The Official Oakland Raiders Offseason thread

[FreshAIG]

I don't understand the AP hype. I like AP and wouldn't be mad if he's the HC next year, but how good of a coach is he? He did a great job as the interim head coach and we couldn't have realistically asked for him to do much more considering the circumstances, but what exactly did he do that has people acting like he should get the automatic nod over someone like Harbaugh who has had success everywhere he has been?

Not trying to downplay what AP did for us, but is he really that nice or was he just fortunate enough to take over for someone so terrible at their job, that his 5-4 record looks better than what it really is? Are we sure they couldn't have pulled a name out of a hat and ended with similar results? Also, keep in mind that sticking with AP means we may potentially compete in an AFC West division that has Andy Reid, Sean Payton, and Harbaugh/Belichick. All proven coaches. Are we THAT confident in AP?

Again, I'm cool with AP being the HC if the organization/players really see something they believe stands out, but if we're just doing it cuz it's a "feel good story" or "it's the right thing to do" then imo, we're making a mistake.

I don't think it should be automatic either but I will say these things help his case (Not counting how the locker room feels about him)

1) Quality of wins. Most of these 5 wins over the last 9 games were not "squeak by the skin of your teeth wins" that we had with Josh McDaniels, Gruden and even when Rich Bisaccia took over. They were legit, "we were better than the other team clearly" wins. Those to me matter, because close wins are not sustainable. That was one of the big reasons I wasn't so big on Bisaccia because yeah we won 10 games that year, but that 2021 team was not that good. We won so many close games in 2021, and big part of why 2022 failed was because those close games we won the year prior, we lost the next season. Those type of things balance out

2) The defense actually one of the the best units in the NFL from the day AP took over. It was like night and day. We had legit pass rush, we had takeaways, far better in the red zone

3) Discipline. Now some of this was season long, but we were one of if not the least penalized team in the league

I think he deserves a shot with hiring his own personnel, a new QB, and a chance to run the team his way. I would not be mad if it's Harbaugh or Vrabel instead of AP though. Just saying he's actually shown some qualities that make me think he has a chance to be a very good head coach. He definitely needs to make sure he picks the correct OC though. He probably knows nothing about offense lol.

 

[Troublesome]

I don't think it should be automatic either but I will say these things help his case (Not counting how the locker room feels about him)

1) Quality of wins. Most of these 5 wins over the last 9 games were not "squeak by the skin of your teeth wins" that we had with Josh McDaniels, Gruden and even when Rich Bisaccia took over. They were legit, "we were better than the other team clearly" wins. Those to me matter, because close wins are not sustainable. That was one of the big reasons I wasn't so big on Bisaccia because, yeah we won 10 games that year, but that 2021 team was not that good. We won so many close games in 2021, and big part of why 2022 failed was because those close games we won the year prior, we lost the next season. Those type of things balance out

2) The defense actually one of the the best units in the NFL from the day AP took over. It was like night and day. We had legit pass rush, we had takeaways, far better in the red zone

3) Discipline. Now some of this was season long, but we were one of if not the least penalized team in the league

I think he deserves a shot with hiring his own personnel, a new QB, and a chance to run the team his way. I would not be mad if it's Harbaugh or Vrabel instead of AP though. Just saying he's actually shown some qualities that make me think he has a chance to be a very good head coach. He definitely needs to make sure he picks the correct OC though. He probably knows nothing about offense lol.

I get this and don't disagree with anything you've said, but imo, AP is still largely an unknown.

I'll give him credit for the discipline the team showed. I believe that lies directly on the head coach.

As far as the improvement on defense, did AP contribute in some way that made an impact or was it because Patrick Graham was finally able to run his system without McDaniels interfering?

I agree that AP can be successful with good coordinators, but good coordinators eventually get offered HC positions. Are we even sure this defense will look the same with AP and no Graham? Are we confident that he's capable of finding and attracting the coordinators he'd need?

And the Crosby statement doesn't mean much to me. If we win games, he's not leaving because we made a coaching change just like if we lose games with AP, he's not staying cuz AP is his guy. Winning and money is going to be the biggest factor regardless.

 

[Black Mamba]

I truly believe we getting AP
Just Raiders gotta go through the process to comply with Rooney rule and shyt so we don’t get pinched by Goddell’s bytch ass

 

[2Quik4UHoes]

I’ll say this, AP is high risk/high reward imo. He was an interim coach so we gotta see what things look like when he isn’t auditioning for the job. With that said, the defense turning out how it did is why I’ve advocated for Patrick Graham all along. From all I had read about him, we hit the fukkin jackpot and we gotta keep him by any means. Mahomes player arguably the worst game of his career when we beat them and that was off the strength of our defense. And that’s with us not even having a crazy amount of playmakers. If we do retain AP then the good news is we’re half of the way there already by having an arguably elite DC. Now we need an equally or more elite OC and raise the bar on the other position coaches while we’re at it.

As much as I’d like for us to get Harbaugh, I’m leaning towards AP. Plus, I feel like Harbaugh might take the Bears job. As others have said, AP embodies the Raider way. He grew up a fan of the LA Raiders in Compton so he’s a coach version of that edgy LA Raider era. Great way to begin to forge a real Raider like identity in Vegas which we haven’t done yet. If Mark is serious then we can really make something of this team.

Also, I feel like with Harbaugh it might turn into another light rebuild so he can get his guys in there. I’d rather we just trade up for a QB, find elite playmakers on defense, shore up the lines, and go play football. I want to see a truly great Raider team for once. We seldom have truly star studded teams and I just think with the right ingredients we can finally do that. Please mark, for the love of God or whatever deity to pray or don’t pray to, just give us a team that competes and is worth rooting for. Please sir….

 

[FreshAIG]

I’ll say this, AP is high risk/high reward imo. He was an interim coach so we gotta see what things look like when he isn’t auditioning for the job. With that said, the defense turning out how it did is why I’ve advocated for Patrick Graham all along. From all I had read about him, we hit the fukkin jackpot and we gotta keep him by any means. Mahomes player arguably the worst game of his career when we beat them and that was off the strength of our defense. And that’s with us not even having a crazy amount of playmakers. If we do retain AP then the good news is we’re half of the way there already by having an arguably elite DC. Now we need an equally or more elite OC and raise the bar on the other position coaches while we’re at it.

As much as I’d like for us to get Harbaugh, I’m leaning towards AP. Plus, I feel like Harbaugh might take the Bears job. As others have said, AP embodies the Raider way. He grew up a fan of the LA Raiders in Compton so he’s a coach version of that edgy LA Raider era. Great way to begin to forge a real Raider like identity in Vegas which we haven’t done yet. If Mark is serious then we can really make something of this team.

Also, I feel like with Harbaugh it might turn into another light rebuild so he can get his guys in there. I’d rather we just trade up for a QB, find elite playmakers on defense, shore up the lines, and go play football. I want to see a truly great Raider team for once. We seldom have truly star studded teams and I just think with the right ingredients we can finally do that. Please mark, for the love of God or whatever deity to pray or don’t pray to, just give us a team that competes and is worth rooting for. Please sir….

Lowkey where I'm at with it.

I think the risk of waiting to hire AP is let's say we wait too long, and we STILL don't get Harbaugh and we lose out on AP.

There are still some good coaching candidates but to me based off where we are, those two are the best options for this particular team at this particular time. And I just feel like Harbaugh is a long shot. There are better options out there for him and it's no guarantee he even wants to leave Michigan.

 

[2Quik4UHoes]

Lowkey where I'm at with it.

I think the risk of waiting to hire AP is let's say we wait too long, and we STILL don't get Harbaugh and we lose out on AP.

There are still some good coaching candidates but to me based off where we are, those two are the best options for this particular team at this particular time. And I just feel like Harbaugh is a long shot. There are better options out there for him and it's no guarantee he even wants to leave Michigan.

Facts, losing AP cuz we was thirsty for Harbaugh might be a bad move imo. If the players are behind him then I say go for it. Only way I would second guess is if Harbaugh seriously wants to coach the team. Then we gotta at least consider it.

Other than that, to me it makes most sense to hire AP and then get the best OC out there. Like I said, the Graham hire was a moment of rare fortune for the team. We need to do the same for the offense. We still have weapons. Our line is decent, we could even decide to keep Jacobs, all we need is a difference maker at QB.

I haven’t paid too much attention to the prospects, but I feel like for once we’ve gotta trade up and draft a difference maker at QB. We can work out other issues in free agency if need be.

 

[threattonature]

I get this and don't disagree with anything you've said, but imo, AP is still largely an unknown.

I'll give him credit for the discipline the team showed. I believe that lies directly on the head coach.

As far as the improvement on defense, did AP contribute in some way that made an impact or was it because Patrick Graham was finally able to run his system without McDaniels interfering?

I agree that AP can be successful with good coordinators, but good coordinators eventually get offered HC positions. Are we even sure this defense will look the same with AP and no Graham? Are we confident that he's capable of finding and attracting the coordinators he'd need?

And the Crosby statement doesn't mean much to me. If we win games, he's not leaving because we made a coaching change just like if we lose games with AP, he's not staying cuz AP is his guy. Winning and money is going to be the biggest factor regardless.

My thing with always going after the knowns is that it rarely works out. Winning in the NFL has a lot of do with the luck of being in the right situation at the right team. Outside of the Raider killer Andy Reid how many coaches have had long sustained coaching success at multiple places. Teams chase the big names to coach lesser talent and it rarely works out. Why not go with the younger unproven coach that has what IMO is the most important coaching attribute which is players wanting to play for him. Surround him with strong coordinators and grow from there.

 

[Dipsey Doo]

Other than that, to me it makes most sense to hire AP and then get the best OC out there. Like I said, the Graham hire was a moment of rare fortune for the team. We need to do the same for the offense. We still have weapons. Our line is decent, we could even decide to keep Jacobs, all we need is a difference maker at QB.

I’d much rather give Graham a shot if we being honest. Good track record and has 14 seasons of coaching in the league.

AP has literally been coaching in the NFL for 2 seasons. What connections does he have? Will a proven coordinator come aboard and take a big risk attaching himself to an unknown? What is his philosophy? What is his vision for building a successful program?

I just think the Raiders can do better than being the training ground for inexperienced coaches.

This is a situation where Mark shouldn’t listen to the fans

 

[FreshAIG]

I’d much rather give Graham a shot if we being honest. Good track record and has 14 seasons of coaching in the league.

AP has literally been coaching in the NFL for 2 seasons. What connections does he have? Will a proven coordinator come aboard and take a big risk attaching himself to an unknown? What is his philosophy? What is his vision for building a successful program?

I just think the Raiders can do better than being the training ground for inexperienced coaches.

This is a situation where Mark shouldn’t listen to the fans

Who would be your choice after Harbaugh?

 

[Dipsey Doo]

Who would be your choice after Harbaugh?

Eric Bieniemy

 

[Troublesome]

My thing with always going after the knowns is that it rarely works out. Winning in the NFL has a lot of do with the luck of being in the right situation at the right team. Outside of the Raider killer Andy Reid how many coaches have had long sustained coaching success at multiple places. Teams chase the big names to coach lesser talent and it rarely works out. Why not go with the younger unproven coach that has what IMO is the most important coaching attribute which is players wanting to play for him. Surround him with strong coordinators and grow from there.

I get that and I'm not an advocate for chasing all the big names either. I have no interest in going after Belichick, Carroll, etc... becase even though they have the big names and a history of success, I personally believe the game is starting to pass them by and would rather take my chances with AP. Harbaugh is different. He's coming off a championship run and has literally improved every single team he has ever coached in his career.

University of San Diego: Two 11-1 seasons and 2 conference Championships

Stanford: Never lost to USC at their home, 11-1 season, BCS bowl win while being limited to only recruit players that could actually qualify to get in to Stanford.

49ers: Year 1- Took a team that hadn't had a winning season or playoff appearance in almost 10 years to a 13-3 record and a NFC Championship game. Ended up going to a Super Bowl and 3 NFC championship games in 4 years as HC.

Michigan: Championship

He even has championship wins/appearances as an intern at Western Kentucky and as a QB coach with us. Lol.

If he can't improve this Raiders team it would be the 1st time in his 22 years of HC experience where he wasn't able to pull it off. We gotta take those odds if we have the opportunity.

 

[Troublesome]

I’d much rather give Graham a shot if we being honest. Good track record and has 14 seasons of coaching in the league.

AP has literally been coaching in the NFL for 2 seasons. What connections does he have? Will a proven coordinator come aboard and take a big risk attaching himself to an unknown? What is his philosophy? What is his vision for building a successful program?

I just think the Raiders can do better than being the training ground for inexperienced coaches.

This is a situation where Mark shouldn’t listen to the fans

Great post. We can't even confidently say AP is more valuable to us than Graham at the moment.

 

[FreshAIG]

Eric Bieniemy

Not mad at this

 

[2Quik4UHoes]

I’d much rather give Graham a shot if we being honest. Good track record and has 14 seasons of coaching in the league.

AP has literally been coaching in the NFL for 2 seasons. What connections does he have? Will a proven coordinator come aboard and take a big risk attaching himself to an unknown? What is his philosophy? What is his vision for building a successful program?

I just think the Raiders can do better than being the training ground for inexperienced coaches.

This is a situation where Mark shouldn’t listen to the fans

Ngl, I would totally be for hiring Graham. He’s exceptional as a DC so he’s proven enough on that side of things. With that said, I kinda wanna go with what’s trending and I can be accused of being a naive fan but the players are behind AP so it might be best to go with him and retain Graham by any means.

Now if you told me there was a chance Graham could split for a HC position then I might gotta consider what you’re saying because he’s that valuable. AP didn’t do all that alone and the front office better not lose sight of that.

 

[Black Mamba]

Raiders might as well lock up AP asap
Cowboys losing this game Jerry is going to go for Harbaugh 10000%
Rather this then have him with the Chargers