Tom Cable: Staying or Going?
What to do, what to do?
The Oakland Raiders are in a quite the predicament now.
The sure to be gone interim head coach, who appeared on his way out as the season wound down, just put together a two-game winning streak to end the campaign and put some uncertainty on what will happen on the sideline now that the year is over.
Does owner Al Davis retain Cable and give him an extension to continue his work with this club? Or, is he jettisoned in hopes that a new coaching staff will rejuvenate a team that has gone 24-72 since the dismantling in the Super Bowl after the 2002 season.
The team has responded with improved play as the he got comfortable on the sidelines and more importantly, the players are now letting everyone know that he is their guy.
“If (Davis) wants to ask or if he’s interested in our opinion, I’m sure any man in this locker room would vouch for (Cable),” commented running back Justin Fargas. “From just the way he’s treated us with respect and raised our expectations.”
And expectations are now a lot higher with a young quarterback with a full season under his belt and looking to make major strides in 2009.
Cable has helped simplify things for JaMarcus Russell and since the offensive line coach took over the play calling, the former no. one overall choice has gotten better.
Russell’s voice should carry a lot of weight. And on any other organization, a quarterback who is getting paid that much money and that has the burden that he has being a high draft choice and the savior of the team would be someone that the owner listens to. But the Raiders are managed differently. So how will these comments effect what will happen:
“[Cable] brought us from one direction and took us up the ladder,” quarterback Russell said. “He always told us that deep down he thought we were a good football team. By him becoming (head) coach, he guided us in a different way. He talked to us about what needed to be done, we need to make some changes and within that, I think we did.”
The Raiders must act quickly. No messing around this off-season.
If they are going to rid themselves of Cable, it must be done as soon as possible to send a message that this team is headed in a new direction and to start the process of finding a new head coach and staff while there are plenty of candidates to choose from.
If they are going to keep him, they must state that swiftly to let him purge the Lane Kiffin staff and build a coaching circle he will be comfortable with.
So far, he has proven he can take a sieve of an offensive line that appeared to have no talent and that allowed 72-sacks in 2006, and turn them into a serviceable unit.
He proved that he could take a team in turmoil and make them believe.
Part of me says let him stay and finish the job at hand.
He wants to be here and has proven to be an established commodity. Cable has turned Robert Gallery’s career around and has motivated Mario Henderson enough to the point where he looks like a starting caliber left tackle. And if he is let go, chances are, he won’t be retained just to be the offensive line coach and that could cause regression along the trenches in 2009 without their mentor.
You rarely see an interim head coach demoted back to being a unit coach. And it will take quite the money for Cable to stay as offensive line coach if the Raiders bring in another head man. If he even accepts such a situation.
So that’s the case for keeping Cable.
If he’s a goner, they risk starting all over again with a guy who will have to re-evaluate the roster, implement new schemes and start fresh again with a team that has loss at least 11-games for six straight seasons.
Continuity is needed if this organization is going to finally head in the right direction…
Sure changes are needed all over that staff. Rob Ryan has not deserved to come back among others. And that may be the start of this team changing some problematic issues on the sideline…
But at this point, retaining Cable and making him the head coach may be in the team’s best interest.
Contact Author: Victor Cotto – SB Report Columnist
