Yet, by the time he landed in the Bay Area in 2004, the QB killer was nearly spent.
The notion that all great players will inevitably end their careers wearing the bad boy colors of silver and black, might have factored into Sapp’s decision to sign a seven-year, $36 million deal with the Raiders in March of 2004. Certainly Jerry Rice found the Fountain of Youth in Alameda, so why couldn't the same happen to the happy-go-lucky Sapp?
Sapp, a seven-time Pro Bowler had limited options after nine fabulous seasons in Tampa Bay. Playing in Oakland over the Bengals wasn’t a difficult choice for Sapp.
It did, however, turn out to be quite a miscalculation on the part of Al Davis. Something the Raiders have been much better about in recent years. Not withstanding the Javon Walker and DeAngelo Hall fiascoes.
Yes,there were times when the loud-mouth, nimble-footed Sapp displayed flashes of his old brilliance (team-high 10 sacks in 2006), but for the most part, it was a disappointing end to a Canton-worthy career.
Sapp, the Bucs No. 2 all-time sack leader (trailing only Hall of Famer Lee Roy Selmon's 78 sacks) could never live up to his moniker as a sack master while in Oakland. The former Bucs pass-rusher extraordinaire, recorded double-digit sacks three different times under Tony Dungy, to successfully back up his big yapper with play to match.
In four up-and-down seasons with the Raiders, Sapp played in 58 games, recorded 19.5 sacks and had 128 solo tackles with four forced fumbles. Yet, 99 could never put the Raiders on his back and carry the team to the postseason or even a winning season.
So what’s the final verdict here: Is Sapp an overrated blabber ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Oakland Raiders
