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Cable and the Misfits

Well, I couldn't go more than two weeks. There has been a variety of things that have happened over this span, not least of which is an exotic assembling of a football staff without a Head Coach. It is believed that Cable will be the guy, but why hasn't he been named? The only logical solution is we want to interview coaches from the Super Bowl teams. Assistants, etc. Davis can interview any of them as long as it is for HC. If he signs Cable he wouldn't be able to interview any of them that are under contract. So Cable operates as the HC, with the only thing standing in his way a Tomlinesque interview and that person also willing to take on an Al Davis assembled coaching staff. This is why I believe it will ultimately be Cable and also why the sports media can report it as true even though Al Davis denies it. This is basically the same scenario as with Art Shell's firing, it was a very probable certainty, and league sources can confirm these near certainties. So what is...

Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen Fired

After an unsuccessful few years in Tampa Bay, the tandem that brought the Raiders to the 2002 Super Bowl have been fired. You have to wonder if the Raiders might make a call to two men they used to employ. It isn't likely they will be able to get a job together outside of maybe, the Raiders. Bruce Allen is respected by Al Davis and was the closest to a GM the Raiders have had in many years. Gruden is a good offensive mind and provided he doesn't land a head coaching job elsewhere, might make a good offensive coordinator. Not sure how it would work, but Cable, Gruden, Bruce Allen would certainly qualify as the big splash Davis wanted to make. Stay tuned! Tampa Bay Presser at 4 p.m. Pacific

Breaking Down the Cap: Fargas

When Fargas signed his three-year contract, he received a signing bonus of $6 million. That is spread out over the three years. $2 million each 2008, 2009 and 2010. He received $605K in 2008 base, $2.5 million base for 2009, and $1.5 million base for 2010. Not guaranteed base salary. The cost to cut or TRADE him has been reported to be $5.3 million. The reason for this cap charge is due to the prorated bonus money he is due totaling $4 million. That also means he has $1.3 million in likely to be earned incentives in his contract, even if he is unlikely to earn them as the third runningback. What this basically means, is cutting him now costs us $5.3 million. However, we would save approx $2.6 million in 2010 if Fargas was cut pre-june 1. However, the league permits two things. You can spread the cap hit over two years for two players before June 1, or as many as you want after June 1. Essentially, we could decide to take the cap hit of $5.3 million over two years. This prevents us from...

Lofton, Schneider Out, Washington, Lal In

James Lofton has been fired, Schneider jumped ship to USC. Lionel Washington will coach the defensive backs and Sanjay Lal will be promoted to WR coach. We also requested and received permission to interview Jeremy Bates for a position of the staff. The Broncos could block him from taking a position on our staff other than Head Coach. I believe we probably said he was interviewing for head coach even if that isn't our intention. Bates, called plays last season for the Broncos and is also a proponent of the ZBS a lot like Cable. You have to wonder if this is a complement to Cable or a replacement. So far, Davis is assembling a coaching staff without a Head Coach, which seems odd considering his health status. These are all moves that seems like Cable has some input on. I expect him to be hiring soon.

Rob Ryan VS Rex Ryan

During an interview on The Monty Show on Sporting News Radio, Fabian Washington spilled the beans on the differences between Rob and Rex Ryan. As we know, Rex Ryan has been the best defensive coordinator over the past 10 or so years, while Rob Ryan has been one of the worst (by the numbers). So what is the difference? "They are the same. They are different, but they are the same," Washington said. "The only difference is really Rex likes to blitz a bit more. Out of ten plays, Rex will blitz eight or nine times." Washington also thinks Rob Ryan will adopt many of those blitzing ideas in Cleveland. It would be reasonable to assume Rob Ryan will be successful in Cleveland. It would also be reasonable to assume Al Davis is the one who has handicapped our defense by not allowing blitzing. Washington said guys in Oakland used to talk about the Ravens defense. It would be reasonable to assume the players in Oakland would like to blitz more. Hopefully, our next de...