Oakland Raiders: Lynch remaining with team anything but guaranteed

Oakland Raiders HC Jon Gruden’s recent statements would seem to indicate he’s inclined to keep running back Marshawn Lynch – however, that’s anything but guaranteed at this point.

Oakland Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie and HC Jon Gruden have some big decisions to make as they try to shape this roster. As they try to turn a team that underachieved its way to a 6-10 record last season, around and get them looking more like the 12-4 squad of just two years ago.

While most of the big decisions and heavy lifting this offseason would seem to be centered on the defensive side of the ball, there are some issues on offense that will need to be addressed as well.

And one of the biggest offensive decisions that will need to be made is the fate of Oakland’s favorite son, Marshawn Lynch.

McKenzie lured Lynch out of retirement last year, a move many of us saw for what it was – a bold PR move. With all of the slings and arrows Mark Davis and the organization was taking for the impending relocation to Las Vegas, bringing fan – and city – favorite, bringing in Lynch was a good move that generated some excitement and positive press for the club.

On the field, the results were pretty mixed. Though not much of a factor through the season’s first eleven games, and being more of a distraction than anything – including earning himself a one-game suspension – Lynch came on over the last five weeks of the season.

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He finished the year with almost 900 yards rushing – an average of 4.3 yards per carry – and seven touchdowns. After rushing for 76 yards in a week one win over Tennessee, Lynch then failed to gain more than 67 yards in any other game until he ran for 101 yards against the Giants in week thirteen.

That performance against the Giants was the start of a season-ending flourish that saw Lynch gain 434 yards on 84 carries – a healthy average of 5.2 yards per carry – over the season’s last five games.

Despite that late season surge, Lynch’s status with the team has been one of the biggest question marks of the offseason. Will they bring him back or won’t they?

From a practical perspective, if you look at Lynch’s season overall, he actually wasn’t that much more effective than Latavius Murray – the man he replaced.

In Minnesota, despite being slowed early in the year as he recovered from surgery, Murray ran for 842 yards and eight touchdowns on the year – and cost the Vikings a couple million less than it took for McKenzie to get Lynch to town.

But, that’s neither here nor there, at this point.

The question at hand is – will Lynch be returning to Oakland’s backfield in 2018? For many, his $4 million dollar cap hit, coupled with the distractions and baggage he brings with him, and the lack of solid and consistent production, the answer would likely be a resounding no.

But recent remarks by Gruden have given life to the belief that Lynch will indeed be back in the East Bay this season.

"“No. I said to him: ‘I need Marshawn Lynch. I don’t need this part-time Lynch. I need full-time Lynch.’ We need the real deal. If you’re going to put those letters on the back of your jersey, man, you’ve got to back it up, Marshawn — right? We don’t need another back, we need a feature back.”"

While it’s perhaps, easy to see how that could be construed as Gruden’s ringing endorsement of Lynch being in Oakland’s backfield next season, it really is anything but.

Gruden seems to have chosen his words carefully and has given himself plenty of wiggle room. Given Lynch’s performance last season, there is some doubt about Lynch being able to be the feature back Gruden says he needs.

And his comment about being able to back it up if he’s going to put those letters on his back would seem to indicate that Gruden doesn’t think Lynch, in fact, backed it up last season. Which means he’s very likely going to be wondering if Lynch can back it up this season.

With so much on the line, Gruden can’t afford to roll the dice and crap out – which makes Lynch’s status uncertain. At best.

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However, clarity should be coming soon. Per Lynch’s contract, he’s due a $1 million dollar bonus if he’s still on the roster just after the new league year begins – specifically, that roster bonus kicks in on March 18.

That’s likely the date (if not before) we are going to know what Gruden’s plans for Lynch – and Oakland’s backfield – will be.

It doesn’t seem likely (though stranger things have happened) that the Raiders would be willing to pay that million dollar roster bonus if they’re not intending to keep Lynch as the team’s featured back. However, if they’re going to part ways with the 31-year old, that’s going to be their chance to do it and not incur a financial hit.

We’ll likely know for sure in the next few weeks, one way or the other, whether or not Gruden believes Lynch can be – and is – the featured back he’s looking for. Or whether he’s going another route, via free agency or the Draft.

But right now, rumors and interpretations of Gruden’s comments to the contrary, Lynch’s status with the Raiders is still very much up in the air.

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