Oakland Raiders and Seattle Seahawks Are Peas in a Pod

The Raiders and Seahawks are opposites in every way and still old AFC West rivals in spirit, even though Seattle has been an NFC club for several years.

At this very moment, the Raiders and Seahawks are two teams in a freefall. We all know the problems with the Raiders but last season came apart at the seams for the usually stable Seahawks who tallied a mere four wins. 

In an effort to turn things around, the Raiders went old school with new coaching hires while the Seahawks went middle of the road. 

After a coaching career of highs and lows, Mike Holmgren steps away from the sidelines, leaving Seattle on questionable footing. It makes for a very difficult transition to Jim Mora Jr. 

While a likable guy and capable coach with the right history for the job, JMJ does not have the track record for this type of team repair. Bringing the Seahawks back is going to be a Herculean effort. The kind of mojo Tom Cable is also realistically unprepared to conjure up in Oakland.

There’s work to do and apparently, JMJ figures Greg Knapp has the stuff the ‘Hawks need at Offensive Coordinator. This is the same Greg Knapp who most recently tenured with four or maybe five win per season Raiders.

In his favor, when he was Offensive Coordinator with JMJ’s Falcons, Knapp did architect a league leading rushing attack. Knapp’s knowledge of the QB position should also not be underestimated. The man has a playbook and a system ready to install.

Most importantly to Greg, there is one man left standing that truly has faith in him—Jim Mora Jr.—which is why Greg is still an NFL Offensive Coordinator.

To be fair, Knapp can claim some successful Sundays and progress tutoring JaMarcus Russell. Though, it really does not amount to much to build off of since any time a team changes QB coaches and offensive coordinator, you have a different system, a different work routine and tactics on the field, a different voice in your ear.

Matt Hasselbeck does not need mentoring as much as he needs a good playbook. It is possible the Seahawks have enhanced their chances of reviving a once productive offense. Though in all probability what will need to happen is Hasselbeck having an all pro season and overachieving consistency everywhere else.

Still, this all comes down to a franchise having someone in charge who knows what they are doing. There was a time JMJ knew what he was doing but his legacy is currently hitched to Mike Vick and the Falcons marginal success on the field still in the rear view mirror.

He'll need to pull a rabbit out of the hat to get the Seahawks on track and away from that legacy of mediocrity.

So let me see if I have this correct...The Seahawks fire their defensive coordinator, John Marshall, after a lousy season. Then he suddenly finds new life in Al Davis' kingdom. Sounds like a familiar story, Al thinking he can squeeze greatness out of lemons.

John Marshall prefers zone coverage and to prove it, he has a history of getting torched early and then going to man-to-man and blitzing out of desperation when his team falls behind. His past defensive strategies tell us he plays to a system rather than builds a system around the personnel.  

Commented Mike Holmgren to Seattle media after a game this past season, "It’s a little puzzling. We haven’t generated turnovers and we haven’t seemed to get the pass rush going like we have in the past. I think we have to take a hard look at that side of the ball. And maybe changes are necessary next year."

Evidently he meant coaches as well as players.

A cynical man would describe the Raider recent coaching moves as an express train to nowhere. If this all comes to pass and Ted Tollner is added as OC it represents a safe selection. Tollner is an old school coach with a ton of experience.

USC alum are less than impressed with both Ted Tollner and Raiders QB Coach Paul Hackett with their respective reigns as Trojan Head Coach. Tollner had a decent 26-20-1 record winning a Pac10 championship in 1984 and a Rose Bowl.

But, it’s not bling for the resume which neither Hacket or Tollner have.  Let’s not forget Tollner was OC for Mooch with the Lions.  We know how that turned out.

Jets fans were not enamored with Hackett's run as OC though the Jets were a playoff team with Hackett calling plays. Ironically, Hackett and the Jets lost to the Raider twice in the post-season.

The Chiefs were a powerful team with Hackett in the booth. They made the playoffs every year, though his Chiefs teams had Marcus Allen. 

Here’s how I see the Tom Cable situation...

At some point Tom Cable decided the Raiders presented his best chance at becoming an NFL head coach. So alluring was this opportunity after Hollywood Lance Kiffin's termination that he immediately raised his hand when Al (presumably) asked the remainder of the coaching staff who would next be interested in stepping up to the chopping block.

Tom Cable maintains an excellent reputation as an offensive line coach. Prior to becoming Raiders head coach he was mentioned in the same breath as the JMJ-Knapp tandem being lined up to replace the retiring Mike Holmgren’s staff in Seattle.

NFL coaching money is pretty good, even at the assistant level to so you have to figure Cable felt the Seahawks did not represent a quality opportunity for his talents.

OR, maybe he read the writing on the wall like everyone else and was seeing the Seahawks equally as challenging to succeed as the Raiders so what’s the difference.  Al is an interesting man to work for if you can fit into that culture.

Cable is a good man who sees the good in his situation so all the power to him.  It makes for curious politics in the blogosphere.

I think that says all that needs to be said if a guy like Tom Cable prefers to bank on Al Davis rather than taking his chances in Seattle. This is a guy who would pretty much just be an O-line coach for the foreseeable future if not for Al Davis' absolute need to have a company man as HC following Lance’s departure. 

He must have tossed Tom quite a bone for things to have ended favorably this offseason. My guess is probably a seven-figure bone.

And Tom Cable knows a losing record almost assures him an exit after the '09 season but he also knows he can fall back on his O-line coaching if need be at that point.

On the other hand, who in their right mind would put the fate of their career in Al Davis’ hands? ;-)