Oakland Raiders: Jack Del Rio is the Perfect Hire

The Oakland Raiders hired their new head coach, Jack Del Rio, at the perfect time. He played a large role in rebuilding the Jacksonville Jaguars as a head coach, and he was recently the defensive coordinator of the Denver Broncos. During his time in Denver, Del Rio was the interim head coach during John Fox’s health issues. The point here is that Jack Del Rio has the right experience and mindset to coach the Oakland Raiders.

People can complain about questionable personnel moves by the Raiders all they want, but it’s a simple fact that hiring Del Rio was one of the best moves by this franchise in the last 10 years. He’s coming into his first year in the head coaching role with a fantastic array of young talent from the 2014 and 2015 NFL Drafts.

Recently, John Clayton wrote an in-depth article on Del Rio’s situation with the Raiders. Clayton shared a good bit of information about Del Rio’s new job compared to his experience with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Basically, this isn’t the first time Jack Del Rio has been put into a tough situation. He successfully lead the struggling Jaguars to good seasons, and he was obliviously very effective as the defensive coordinator for the Broncos.

In the dawn of Del Rio’s first season with the Raiders, he doesn’t look at the situation like it’s a rebuilding process. He wants to win now. Clayton quoted Jack Del Rio on this matter.

"“We are in the one-draft approach until proven otherwise,” Del Rio said. “We’re not in this thing to be patient. You know there is no reason why we can’t put in the work and expect to win now.”"

Interestingly, Clayton also said, “The Raiders could end up starting seven draft choices from 2014 and 2015 along with nine veteran free agents picked up over the past two years. If this two-year turnaround works, it will be the model of how to reconstruct a team at the bottom of the league.”

Del Rio’s style of leadership is exactly what the Oakland Raiders need. He’s a coach that doesn’t mess around, and the most talented players will be the ones on the field.

This mindset is also evident in his decision to make Derek Carr the day-one starter this season. Even though he’s only entering his second year, Carr has asserted himself as a leader and a potential star. All the work Carr has put into this offseason should make Raiders’ fans very confident that the offense will be explosive. Carr is expected to use his high athleticism from the pocket to turn the Raiders into a dynamic force.