Oakland Raiders: Why Hue Jackson Is the Right Man for the Job

When Hue Jackson arrived as the Offensive Coordinator in Oakland he joined a team in transition. The Raiders were searching for a General to lay out a battle plan for them to reclaim a piece of their history lost.

In Hue Jackson the Raiders have found their General.

From the moment he arrived the Raiders offense began to take shape. He raised the expectations of how good they could be and challenged them to hold themselves accountable to those expectations.

Hue Jackson recognized that for the Raiders to begin building towards the future, they needed to realize a piece of their past that had been lost. The Raiders were historically a team that would dominate teams with a mean streak. A mean streak that earned them the reputation they seemed to distance themselves from recently.

It is true that the Raiders are one of the most penalized teams in the NFL year after year. Too many coaches allowed the players to believe this was due to the Raiders reputation, or a league wide conspiracy against the organization.

This would be an effective smoke screen to cover the lack of detail-oriented coaching necessary in the NFL. The truth of the matter is that the Raiders were a talented and undisciplined team. Hue Jackson has in short order put the team on notice that any blame for the outcome of the game resides in that locker room with the players and coaches.

Hue Jackson also understands that the Raiders will be successful when they embrace the role of the bully. When the Raiders understand that a harnessed and focused rage on the field will lead to intimidation of their opponents they will be half way there.

Jackson is also proactive about the shortcomings of this team. When penalties showed up in Week 1 he decided to bring in officials for some extra work during practice. It's not something that will be fixed overnight. It will take time to get the team to play at a high level, flying around and making plays while keeping it clean.

The Raiders' offense has begun to take on the personality of their hard-nosed coach. They have begun to push teams around on the offensive side of the football. The reasons for the progression are many.

The offensive line has played very well for what was supposed to be a patchwork group. The coaching of Bob Wylie and assistant Steve Wisniewski is obvious in the play of this unit. As a unit the offensive line has surrendered only two sacks through four games. This is something the Raider fans have long hoped for.

The same offensive line is creating holes and blocking downfield, paving the way for early MVP candidate Darren McFadden. McFadden has rushed for 468 yards and a gaudy 6.2YPC average.

I believe that the offensive line will continue to improve when young players are ready to step in and take over some key positions on the line. Right guard and tackle have held up thus far, but it's clear that the left side of the line is where the yards are made on the ground. When Bruce Campbell and Joe Barksdale are ready I believe the line will be even stronger.

Hue Jackson and Offensive Coordinator Al Saunders have analyzed the explosive playmakers on this offense and are working to find the best ways to tap into their talent on the field. The improvement by the young wide receivers has been obvious. 

Denarius Moore is playing like anything but a rookie and don't look now but Darrius Heyward-Bey is showing sings of becoming an impact wide receivers for the Raiders. Once Jacoby Ford and Louis Murphy are back and at full strength the unit will be deep with young talent. 

Questions remain about the defense. They have yet to show that they can be the physically dominating force that should accompany the offense. Lackluster play thus far against the run and pass have drawn strong criticism from many, including myself.

Hue Jackson is a straight-forward coach that let's his players know where they stand. I can't imagine film sessions with the defense being a very positive experience for them. Watching themselves be dominated in all phases of their responsibilities has to get old at some point. Jackson has promised that the lack of success stopping the run will be corrected one way or another. 

While the secondary has been handcuffed a bit by injuries and inexperience, there is no such excuse for the play of the front seven. The Raiders defense is giving up 5.9 YPC on the ground which is the worst in the league. They rank 29th in total defense for a unit that was supposed to be solid up front.

The writing is on the wall for the Raider Nation, this team is on the rise and they're rising fast. Hue Jackson has shown that he is the hard-nosed coach that the Raiders needed so that they could become the team they need to be. He will not allow the team to fail and that's what many in the Raider Nation like about this man. He is determined and unrelenting, the defense could learn a lot from him.