Tag Archives: Los Angeles Raiders

NFL

Wright, Alexander “Ace”

Cards: ProSet 1993, Action Packed Rookies 1990
Acquired: In Person 1991, 1993, Dallas Cowboys Training Camp

Alexander Wright was a track and field speedster who tested one of the faster speeds at the combine in 1990. The Dallas Cowboys looking for a compliment to Michael Irvin took Wright in the 2nd round from Auburn. His gaudy 23.6 yards a reception set a school record. Ace would make a splash for the return game, virtually replacing James Dixon in the lineup but not really leave a lasting impression at receiver where despite his speed and leaping ability – had nothing but alligator arms when it came to making the catch.

He’d play 3 seasons in Dallas and then be traded to the Los Angeles Raiders in 1992. Al Davis makes no secret that he’s enamored with speed, and watching Alexander Wright at training camp play for the Cowboys those years in Austin probably just made him salivate. Ace would sit on the bench for the majority of the season. It didn’t help that the Raiders had quarterback problems but along the way the speedster would still catch a 41 yard strike for a touchdown. 1993 would be his most productive season with 4 touchdowns and 27 grabs, while 1994 he’d average 18.4 yards  a catch. He’d finish his last two seasons on the St. Louis Rams, playing 11 games over two seasons, being immortalized on both Tecmo Super Bowl with the Cowboys and Tecmo Super Bowl Final Edition on the Rams.  Ace was a 2 time NFL’s fastest man winner and as of 2010 still holds the longest kick return in team history with a 102 yard return for the Cowboys.

I got Alex’s autograph at Dallas Cowboys Training Camp. One of my most comically bad moments in autograph collecting history occurred with him and Max Montoya. As Max passed down the line in what was commonly known as ‘autograph alley’ I was coaching another kid on how to get autographs. Max gave me his autograph but passed by the other kid who kept holding out his card.. for Dallas wide receiver Alexander Wright. I told the kid, “That’s not Max Montoya,” but Alex heard me, and embarrasingly took offense thinking that I was making a racial comment. Ace Wright obviously didn’t want to sign my card- or Max Montoya’s for that matter either. Since football Alexander has been active in coaching and currently is in northwestern Texas.

G/Gs  86/44     Rec  101   Yds  1597     Avg  15.8     Td   10   Lg  76T  |
Kr 79    Yds   1681    Avg   21.3   Td  2     Lg  102T

NFL

Bell, Nick

Cards: StarPics 1991, Action Packed Rookies 1991, GameDay 1992
Acquired: In Person 1991, 1993 Dallas Cowboys training camp

Nick Bell was drafted from Iowa by the Los Angeles Raiders in the second round of the 1991 draft. At 6-2, 255 he was a bruising powerback with highly deceptive speed and a vicious stiff arm. His rookie season would be limited to 9 games due to a bum hamstring. He’d start only one game but in garbage/ backup time Nick would still manage over 300 yards and 3 touchdowns. A whole season in 1992 would still not allow him to break the starting runningback lineup of the Raiders starting only one game again but this time making a bit over 350 yards. Named starting runningback  Bell would be chomping at the bit to perform in 1993, but nagging injuries including an ankle injury suffered in training camp would continue to dodge him and give creedence to durability as a major problem for the young back.  He’d start a career high 3 games, but averaging 2.7 yards a carry probably combined with the mounting injury concerns ended his career prematurely at the end of 27.

Information of Nick’s whereabouts since retirement are sketchy. He has done some coaching in Cedar Rapids as a minor league football coach and a highlight video of him has recently appeared on YouTube.

G/Gs 35/5   Rush 226      Yds 853      Avg 3.8     Td 7    Lg 66   |
Rec 21     Yds 213     Avg 10.3    Td 0    lg 24

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ui2g99ByNBI

NFL, WLAF

Dilweg, Anthony

Card: Proset 1989, Fleer Update 1990, Wild Card WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2010, C/o Work
Sent: 7/30   Received: 9/14  (45 days)

Anthony Dilweg is a rarety- a player from Duke drafted to play in the NFL. A monster quarterback when he got his chance to play at the college level under Steve Spurrier, he once threw for 450 yards in a game against Wake Forest, a record that still stands to this day. He’d be drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the 3rd round of the 1989 draft. A notoriously weak draft after Troy Aikman at quarterback- Dilweg would perform well enough to grab the backup job behind Don Majkowski by 1990. Anthony’s moment in the spotlight would be opening day of that season where he’d throw for 250 yards and 2 touchdowns against a sleepwalking Los Angeles Rams defense in substitution for recently resigned holdout Majikowski. He’d be rebenched shortly after but would end up starting the last 5 and a half games after a rotator cuff injury set back Don.  Dilweg would be hot and cold throughout the rest of the season putting up a 119.9 qb rating against the Buccaneers, but would also put up a 33.2 rating against Minnesota as well and 22 sacks on the season. That second season however would end respectably enough as he threw for 1200 yards and 8 touchdowns, but with the team slumping to a 6-10 record that season, Lindy Infante would be released and the organization would clean house. New GM Ron Wolf would go in a new direction with a new head coach- Mike Holmgren. The team was determined to improve the quarterback situation and brought in Mike Tomczak from Chicago, who beat out the young Dilweg at QB. Anthony would be quickly signed by the Los Angeles Raiders, but would not make a start for the franchise.

The WLAF and the NFL agreed to allocate young talent to the WLAF starting with the 1992 season. With this decision the Raiders allocated Dilweg to the Montreal Machine. The Machine were lead by a stable of runningbacks, and a strong back 7 on defense. The problem with the Machine always seemed to be their lines, and especially on offense their quarterbacks ended up paying the price. Montreal in 1992 drafted the young Dilweg to fix their problems at quarterback after the retirement of Kevin Sweeney. They’d go with Dilweg right out of the gate for a road opener against the San Antonio Riders blitzing defense. -He wouldn’t even make it out of the first half succumbing to injury and being taken to the locker room.  Anthony would play sparingly after that for the rest of the season and retire after the WLAF went on hiatus.

Anthony after football has been able to parlay his brief NFL career into the financial industry where he has been highly successful in real estate. I sent these cards to him via his company and received these autographs in under 60 days.  He also included a nice thank you for being a fan- of the Packers, even though I had only mentioned my experiences in the World League. Below are his WLAF statistics for the Machine.

G/Gs N/a    Att 75     Comp 43     Yds 468      Td 2     Int 1     Rat 79.2