FanHouse Oakland Raiders

The Boss, the one who rules Major League Baseball, wasn't in New York Wednesday night as the Yankees celebrated their 27th World Series title with a 7-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. But George Steinbrenner, 79 -- still the architect of champions and the titan of New York sports -- was watching from his home in Tampa.

Every out. Every pitch. Every player celebration. Steinbrenner could see and hear his players express their gratitude, and his family said he was overcome with joy.

"Thank you. Thank you for everything," Yankees catcher Jorge Posada told the owner through a camera lens. "Thank you for this. Thank you for having the team every year, to try to have a team to be here [the World Series]."

The Boss is not in robust health these days. He wasn't in the clubhouse to feel the champagne shower. But he was "teary eyed" said his son, Hank. "It meant everything."

Running back Larry Johnson will not be in uniform Sunday at Jacksonville when the Kansas City Chiefs return from their bye and attempt to reverse the damage of a 1-6 start. That in itself is a small victory for a rebuilding Chiefs organization, which did its level best to severely punish a longtime problem player who crossed a line most agree constitutes conduct detrimental to the NFL.

And that disciplinary action -- a two-week suspension without pay imposed by Chiefs management, that was later arbitrated by the NFL Management Council, the NFL Players Association, Johnson and the Chiefs to return a week's salary to Johnson -- was neither endorsed nor encouraged by the league office, multiple NFL sources said.

Rather, the NFL told the Chiefs they should avoid issuing a suspension (and encountering the subsequent hearing, NFLPA involvement, settlement, etc.), and simply fine Johnson $10,000.

---

---

It's often said that a team with two quarterbacks really doesn't have any. With that spirit in mind, FanHouse will keep you updated weekly on NFL teams facing potential quarterback controversies.

Stubbornness sometimes pays off. The Carolina Panthers found this out on Sunday.

One week after giving up on the run way too easily in a loss to Buffalo, the Panthers mercilessly pounded Arizona's run defense into the ground, and their reward was an easy win. Of course, it doesn't mean Jake Delhomme has magically turned his season around. It just means the Panthers have found a way to hide him, while keeping him on the field. Delhomme is off our magical list for now, but other shaky starters aren't so lucky.

Tom Cable appears to have a history of physically abusing people he has power over, whether a woman he's in a relationship with or a coach who works for him.

I think about 80% of Green Bay fans will boo Brett Favre today. What do you think? Higher? Lower?

Those are among the observations I've made on Twitter today, and I'll be making plenty more as I follow the early games, highlighted by Giants vs. Eagles, and the late games, highlighted by Vikings vs. Packers. To stay updated on everything happening in the NFL Sunday, follow along below or follow me on Twitter @MichaelDavSmith.

An ex-wife and an ex-girlfriend of Oakland Raiders coach Tom Cable have claimed that he physically abused them during their relationships, an ESPN Outside the Lines report detailed Sunday.

The ESPN report features both Cable's first wife and his recent ex-girlfriend saying Cable exhibited a pattern of abusive behavior, including punching them.

ESPN also reports that Cable's second wife, Glenda Cable, said in their divorce proceedings that he was physically abusive. Glenda, however, declined to be interviewed by ESPN and recanted her claims of physical abuse in a statement issued through her attorney.

It's often said that a team with two quarterbacks really doesn't have any. With that spirit in mind, FanHouse will keep you updated weekly on NFL teams facing potential quarterback controversies.

Some teams are entirely too stubborn. Not only will they leave bad quarterbacks in to take mental and physical beatings, but they'll insist on running offensive plays that don't seem to take the team's strengths into account, oftentimes leaning way too much on a struggling quarterback to make plays. As the Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns (among others) have now learned, this is a recipe for disaster.

---

---

ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) -- Oakland Raiders coach Tom Cable made his first public comments Friday since learning he would not be charged for an alleged assault against a former assistant, saying he was thankful for the district attorney's decision.

Napa County district attorney Gary Lieberstein said Thursday he would not pursue charges against Cable for allegedly breaking Randy Hanson's jaw in August, citing inconsistencies in Hanson's story that were not corroborated by the three assistant coaches in the room at the time.

"I'm obviously very thankful that the authorities did the thoroughness that they did in terms of getting the facts and all that," Cable said. "I never let it become a distraction because as I mentioned many times, I just had a lot of faith. I knew what happened."

During Sunday's Eagles-Raiders game, a pigeon went onto the field, stopped briefly near where the Raiders were lining up for a kickoff, and then flew downfield in the same direction as the Raiders' coverage unit. It made for a funny viral video, but one Oakland player, Justin Fargas, thinks it was much more: he thinks the pigeon was the reincarnation of deceased ex-Raider Marquis Cooper.

No criminal charges will be filed against Raiders head coach Tom Cable for his role in an altercation that fractured the jaw of Oakland assistant Randy Hanson, Napa, Calif., district attorney Gary Lieberstein announced Wednesday.

"We have concluded that the facts and evidence developed do not warrant criminal charges brought against Tom Cable in regards to an incident which occurred on August 5, 2009 in a hotel room at the Oakland Raiders' training camp in Napa," Lieberstein said in a press release.

Liberstein's announcement came after a more than two-month-long investigation.

After the Giants rolled Oakland 44-7 in Week 5, New York linebacker Antonio Pierce spoke rather candidly about the easy victory, saying that the game felt like a "scrimmage" and that "there was no vibe of trying or effort from the Raiders at all from a defensive standpoint."

Not surprisingly, Pierce's comments didn't sit well with the Raiders -- particularly Oakland defensive end Richard Seymour, who enjoyed a little schadenfreude after New Orleans pummeled the Giants in Week 6.