Enthusiasm for Klint Kubiak’s first year with the Raiders is abundant, but the organization has been in this position many times and it’s fair to wonder if it’s only going to be more of the same with the newest regime in Las Vegas.
What’s different this time and why is the future of the Raiders in good hands with Kubiak and second-year GM John Spytek?
That was the question posed to Raider Nation Radio host Q Myers this week, and after watching Jon Gruden, Josh McDaniels, Antonio Pierce and Pete Carroll flame out in the last five years, it’s a question probably on the mind of most Raider fans.
But Myers said it wasn’t a difficult question to answer.
This was his answer to the listener’s question on the Locked on Raiders podcast…
“It’s the first time in a long time that this Raiders team is all on the same page. To me, that’s the most important critical aspect. I know this team is not going to go, well, I feel very comfortable saying I don’t think this team is going to win 10 games this year. I’ve been saying six wins, seven wins, you know, whatever, and judging success will be just the way that they go out and play, the way that they go out there and compete, the way that they play disciplined ball.
We’ve had these discussions already this week, but the fact that the GM hired the head coach, the head coach hired his assistants. They all share the same ideas, the same plans, the same desires, the want tos, the goals, right? They’re all the same page. Last year with Pete Carroll, he was going to win 10 games, right? That’s what he told us. All I do is win 10 games.
Chip Kelly, he was going to be the offensive coordinator and run things his way. And then Pete Carroll wanted him to run the ball, and he didn’t want to run the ball, and Pete Carroll wanted him to use certain players, and he didn’t want to use certain players, and John Spytek wanted to use certain players, and he didn’t want to use certain players. It was all over the place, right? They had a head coach and a defensive coordinator that were trying to blend their defenses together instead of him just allowing Patrick Graham to run his defense the way he wants to.
I remember talking to Eric Stokes in the locker room last year, how is this defense coming together? How do you feel you guys are picking up what they’re trying to coach? And he said, well, it’s a work in progress, you know, we’re trying to blend two different defenses and it’s not easy. Well, it should have been all on the same page. They weren’t.
But for the first time in a long time, from ownership to the GM, to the head coach, to the head coach that has a quarterback that’s joined at the hip with him, and Fernando Mendoza, who was brought in at the same time as the head coach… from the free agents that are going to be on the defensive side of the ball.
This is Robby Leonard’s show. Whether it works or not is Robby Leonard’s show, right? He’s the defensive coordinator. They got him the talent that he needs to try to build this defense in the way, in the vision that he has. Not in Klint Kubiak‘s vision. Klint Kubiak’s the general of the offense. He’s putting that together in his liking..
You’re not going to go out there and execute and it’s on him to go do that, right? You know, you had Klint Kubiak bringing in Rick Dennison. That’s his offensive line coach who’s, you know, he’s got plenty of experience. He’s got plenty of skins on the wall. He’s got the four Super Bowl rings. So to me, it was an easy answer.”
x: @raidersbeat