Oakland Raiders Need Star Power, Settle for Coach Dennis Allen Instead

The Oakland Raiders have decided on making Denver Broncos defensive coordinator Dennis Allen their head coach, just two weeks after new general manager Reggie McKenzie joined the team. McKenzie's first official decision was to fire Hue Jackson, preferring instead to hand-pick his team's new head coach.

Much of the speculation regarding who would take over in Oakland revolved around a number of Green Bay Packers coaches, with McKenzie having been the Packers' director of football operations since 1994.

However, the team decided to go with someone from within their own division, selecting the relatively-unknown Allen after meeting with him twice in the past 10 days.

The addition of Allen signifies yet another vestige of the Al Davis era coming to an end. Allen is the first defensively-minded head coach the Raiders have had since John Madden. Davis preferred to handle much of the defensive responsibilities himself, leaving the offense to his head coaching hires.

This hasn't been the best strategy for Oakland, especially in recent years, breaking the top-15 in yards allowed just twice and languishing in the 20s and 30s in points allowed since their 2002 Super Bowl appearance.

It won't take much improvement to make the Raiders serious contenders in the AFC West, considering the inconsistency shown by all four teams in the division in 2011. However, for the Raiders to become a true threat in the NFL, they needed to make a bolder coaching hire.

Allen is best-known for his ability to turn defenses around by increasing their sack rate and takeaway ability.

His defensive approach gives up a lot of yards, but his hallmark is to put pressure on quarterbacks and blanket receivers. This was evidenced by his time in Denver, where he increased their sacks from 23 in 2010 to 41 in 2011 and when he worked with the New Orleans Saints, when they gave up nearly 358 yards per game but were third in the league in interceptions in 2009.

In 2011, the Raiders defense was ranked 29th in both yards and points allowed, and clearly needed an upgrade at defensive coordinator. Allen would have been well-suited to take that role in Oakland, but instead McKenzie decided to give him control of the entire team.

On offense, the Raiders are in much better shape; they just need everything to come together.

Quarterback Carson Palmer is ostensibly going to be the team's starter in 2012, considering everything they gave up to snag him in trade in 2011, and he's got a glut of young, fast-receiving talent to work with. Running back Darren McFadden will likely be with the team, and healthy, next season.

It makes sense why McKenzie chose to go with a head coach who has defensive experience, but it is rather surprising he chose the relatively unknown Allen over Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers or another of the big-name coaching candidates on the market.

The Raiders didn't need to make a flashy move at head coach, certainly, but it would have given them a bit more ammunition in their quest to return to relevancy in the league.

In the end, Allen must have preferred the competitive advantage that comes from snagging a member of a divisional rival's coaching staff rather than going with a more known and celebrated name.

Perhaps Allen will one day prove to be a savvy hire, but for now it seems like a safe choice for a team never traditionally known to take a conservative approach about anything.