Al Davis Needs to Hire a General Manager

In the NFL today there are three things that determine the outcome of a team's season: the healthy play of all starting players (especially quarterback), keeping possession of the football with the fewest turnovers possible, and getting the players to buy into your system while playing disciplined football and having management lead by example.

The Oakland Raiders have none of the above.

Their starting quarterback has the potential to be a great talent, but is not there yet. It is evident that they do not trust JaMarcus Russell enough to put the game in his hands yet. This is obvious by the yards per game and interceptions he has not thrown.

Oakland's offense has improved and is ranked 20th in the NFL, averaging 308 yards per game, which stumps even the New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Brady-less Patriots. In passing, they are ranked 28th with 153 yards per game.

Their defense is middle of the road as well, ranked 17th in the NFL, giving up 326 yards per game. The Raiders' turnover/takeaway ratio is acceptable at +1, which is tied for seventh in the AFC.

Statistically, Oakland does not give up many penalties for a lot of yards. Fifteen penalties have amounted to a total of 91 yards so far this season. That is a microscopic number when you consider the team's rival from across the bridge in San Francisco has given up 36 penalties for nearly 300 yards this season.

All these stats show that they are a middle of the road team that should be winning their fair share of football games, but they are not, have not, and will not. Why? Management is not leading by example.

Al Davis is notorious for hiring and firing some of the best coaches ever to hit the gridiron. Just look at Mike Shanahan, Super Bowl winning coach with the Denver Broncos, and Jon Gruden, Super Bowl winning coach with the Tampa Bay Bucs.

I am not saying that Lane Kiffin will fit into this group automatically because that would be just a silly presumption. I do, however, think that Kiffin will now be able to go back to the college ranks and find a decent head coaching position with a quality conference. He could land a Big Ten or another Pac-10 slot and go on to improve the program.

I just think that there may have been push back from players and other coaches because Kiffin was so young when he was hired. Kiffin, after all, is the same age as one of his former centers and only a year older than Pro Bowl punter Shane Lechler.

The age, however, has nothing to do with a coach's ability to do his job. Some people may forget that in 1969, Al Davis promoted a 32-year-old coach to the helm of the Raiders that became one of the most legendary coaches in the history of the sport and won a Super Bowl, John Madden.

One thing I have to ask, though, is what is the constant through all the years of good and bad, ups and downs? It is Al Davis. The owner has pointed the finger at everyone but himself when addressing the organization's rapid decline. He has been quoted as saying he won't retire until the Raiders win two more Super Bowls, per the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 11/20/2007.

Do you know how old Al Davis is? He was the Commissioner for the American Football League in the late '60s before the NFL-AFL merger. Since then, he has regularly been on the cutting edge of groundbreaking moves like hiring Tony Flores, the first Latino heritage head coach, or Art Shell, the second African American head coach.

That was more than 30 years ago and the game has completely changed. Fans, media, and players have all changed. Al Davis is the one constant in it all.

He says he will not retire until they win two more titles. His mother lived to be 104 so it's in his genes to do so, but for the sake of the Oakland franchise I hope he gets his wits about him and gives it up. The Raiders coaches do not need the guy from the Tales from the Crypt breathing the stink of "you're going to be gone in two years" breath down the back of their necks every waking minute of the day.

Raider Nation needs to be rescued from the death grip of Al Davis. He can still own the team, just let someone else make the decisions. Gruden, Madden, and Shanahan have turned out well. Kiffin will turn out okay. The Raiders unfortunately will not get any better until Davis hangs up his decision-making and gets a general manager.

Only three teams in the NFL employ general managers or personnel directors who are also the team's owner—the Raiders, Cowboys, and Bengals. Two out of those three are not doing so well.

I have a message for Al Davis, a quote from comedian Bill Engvall: "Here's your sign."