Best Case & Worst Case Scenarios For Each Raiders’ Draft Pick

 Posted by at 8:00 AM  No Responses »
Mar 162012
 

The Raiders aren’t making much noise in free agency and will attempt to build through the draft. Missing are five of their original seven draft selections and in their place are five players that may contribute in 2012.

A couple more selections may be awarded as compensatory selections, but that is yet to be determined.

What is the best case and worse case scenarios for the Raiders’ 2012 draft? Not only does it depend on the players they draft, but how many they draft and how the players perform they obtained for those picks.

 

1st Round: Carson Palmer

Hue Jackson orchestrated a trade that brought Palmer to Oakland. It was too much to give up, but what’s done is done. The Raiders have their franchise quarterback, right? That’s the hope. The new regime is hitching their wagon to Palmer and putting a new offense around him. There wasn’t many other options for the Raiders.

Best Case: Palmer, with an offseason with the receivers and studying the offense, turns in a pro bowl season and leads the Raiders to their first playoff berth since 2002. Winning the AFC championship game would bump the 2013 pick from a second round to a first round pick and further justify why Hue Jackson traded for him.

Worst Case: Palmer continues to be a turnover machine and the Raiders change the offense to the extent that Palmer is handicapped by his weaknesses. Palmer is average, doesn’t lead the Raiders to the playoffs and never justifies even one of the two picks the Raiders gave up for him.

 

2nd Round: Joseph Barksdale and Taiwan Jones

2011 was the rookie year for Barksdale and Jones and neither produced. Jones was injured and never cracked the rotation at running back and Barkdale spent the entire season as a backup. While the Raiders don’t have their second round pick, they do have a two sophomore’s with a year of NFL experience. The Raiders will be counting some development from both players/

Best Case: Barksdale becomes a solid starter on the offensive line and Taiwan Jones becomes a nightmare speed back that is a threat to take the ball the distance every time he touches the ball.

Worst Case: Both wash out. Barksdale never wins a starting job and is eventually released. Jones has problems with injuries and tries to do too much when he gets the ball.

 

3rd Round: Terrelle Pryor & Draft Pick(s)

It should be intriguing how Greg Knapp works Pryor into the rotation at quarterback. Pryor will have to be patient with the Raiders if he wants to play quarterback. The Raiders could work Pryor into special packages and expand his role as he becomes more comfortable in the offense.

In return for losing Nnamdi Asomugha the Raiders should receive a draft pick. It is expected to be a pick in the third round. The Raiders may receive a second pick in the third round as compensation for losing Zach Miller.

Best Case: Pryor becomes a weapon on offense and takes over for Palmer in a couple of years as the starter. The Raiders get two picks and are able to find a quality defender at cornerback and linebacker.

Worst Case: Pryor isn’t ever a starter and can only play in special packages. Pryor is eventually released.The Raiders don’t receive a compensatory pick until the fourth round.

 

4th Round: Draft Pick(s)

The Raiders could receive a couple of compensatory draft picks for Zach Miller and Robert Gallery in the fourth round. The Raiders original pick in this round was traded for Jason Campbell two years ago.

Best Case: Raiders receive an additional pick in the fourth round for Robert Gallery having received two in the third for Asomugha and Miller. The Raiders find a quality lineman.

Worst Case: Raiders receive only one pick and are forced to try to find a player at a position of need, but because it’s the end of the fourth round the quality prospects at linebacker and cornerback are off the board.

 

5th Round: Original Draft Pick (can be traded)

With the 13th pick of the fifth round the Raiders will have their first non-compensatory selection of the 2012 draft. An additional compensatory selection is possible at the end of the fifth for Robert Gallery if they are not awarded one in the fourth, but it is also possible the Raiders don’t receive a compensatory for Gallery at all.

Best case: McKenzie doesn’t think much value remains on the board worth a fifth and the Raiders, having addressed many needs with their compensatory selections in prior rounds, trade the pick for a future fourth.

Worst case: Talent has thinned and the Raiders are unable to move the pick. McKenzie drafts his best player available, but the player will be sitting behind established starters for the next several years.

 

6th Round: Original Draft Pick (can be traded)

The Raiders will have the 19th pick in the sixth round. It is one of the Raiders original picks giving the Raiders the option of trading the pick if it benefits them.

Best Case:  McKenzie doesn’t think much value remains on the board worth a sixth and the Raiders, having addressed many needs with their compensatory selections in prior rounds, trade the pick for a future fifth.

Worst Case: Talent has thinned and the Raiders need the pick to find a player to fill out the roster, but McKenzie plays it safe and drafts a role player.

 

7th Round: Aaron Curry

The Raiders traded their seventh-round selection for Aaron Curry last season. Curry and the Raiders had mutual interest in continuing the relationship and worked out a restructured contract in 2012 that saves the Raiders cap space.

Best Case: Curry turns into the pro bowl caliber linebacker he was expected to be when he was drafted out of Wake Forest and solidifies the defense.

Worst Case: Curry remains a liability in coverage and the Raiders have to bring in a player for Curry on third down.

A Deeper Look Into Roster Decisions

 Posted by at 8:58 AM  No Responses »
Mar 022012
 

This is the time of year where general managers earn their money. They are paid to make the right decisions for the team, whether it’s the most popular one or not. It is also the time of year when fans like to express their feelings on how the roster should be shaped. While the Raider Nation does know the Raiders very well, the reasoning behind each decision goes way deeper than whether or not the player fits under the salary cap. Here are just a few of the questions that coaches and general managers have to answer before making a decision on any given player.

How does the player fit into the scheme?

The amount of success a player has on the field has a lot to do with how their skill set fits the scheme they are playing in. The Raiders are in the middle of a complete overhaul this off-season. There are changes across the board from new general manager all the way down to the strength and conditioning program of the players. Those changes bring even more uncertainty when your trying to gauge a players worth. The role that each player played last year may or may not be the same role that they will play in 2012 and that has to be taken into account when trying to decide whether to keep them or not. Take a look at Stanford Routt’s situation. Routt has been strictly a man to man bump and run corner his entire career to this point. It’s no secret that while the Raiders will probably run some man coverage, they will run a lot more zone in 2012 making Routt’s skill set not a great fit for the new defense. Factor that into what he was making and it made it pretty easy for Reggie McKenzie and Dennis Allen to decide to part ways with him regardless of the fact that he is talented.

Is he a three down player or a “specialist”?

Often times when you read scouting reports on defensive college players you here the phrase “is he a three down player?”. Players that are not “three down players” will only play in certain situations that fit their skill set. A pass rushing specialist will often times come in the game on third and long when you don’t have to worry about the run as much and they can focus on getting after the quarterback. On the flip side, a run stopping specialist will often times play on early downs because the likelihood of a run is higher, and then subsequently come off the field on long yardage downs. A player that can play every down for a team is obviously of more worth than a player who is only good in certain situations so that has to factor into the decision of keeping or cutting the player as well. Teams have to be careful about wrapping large amounts of money into a player who can only be on the field at certain times.

What is the longevity of the player’s current contract?

The players current contract and the longevity of that contract will be considered as well. A player that makes 10 million for one year is looked at a lot differently than a player that is making 8 million per year for the next five years. If you commit to keeping a player this year that has 5 years left on his contract, you have to be aware that you will be faced with the same dilemma the next four off seasons. Do you want to invest more money into a player who you don’t think is a long-term solution or cut your losses and start fresh with a player who you feel fits better into your future and that you can sign at more of a market value?

Who will fill the role vacated if you decide to release the player?

Deciding not to keep a player is only half of the battle. Before you release the player you have, you have to think about how you plan to replace them and what that will cost. Most teams go into the off-season with a certain number of holes they have to attempt to fill. Releasing a contributing player only creates another one. Competing with other teams for players on the open market can get expensive, and with limited draft picks you really have to have a good fallback plan in place before deciding to move on from your current player.

How does restructuring a contract position the team for the future?

The first thought that comes to everyone’s mind when a team is over the salary cap is “We need to start restructuring contracts”. While most of the time that does end up being a big part of the solution, if not done the right way it can set a team back even further the following year. One way to decrease a players cap hit for the current league year is to sign that player to a new deal that is “back loaded”. This means that the player will make very little the first year of the deal to decrease his cap hit, but the contract normally includes a lot of guaranteed money and the subsequent years on the contract are usually for well over market value for the given player. This option is essentially just delaying the problem and creating a bigger one the next off-season especially if you do this with multiple players. Teams that do this a lot tend to be over the cap and in the same position year after year.

Another option is to sign the player to a contract that includes a big signing bonus. Signing bonuses are prorated evenly over the length of the contract to spread out the cap number, so the teams can essentially pay a large portion of the salary up front without it having a big impact on their ability to sign other players. To most fans that sounds like a fantastic option. Why don’t we just do that with every player, right? Except for one small problem. Some one has to actually write the checks for these big signing bonuses, and it certainly is not you and me. This is where the business side of things comes into play. Shelling out 10 million dollars at a time while restructuring contracts is easier said than done so financials can cause an issue with this approach. I’m sure a lot of you read the blurbs about Al Davis selling off minority shares of the team in the latter years of his life. Something to keep in mind when thinking about how the financial side of things is taken care of. All the money has to come from somewhere.

There is no doubt that Reggie McKenzie and Dennis Allen have their work cut out for them, and the decisions they make will have a big impact on how they are perceived by the fans as well as the success of the team. Nothing like hitting the ground running with your new job huh fellas?

 

 

Ranking the Oakland Raiders 2012 Offseason Hires

 Posted by at 4:47 AM  No Responses »
Feb 202012
 

Al Davis carefully planned his estate so his son could retain full control of the team. It will be Mark Davis who leads the team into an era of Raiders football without his legendary father.

Mark Davis waited three months before making any changes on the football side of the organization, but changes were inevitable.

Perhaps the best slogan for the 2012 Raiders would be, “Under New Management.”

The Raiders have hired 21 new people on the football side of the organization and whereas a quality control coach will have little to no impact on the immediate or long-term success of the team, a general manager will have significant impact.

 

21. Eric Sanders, Quality Control – Defense

He’s been with the team for two years and even the most die-hard fan doesn’t recognize the name. Sanders coached linebackers at U.C. Davis for two seasons and he was a psychology major before joining the Raiders. He’ll make copies of play sheets and get the rest of the staff coffee. That’s probably short-changing Sanders, but he sits firmly at the bottom of the pecking order.

Importance: Negligible impact.

 

20. Justin Griffith, Quality Control – Offense

Griffith has mostly followed Greg Knapp around the country. As a player, Griffith followed Knapp from Atlanta to Oakland to Seattle to Houston. He was no longer wanted as a player in 2010 and left Knapp to be a coaching intern with the Seahawks for the 2011 season. He’s well schooled in the zone-blocking system and an ex-player and that may prove to be a valuable resource for the offensive staff.

Importance: Familiar with zone-blocking system. Slight impact.

 

19. John Grieco, Assistant Strength and Conditioning. 

This is Grieco’s first NFL position, but he comes well credentialed and he’ll assist legendary strength coach Al Miller. While the strength coaches are some of the more underrated coaches on the staff, let’s not get carried away putting an assistant strength coach in-front of position coaches.

Importance: Injury prevention and recovery time. Slight impact.

 

18. Keith Burns, Assistant Special Teams

Special teams is the third phase of the game and only one or two coaches are devoted to it. Burns has been coaching for almost 30 years and was believed to be hired as a secondary coach. In fact, his Raiders.com biography says Burns is a secondary coach.

Importance: Impact on kick coverage. Slight to moderate impact.

 

17. Mark Hutson, Tight Ends

Like Burns, Hutson is a veteran of the college ranks. He’ll have the narrow focus of dealing with the tight ends. He’ll likely focus on blocking as he was the offensive line coach at Tulane dating back to Matt Forte‘s final year there.

Importance: Couldn’t hurt to have tight ends that can block. Slight impact.

 

16. Clayton Lopez, Defensive Backs

For the most part the Raiders went to the college ranks to fill position coaches, but the defensive backs coaches are one of the exceptions.

Lopez has a good track record at the NFL level, but he’s  bounced between teams. At the surface, Lopez’s work looks good as his secondaries tend to improve upon his arrival.

Impact: Lopez will not be around long if there is not a noticeable impact on one of the team’s weakest position groups.

 

15. Steve Wisniewski, Assistant Offensive Line

He’s not going to be real familiar with the zone-blocking system Greg Knapp will deploy, but he’s loved by fans and the organization. Wisniewski was a big part of the reason for the surprise Raiders’ offensive line in 2011. His role may be reduced, but the organization realized that he is more than worth keeping around.

Importance: Proven teacher of man-blocking techniques and will help transition to zone-blocking scheme. Noticeable impact.

 

14. Al Miller, Strength and Conditioning

Miller helped teams win four Super Bowl rings. He retired in 2004 to be with his wife who has Alzheimer’s disease. Dennis Allen, who he worked with in Atlanta, recruited him to be strength coach before he had been formally offered the Raiders position.

The strength coach is often overlooked, but strength and conditioning is a big part of injury protection and healing. Miller is one of best in the industry and only stopped to take care of family matters.

Importance: Noticeable impact on injury prevention and recovery.

 

13. Steve Hoffman, Special Teams Coordinator

Hoffman makes a lateral transfer from the Kansas City Chiefs. He inherits two of the best kickers in the NFL. As long as he doesn’t mess with Sebastian Janikowski or Shane Lechler he’ll be a success. His coverage units will be under scrutiny, but perhaps not as much as his field goal team after the Raiders blocked two kicks in-route to a win in Week 16.

Importance: Ability to impact one phase of the game significantly. Noticeable impact.

 

12. Terrell Williams, Defensive Line

Williams is yet another college coach to have been added to the Raiders staff. He wont design the scheme, but Williams will need to get the Raiders front to stop the run, something they haven’t been able to do since 2002. Coincidentally or not, the Raiders haven’t made the playoffs since 2002, which is the last time the team held opponents under 125 yards per game rushing.

Williams coached Cliff Avril and Anthony Spencer, both free agents, during their college years at Purdue. Only one is likely to be available, but the link is worth mentioning.

Importance: Williams will monitor a position needing improvement against the run. Significant, specific impact.

 

11. Ted Gilmore, Wide Receivers

Gilmore has been coaching receivers in the college ranks since the mid-1990s and most recently was coaching receivers at USC. This will be his first stint in the NFL and he’ll inherit a young and talented group of receivers that still need to grow at the position.

The continued growth of the Raiders offense may rely on the receivers and it will be up to Gilmore to make sure Darrius Heyward-Bey, Jacoby Ford, Denarius Moore and Louis Murphy improve on their 2011 seasons.

Importance: Gilmore will monitor a position needing improvement. Significant, specific impact.

 

10. John DeFilippo, Quarterbacks

DeFilippo is another coach that seems to find a home wherever Greg Knapp lands as an offensive coordinator. This time around, DeFilippo will not be saddled with Josh McCown, Daunte Culpepper and JaMarcus Russell as his three quarterbacks.

DeFilippo will have a proven veteran Carson Palmer and a young, athletic developmental player in Terrell Pryor. DeFilippo and Greg Knapp will likely be able to hand-select their backup quarterback of choice. Obviously this is a much better situation for DeFilippo than his previous stint with the team.

Importance: It’s a quarterback-driven league and the Raiders will need to get Palmer playing well and start planning for the future. DeFilippo could make a break a season or multiple seasons with his coaching of the quarterbacks. He’s likely to get assistance from Greg Knapp, without it DeFilippo would have more impact on team performance than any other position coach.

 

9. Kelly Skipper, Running Backs 

Skipper has had opportunities to leave the Raiders and he remains on staff for his sixth season. Skipper has done a nice job bringing out the best in Darren McFadden. McFadden had detractors coming out of Arkansas, but has corrected many of the issues scouts had with him in college while under tutelage of Skipper.

Importance: Significant impact of running game, which also happens to be a key of Greg Knapp’s entire offense.

 

8. Johnnie Lynn, Defensive Backs

The Raiders aren’t messing around with defensive backs or defensive backs coaches. Stanford Routt was released and the Raiders hired two defensive backs coaches with NFL experience.

Lynn comes over from Philadelphia, but he has years of NFL experience. He’s been an assistant head coach and defensive coordinator. That experience can be valuable to his superiors.

He’s experienced and has been successful at each of his coaching stops with the exception of his one-year stint in Philadelphia last season. His secondaries have always keyed on getting turnovers and that’s an area of the Raiders defense that most improve.

Importance: His experience and expertise in many areas and track record as a secondary coach will make a significant difference for the entire defensive staff.

 

7. Frank Pollack, Offensive Line

Pollack has been the assistant offensive line coach for the zone-blocking Houston Texans for the past five years. He should have a very good handle both the zone-blocking system and how to teach it to NFL players.

Offensive coordinator Greg Knapp’s entire offensive system is based around the running game and the proper execution of the zone-blocking system. Pollack is a unique find because he’s well-versed in the system and was available. Knapp’s implementation of his system is made many times easier due to the hire of Pollack.

Pollack’s challenge is to team with Steve Wisniewski and get the young Raiders’ offensive line executing the zone-blocking system like they’ve been running it for years.

Importance: Significant impact to a pivotal area of the offense.

 

6. Johnny Holland, Linebackers

Holland was well-respected and well-liked in Houston. He was ousted with the rest of the defensive staff at the end of the 2010 season after a five-year stint as linebackers coach. He was one of the few position coaches at the time that was expected to stay with the team. Wade Phillips apparently had his own guy, so Holland sat out the 2011 season.

Both DeMeco Ryans and Brian Cushing achieved rookie of the year honors under Holland.

The Raiders are in desperate need of a coach that can motivate and challenge Rolando McClain and clean up Aaron Curry’s pass coverage.

Impact: Potentially huge impact on the Raiders defense. Even if the defensive line improves if the Raiders don’t also improve at linebacker they can’t expect to hold opponents to less than 125 yard per game rushing.

 

5. Jason Tarver, Defensive Coordinator

There is no denying that Tarver is a relative unknown. He’s young and has his only experience as a defensive coordinator came last season as co-defensive coordinator for Stanford. He wasn’t the play-caller.

This will be Tarver’s first time calling defensive plays and running his own defensive staff. It’s a good thing that Dennis Allen is the head coach and is likely to have his hands heavily in the defensive game plan. Greg Knapp is mostly self-sufficient on offense and Allen should and will have input on the defense.

It will be interesting to see if Allen allows Tarver to call the defensive plays as he said he would in his introductory press conference or if the coaches Allen was able to hire might have changed his mind.

Importance: The potential impact Tarver can make on team and the defense is significant. The defense was the problem in 2011 and Tarver is the man specifically tasked with correcting the issues although he will work closely with Allen.

 

4. Al Saunders, Senior Offensive Assistant 

The retention of Al Saunders can’t be understated. He’ll be an adviser on offense now and he’s familiar with the personnel and their strengths and weaknesses. He’ll be a valuable resource for Knapp and Allen to draw from for offensive information.

Saunders retention could mean Knapp isn’t going to force the Raiders offense to fully convert in one offseason. If that is the case it bodes well for the young players as the Raiders transition.

The Raiders could be attempting to use Knapp’s zone-blocking running scheme combined with a little more of Saunders’ Air Coryell-style passing game which better suits the Raiders options at receiver and quarterback.

Importance: Potentially large impact on the Raiders offense, particularly Carson Palmer and the passing game.

 

3.  Greg Knapp, Offensive Coordinator

His first stint with the Raiders was a disaster. He didn’t call the plays and he was forced to start JaMarcus Russell at quarterback in his second season. He’s experienced, but that also means he hasn’t been overly successful. In the past, Knapp has fallen in-love with the running game, but his recent stint as quarterbacks coach of the Texans may have reignited a love for the passing game.

Knapp needs to craft his offense carefully to fit the skill set of Carson Palmer. Al Saunders could be a valuable resource to Knapp.

The offense gained respectability under Hue Jackson and Knapp needs to build upon that success. A step down in offensive production is not likely to be well received.

Importance: Knapp has a nice group of players to work with and should be able to put them in position to make plays, but a step-back on offense is likely to be considered a failure.

 

2. Dennis Allen, Head Coach

Not since John Madden have the Raiders had a defensive-minded head coach. Allen comes well-respected from his prior stops in Atlanta, New Orleans and Denver. According to various accounts, it was only a matter of when and not if Allen received his first shot at being a head coach.

Allen’s tasked with taking a roster full of players and getting the Raiders back to greatness. Allen will preach discipline and accountability, two things the Raiders have been lacking since Jon Gruden was traded to Tampa Bay.

Allen has quietly put together a solid coaching staff and the team is hard at work preparing for the draft, free agency and the new era of Raiders football.

Importance: McKenzie’s commitment to Allen for four years and the organizational change marks a sharp contrast to the Al Davis-era. The impact will be significant even if that change does not immediate alter the Raiders win total.

 

1. Reggie McKenzie, General Manager

While Dennis Allen will be the face of the Raiders, it is Reggie McKenzie that will sit behind the curtain and pull the levers and strings. McKenzie will have total control of football operations, but as he’s mentioned multiple times that he wants the Raiders organization to work as a team. McKenzie will listen to input from his coaches and scouts, but when a decision has to be made, it will be McKenzie that makes that call.

McKenzie will let Allen coach and he’ll do what he can to assist his team in any way he can. Much of that has to do with the players that are brought in.

The players are the ones that actually play the game and that’s what makes McKenzie the most important hire the Raiders have made in decades. Ron Wolf suggested McKenzie and his interview with Mark Davis and John Madden went well enough that Mark Davis didn’t feel the need to continue the search.

Importance: The Raiders are committed to McKenzie for years to come. General manager hires are usually not the variety the team wants to be making every few seasons. The most stable franchises at top of the organization chart are also the franchises that are winning the most games.

As published on Bleacher Report 2/20/2012.

A Defensive Scheme Mystery

 Posted by at 11:03 PM  1 Response »
Jan 232012
 

There is always going to be a good debate between fans on how the Raiders should scheme on defense. It really doesn’t matter what side you are on, because there are good arguments for both sides. There has been speculation on what Reggie McKenzie prefers as his defense and he was asked in his introductory press conference if he preferred the 3-4 to the 4-3 defense and he indicated that he did not have a preference, although he later said “3-4 is what I know.” McKenzie has made it clear many times to the public that he intends to let the head coach hire his own staff and that the coaching staff has the freedom to run what ever scheme they feel gives the team the best chance to win.

We know that McKenzie comes over from Green Bay where they ran a 3-4 defense and won a Super Bowl while running the 3-4 defense. However, the Packers didn’t always run that style of defense. In fact, they just recently made the transition to the 3-4 defense in 2009.

What this means:

1) McKenzie has spent plenty of time around a 4-3 defense. Which is what the Raiders currently run.

2) McKenzie knows what it takes to make the conversion to a 3-4 from a 4-3.

3) McKenzie has seen what a successful 3-4 defense looks like and was part of building it.

Defensive scheme aside, McKenzie’s first order of business is finding a new head coach. Of the potential candidates to this point, four of them are defensive coaches (Winston Moss, Todd Bowles, Dennis Allen and Dom Capers). Three of the four candidates would be coming from a base 3-4 defense.

Winston Moss was hired to be the linebackers coach in Green Bay in 2006. They were still running a base 4-3 at the time. He was promoted to assistant head coach in 2007 and was the only defensive coach not fired after a horrible season in 2008. In 2009 they made the switch to the 3-4 and Moss became an inside linebackers coach. Two years later they had one of the most feared defenses in the league on their way to winning a super bowl. Since switching to the 3-4, the Packers hold a combined +58 turnover ratio in three seasons. Moss could still prefer the 4-3 to the 3-4 or he could be a convert to the 3-4. No one really knows.

Todd Bowles has been a secondary coach his entire career to this point, most recently with the Miami Dolphins, where he was also an assistant head coach. Before coming to Miami Bowles was a secondary coach for Dallas which also ran the 3-4. When Bowles was hired by Miami they were still running the 4-3, but soon after Bowles got there they also made the conversion to a 3-4 under defensive coordinator Mike Nolan. Bowles, like Moss, has 3-4 experience and has seen a team through the conversion process from a 4-3 to a 3-4 base defense.

Dennis Allen began his NFL coaching career with Atlanta in 2002 as a defensive quality control assistant. Hired by the Saints in 2006 as an assistant defensive line coach and later coached the secondary for the Saints in their 3-4 defense. Last year he was hired as the defensive coordinator of the Broncos and ended the 3-4 experiment and switched back to a 4-3.

Dom Capers has been around the league for a while and held a variety of different positions from position coach to head coach. He was hired as defensive coordinator by the Packers in 2009 to help transition their defense from a 4-3 to a 3-4. As noted above the Packers have since won a super bowl and have a +58 turnover ratio during Capers time as defensive coordinator.

McKenzie is still interviewing to make sure he finds the right guy, but it seems pretty obvious that if a defensive coach gets the job the Raiders could very well be moving to the 3-4 in the next few seasons. If McKenzie hires an offensive coach, it will be up to that coach which defensive scheme will be installed.

Regardless of how it plays out it will be an interesting offseason for the Raiders.

McKenzie’s Shortlist

 Posted by at 12:23 AM  No Responses »
Jan 182012
 

Pete Carmichael Jr.
Status: Interviewed 1/13, no longer under consideration
Age: 40
Specialty: Offense/Quarterbacks
Current Position: Offensive Coordinator, New Orleans Saints
Head Coaching Experience: None
McKenzie link: unknown

Notes: Carmichael has been Sean Payton’s offensive coordinator for many years. He’s relatively young and took a greater role in playcalling this season when Sean Payton was injured. If the Raiders decide to go with an offensive mind, they could do much worse.

Todd Bowles
Status: Interviewed 1/14
Age: 48
Specialty: Defensive Backs
Previous Position: Defensive Backs Coach & Interim Head Coach, Miami Dolphins
Head Coaching Experience: 2-1 (2011 Dolphins)
McKenzie link: unknown

Notes: Bowles seems to be a rising star, but he’s never been a coordinator at the NFL level. If hired, Bowles will need to bring in strong offensive and defensive coordinator. He’s got a long history with the Bill Parcells coaching and front office tree. Has potential to stay in Miami or consider other job if he isn’t hired as a head coach.

Dennis Allen
Status: Interviewed 1/18, second interview requested.
Age: 39
Specialty: Defense
Current Position: Defensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos
Head Coaching Experience: None
McKenzie link: unknown

Notes: Head of a strong defensive unit in Denver last season, his first as defensive coordinator. Could be a rising star as he has received promotions every couple years during his coaching career. If the Raiders decide to go with a young defensive-minded coach that is familiar with the division, Allen could be the right guy.

Marty Morhinweg
Status: Interviewed 1/20. No longer under consideration.
Age: 49
Specialty: Offense
Current Position: Assistant Head Coach
Head Coaching Experience: 5-27 (2000-2001 Lions), 75-52 (Assistant Head Coach 2004-2011 Eagles)
McKenzie Link: Yes, 1995-1996 Packers

Notes: He was very bad in Detroit as a head coach, but he may get a pass considering the talent he was given and the general manager at the time was Matt Millian. He’s been Andy Reid’s assistant head coach since 2004. He’s clearly a good offensive mind that could bring the west coast offense back to the west coast.

Mike Tice
Status: Interview Cancelled.
Age: 52
Specialty: Offensive Line
Current Position: Offensive Coordinator (Promoted January 6, 2012 from offensive line coach)
Head Coaching Experience: 32-33 (2001-2005 Vikings)
McKenzie link: Unknown

Notes: Tice clearly is a good coach, he’s always landed on his feet. His head coaching stint was unfruitful and plagued by controversy. It is a potentially bad idea to bring in a coach with questionable character to try and iradicate the penalty problem in Oakland. He’s also over 50 and not a young or fresh coach that are becomming plentiful. If he was a genius, we’d know it by now.

Winston Moss
Status: Interviewed 1/14 for 4 hours.
Age: 46
Specialty: Linebackers
Current Position: Assistant Head Coach/Inside Linebackers Coach, Green Bay Packers
Head Coaching Experience: Assistant Head Coach, 55-25, 2007-2011 Packers
McKenzie link: Yes, 2006-2011 Packers

Notes: Instant favorite the Raiders search, partly because McKenzie is rumored to have said that if he ever received a General Manager position that Winston Moss would be the guy he would hire. Moss is not only and ex-Raider, but he knows McKenzie well. He was only responsible for the inside linebackers of the Packers.

Dom Capers
Status: Interview cancelled
Age: 61
Specialty: Defense/Defensive Backs
Current Position: Defensive Coordinator, Green Bay Packers
Head Coaching Experience: 48-80 (1995-1998 Panthers, 2002-2005 Texans)
McKenzie link: Yes, 2009-2011

Notes: He’s nearing retirement age and coached a defense that-while opportunitic-allowed a lot of yards. He’s been a head coach and largely been a failure. He may be a good coordinator and maybe he has learned a thing or two about being a head coach since he was fired after the 2005 season in Houston, but his age and track record are now working against him.

Tom Clements
Status: Rumored Candidate.
Age: 58
Specialty: Quarterbacks
Current Position: Quarterback Coach, Green Bay Packers
Head Coaching Experience: None
McKenzie link: Yes, 2006-2011 Packers

Notes: With the exodus of Joe Philbin he could be elevated to offensive coordinator in Green Bay. He wants to call plays, so taking a job elsewhere to become an offensive coordinator also makes sense. He’s familiar with McKenzie. Is he ready to be a head coach? He’s 58, perhaps he never will be.

Mike McCoy
Status: Reportedly Not Interested
Age: 39
Specialty: Offense
Current Position: Offensive Coordinator, Denver Broncos
Head Coaching Experience: None
McKenzie link: unknown

Notes: Will McKenzie reach out to him again after being rebuffed so McCoy could seek the Dolphins position? Probably not. He cost himself the opportunity to interview, even if he was a longshot to get the position. He’s a young offensive coach.

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