USA Today

Jason Campbell, the Raiders' presumptive starting quarterback following the departure of JaMarcus Russell, has backed way off his declaration the day he was traded that he was told he'd be the new No. 1.

Asked at the Raiders' organized team activity if he expected to be the starter, Campbell smiled sheepishly, gave his best "aw shucks" and said, "I'm just out there competing, doing what I have to do to get better."

Coach Tom Cable is pushing the company line that Campbell is just one of four quarterbacks fighting to be the starter along with Bruce Gradkowski, Charlie Frye and free agent acquisition Kyle Boller.

Gradkowski, however, is out until training camp following surgery for a torn left pectoral muscle and is being paid $1.759 million on his restricted free agent tender.

Frye and Boller have starting experience but neither player is making anything in the realm of the $7.7 million Campbell is expected to receive over the next two seasons, including a $4.6 million extension in 2011.

Economics say Campbell is the man, even if the Raiders won't.

And while Cable is saying as little as possible about Russell, the former No. 1 overall pick who cost $39 million and produced seven wins in 25 starts, he bit on a question about whether Campbell was an anti-Russell of sorts in terms of preparation and work ethic.

"I don't think there is any question about that," Cable said. "We make a trade, he shows up, he's here for four days, he goes into minicamp, he never blinks. It's not real familiar to him, makes some mistakes, but he never once backed away from it."

No one is sure whether the Raiders offered Russell a chance to stay with a significant pay cut, or if they were going to cut him anyway. And what about the mandatory minicamp appearance for Russell, was that, in a sense, his final tryout?

"Let's not talk about someone who is not on our team anymore," Cable said. "It's done, it's over and we have to move forward."

Campbell effectively deflected questions about any change in locker room chemistry in Russell's absence.

"I'm not sure about that," Campbell said. "I just know guys have talked about this offseason how bad they want to get back to the winning side. I know the last seven seasons, they've talked about how tough it's been. Guys just want to win.

"Outside of that, guys are just putting forth the effort because they want to win and get better. It's a young football team, but a lot of guys want to work."

NOTES, QUOTES

—JaMarcus who?

In the Raiders' first attempt to explain how things went so horribly wrong for the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2007, coach Tom Cable acted like a motorist making his way past a bad traffic accident.

The wreckage was there, but no sense in spending a lot of time overanalyzing the carnage.

"I think as an organization we made a decision to move forward as a team and we've done that," Cable said. "It's behind us now."

Russell was conspicuous by his absence at the Raiders' first organized team activity. He was waived May 6 not long after the post-draft mandatory minicamp where he made his last appearance in silver and black, performing decently enough on the first day but seeing his playing time and effectiveness fall off afterward.

Lots of questions remain unanswered and will likely continue as such, because neither the Raiders nor Russell are doing much talking.

Was Russell dumped after failing to agree to a dramatic salary reduction, or were the Raiders simply going to move on after acquiring Washington's Jason Campbell by trade?

Was Russell's appearance at the mandatory minicamp cosmetic in nature, or was he given an opportunity to prove he had changed?

"Let's not talk about someone who is not on our team anymore," Cable said. "It's done, it's over and we have to move forward."

Russell reportedly has rejected overtures from the Canadian Football League and the Arena League. According to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, he went home to Mobile, Ala., and has been consoling those disappointed in his failure.

—Following the Raiders' mandatory minicamp, Raiders coach Tom Cable said defensive lineman Richard Seymour, who hadn't signed his exclusive franchise free agent tender, was nearing a contract extension with the team.

As the Raiders gathered for their first organized team activity, Seymour still hadn't signed the $12.4 million tender, and Cable didn't sound nearly as optimistic.

"Still working, still working," Cable said in regards to Seymour negotiations.

The Raiders have been down this road before with exclusive franchise free agents. Cornerback Charles Woodson stayed out of training camp until the start of the regular season. Cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha signed his tender to be with the team when training camp began.

The Seymour watch will begin in late July.

—Although it was shrugged off as common sense, there was enough concern about the left foot of wide receiver Chaz Schilens to keep him off the field for the non-contact OTAs.

Schilens isn't even running drills with his teammates, watching from the sideline.

The third-year wide receiver was Oakland's most productive offensive player in training camp, only to break a fifth metatarsal on his left foot while in the process of pushing off for a pass pattern.

Schilens underwent surgery, missed the first eight games of the season, and still caught 29 passes despite never reaching his training camp form. Cable revealed at the mandatory minicamp that Schilens had undergone a "follow-up" procedure.

The Raiders are in no rush to put him back on the field.

"I think we'll take our time with that, just to be smart," Cable said. "I don't want to do anything to set it back. If he's there when we go to camp — which he will be — I'll be happy with that."

—Wide receivers caught the ball more cleanly in the single OTA session available to the media than they did during the mandatory minicamp, after which Cable lamented the amount of passes left on the ground.

With a dearth of veteran wide receivers, speculation surfaced on ESPN that the Raiders had at least inquired about Terrell Owens, the 36-year-old wide receiver who played last season for Buffalo.

Owens caught 55 passes for 829 yards for the Bills, figures which would have led Raiders wideouts in both categories by a considerable margin.

If T.O. is on the Raiders' radar, Cable was keeping it to himself.

"We haven't had any discussions whatsoever about that," Cable said.

—Quarterback Bruce Gradkowski, the author of stirring come-from-behind wins over Cincinnati and Pittsburgh after taking over for JaMarcus Russell, plans on giving Jason Campbell all he can handle during training camp.

Gradkowski sustained a torn left pectoral muscle during free weight reps on the bench press and had surgery but promised to be ready for training camp. He is taking Cable at his word that Campbell won't simply be handed the starting job.

"I definitely believe it's an open competition," Gradkowski said. "I don't think you can go about it any other way. I don't think anyone deserves to automatically be the guy and get anointed to be the guy. We have to earn it, deserve it."

Having started and been cut by the Tampa Bay Buccanneers, as well as spending time with struggling teams in Cleveland and St. Louis, Gradkowski wasn't about to let Campbell's acquisition get him down.

"This is a business," Gradkowski said. "Teams are going to do what they feel they need to do with bringing in another quarterback. It's good for us. It's just going to make the competition better and the guys around us better."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "Right now it's about ball security and confidence. If we accomplish those things, we'll be a tough team that will get after you and play with great confidence." — Raiders coach Tom Cable on his vision of the 2010 Raiders.

STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL

The Raiders tinkered with the offensive line during the organized team activity, utilizing Khalif Barnes, a veteran tackle, as a left guard, and rookie third-round pick Jared Veldheer, a left tackle, for a few snaps at center.

Langston Walker continues to get the majority of first-team snaps at right tackle. Rookie fourth-round pick Bruce Campbell played during the mandatory minicamp at left guard but wasn't at the OTA because of the NFL rule prohibiting him from attending until his class graduated.

MEDICAL UPDATES: Wide receiver and return specialist Nick Miller was on the field with no restrictions during OTAs. Miller, an undrafted free agent out of Southern Utah, made the 53-man roster and stayed there for 15 games despite a broken fibula before going on injured reserve. Wide receiver Chaz Schilens (foot) will remain on the sidelines until training camp. Defensive end Matt Shaughnessy strained a hamstring during the first OTA practice and missed the second one. Quarterback Bruce Gradkowski is no longer wearing a sling on his left arm after surgery on his left pectoral, but won't practice until training camp.

FRANCHISE PLAYER: DL Richard Seymour (tendered at $12.398M).

TRANSITION PLAYER: None.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS

—C John Wade was waived/injured following training camp and had cleaned out his locker and left the building by October.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (not tendered offers)

—RB Gary Russell (not tendered as RFA) ended the season as an undersized fullback and is best suited as a backup at both running back positions.

RESTRICTED FREE AGENTS (*indicates restricted because of uncapped year): None.

EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS FREE AGENTS: None.

PLAYERS RE-SIGNED

—*OT Khalif Barnes: Not tendered as RFA; terms unknown.

—*LB Ricky Brown: RFA; (tendered at $1.759M with second-round pick as compensation); $1.759M/1 yr.

—C Jon Condo: RFA; (tendered at $1.759M with second-round pick as compensation); terms unknown.

—S Hiram Eugene: RFA; (tendered at $1.759M with second-round pick as compensation); $1.759M/1 yr.

—*QB Charlie Frye: RFA; (tendered at $1.226M with third-round pick as compensation); $1.226M/1 yr.

—QB Bruce Gradkowski: RFA; (tendered at $1.759M with second-round pick as compensation); $1.759M/1 yr.

—WR Jonathan Holland: ERFA; terms unknown.

—*LB Thomas Howard: RFA; (tendered at $1.759M with second-round pick as compensation); $1.759M/1 yr.

—PK Sebastian Janikowski: Potential UFA; $16M/4 yrs, $9M guaranteed.

—DT William Joseph: UFA; $755,000/1 yr.

—FB Luke Lawton: RFA; (tendered at $1.176M with no compensation); $1.176M/1 yr.

—C/G Chris Morris: RFA; (tendered at $1.101M with seventh-round pick as compensation); $1.101M/1 yr.

—LB David Nixon: ERFA; terms unknown.

—*CB Stanford Routt: RFA; (tendered at $3.268M with first- and third-round pick as compensation); $3.268M/1 yr.

—G/T Langston Walker: UFA; terms unknown.

—WR Todd Watkins: ERFA; terms unknown.

—LB Sam Williams: UFA; terms unknown.

PLAYERS ACQUIRED

—RB Michael Bennett: FA Chargers; terms unknown.

—QB Kyle Boller: UFA Rams; terms unknown.

—QB Jason Campbell (trade Redskins).

—FB Rock Cartwright: FA Redskins; terms unknown.

—DT Chris Cooper: FA; terms unknown.

—WR/KR Yamon Figurs: FA; terms unknown.

—LB Quentin Groves (trade Jaguars).

—G/T Daniel Loper: FA Lions; terms unknown.

—TE John Owens: FA Seahawks; terms unknown.

—CB Joey Thomas: FA; terms unknown.

—LB Kamerion Wimbley (trade Browns).

PLAYERS LOST

-*LB Jon Alston: Not tendered as RFA/Buccaneers; terms unknown.

—DE Greg Ellis (released).

—RB Justin Fargas (released/failed physical).

—RT Cornell Green: UFA Bills; $9M/3 yrs.

—QB J.P. Losman: Not tendered as RFA/Seahawks; 1 yr, terms unknown.

—*LB Kirk Morrison (traded Jaguars), had been re-signed as RFA; (tendered at $2.525M with third-round pick as compensation); $2.525M/1 yr.

—FB Oren O'Neal (released).

—QB JaMarcus Russell (released).

—WR Javon Walker (released).

—DT Gerard Warren (released).