Lofton, Gault Work Overtime in Hopes of Turning Back Clock

OXNARD —  It was nervous time for Al Davis.

No, it wasn’t a big game. Or even an exhibition game. Not even a scrimmage.

It was the end of a workout on the Raiders’ practice field.

Players traditionally close out the day with sprints back and forth across the field.

Davis, the Raiders’ owner, had his eyes focused on the receivers. Leading the pack in quick bursts across the bright, green grass were Willie Gault and James Lofton.

“Slow down, slow down,” Davis muttered. “You don’t want to pull a muscle.”

But Gault and Lofton can’t slow down. Not this summer, because they are running for their professional lives.

Nipping at their heels is a crop of speedy, young receivers hoping to run away with a starting job--or at least a roster spot.

It’s an impressive group. There are Sam Graddy and James Jett, both Olympic track stars; Alexander Wright, two-time NFL’s fastest-man race champion, and Tim Brown, a former Heisman Trophy winner.

And looming in the background is still unsigned Raghib (Rocket) Ismail.

Gault and Lofton also have a few credentials they could flaunt.

Gault is a former Olympic runner.

And all Lofton has done is pile up 13,821 yards as a pass receiver, the highest in NFL history.

Between them, Gault and Lofton have played 25 years in the NFL and caught 1,075 passes for 20,392 yards and 119 touchdowns.

That’s a lot of experience, but it’s also a lot of mileage on those talented legs.

Now, the two veterans find themselves third on the depth chart. Gault is behind Wright, the starter, and Jett on the left side. Lofton is behind Brown, the starter, and Daryl Hobbs on the right.

Although the rosters have been expanded to 53 players this season, Gault and Lofton might be competing for one spot. Or they might both survive.

They approach the challenge with vastly different faces. Gault, a Davis favorite since arriving from the Chicago Bears in a 1988 trade, won’t talk to the local media. He seems serious, almost tense on the field.

Lofton, coming back for his second tour with the Raiders, is loose, friendly and generally seems to be enjoying himself.

He is amused when the inevitable question comes up in every interview: Why in the world, after three consecutive Super Bowl appearances with the Buffalo Bills, would he want to start over again with the Raiders at 37?

This time, the question came from a reporter interviewing Lofton in his room at training camp.

In the background, the Angels’ game against the Texas Rangers was on television.

Lofton started to answer, then paused when a closeup of Ranger pitcher Nolan Ryan came on the screen.

“Look at him,” Lofton said. “He has 10 years on me (actually nine), and he’s still doing it.”

Age has become a sore subject with Lofton, because he doesn’t feel any sorer after absorbing a hit now than he did in his younger days.

“I feel as good at 37 as I did at 30,” he said. “I remember when I was 30, I wondered what I’d be doing at 35. I certainly didn’t envision still playing. And here I am, already two years past that.”

Lofton’s numbers have remained impressive, unlike those compiled recently by Gault, who caught 50 passes in 1990 but only 47 over the past two seasons.

In 1991 and ’92 with the Bills, Lofton caught 108 passes--57 and 51--his best two seasons since 1986.

But he also uncharacteristically dropped several balls last season.

When Buffalo decided to shake up its roster after losing a third consecutive Super Bowl, Lofton was not offered a new contract.

So how did he wind up signing as a free agent in Los Angeles, where he lives?

“I looked at other teams,” he said, “but they look at things you don’t do well. They nitpick.

“Here, they look at things you do well. I’m not under pressure here. I don’t have to dive after every ball. It’s not like I’m a rookie who feels he has to make every catch. For the rookies, there’s a win-loss column. If they make the catch, it’s a win. If they drop it, it’s a loss.

“The Raiders know what I can do. The only pressure on me here is what I put on myself.”

It would be understandable if Lofton had been bitter after being released by the Raiders before the 1989 season. But he says that wasn’t the case because of the three players who beat him out--Brown, Gault and Mervyn Fernandez.

Lofton found new life in Buffalo, where he eventually surpassed Steve Largent’s NFL record 13,089 receiving yards last season in a game against the Rams.

So, it all worked out. Now if Lofton just didn’t have to listen to those endless remarks about his age. . . .

“You hear how you got tired because you’re 37,” he said, “or you blew an assignment because you’re 37. I got tired when I was 23, and I blew assignments when I was 23.

“I think it was Satchel Paige who said, ‘How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you were?’ You know, it’s not like I have to go up to the field judge before a game and say, ‘Thirty-seven-year-old guy reporting.’ ”

With that, Lofton excused himself. Time to get back to practice. Got to keep up with those young guys.