Collins is playing pick-free football for a change
The Shadow
John Crumpacker, Chronicle Staff Writer
It's called the bye week, but the Raiders didn't go anywhere. They broke a
sweat three days in practice sessions that had the players thinking San
Diego.
Seeing as how the Chargers whipped Oakland twice last year by an aggregate
score of 65-31, the Raiders did a little game-planning for the Chargers
during their supposed down time.
"Definitely,'' linebacker Danny Clark said. "We had those guys in range
every time we took a snap.''
The bye week allowed quarterback Kerry Collins to get back to the basics but
work on the Chargers as well. After four games, his passer rating of 94.7 is
the highest of his career by almost 10 points. That's what not throwing
interceptions will do for a quarterback.
Although the Raiders are off to a 1-3 start, Collins is playing well and has
a nice little streak going. He's thrown 139 passes without an interception,
the longest stretch of his 10-plus years in the league.
"I've had streaks like that in my career where I haven't thrown
interceptions,'' Collins said. "I'm definitely conscious of it. If I don't
throw interceptions, we have a heck of a better chance to win games.''
Ten years in the league means Collins is a realist as well as a survivor. He
knows he'll probably throw an interception or two before season's end.
"I know I'm not going to go the whole year without one,'' he said. "It comes
down to me being smart with the ball.''
The key to not throwing picks, Collins said, is making good decisions.
Whereas earlier in his career he might have forced a pass, now as a wizened
32-year-old he exercises more restraint.
"I want to get everything I can, but at the same time, if the situation
warrants that I throw it in, fine,'' he said. "But if not, I want to be
smart with the ball. I think it's a lot of things -- having a better
supporting cast, being more selective and more comfortable with the offense
and learning from mistakes I've made in the past.''
The immediate future for Collins and the Raiders includes a home game
against the Chargers a week hence. San Diego beat Oakland by scores of 42-14
and 23-17 in 2004.
"The off week is for getting back to the basics, things from a time
standpoint you can't get to during (a regular game) week,'' Collins said.
"We definitely have an eye toward San Diego. We're working against their
(defensive) looks.''
In addition to not putting the ball up for grabs as much (Collins has 159
touchdown passes in his career against 154 interceptions), the Raiders
quarterback wants to improve his completion percentage. He's a career
56-percent passer and is at 54.7 percent in 2004. That's not good enough for
a mature starting quarterback in the NFL.
"I think there's always room for more completions,'' Collins said. "My
completion percentage is not great. ... My goal for the year is to be over
60 percent.''
His offensive teammates like what they've seen of Collins this season. Wide
receiver Alvis Whitted said, "He's the leader of our football team. The more
confident he'll be, the more consistent our offense will be. He's done a
good job and I believe he'll continue to do a good job.''
Mindful of Collins' reputation of putting the ball up for grabs in an
attempt to get a long gainer, Whitted said, "You don't have to go for the
home run every time. You have to take the safe throws. He learned a lot from
last year.''
In Collins' first season as Oakland's starter, he completed just over 56
percent of his passes and threw 21 touchdown passes, offset by 20
interceptions. His start this season seems to bode well for fewer picks.
"I think that is an emphasis for him and he's done a good job,'' coach Norv
Turner has said.
While Collins prepares for the 138th regular-season start of his career, his
counterpart across the bay will be making his first. The 49ers named rookie
Alex Smith their starter for today's game against Indianapolis.
"It can test your confidence, for sure,'' Collins said of being a rookie
starter, which he was for Carolina in 1995. "There are probably times he'll
go out there and not feel good about what they're doing. You've got to fight
through it. He's a talented guy. You can see by the way he throws and moves
and what he did in college. He'll figure it out, but there's rough stretches
for us all.''
Collins himself is on a pretty good stretch and aims, literally, to keep it
going.