFL championship game and went on to beat Minnesota in the Super Bowl?

The Raiders had to leave the Coliseum that day with the bags they had packed for New Orleans and the Super Bowl.

Ouch.

There was something special about the rivalry because both teams were active in recruiting talent from small, predominantly black schools. They not only made themselves better for it, but raised the consciousness of their sport.

Since the Raiders returned to Oakland, there was the Elvis Grbac-to-Andre Rison Monday night game which Joe Bugel later compared to the death of his mother and refused to open the locker room. Two years later, Jon Gruden danced at Arrowhead Stadium as the Raiders knocked the Chiefs out of a playoff berth 41-38, a game which ignited a run of three consecutive division titles.

No such drama here, because the season is too far along and neither team has a realistic shot at going to the playoffs, unless you’re of the opinion the Raiders can either win out or capture the AFC West with a losing record.

John Madden and Hank Stram never combined for 4-18.

Before the Denver game, Cable had assistant Willie Brown talk to the team about the tradition of Raiders-Broncos.

He said he may have another speaker lined up for the Chiefs. Perhaps he can recruit Davidson to spear Dawson, a Chiefs radio announcer, in the broadcast booth.

At this point as the franchises flounder, it’s nothing more than a game the Raiders have to win as Cable attempts to remove the “interim” from his job title.

When it gets to the point where both teams are competitive, or one can knock the other out of the playoffs, then it’s a rivalry.

– The most noteworthy thing about Thursday’s Thanksgiving Day practice was a hip flexor strain by defensive end Kalimba Edwards.

The Raiders leader in sacks with five, Edwards opened the season as a nickel rusher, became a starter when Derrick Burgess went down with a torn triceps and fared well enough to start on the right side when Burgess returned.

Edwards was listed as “questionable” and was limited in practice, as was tight end Zach Miller (groin strain). Miller is expected to be ready to play.

– Strong side linebacker Ricky Brown (groin) and center Jake Grove (calf) did not practice and were listed as “out.” Jon Alston will start at strong side linebacker, with John Wade making his third start at center.

Brown was on the field at the start of practice, but coach Tom Cable said it was mainly to begin to get him “in the process.” Brown will be worked out again Sunday before the Chiefs game but the earliest he would return would be the following Thursday against San Diego.

– The Raiders flopped their practice times in deference to Thanksgiving but not their work schedules. They practiced Thursday at 10:20 a.m. and Friday at 12:20 p.m., but did not alter their routine in terms of what is practiced on specific days.

Cable said he cut Friday’s session short because the Raiders seemed sharp and in good focus. Friday is normally a day heavy in red zone work.

– The Raiders will face a Chiefs offense which has been rebuilt on the fly around quarterback Tyler Thigpen, who was 14-for-32 in an emergency role in Week 2 in an offense built for dropback quarterbacks Damon Huard and Brodie Croyle.

In spreading out the offense, with Thigpen able to run a “Wildcat” and taking a shotgun snap with the ability to both run and pass, it has also opened up things for rookie running back Jamal Charles, a third-round draft pick out of Texas.

Charles, who provides a speedy complement to Larry Johnson, is averaging 5.7 yards per carry (54 carries, 308 yards) and 20 pass receptions, including one for a 36-yard touchdown last week in a 56-31 loss to Buffalo.

“Thigpen, really, has juiced up their whole their offense and really kind of starting to build it around them if you will,” Cable said. “Charles has stepped his game up, big time, as has Tony Gonzalez.”

– Gonzalez has caught 32 passes in his last four games _ which is the same number of passes Miller has caught as the Raiders leader over 11 games. He has 327 yards receiving and three touchdowns during that span.

The game’s most intriguing matchup will be if the the Raiders use cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha as the primary defender against Gonzalez. He is one of the few NFL corner’s rangy enough to deal with Gonzalez on a physical level, although he acknowledged Friday that the tight ends’s strength makes him a difficult matchup.

– In a transaction indirectly related to Asomugha, Carolina cornerback Chris Gamble agreed to a six-year contract extension with $23 million in guaranteed money which could bring in as much as $53 million.

Which means Asomugha’s price just keeps going up.

– Return Justin Miller has startled more than a few people with his penchant for fielding kickoffs with his hands away from his body, catching them at helmet level, rather than the traditional method of catching it againt his stomach.

“I started doing that my rookie year with the Jets,” Miller said. “We had an Australian punter, Ben Graham. He played rugby and Australian rules football and that’s how he used to catch kicks. Mike Westhoff, our special teams coach, asked me to try it. I just stuck with it. It was easier to catch kicks, going forward on the run. It’s like you’re beating everyone to the punch. You’re already rolling.”

Miller said the key is “getting square” underneath the ball, and that the only time he’ll deviate from the practice is if he isn’t square or if the weather is partcularly bad.

“It’s just a natural reaction for me now,” Miller said. “It feels strange when I catch it against my body.”

When asked if he was concerned the first time he saw Miller field a kickoff, Cable said, “The first time I saw it, it did. Then I talked to him about it, and that’s just how he learned to do it. He’s very comfortable with it.”

– Guard Dylan Gandy, signed to the 53-man roster this week, has enjoyed his brief tenure as a Raider.

“Coming in, you really don’t know what to expect,” Gandy said. “Oakland gets a bad rap from a lot of people, I think. But the guys on the team are amazing. Everyone has been real welcoming. There’s excitement here. I feel like they’re about to turn things around.”

Gandy, who has zone blocking experience in Denver and a handful of starts in an Indianapolis system he says stresses quickness and athleticism, says he thinks he is catching on.

The man who had Gandy’s locker last week, Junius Coston, came and went within eight days.