Oakland Raiders: 3 Reasons To Be Excited, 3 Reasons To Be Worried

Feb 18, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Oakland Raiders coach Jack Del Rio speaks at a press conference during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Reason To Be Excited #2 – A Coaching Staff With A Solid Track Record And Game Plan

If you watched the Raiders over the last few years when Dennis Allen was at the helm, you didn’t get the sense that there was much hope. There wasn’t much to be excited about. And there most certainly wasn’t much to cheer about. A coach who runs out to an 8-28 record in just over two seasons in charge will do that to you.

But when Allen was fired, and Tony Sparano took over – at least over the last six games of the season – you started to see some life from the Raiders. The dark clouds parted enough to see glimmers of hope hidden within. But those faint glimmers were never nurtured enough. Under Sparano, the Raiders still suffered from some of the same maladies they had under Allen. Part of it had to do with the holes on the roster, but it mostly had to do with having a coaching staff that didn’t have much of a clue or a coherent game plan.

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The hiring of Jack Del Rio though, brought an energy and fire to the Oakland fan base that hasn’t been seen in quite some time. Part of it is that Del Rio just looks the part. He looks like the kind of coach who was born to be a Raider – he’s tough as nails, has a blue collar work ethic, and no-nonsense sensibility about him that most every Raider fan can appreciate.

But more importantly, unlike Allen, Del Rio comes to the team with a solid track record as a head coach, and of having had some success in Jacksonsville – success that is all the more impressive when you consider the rosters he had.

He also comes with a coaching staff that has mountains of NFL experience, and coaches that the players can all respect – many of them former players themselves.

Del Rio already knows his players well – it was his thorough knowledge of the entire roster when he was the DC in Denver that initially impressed Mark Davis enough to hire him – knows their strengths, knows their weaknesses, and is planning on tailoring his game plan around them. Unlike Allen, who tried to shoehorn players, regardless of their skill set, into his strict, rigid game plan.

Del Rio understands the game, and the players in a way that his predecessors didn’t. And that is going to make for a nice change for Raider fans on Sundays. Rather than a team that seems lost on the field, that doesn’t make any in game adjustments, and seems to be operating without a coherent game plan, the Oakland faithful will see a team that will come out with an idea of what they want to do, that is well prepared, has a coherent game plan, and will be able to change and adapt on the fly.

Next: Reason to Be Concerned #3