Oakland Raiders: HC Power Rankings Prove How Useless Power Rankings Are

Oakland Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio is taking this team places – yet, you wouldn’t know it judging by the latest power rankings.

More from Las Vegas Raiders News

The Oakland Raiders and weak rankings in any sort of power polling over the last decade or so have gone hand in hand. That’s what the lack of success does to a team. But with Jack Del Rio taking over the head coaching duties last season – to to mention some savvy GM work by Reggie McKenzie over the last few years, the Raiders’ star is very much on the rise. But in one of the latest power rankings put out by NFL.com, you sure wouldn’t know it.

Writers for various sports sites have had some really questionable “power rankings” come out recently. More to the point, ESPN.com writer Bill Barnwell had some really questionable “power rankings” come out, like his head scratching, logic defying ranking all of the NFL’s offensive “triplets.” In that poll, he slotted the trio of Derek Carr, Amari Cooper, and Michael Crabtree 18^th – which, given some of his other slotting, was questionable. At best.

Well, not to be outdone, NFL.com writer Eliot Harrison just put out his head coaching “power rankings.” And boy are they – something. We’re not entirely sure what yet, but they are definitely something.

Now, power ranking articles are typically worth about as a ball of lint. They’re one person’s opinion and are designed to stir up some discussion and debate during particularly slow points of the season – or offseason, as the case may be.

So, since we’re in a particularly long dry spell and have little better to talk about football-wise, we must give in to the temptation and discuss Harrison’s power rankings.

In case you hadn’t read it just yet, in Harrison’s “power rankings,” he slotted Raiders head man Jack Del Rio 19^th in the league. Despite the fact that Del Rio helped this team to seven victories last year – equaling the total of the previous two seasons combined – and clearly has this team on a very upward trajectory, Harrison still thinks Del Rio belongs in the bottom half of the league.

From Harrison’s article:

"“There are many reasons for the Raiders to be a chic pick in the AFC West. Press people for the why, and you’ll hear Jack Del Rio’s name after 36 other reasons. That’s unfortunate, as Del Rio seems to have struck the right chord with his young team. The offense is trending toward explosive with Derek Carr at the helm, so Del Rio’s discipline on the defensive side of the ball should be advantageous for this Oakland club. By the way, Del Rio authored a few solid campaigns in Jacksonville, including playoff runs in 2005 and ’07.”"

So, he has some good things to say about Del Rio, but doesn’t quite think highly enough of him to give him a ton of credit for the job he’s done in Oakland to this point. If a sub-.500 record is what Harrison is using to justify what many perceive to be a slight, okay fine. Fair enough.

More from Golden Gate Sports

However – where Harrison and his logic fail is in who he slotted above Del Rio. Really, he has Bill Belichick slotted ahead of Del Rio? What is he thinking?

Okay, we’re joking about that. Just a little levity for the long, hot days of summer.

Who he does have slotted ahead of Del Rio though, is somewhat vexing. Immediately ahead of Del Rio, in the 18^th spot on the list is Los Angeles Rams head man Jeff Fisher. If win-loss record is one of Harrison’s data points when formulating the power rankings, Fisher should be lower on this list. Much lower.

Since taking over the Rams in 2012, he hasn’t posted a single winning season. Not one. And if you go back and factor in his job in Tennessee, his last winning season was in 2008. Even more to the point, in Fisher’s head coaching career – which dates all the way back to 1994, Fisher has posted just six winning season. Six!

So how in the world, with a track record as poor as that – six winning seasons in the last 22 years, and very likely to finish with a losing record again this year – can Fisher be slotted head of Del Rio?

Ditto that for Denver Broncos head man Gary Kubiak – who is slotted way, way higher than Del Rio. Kubiak had the good fortune to inherit a team filled by John Fox – and a dominating defense that was in part, crafted by Del Rio himself.

How can Kubiak – who has just four winning seasons in nine years as a head coach – be considered that much more superior to Del Rio who has about the same track record. In fact, how can Kubiak be considered superior to a lot of head coaches who have better career numbers, but didn’t have the good fortune to fall into such a plush, cushy job like he did?

Harrison’s list is full of contradictions, questionable calls, and flat out head scratchers. It’s a ranking that makes little sense. This is not to say that Del Rio has earned the right to be anywhere near top of the list – yet. He has a way to go, but has the team trending in the right direction.

This is to say though, that by default, he should be pegged a few slots higher only by virtue of the fact that Harrison has put some guys – Kubiak, Jason Garrett, and Jeff Fisher, among others – way higher than they should be, given their personal track records.

Next: Five Under the Radar X-Factors This Season

It’s a fun point of discussion to be sure. And it can lead to some very interesting conversations and debates. But Harrison’s power rankings only go to prove that they’re pretty much worthless for anything more than picking an argument with friends, family, and fans of other teams. But hey, that can be fun too.

Home/Las Vegas Raiders News