Jon Gruden just became the most powerful coach in the NFL - report
Apparently, Chuckie’s in charge.
We all remember when Bill Parcells left the New England Patriots, lamenting that, “If they want you to cook the dinner, at least they ought to let you shop for some of the groceries.”
Jon Gruden’s not going to have that problem in his return to Oakland — in fact, he may just own the entire supermarket.
With a reported 10 year/$100 million contract in hand, “Chuckie” is taking over control of the Oakland Raiders.
And we do mean control.
Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman reported that in a short period of time, Gruden has essentially become the head coach, general manager and CEO of the organization.
While not unexpected, this not-so-subtly renders GM Reggie McKenzie powerless, less than two years after Oakland made a return to the playoffs.
For the record, Freeman reported that McKenzie has said he’s in agreement with Gruden on all moves, but that appears to be just a formality.
According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, there was a possibility of Gruden ally Bruce Allen working with the Raiders in an executive role on the business side of the team.
But Allen, currently the president of the Redskins, told SiriusXM’s “Movin’ the Chains” on Tuesday that wasn’t going to happen.
Gruden, meanwhile, will reportedly focus on all things football: player acquisition, salary cap ramifications and of course, coaching.
Whether or not someone fills the job Allen was rumored to be in line for, Gruden will have the most control of any head coach in the NFL, save maybe for Bill Belichick.
Keep in mind that the Patriots have reached eight Super Bowls under Belichick.
The Raiders never got that far under Gruden, who won his only title with Tampa Bay — a team that Tony Dungy was responsible for putting together.
Raiders Nation had better hope that things go better this time around for the new coach/GM/CEO and everything else.
It should be an interesting ride.
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