Oakland Raiders: Firing Jon Gruden is already an appealing option
It may be time to fire Jon Gruden. If this is his plan to rebuild the Oakland Raiders, then stop him before too much damage has been done.
Something is broken with this Oakland Raiders team. Jon Gruden knows it. The only problem is that his idea of fixing it is prying more and more pieces off and hoping things get better.
Gruden already made the mistake of trading away Khalil Mack. Now he wants to trade away Amari Cooper, according to FOX Sports’ Jay Glazer. Soon, he’ll be wondering what sort of returns he can get for Derek Carr. Maybe Marshawn Lynch wants a change of scenery? I wouldn’t be surprised if Gruden has pondered the possibility of trading Mark Davis at this point.
Seriously, this has become a sideshow. Gruden was hired to get this franchise moving back in the right direction. Instead, he came in and undid all of the work that Reggie McKenzie had devoted his life to for the last few years. He traded away arguably the best defensive player in the league after filling the roster with aging, discount veterans, and assumed it would result in wins.
As it turns out, the exact opposite happened.
The Raiders currently sit at 1-5, tied for the worst record in the NFL. Their only win came in overtime against the Cleveland Browns. The Raiders needed a ref blunder to seal the deal in that one. So, if that play had been called correctly, there’s a very good chance Oakland would be winless. Oh, and then there’s the whole part about them getting blown out by the Seattle Seahawks this past weekend.
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The worst part is that Gruden continues to pin the blame on two things: Carr and the lack of a pass rush.
For starters, Carr is actually doing a decent job this season. He’s making the most of what he’s been given, which isn’t a whole lot. Although the scoring hasn’t been there (28th in the NFL with 18.3 points per game), the Raiders do boast the No. 11 passing offense. Considering the ground game has floundered and his offensive line is failing him, Carr could be doing much worse.
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As for the pass rush problems, we all know the issue there. Just look at what Mack has done for the Chicago Bears, and you’ll understand why that deal was a terrible decision.
It’s almost like watching a slasher movie. The unsuspecting teen makes the first bad move by wondering into the abandoned house. Then, he locks the door behind him, leaves his cell phone and car keys lying on the side table, wanders upstairs into the killer’s trap and waits for his inevitable demise. Everything that can go wrong does go wrong, although it all seems to be the victim’s own doing.
All we can do is sit back and watch, yelling at the screen for Gruden to stop making stupid mistakes. Our attempts are futile, though.
Well, it’s time for Davis to step in and rewrite the script on this. Gruden isn’t getting the job done. In fact, he may actually be making things much, much worse than Jack Del Rio ever could have. I don’t know if it’s the nostalgia that’s pulling the wool over the owner’s eyes, but he needs to see that the old ball coach is ruining any chance the Raiders have of being competitive now or in the near future.
Trading Cooper away will only makes things worse, which is saying something considering the sad state of affairs in Oakland.
Months ago, I wrote a piece listing off terrible offseason moves the Raiders would come to regret. Atop that list was the hiring of Gruden. Let’s just say the responses I got from Oakland fans wasn’t great. I wonder if those same fans would feel the same now…
Don’t give me the injuries excuse, or try to convince me that Gruden’s plan is going to take time to implement. I’m not buying it. The guy jumped into the driver’s seat and ran the car right off the road.
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Think of it this way: you hired a contractor to build a deck. After a few days of work, the foundation is cracked and uneven. The stairs are different heights and he’s purchased the wrong type of wood. Would you let him finish and hope the end product was passable, or stop him before it gets any worse?
The Raiders need to recoup their $100 million, and let Gruden return to creating corny commercials. It’s clear coaching is no longer his strong suit.