Inside SlantAl Davis sounded open to just about anything with regard to hiring the 15th coach of the Oakland Raiders, though it would seem a control freak is out of the question.Davis, 77, gave no indication he would be backing off in terms of exerting his considerable influence in the wake of a three-year run of 13-35 football - the worst in franchise history.When the Raiders begin screening and interviewing candidates, the prospective applicants will learn very quickly that Davis will have the last word on their players and coaches.When asked whether a coach such as Bill Parcells would be a difficult sell because an established coach would want more authority, Davis bristled at the suggestion that he is difficult to work with.Parcells' name was used as an example, not as a legitimate candidate."Any coach who has been here in the history of the Raiders has had the same authority," Davis said. "Bill Parcells is a close friend of mine. Bill Parcells, if he were to come here, would not want the authority. He would be satisfied to share the authority with me."Davis believes he brought in enough good players. It was up to Norv Turner to get the job done, and it didn't happen."Let me say this - no one could have brought in more personnel than we brought in the last two or three years to help a football organization," Davis said. "Norv Turner didn't complain about it. Jon Gruden didn't complain about it. You can go all the way back to John Madden."Davis in his history lesson neglected to mention Gruden's problem with the Raiders wasn't that Davis didn't bring in enough players. It's that Davis wielded a heavy hand when it came to the final roster, as well as the choice of assistant coaches.After two consecutive division titles, negotiations over an extension of his contract following the 2001 season fell apart over two issues. Gruden did not ask for a general manager's right to acquire personnel or run the draft. But he wanted the final say over the personnel Davis brought in - the power to choose the 53-man roster. He also wanted to select his own coaching staff.He got neither. And he was eventually traded for draft picks and cash to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.In the wake of Turner's dismissal, Davis made it clear his personnel decisions were not a problem. Given that he was already discussing whether Mike Martz was a viable candidate as an offensive coordinator before he had hired a new head coach, Davis will continue to dictate much of the coaching staff as well.Regarding his current staff, still in place other than Turner, Davis said he doubted any of them would be interviewed for the top job, but said, "I would think several of them would stay."Turner, as diplomatically as possible, said he expected no change in the way the Raiders operate."Mr. Davis is going to be involved in terms of personnel, evaluating players, those types of things, and that's certainly what he has done his entire career," Turner said.NOTES, QUOTES—After a 30-21 loss to the New York Giants to end the season, quarterback Kerry Collins wondered openly whether coach Norv Turner's impending demise would mean he might be on his way as well."Are Norv and I married?" Collins said. "I don't know."Collins has a salary-cap figure of just under $12.9 million and a signing bonus due in March of $2.5 million, so the possibility of a quick, clean exit is there for both sides.Owner Al Davis, however, seemed willing to absolve Collins of the blame many of the fans and media have bestowed upon him. Davis also gave rise to the notion that Collins could be back.The Raiders will look at the market, but renegotiating with Collins appears to be an option."That will depend on who we talk to, what is available," Davis said. "I think Kerry did adequately well considering other factors, maybe not seen by the press or fans. I think he did reasonably well. He had no running game, and our protection slipped."—Former St. Louis coach Mike Martz reportedly has a clean bill of health after missing the last 11 games of the 2005 season with a virus that affected his heart. Martz has been linked with the Raiders, but Davis sounded concerned."I am a little concerned about Mike from a (physical) standpoint right now," Davis said. "Mike has always been of interest, because he is dynamic, he is not afraid. But there is fear right now of the physical. I don't know if we are ready to accept that."—Still bitter at what he considered a slap on the wrist by the NFL for Denver's salary-cap violations in the late 1990s, Davis took a jab at the Broncos and their back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998 as he was discussing the difficulty of playing in the AFC West.The Raiders were 1-11 in the division under Turner and 2-16 over the past three years."It's tough, but we've done it before," Davis said. "We did (win the West) three years in a row (2000-2002), and no one else has come close to that in our division. I don't think anyone in our division has won a Super Bowl in a long while, unless you are going to include Denver, and Denver has an asterisk next to their name when they get into the Super Bowl in those years."STRATEGY AND PERSONNELWhile a coaching change could bring a shift in philosophy, odds are the Raiders will seek someone who believes in the same things Norv Turner did - power running and vertical passing. The key simply will be doing it better.With running back LaMont Jordan having signed a five-year free agent contract last season, and Randy Moss having arrived via trade to go along with Jerry Porter, Oakland's personnel still cries out for a team which can grind the ball and then strike quickly.If the quarterback is not Kerry Collins, and Oakland waits to see if someone such as David Carr or Daunte Culpepper becomes available, it will be someone who can get the ball downfield and make use of Moss.Defensively, the Raiders seem likely to find another linebacker and go with a more conventional 4-3 defense, rather than the nickel they used as their primary alignment this season. Whether by draft or free agency, they need another outside linebacker to go with Kirk Morrison - with Danny Clark remaining in the middle.Since Al Davis referred to his "prime kickers" and the team's lack of production on special teams, it would appear Sebastian Janikowski may get a pass on his 20-for-30 season on field-goal attempts.QUOTE TO NOTE: "This organization does not want to wait three or four years. That's not our modus operandi." - Raiders owner Al Davis about the possibility of rebuilding.COACHING CAROUSEL: Raiders executive Mike Lombardi was busy lining up potential head coaching possibilities, none of which the club planned on releasing until an actual interview at the facility took place. Assistants remained on site, with Davis saying several could remain with the team. The three on the most solid ground are longtime assistants Fred Biletnikoff and Willie Brown, along with running backs coach Skip Peete.Based on Davis' criticisms of the offensive line and special teams, Jim Colletto and Joe Avezzano could be on the way out.FREE AGENT UPDATE: It would be a major surprise if the Raiders made unrestricted free agent CB Charles Woodson a franchise free agent for the third consecutive year, given a price tag of $12.5 million. Nickel back Renaldo Hill and S Jarrod Cooper are unrestricted free agents who want to return, as does tight end and special teams player Randal Williams.Other unrestricted free agents include reserve T Chad Slaughter, G Corey Hulsey, DE/LB DeLawrence Grant, DT Ed Jasper, DT Kenny Smith, RB Omar Easy, S Reggie Tongue, DT Terdell Sands and TE Zeron Flemister.FEELING A DRAFT: With the club tied financially to tackles Barry Sims and Robert Gallery despite disappointing seasons, the Raiders could be looking hard for younger, faster guards to go along with third-year C Jake Grove.The Raiders are always on the lookout for corners, and could use a running back or two to take some of the load off LaMont Jordan.MEDICAL WATCH: QB Andrew Walter will have surgery for a sports hernia and is expected to be ready to go by training camp. T Robert Gallery suffered a non-displaced fracture of a fibula and was well enough to travel to Florida to watch Iowa in the Outback Bowl.The Raiders will watch DT Warren Sapp's rehabilitation from rotator cuff surgery closely, although a bonus acceleration of nearly $4.5 million and a pro-rated signing bonus of $1.5 million would make him a costly cap casualty. LB Sam Williams (torn ACL) was injured in preseason and should be ready to give it another try. WR Ronald Curry (torn Achilles' tendon) has a $5.04 million cap figure, which makes him unlikely to return unless he renegotiates his contract. Curry has torn his Achilles in each of the last two seasons. T Langston Walker should be completely recovered from abdominal surgery by training camp.