Oakland, CA

Former Oakland Raiders wide receiver Tim Brown has accused his head coach Bill Callahan of "sabotaging" the team in Super Bowl XXXVII for changing the game plan at the last minute, resulting in a 48-21 loss to the Jon Gruden-coached Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

During an interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Brown said that when the Raiders got the game plan on the Monday before the Super Bowl, it was a run-heavy attack taking advantage of Oakland's size advantage on the offensive line.

However, Brown claimed Callahan scrapped the plan Friday to the shock of the team.

"We all called it sabotage ... because Callahan and Gruden were good friends. And Callahan had a big problem with the Raiders, you know, hated the Raiders. You know, only came because Gruden made him come," Brown claimed.

Gruden was the head coach of the Raiders from 1998-2001, and Callahan was his offensive coordinator. When Gruden transferred to Tampa for the 2002 season, Callahan was made head coach. The two then ended up facing each other in the Super Bowl.

Brown later tried to downplay the word "sabotage" during an interview with "The Ben and Skin Show" on 103.3 ESPN Radio in Dallas. However, he still implied the facts of the situation leave many questions about Callahan's loyalty at the time to the Raiders.

"I don't think he would have sabotaged the Super Bowl but and this is the problem we have, because of his relationship with Gruden, because of his disdain for the Raider organization, that s what makes people get to that conclusion," Brown said.

He clarified that he used "sabotage" because it was the word thrown around the Raiders' locker room.

The receiver also made the same accusation against Callahan four years ago on the morning of the Super Bowl.

However, Brown maintained that he was expressing his opinion and had no proof that Callahan intentionally doomed his own team.

"You know, can you really say that? That can be my opinion, but I can't say for a fact that that's what his plan was, to sabotage the Super Bowl," Brown said. "He hated the Raiders so much that he would sabotage the Super Bowl so his friend can win the Super Bowl. That's hard to say, because you can't prove it."

However, another former Raiders offensive player who requested anonymity, disagreed with Brown.

"No, he (Tim) isn't right. While there was always dysfunction, that didn't happen. If anything Bill wanted to kick Jon's a--. Nobody would do that. Brutal. We got out-played and out-coached. Period," the former player wrote in the text to ESPN.com.

Running back Zack Crockett, who also was on that Raiders team and is now a scout for the team, said he thought Callahan changed the game plan only because of center Barret Robbins' disappearance.

Robbins disappeared from the team in the days before the game and did not play.

 

 

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