Oakland Raiders Must Clean House, Rebuild Completely to Return to AFC Elite

"We suck."

Over the course of their long (and mostly storied) history, the Oakland Raiders have proudly trumpeted several catchphrases: Pride and poise. Commitment to excellence. Just win, baby.

And now, thanks to their hideous effort to begin the 2014 season, a new expression has vaulted into the Raiders lexicon.

"We suck."

Forget about pride. Don't you dare mention poise. Commitment to excellence? That's good for a laugh. Just win, baby? How about, "Just be competitive, baby?"

Those initial three slogans, brainchilds of the late, great Al Davis, are no longer applicable. These Raiders—the outfit that has disgraced Oakland and fans across the country since their ill-fated appearance in Super Bowl XXXVII—are now embodied by two simple words.

"We suck."

That quote comes courtesy of the verbal stylings of veteran safety Charles Woodson, per Scott Bair of CSNBayArea.com, who issued the proclamation in the wake of the team's 30-14 drubbing at the hands of the Houston Texans this past Sunday. Given Woodson's status as a future Hall of Famer, his words speak volumes.

Sunday's loss dropped coach Dennis Allen's record to 8-26 in two-plus years with the organization. General manager Reggie McKenzie, the man that hired Allen, has also presided over the slop.

Enough is enough. It's time for a change.

For the Raiders to once again return to the AFC's elite, owner Mark Davis—Al's son—must clean house and rebuild completely.

That means closing time should be drawing near for Allen and McKenzie, the latest ringmasters of the Silver and Black circus.

Reggie McKenzie Hasn't Done Enough To Earn the Benefit of the Doubt

When McKenzie was hired as general manager of the Raiders back in January, 2012, the move was hailed as an important one. It appeared that the Raiders were finally evolving into a stable organization, dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century like a petulant child to the dentist's office.

Fast forward nearly three calendar years later, and nothing has changed. The franchise is still a joke and appears well on its way toward "earning" the No. 1 overall pick in next May's draft.

And that has to ultimately fall at the feet of McKenzie.

Paul Sakuma/Associated Press

You can bring up the mess inherited by McKenzie, and you wouldn't be wrong. It's true that McKenzie had to navigate the Raiders out of the throes of salary-cap hell, which was essentially the perfect storm of economic incompetence. For his first two years on the job, McKenzie was asked to play Texas Hold 'em with the rest of the league—only he only possessed three cards while everyone else had five.

But with that said, McKenzie has still failed at his two most important jobs: Hiring the right coach and acquiring talented young players.

McKenzie whiffed badly in his first two drafts, especially in 2013, when he selected cornerback D.J. Hayden with the 12th overall pick (after trading down from third overall). Hayden came into the draft process with major medical red flags, yet McKenzie still drafted him with the 12th overall pick. 

Hayden has only played eight games as a Raider and is currently on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, meaning he won't be eligible to return to the lineup until the club's seventh game.

Other McKenzie draft "gems" include 2013 second-round tackle Menelik Watson (firmly tethered to the bench) and 2013 fourth-round quarterback Tyler Wilson, who didn't even make the team last season.

To be fair to McKenzie, his haul from this year's draft—headlined by linebacker Khalil Mack, quarterback Derek Carr and guard Gabe Jackson—has a chance to be special. But it's too little, too late to save his job.

This past offseason, after two years of spendthrift ways that would have made Ebenezer Scrooge jealous, McKenzie finally had a sizable financial war chest at his disposal. 

But instead of bringing back the team's two finest young players—left tackle Jared Veldheer and defensive end Lamarr Houston—McKenzie let both men walk and filled their spots with inferior talent.

He then spent wildly in an effort to upgrade the 53-man roster, and while there's no question that this year's team—on paper, at least—is better, the results haven't translated onto the field.

McKenzie's worst personnel moment might have been his ill-fated attempted signing of current St. Louis Rams guard Rodger Saffold. Saffold was a significant injury risk, yet McKenzie all but fell over himself in a haste to lavish him with greenbacks, all before the Raiders failed Saffold on his physical, allowing him to re-sign with the Rams.

There is a Grand Canyon-sized dearth of talent on Oakland's roster, and it's no longer en vogue (or accurate) to blame Al Davis or former coach Hue Jackson.

But despite all the personnel failings, the biggest strike against McKenzie is the coach he hired to resurrect the franchise: Allen.

There's simply no way that McKenzie should be allowed to preside over another offseason or hire a new coach. He must be jettisoned at the conclusion of the season, along with the coach he brought in.

Dennis Allen Must Go

In his first two seasons as Raiders coach, Allen accrued back-to-back 4-12 records.

In the first two games of the 2014 season, the Raiders have been outscored 49-28, and turned in a dismal performance in the home opener in front of a jaded fanbase.

Allen's tenure as Raiders coach is rapidly drawing to an end, and with good reason: His employment is no longer tenable.

He must go.

Earlier this week, ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported (h/t Evan Silva of Rotoworld.com) that there is already talk around the league that Allen's job is in jeopardy. 

It comes not a moment too soon.

Allen, a supposed "defensive guru," is currently presiding over the NFL's worst run defense, as the Raiders have allowed a preposterous 400 rushing yards through two games. And this is with what is by far Allen's best roster in his two-plus years on the job.

The team appears lifeless, matching the sideline demeanor of their downtrodden and near-comatose general. Allen is so devoid of emotion that he makes former Raiders coach Art Shell seem like Jon Gruden by comparison.

Once again, consider Woodson's words in the wake of the team's loss this past Sunday: "We suck." Has there ever been a stronger indictment against a head coach?

It's clear that Allen doesn't have the chops to get the job done. His players aren't confident. His defenses haven't been good enough.

And most importantly: Woodson is right.

The End Draws Nigh 

Consider this quote from Raiders owner Mark Davis, delivered last February to Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle, speaking about his expectations for the 2014 season:

"

It's not put-up-or-shut-up, but there are no excuses. All right? When I said there was a deconstruction and a reconstruction period, that was to give an idea of what's actually been happening, but it's no excuse… Losing those last games last year was not good. And the way we lost them was terrible. But ... looking at the whole thing, this is where we are, and these guys have an opportunity to show what they can do. There are no built-in excuses anymore.

"

If there are no more excuses, then McKenzie and Allen aren't long for the Bay Area. 

Unfortunately, firing McKenzie and Allen isn't going to solve the team's problems. The Raiders play in the ultra-tough AFC West, which sent three teams to the playoffs last year. The roster is old, and the talent isn't great.

McKenzie can no longer be trusted to sign the right players or hire the right coach. Allen can't be trusted to lead the team out of the decade-long malaise its been mired in.

It's time for Davis to do what his daddy would have probably done at the conclusion of last year: Fire everyone and rebuild completely.

If that decisive action isn't taken, commitment to excellence will be a thing of the past, and will be replaced by the new Raiders mantra.

"We suck."