For the first time since 2002, the Oakland Raiders are going to the playoffs. It has been over 5,000 days since the Silver and Black were blown out by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Super Bowl XXXVII, and the Raider Nation has been suffering ever since. Well, they need not suffer any more.
The Oakland Raiders Are Going to the Playoffs
The Bad
There’s no polite way to put it, the Oakland Raiders were just bad a long time. Between 2002 and 2016, the Raiders were a combined 63-145. They only won about 30% of their games over the course of 13 years. Their best seasons saw them scrape to 8-8 records, and they barely even sniffed the post-season. Now? The Oakland Raiders are going to the playoffs.
Over that span, the Oakland have had nine different head coaches. From Bill Callahan to Dennis Allen, no coach has even sniffed a winning record. Only Allen and interim-turned-full time head coach Tom Cable coached for more than two seasons, and both men lost ten more games than they won.
As bad as the coaching has been, the quarterback play has been even worse. Some were okay. Guys like Carson Palmer, Jason Campbell, and Rich Gannon tried their best. Others, like Terrelle Pryor, Matt McGloin, and Kerry Collins weren’t good, but they did the best they could. And then there was JaMarcus Russell, perhaps the worst quarterback of all time.
The Good
As you might have heard by now, the Oakland Raiders are going to the playoffs. And when you look at this 2016 version of this team, they look nothing like the ghosts of Raiders past. They’re currently 11-3, and need only win two games to lock up their first division title in over a decade. How did they get here?
Well, a lot of it has to do with head coach Jack Del Rio. While Del Rio isn’t a X’s and O’s genius like Bill Belichick or Andy Reid, he’s done something arguably more impressive. He’s made these Raiders believe they can win. He’s taught these young, hungry players that nobody can stop them from being every bit as good as they want to be. The Oakland Raiders aren’t losers anymore, and a big part of that is thanks to coach Jack Del Rio.
16 is the magic number. The Oakland Raiders started 16 quarterbacks between 2002 and the 2014 NFL draft. In the second round of the 2014 NFL draft, the Oakland Raiders selected a young man out of Fresno State by the name of Derek Carr. Fast-forward to 2016, and Derek Carr is the best young quarterback in football. Through almost three seasons, Carr is eighth in Raiders history in passing yards, and is two touchdowns away from tying Jim Plunkett for fifth in Raiders history.
The Architect
The biggest key in Oakland has been general manager Reggie McKenzie. After a rough couple of seasons, McKenzie, once a Raiders player himself, has built this team brilliantly. He’s drafted players like Carr, Khalil Mack, Gabe Jackson, Amari Cooper, and Karl Joseph to build this team around, and his free agent signings have been brilliant.
Instead of chasing expensive, high profile free agents, McKenzie built a playoff contender with quiet signings like Michael Crabtree, David Amerson, Donald Penn, and Rodney Hudson. He’s done all this, and the Oakland Raiders are still set to have $41 million dollars in cap space this off-season.
The Future
The streak is over. After almost a decade and a half, the Oakland Raiders are no longer a punchline. The Oakland Raiders are legitimately one of the best teams in the National Football League. And you know what? People should get used to it. These Raiders are young and hungry, and they’re just getting started. Today, they conquered the regular season. Maybe next week, they’ll take the division. But these small accomplishments are nothing compared to what these Raiders will do in the future.
The Oakland Raiders are Super Bowl bound. It might not be in 2016, or even 2017, but with this nucleus of talent, the NFL should get used to seeing the Silver and Black on top again. But that’s a topic for tomorrow. Today, the Raider Nation can rejoice. After over a decade of decadence, the Oakland Raiders are going to the playoffs.
LADIES AND GENTS OF THE #RAIDERNATION WE ARE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS. I REPEAT, WE ARE GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS.
— LWOS Raiders (@LWOS_Raiders) December 19, 2016
