Jon Gruden is very overrated by Raiders fans, and I think it is crazy how he has been elevated by them to some sort of mythical, God-like figure.
But before I get to that: I am surprised to see how quickly Del Rio's demise came.
He became head coach of a team that has stunk for a decade-plus, improved from 3-13 to 7-9 in the first year with a young, inexperienced team, then took them to a 12-4 season the next year and their first playoff birth since 2002. Considering how long the Raiders have been in the gutter and suffered from instability, I thought Del Rio was here to stay for a while. Yes, a 6-10 season is not how you want to follow up a 12-4 campaign. But it happens, even to some of the best coaches in the league. After what he achieved, the disappointing record alone should not have warranted his firing.
Having said that, I know there was more that went into Del Rio's exit than this season's disappointing win-loss record. It does seem like Del Rio "lost" his players at some point this season, and it became increasingly difficult to see how he would lead this same group back of players back to contention.
Anyway, regardless of whether Del Rio should have been fired and whether or not he was a first-rate coach, here's what I don't get:
Why is everyone acting like Jon Gruden is some sort of huge upgrade?
Del Rio's 3 seasons:
7-9
12-4
6-10
Gruden's 4 seasons in Oakland:
8-8
8-8
12-4
10-6
Yes, Gruden's Raiders didn't take a huge step back at any point. And yes, the two 8-8 seasons were welcome ascents to respectability after he took over a 4-12 team (though you can say similar things about Del Rio's record). But why did two good years in Oakland make Gruden some sort of untouchable God?
Okay, yes. He won the Super Bowl against the Raiders the year after he left. That made the Super Bowl loss especially bitter for Raiders fans and left them thinking about what may have been had Gruden never left.
So let's look at his full record in Tampa Bay:
12-4 (Super Bowl win)
7-9
5-11
11-5
4-12
9-7
9-7
Take away the Super Bowl victory (with the team that Tony Dungy built into contenders), and you are left with two playoff appearances (and zero playoff games won) in six years.
Gruden won 51% of his games at Tampa Bay
Del Rio won 52% of his games in his three years in Oakland
But before I get to that: I am surprised to see how quickly Del Rio's demise came.
He became head coach of a team that has stunk for a decade-plus, improved from 3-13 to 7-9 in the first year with a young, inexperienced team, then took them to a 12-4 season the next year and their first playoff birth since 2002. Considering how long the Raiders have been in the gutter and suffered from instability, I thought Del Rio was here to stay for a while. Yes, a 6-10 season is not how you want to follow up a 12-4 campaign. But it happens, even to some of the best coaches in the league. After what he achieved, the disappointing record alone should not have warranted his firing.
Having said that, I know there was more that went into Del Rio's exit than this season's disappointing win-loss record. It does seem like Del Rio "lost" his players at some point this season, and it became increasingly difficult to see how he would lead this same group back of players back to contention.
Anyway, regardless of whether Del Rio should have been fired and whether or not he was a first-rate coach, here's what I don't get:
Why is everyone acting like Jon Gruden is some sort of huge upgrade?
Del Rio's 3 seasons:
7-9
12-4
6-10
Gruden's 4 seasons in Oakland:
8-8
8-8
12-4
10-6
Yes, Gruden's Raiders didn't take a huge step back at any point. And yes, the two 8-8 seasons were welcome ascents to respectability after he took over a 4-12 team (though you can say similar things about Del Rio's record). But why did two good years in Oakland make Gruden some sort of untouchable God?
Okay, yes. He won the Super Bowl against the Raiders the year after he left. That made the Super Bowl loss especially bitter for Raiders fans and left them thinking about what may have been had Gruden never left.
So let's look at his full record in Tampa Bay:
12-4 (Super Bowl win)
7-9
5-11
11-5
4-12
9-7
9-7
Take away the Super Bowl victory (with the team that Tony Dungy built into contenders), and you are left with two playoff appearances (and zero playoff games won) in six years.
Gruden won 51% of his games at Tampa Bay
Del Rio won 52% of his games in his three years in Oakland
his team dominated
