Brown Leaves Raiders Hanging : Pro football: Receiver/punt returner is unsure whether he wants to stay and says he needs to talk with Davis.

Does Tim Brown want to remain a Raider?

The team’s star receiver/punt returner is not ready to give a firm commitment that he will keep wearing the silver and black until:

--Certain unspecified matters, thought to be related to personnel, are cleared up by owner Al Davis.

--Brown is assured that his position isn’t threatened by the “young guys,” presumably Rocket Ismail and James Jett.

--The Raiders’ season ends and a full discussion with Davis can take place.

The matter has come to a head now because of a ruling Monday by an arbitrator that set a deadline of today for increasing 1993 salaries through either contract extension or renegotiation.

If a club reworks a player’s contract by 1 p.m. today, any money added to his ’93 salary will not count toward the anticipated 1994 salary cap. But there are limitations. The ’94 salary must be at least 70% of the ’93 total, to prevent an extreme end-around of the salary cap.

Although many Raiders could be affected, the most interesting case is that of Brown. He thought his two-year contract made him a free agent after last season, but a ruling by the commissioner’s office tied Brown to the Raiders for this season as well at a salary of $900,000. He will be a restricted free agent at season’s end.

Until the clock ticked past the trading deadline in October, Brown insisted he might be sent elsewhere, although Raider officials maintained that such speculation was nonsense.

Brown is having a spectacular season. With 62 catches for 927 yards and five touchdowns, he is among the AFC leaders in all three receiving categories. He also became the Raiders’ all-time punt returner this season.

But despite the emergence of rookies Ismail and Jett, the Raiders do not appear to be the least bit eager to lose Brown. Just the opposite.

Asked Wednesday if he would sign a new deal in the ensuing 24 hours, however, Brown did not appear eager to put his name on another Raider contract at this time.

“Would I do something?” Brown said, repeating a question. “It depends. It would have to be an awful lot of doing, I guess you could say.

“I don’t know. I’m a little leery of just outright signing a deal. With all these young guys, I get a little afraid of just doing that, because . . . I don’t want to just be doing something because it’s convenient right now to do it . . . and find myself in a situation where I’m really not wanted.”

But haven’t the Raiders indicated they want Brown?

“There’s been talk to my agent about a few things,” Brown said, “but there hasn’t been anything proposed to me (on) numbers and all that stuff.”

Asked how the arbitrator’s ruling affects their plans, Steve Ortmayer, the Raiders’ director of football operations, said: “We’ve had some conversations with some people, but, at this point in time, that’s the extent of what we’ve done.”

Coach Art Shell was more positive about the likelihood of redoing some contracts.

“I hope some things get done,” he said. “We’re trying.”

Brown said money could not be his sole consideration.

“They say, if a guy wants to pay a certain amount of money for you,” Brown said, “then you must be wanted, but I don’t think that necessarily means that. . . . These young guys around here, not that they scare me per se, as if I’m worried about my talent, but I’m just worried about how things could shake out.”

Known to be unhappy with the handling of morale problems on the Raiders last season--problems that stemmed from the feud between Davis and running back Marcus Allen--Brown discussed his feelings with Davis earlier this year.

But Brown seemed to indicate Wednesday that there is more to talk about.

“I really think that me and Mr. Davis would have to sit down and talk about a few things,” Brown said. “I guess I need to get a few things out of my head as far as where I’m coming from, things I won’t divulge right now. . . . I want to make sure everything is smooth, then I can really enjoy making the money. If that’s the case, sign me up. . . .

“So as far as I’m concerned, go out and play these last couple of games and get into the playoffs and help the team go as far as we can go. We have the off-season to work out anything.”