The Oakland Raiders today announced that the team has officially signed Jack Del Rio to a four year contract to become the 19th head coach in the 55-year history of the franchise.
“After a thorough interview and evaluation process, we are excited to announce Jack Del Rio as the head coach of the Oakland Raiders,” said Owner Mark Davis. “I have no doubt that he will make a significant impact and help reach the goal of everyone in this building, which is to win championships.”
It is Del Rio’s second head coaching job in the NFL. He went 68-71 as the head coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars from 2003 to 2011. Del Rio also served as the interim head coach in Denver in 2013 while John Fox was recovering from a heart procedure. Del Rio most recently served as the Broncos defensive coordinator for the last three seasons.
Raider’s owner Mark Davis and General Manager Reggie McKenzie met with Del Rio until late Tuesday evening, finally deciding to choose Del Rio over Interim Head Coach Tony Sparano. Several other candidates had also been considered including Mike Shanahan, Eric Mangini, Pat Shurmur, and Pep Hamilton. There are also reports that John Madden had joined Davis and McKenzie during Del Rio’s Tuesday interview.
“Jack Del Rio brings a strong leadership presence to this organization,” said General Manager Reggie McKenzie. “He has developed an excellent reputation as a coach in this league and we are happy that he is a Raider.”
A press conference is not expected to be take place before Friday. Del Rio is reportedly already busy trying to find his new offensive and defensive coordinators. The leading candidates at this point seem to be recently fired head coaches Marc Trestman and Mike Smith. Smith had previously served in the same capacity under Del Rio with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Trestman has a history with the Oakland Raiders. In 2002 he was the offensive coordinator and guided the Raiders to the top of the NFL in total offense with 389.8 yards per game and passing yards with 279.7 per game. Under Trestman’s guidance, Raiders QB Rich Gannon won the 2002 NFL MVP award. Mark Davis reportedly wanted to hire a coaching staff with more experience. He would certainly accomplish that with these three on his staff.
Del Rio’s first task will be to turn around a defense that has struggled in recent seasons. His defenses have ranked in the top six in the NFL in yards per game allowed in 10 of his 17 seasons as a position coach, coordinator or head coach. During that time, he has coached 18 players to a total of 27 Pro Bowl selections. Under Del Rio, the Jacksonville Jaguars made two playoff appearances in 2005 and 2007
Del Rio also had a successful playing career. A veteran of 11 seasons as an NFL linebacker, he was selected in the third round (68th overall) of the 1985 NFL Draft by New Orleans and went on to make the NFL’s All-Rookie Team and earn the Saints’ Rookie of the Year award.
Thank you for reading. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport and @LWOSworld – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Have you tuned into Last Word On Sports Radio? LWOS is pleased to bring you 24/7 sports radio to your PC, laptop, tablet or smartphone. What are you waiting for?
