Oakland Raiders: Don’t be fooled by talking heads

Many talking heads would have you believe that the Oakland Raiders are a dysfunctional team. Richie Incognito aside, Jon Gruden is positioning this team to win before heading to Las Vegas.

Many talking heads will want you to believe a lot of things these days. In sports, specifically the NFL, they would want you to believe the worst of the Oakland Raiders. Don’t get this wrong, the Raiders can deliver some truly head-scratching kind of decisions. The recent signing of Richie Incognito is one such example. But the idea that Oakland is one lit match away from being a five-alarm dumpster fire is a bridge too far.

The vaunted sports media types who dot both the radio and television landscape often portray the Silver and Black as wayward. They want you to believe that the Raiders lack direction or are simply too noisy to be taken seriously.

Head coach Jon Gruden, however, looks to have Oakland on the verge of being competitive. After a 2018 season where they went 4-12 overall and 1-5 in the AFC West, competitive is both a good thing and even a bit subjective.

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While no one is going to pick Oakland to win the division, being better than their 2018 record isn’t a reach. While the AFC West might be a two-team battle between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Chargers, the Raiders aren’t necessarily destined for a last-place finish either.

But these talking heads, who clearly have their favorites, seem determined to opine that Gruden and the Raiders seem all about dysfunction and drama. Granted, players like Antonio Brown, Vontaze Burfict and the previously mentioned Incognito lend some weight to that argument. But you could also argue that both Gruden and new general manager Mike Mayock are putting together a competitive team in the East Bay.

If anything, the media’s collective hyperventilating is somewhat dulled by a draft that didn’t play out as many predicted. The Raiders didn’t oblige the talking heads and draft a quarterback to replace Derek Carr when talent, especially at the fourth pick, was clearly available. They executed a pretty good plan that will likely pay dividends sooner rather than later.

The bottom line is that Oakland will be a much-improved team heading into 2019 and certainly when they move to Las Vegas next season.

Sorry, Colin Cowherd. The Raiders look to be in a better position than you’d ever want to give them credit for. Recent acquisitions aside, Gruden is looking to win while the team is still in Oakland and will have them in position to do more when they get to Vegas.