Raider Cuts Help Clear the Way for McCallum

OXNARD —  The Raiders’ cut to 50 Tuesday claimed halfback Kenny King and punt returner Fulton Walker. This makes it all but official that Napoleon McCallum, another halfback-punt returner will make the final cut.

Two more Raiders of note were put on injured reserve, Mike Davis, the starter at strong safety since 1980, who is to undergo arthroscopic knee surgery today, and No. 1 draft choice Bob Buczkowski of Pitt, whose training camp has been washed out by a back injury.

Only one of them will be able to rejoin the active roster without going through waivers, and the Raiders don’t know who it will be.

“This is the third knee (surgery) Mike has had in a year,” said Coach Tom Flores. “They’ve all been arthroscopic, but it’s still three. Buczkowski has had minor surgery and we’re not sure it worked. If it doesn’t, we have to go to Plan B. I don’t know what Plan B is right now.”

Try major surgery.

King carried three times as a Houston Oiler fullback in 1979, then came to the Raiders for a draft choice. The Raiders switched him to halfback and, in his first season, he made the Pro Bowl and scored on a record 80-yard pass play in the Super Bowl victory over the Eagles.

In 1982, however, the Raiders drafted Marcus Allen. They tried to switch King back to fullback in ’83 but it turned into a cosmetic move, with Frank Hawkins, a better blocker, replacing King early each game.

King went back to halfback in ’85. While Allen was carrying 380 times for his 1,759 yards, King got 16 carries all season.

Unhappy, he asked to be traded. The Raiders drafted two more backs, McCallum and Vance Mueller, in the fourth round and King could see which way the wind was blowing.

Once a couple of weeks ago, he passed a teammate who was talking to a writer.

“Tell him how good I used to be,” King said.

He missed the first two exhibitions this season with a pulled muscle. When he returned, the wind was blowing harder. Mueller was leading the team in rushing with just under a five-yard average. If Flores could get comfortable with McCallum’s schedule, the rookies would stay.

King left without talking to reporters.

Walker, who had set another Super Bowl record as a Dolphin with a 98-yard kickoff return against the Redskins in 1983, was signed as a free agent last season and took over for Cle Montgomery, who tore up a knee in Foxboro, Mass. In his first game as a Raider, Walker returned seven punts for 111 yards and was awarded a game ball.

He wound up with an 11.2-yard average, third in the AFC. His 692 yards in returns was an NFL record, beating Greg Pruitt’s 666.

He was sidelined for the last two weeks with a sprained ankle. Meanwhile, the Raiders were deciding to go with Tim Moffett and, in all probability, McCallum.

“We still need to work out all the details with Napoleon, but this certainly makes his value to us a little greater,” Flores said. “We still have to get some things straightened out. I hate to keep telling you the same old story, but we’ve got to get some things straightened out.”

Raider Notes Also put on injured reserve were No. 4 draft choice Mike Wise, a defensive end from UC Davis; No. 9 Zeph Lee, running back from USC, and free agents Ronnie James and Rusty Russell. Also cut were No. 10 Jeff Reinke, defensive end from Mankato State in Minnesota, and free agent quarterback Joe Dufek.