Raiders head coach Jon Gruden and defensive coordinator Paul Guenther argue far more than is shown on camera. On the golf course, while carpooling to work, in team meeting rooms and, yes, even on the sidelines.
That’s where they got caught bickering like brothers during last week’s disaster against the 49ers. It didn’t portend fractures within the coaching staff.
Gruden and Guenther are together on so much, including a belief the Raiders defense has fallen country miles below expectation.
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“(The on-field arguments have) happened every Sunday, whether it’s good or bad,” Guenther said Thursday. “Again, our expectations are higher than what we are showing, and we got to get our players to get their expectations as high as ours. That’s probably going to happen 100 times again.”
Well all know the stats aren’t pretty. The Raiders are last in run defense, last in quarterback pressures – those two stats spell trouble when combined – 31st in scoring defense, 30th in takeaways.
They’re on pace to set the franchise mark with 6,514 most yards allowed in a season and an all-time NFL-high 6.8 yards per play.
That’s awful by any standard. The coach/coordinator normally takes the heat under these situations, but it’s widely recognized that Guenther doesn’t have the horses to run his defense well.
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Guenther said this winter he thought Khalil Mack would be rushing off the edge, NaVorro Bowman would man the middle and Eddie Vanderdoes (a perfect scheme fit, Guenther says) and Justin Ellis on the defensive interior.
The first guy got traded, the second never re-signed and the last two have been hurt all season but are coming back soon. Bruce Irvin’s now in Atlanta, and late signings Derrick Johnson and Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie aren’t on any roster.
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Gruden’s free-agent defensive additions haven’t panned out. Rashaan Melvin’s a surprising healthy scratch, Reggie Nelson’s past his prime and Marcus Gilchrist has underwhelmed.
What’s left isn’t quite enough to remain competitive. The Raiders plan to remake this defense, as they did before the Mack trade. That’s why five rookies are playing significant defensive snaps at midseason, a trend that’ll continue through season’s end.
“Our vision was to bring in some young guys in the draft, we did that and they’re playing,” Guenther said. “We’re going through some growing pains with the young guys. Hopefully the more and more snaps they get, the back end of the year here and going into year two we’re going to see massive improvements.”
Those guys should have help heading into Year 2. The Raiders have significant draft capital, including three first-round picks, and tons of salary cap space to add talent at vital positions, including edge rusher (they need more than one) linebacker (they need more than one) and safety (they need more than one).
The Raiders are awful now, and while there’s a big-picture plan being worked out, that doesn’t make this 2018 experience any easier. While it’s easy to chuckle when he says this is a new experience, he speaks the truth. During his four years as Cincinnati defensive coordinator, the Bengals were never worse than 17th in scoring defense and were in the top 10 twice. They were middle-of-the-pack in yards allowed, bottoming out at 22nd in 2014.
That’s still a far cry from cellar dweller, and certainly a cause for frustration this season. His patience is certainly being tested.
“Every day, because I’ve been a part of and with a lot of good defenses in the past,” Guenther said. “There are certain things and breakdowns that we’re having that we shouldn’t have, that I’m not used to seeing.
“It is a patience thing, but I’m not the most patient guy and I want to get this stuff fixed quickly. Otherwise, that’s part of the evaluation process with the guys we have now moving forward in the last eight games to see what guys we want to keep here and what guys we want to move on with.”
Some younger players will become staples. Others will not. The Raiders want to grow through the draft and free agency, with players who fit these defensive schemes.
“Obviously, we’re trying to build this thing to get it the right way,” Guenther said. “That’s going to be a moving part the rest of the year, to try and find the right fit of guys, not only for this year but moving down the road. We have a vision, Jon (Gruden) and I, of what it’s going to look like down the road. Hopefully we can just keep getting better every week. It’s certainly been a challenge.”