Raiders should target these five candidates for DC opening
Technically, the Raiders still have a mathematical shot at reaching the NFL playoffs this season. They need to win twice while the Miami Dolphins and Baltimore Ravens each need to lose twice. Then it becomes a complicated web of win percentages and tiebreakers for the seventh and final AFC playoff spot.In short, if you’re a Raiders fan: Just cross your fingers, baby.Due to a defense that’s been awful all season, the Raiders are once again floundering. New city, same story. Las Vegas has gone 1-4 since beginning the year 6-3, while injuries are starting to pile up and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther was canned following a humbling Week 14 loss.There could be some major housecleaning coming for the Raiders this offseason, especially on defense. Check out five top candidates for Jon Gruden to consider when filling the defensive coordinator vacancy.
Interim coordinator/defensive line coach Rod Marinelli provides an experienced in-house candidate with a proven track record.
Marinelli’s initial audition didn’t go great, but he was working on a short week against a talented Los Angeles Chargers offense in Week 15. Ultimately, the Raiders defense needed to keep Justin Herbert and the Chargers out of the end zone for a victory but couldn’t. Cornerback Keisean Nixon got burned for a 53-yard pass in overtime to set up Herbert’s game-winning touchdown in the 30-27 heartbreaker for the Raiders.
But if the defense can put together a strong final two games against Miami and the Denver Broncos, Marinelli would make sense to keep around. The 25-year NFL vet spent 2014-19 as the Dallas Cowboys’ DC, leading the unit to a No. 11 ranking in points allowed (20.1 per game) and No. 9 ranking in yards allowed (327 per game) during his final season.
Raheem Morris probably has his eyes on another head-coaching gig this offseason.
The Atlanta Falcons went winless in five games before firing head coach Dan Quinn, and Morris has led the same group to a 4-5 record since. If Morris doesn’t do enough to impress Falcons owner Arthur Blank into giving him the full-time job next year, he’ll likely get some other interviews around the league.
Gruden hired Morris to his Tampa Bay Buccaneers staff in 2002, where Morris spent four years before heading to Kansas State for a one-season stint as defensive coordinator. Morris returned to the Bucs in 2007 as defensive backs coach and was promoted to head coach in 2009 when Gruden was fired. The 32-year-old Morris was the league’s youngest head coach when he took over, and led the franchise to a seven-game turnaround in 2010 but was fired following a 4-12 campaign in 2011.
Need recent evidence of Morris’ work? The Falcons dismantled the Raiders 43-6 in Week 12. At 44 years old, Morris still appears to have plenty of coaching in front of him.
Coach Anthony Lynn has been rumored to be on the hot seat virtually all season long for the Chargers. If Lynn and his staff are shown the door this offseason, defensive coordinator Gus Bradley could be a logical choice for Gruden.
The 54-year-old Bradley served as Gruden’s linebackers coach in Tampa Bay from 2006-08 and has spent the past four seasons in the AFC West. He raised his profile on the staff of Pete Carroll from 2010-12 before taking over as Jacksonville Jaguars head coach in 2013. Bradley was also rumored to be a candidate for Gruden’s defensive coordinator search in 2018 when he became the Raiders’ head coach.
The Chargers currently rank 26th in points allowed (27.8 per game) and 10th in yards allowed (345.1 per game) during the 2020 season. By comparison, Las Vegas ranks No. 29 in points allowed (30.1 per game) and No. 25 in yards allowed (385.4 per game).
Sources close to Wade Phillips recently threw his name into the mix, telling the Las Vegas Review-Journal he’s interested in the job. Last week, the affable Phillips stoked the flames some more, pandering to Raider Nation via Twitter.
The major roadblock here could be a difference in philosophy. Gruden has never employed a 3-4 defense, a scheme that’s been a staple for Phillips throughout his career. Coaches are often creatures of habit, but maybe it’s time for Gruden to really switch things up.
Phillips, 73, has been out of an NFL job since the Los Angeles Rams failed to renew his contract following the 2019 season. Maybe he’s just bored. But there’s no arguing with the credentials of his NFL coaching career, which began in 1976, features 28 seasons as a coordinator and nine as a head coach.
The Detroit Lions axed Matt Patricia following a Week 12 loss that sent the team to a 4-7 record. During his two-plus seasons in the Motor City, Patricia led the Lions to a 13-29-1 mark. Patricia is just the latest product of the Bill Belicheck coaching tree to falter in a head coaching role, joining others like Josh McDaniels, Jim Schwartz, Romeo Crennel and Eric Mangini.
So, what’s alluring about Patricia?
He worked his way up the New England Patriots’ totem pole from 2004-2017, earning a reputation as a coach who would put in 20-hour days. The Patriots finished in the top 10 of scoring defense each of his six seasons as defensive coordinator, which also included two Super Bowl rings.
Patricia is 46 years old so he could get another crack at a head-coaching gig down the road. For now, he looks primed to settle back into a coordinator role and could rebound with the Raiders.
