"Nap was a damn good Raiders' running back too. Dennis & Reggie are keeping on with the Al Davis philosophy of surrounding themselves with former Raiders elite players to boost the team. I imagine Nap's job will be kinda like the story of General Patton calling for the chaplain to provide a prayer to clear the clouds over Bastogne in the Battle of the Bulge--he's going to pray a lot to help the Raiders win in 2012. We'll need it."
The quote reminded me of the statue of General Patton on the campus of the United States Military Academy (West Point). I walked that campus two times in past years, and I stopped and stared at the statue. Fred mentioned the events at Bastogne, so I looked up some information.
Most of all, I realized that "heavy rains" fell on the Oakland Raiders' franchise because of the loss of Mr. Al Davis. I saw the Oakland Raiders as warriors who were struggling to prepare for a battle but drenched and heavy-laden by "immoderate rain."
I said to myself, "Fred is a smart man. This is a powerful comment."
Here is what I hope we learn from Fred and from this quote:
"Chaplain, I am a strong believer in Prayer. There are three ways that men get what they want; by planning, by working, and by praying. Any great military operation takes careful planning, or thinking. Then you must have well-trained troops to carry it out: that's working. But between the plan and the operation there is always an unknown. That unknown spells defeat or victory, success or failure. It is the reaction of the actors to the ordeal when it actually comes. Some people call that getting the breaks; I call it God. God has His part, or margin in everything, That's where prayer comes in. Up to now, in the Third Army...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
