According to sources at ESPN.com, the Oakland Raiders have chosen Tom Cable to become their full-time head coach. The team hasn’t officially announced the decision yet, but it appears like it’s a done deal.
Cable of course coached the Raiders for 12 games last season after Al Davis fired Lane Kiffin. But before those 12 games, Cable had just three years head coaching experience at the University of Idaho (in which he complied an 11-35 record), which begs the question: is he qualified to take over the mess in Oakland?
Cable coached in the collegiate ranks from 1987 to 2005, mostly as an offensive line coach and as an offensive coordinator. In 2006, he took over as the Falcons’ offensive line coach for one season and then coached the Raiders’ O-line in 2007 and six games in 2008 before taking over as interim head coach after Kiffin was fired.
In 12 games last year, the Raiders went 4-8 under Cable, with impressive victories over the Broncos, Texans and Buccaneers over that span. But the team also showed little to no effort in losses to the Falcons, Chargers and Patriots.
Possibly the main motivation behind the Cable hire was that the players seem to favor him. He has become known as a motivator, which is certainly one of the things that the Raiders need. But can he develop JaMarcus Russell? Can he help Davis build a roster via free agency and the draft? Or is he just another “yes man” that Davis can control and that’s the main reason he got the full time gig? (Remember, Kiffin was fired in Oakland largely because he wanted to do run the team his own way and that never sat well with Davis.)
The key to the Cable hire might be whom the team chooses at the coordinator positions. If Cable can find two respected coordinators to run the offense and defense, then he can do what he does best in keeping the team motivated throughout the year.
Regardless of the overall inexperience he has at the NFL level, Cable deserves a shot because he’s built a good relationship with the players and that could go a long way in Oakland. Now he just has to build a competent staff and hope that Davis doesn’t spend another offseason overspending on overrated players.
