Jon Gruden's best player sent him clear message with 1st offseason camp - report
Raiders coach Jon Gruden has had a busy offseason, highlighted by Oakland getting rid of some of its best players, like wide receiver Michael Crabtree and punter Marquette King.
The moves were somewhat expected, as those players didn’t fit into Gruden’s vision of who he wants on his team.
But what wasn’t expected was Oakland’s best player, Khalil Mack, failing to show up for the start of voluntary workouts. He is certainly the type of player that Gruden wants around, but Mack is not happy about his contract situation and apparently seems to be holding out to prove a point.
Mack is the only player in NFL history to be named a First-Team All-Pro at two positions in the same year. The linebacker/defensive end has 40.5 sacks in four seasons and has never missed a game.
But he is also entering the fifth and final year of his rookie contract, which will pay him roughly $13.8 million this season. He is reportedly seeking an extension that would pay him around $20 million per year, making him the highest-paid linebacker or defensive end in the league.
In February, Vic Tafur of The Athletic said Mack and the Raiders were discussing a deal, and he seemed optimistic that the two sides could come to an agreement.
I am told the #Raiders have made Khalil Mack an offer, and his side is looking it over. So process of locking up star pass rusher is well underway.
— Vic Tafur (@VicTafur) February 28, 2018
The Raiders are one of five teams — along with the Colts, Giants, Titans and Lions — who began Phase 1 of offseason workouts on Monday. Only teams with new head coaches were allowed to start the workouts early.
The Cardinals and Bears also have new head coaches, but they started their voluntary workouts last week.
Even though Oakland didn’t hold these types of workouts last season under then-coach Jack Del Rio, Mack was present for the voluntary portion in late April. He even posted pictures of himself working out out with his teammates.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BTdPw4Dhz87/?hl=en&taken-by=k52mack_
NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport noted that it’s rare for Mack to not be present for any offseason activities. Thus, it’s clear that he’s sending a message to Gruden and general manager Reggie McKenzie.
This portion of offseason workouts doesn’t include any on-field work and is mainly focused on strength and conditioning.
“They’re going to spend most of the this week — three hours a day — with strength and conditioning coaches, and they’ll spend one hour with their position coaches, starting to get into the scheme,” Gruden told the East Bay Times.
“This first week is pretty much going to get them acclimating to getting stronger, getting faster, getting into the best shape they can be in and build relationships with the strength and conditioning staff,” he added.
The Raiders were in a similar situation just last year, when quarterback David Carr was looking for an extension as he entered the last year of his rookie contract.
Carr would go on to sign a 5-year deal, which, at the time, made him the highest-paid player in football.
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