San Jose, Calif. ? Less than a year ago, just before the Super Bowl, I wrote that Al Davis deserved consideration for NFL executive of the year.

He had rebuilt a respectable defense by signing Rod Woodson, Bill Romanowski, John Parrella and Sam Adams and drafting Napoleon Harris and Phillip Buchanon. He had revitalized Jon Gruden’s plodding offense by elevating the offensive-line coach to head coach — always a risky move.

But Bill Callahan opened up the passing game, let Jerry Porter come flying out of Gruden’s doghouse and set the stage for Rich Gannon to win NFL MVP. Callahan’s Raiders were favored to win the Super Bowl — no small achievement for a first-year head coach.

Still, the majority of credit should go to Davis. But fair is fair: The majority of blame for the mutinous madhouse that turned this year’s team into a league-wide laughingstock should also go to the 74-year-old legend who owns and operates this team.

I’ve often defended Davis against Raider Nation flame-throwers who call him the “Cryptkeeper.” I’ve often defended Davis against customers who complain about the way they’re treated. For 40 years the man has consistently put a pretty good to very good product on the field — take it or leave it.

But I cannot defend Davis for what he allowed to happen this season. If I believed he’s going senile, I wouldn’t blame him. If I believed his health is failing, I’d strictly blame the coach and all the players who refuse to accept any.

But I blame the man in charge for sitting in the shadows all season while his coach twisted in the locker-room wind with his hands tied behind his back. Davis still has the last word. Davis still sees and knows all. Davis could have quietly snuffed the sparks between Callahan and Gannon, then Callahan and Charles Woodson, before the curtains caught fire and the world viewed the damage.

Now we have probably Davis’ favorite player and closest confidant making the most damning charge since the Black Sox Scandal of 1919. Tim Brown, Mr. Raider, claimed Monday on his KNBR show that the coach of last year’s Super Bowl team came to camp prepared to sabotage the season because he wanted to get fired. Right, and aliens abducted Elvis.

This ludicrous accusation was leveled by a player so over the hill that he helped sabotage the season by merely stepping on the field each Sunday. So Brown was either 1) trying to take the focus off his running-in-place self; 2) auditioning for a Fox job; or 3) earning his $2 million salary by doing the owner’s bidding.

Is it possible Davis, the night before he was going to fire Callahan, told Brown to pave the way by vilifying Callahan? If Brown had truly believed his coach was trying to lose games, wouldn’t he have shared that with “Mr. Davis”? If he did, where was Al? Either way, blame Davis.

In Callahan’s defense, first-year Raider and long-time 49er Dana Stubblefield said Tuesday on KNBR: “By the end of camp, I thought everybody was ready to run through a wall for the guy.”

Gannon held a “don’t-blame-me” media session Tuesday. Gannon claimed he was hung out to dry by teammates and coaches when he kept taking public responsibility for the 2-4 start.

Mixing metaphors and revising history, Gannon claimed he “saw the train coming down the pike” during camp. Too many new plays and players, he said, and one too many coaches calling plays. Funny, but Gannon won MVP with Callahan and Marc Trestman sharing that duty.