If Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is tired of being disrespected, imagine how head coach Jon Gruden feels being asked incessantly about Carr’s play the past three years. Ending all the talk centered on Carr’s status with the Raiders, his ability to lead the Raiders to a Super Bowl title, whether he’s the team’s franchise quarterback,
No kidding, Gruden needs to do more. I remember that Thursday night game against the Niners when the Niners had their third string QB starting and Shanahan way out coached Gruden. After the first few scripted plays, the team gets predictable and the adjustments in game are nonexistent (it seems).
Nice comparison with the Niners, Cork.
Thanks, Michelle. Somewhat alarming in that Shanahan learned under Gruden and seems to have surged past the mentor. Oh, and the fact that Gruden is being paid a king’s ransom to be an elite coach.
No kidding, Cork. BTW, I know Gruden is supposed to be a QB whisperer, but what decent QB has he really elevated other than Gannon? I can’t think of one off the top of my head.
I’m hoping this is the year Gruden dusts off parts of the playbook he hasn’t used yet. By all accounts he was ready to open it up with AB last year until that situation imploded.
To be fair, I thought he was a Coach of the Year candidate sitting at 6-4 last year. In fact, I thought that record was amazing given the ridiculous schedule and travel the league stuck them with last year, not to mention all the WR instability.
Having said that, he and the offense have to do better this year. I think they will.
Agree, Stork, after that grueling opening of last year’s schedule, to be 6-4 was quite a feat. Still, the team could not sustain that success which was odd to me and has to be because of coaching.
Some pundits, including the dreaded Tim Kawakami, predicted well before the season that the Raiders would fall off a cliff in the latter part of the season due to the ridiculous amount of miles they were logging through mid-November, including 7 straight weeks without a home game.
I’ll include coaching as part of the reason, but no bigger a factor than excessive travel, injuries, and lack of depth (particularly at WR and LB) IMO…